Marlins Moving Jazz Chisholm to Center Field
Well, the Marlins finally went out and shipped away a starting pitcher to bring in some more offense. Earlier today they shipped Pablo Lopez to Minnesota in exchange for Luis Arraez. And while the addition of Arraez is sure to give this offense a boost. It creates a bit of a dilemma for this Marlins infield, specifically Jazz Chisholm. And the way the Marlins plan to deal with this is certainly a bit unorthodox.
Following the trade, Marlins manager Kim Ng said that Arraez would be taking over as the everyday second baseman. Former second baseman and young phenom Jazz Chisholm would be moving to center field.
Now, this move does kind of address the need the Marlins had at center field prior to the trade. But I can’t be quite certain that the move will pay the dividends the Marlins think it will. Chisholm has never played a position aside from in the infield during his career and it is surely going to take him time to learn the ins and outs of being an outfielder.
It’s a whole new game in terms of reading angles, tracking balls, and making throws, and isn’t a change that comes easy to many. We saw Fernando Tatis Jr struggle in center field as he got adjusted to the position and I expect Jazz Chisholm to go through the same growing pains.
He will have the entirety of spring training to get adjusted to the position and playing in the outfield. Chisholm has the tools to be a great center fielder, he has elite speed and has been graded as having an above-average arm. He also clearly has an effective bat posting a modest slash line of .254/.325/.535 before suffering a season-ending back fracture.
I wouldn’t really be surprised if Jazz Chisholm ends up excelling as a center fielder. He is still very young and has plenty of time to become adjusted to the position. It’s impossible to know for sure how Chisholm will do in the outfield seeing as he has no experience. But in all, I must say I’m not the biggest fan of the decision.
It’s not because I don’t think Luis Arraez is a good player. He most certainly is and is one of the best pure-contact hitters in the league. I just feel that if you were trying to improve your offense, you didn’t need to make a move that forces you to move one of your brightest offensive prospects to a position completely foreign to him.
When coming up in the league you want a sense of familiarity and being suddenly moved to an entirely new position is sure to have its effects. I love Jazz and he is one of the most exciting young players in the league.
The future certainly looks bright for Jazz Chisholm. I just hope that this decision isn’t one that derails the career of a kid with so much potential. The Marlins have been a joke of a franchise for the better part of a decade now. But maybe this is the big brain move they need to kickstart this rebuild. I guess only time will tell.
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