Dietrich could fit in as new leadoff hitter
Loss of Gordon in trade opens spot at top of batting order.
PORT ST. LUCIE — Dee Gordon was locked into the leadoff spot in the Marlins’ lineup for the better part of the past three seasons. But with the former National League batting champion, two-time All-Star and three-time stolen base champion wearing a Seattle Mariners uniform these days, who takes his place on a consistent basis is one of the many questions the Marlins will need to figure out over the next month of spring training.
Gordon, traded to the Mariners for three prospects, left some big shoes to fill. The career .296 hitter with a .326 on-base percentage in the leadoff spot recorded 193 of his 201 hits last season batting first. Gordon also hit .346 in at-bats to lead off a game last season with a .387 on-base percentage.
Marlins manager Don Mattingly said it’s too early to make a decision on who will top the lineup on opening day, but “one guy that we’ve liked in the past is Derek (Dietrich),” Mattingly said. “He’s been a guy who gets on base, has good on-base percentage. But we have so many spots open we don’t know exactly where we’re going ... and Derek could be a guy we need to be a run producer instead of a guy we need to get on base.”
Dietrich, a lefty, has hit .276 in the leadoff spot in 105 career at-bats with a .405 on-base percentage, three home runs and 17 walks. Dietrich led off in only six games last season and went 5 of 19 with three walks, six strikeouts, a home run and a double. He’s also frequently reached base by being hit by pitches (72 times in five seasons).
Dietrich, who led off Sunday and homered in the fifth inning against the Mets, is projected to be the starting left fielder after spending most of his first five seasons in the majors as an infielder. Dietrich has played left field in 57 of his 459 major-league games.
“I’ve always had good success getting on base,” Dietrich said. “If you look at it, it’s really only leading off once in the game. I don’t mind seeing pitches, hitting with two strikes so no matter what role it is, I’m willing to take it on.”
J.T. Realmuto — measured by Statcast last year as baseball’s fastest catcher, covering 28.7 feet per second in a one-second window — has hit .359 with a .390 OBP in 128 career at-bats as a leadoff hitter. But the Marlins are likely to need his bat further down in the lineup with prolific hitters Giancarlo Stanton, Marcell Ozuna and Christian Yelich gone.
Braxton Lee and Magneuris Sierra both have experience batting first in the minors, but are still competing for a spot on the majorleague roster.