Infield abilities:
Hector Gomez, Luis Sardinas getting a turn at second, third base.
Tempe, Ariz. — The Brewers know Hector Gomez can play shortstop. And they know Luis Sardinas can play shortstop.
Because Jean Segura is slated to be the starting shortstop, however, manager Ron
Roenicke and his staff want to see how Gomez and Sardinas look at other positions this spring. With that in mind, Gomez has been getting work at second base and Sardinas at third base.
“The guys that we know are really good defensively at short, we want to see what else they can do,” Roenicke said. “If they’ve got a chance to make our team, then we need to see them at other positions.
“Hector, I don’t need to see at short. I don’t need to see him at third that much, either, but he’ll play some there. (Sardinas) is really good at short; he’s played a lot of second. He needs to play some third.”
The competition for the two utility infield spots will be interesting, if it truly is a competition. Gomez is out of minor-league options, as is
Luis Jimenez, who has a good shot at being the backup at third base and first base, a key spot on the roster.
But the Brewers also are interested in Sardinas, who is only 21 and played in 43 games last season with Texas. If he shows he can play third base and Jimenez falters, it might open a spot on the roster for him. Shortstop prospect Yadiel
Rivera, in his first big-league camp and not in the current picture for the big-league roster, has a reputation as a slick fielder, and Roenicke plans to give him some action as well.
“I know our minor-league guys have seen him and say he has done well, but I still need to see him play some short,” Roenicke said. “We’re pretty fortunate because we really have four guys that can play (shortstop) right now.
“He does really well in drills. You can tell when a guy has good hands or not. One round of taking ground balls, you know.”
Typical Lohse: Veteran right-hander Kyle Lohse is known for being economical with his pitches and that held true in his first spring outing against the Angels. Lohse was scheduled to go two innings but threw only 18 pitches over that span and was allowed to go out for the third.
After a double by C.J. Cron and a strikeout of Chris Iannetta, Lohse was done at 30 pitches.
“I felt really good,” said Lohse, who allowed the one hit and was later charged with a run to go with no walks and three strikeouts. “It was kind of a continuation
of what I’ve been doing with my bullpens and live BPs. I was doing what I normally do — try to get ahead of guys and hit my spots, and mix it up.
“I’m just trying to get back in that groove right now, remember the little things you do between pitches, try to get my mind right. . . . Once we get going, I’ll worry more about refining my stuff.”
As for coming out for the third inning, Lohse said, “I kind of needed to get a little more work in against hitters rather than go down and finish up in the bullpen. It kind of worked out good to throw out of the stretch a little bit, too. I was still making quality pitches.”
First base options: Adam
Lind didn’t start at first base against the Angels, but it wasn’t because a left-handed pitcher ( Hector Santiago) started. Roenicke isn’t worried about right-lefty matchups at this early stage of exhibition action and does plan to give the left-handed-hitting Lind at-bats vs. lefties.
“I’m going to look at it,” Roenicke said. “The problem now is, especially for the first five games, it’s usually just two innings (for the opposing pitcher), so it’s only one atbat. Later on, I’ll worry about that more.”
Matt Clark, who played in 16 games for the Brewers late last season, got the start at first base against the Angels. Roenicke plans to get Jimenez and Jason Rogers time there as well during exhibition play.
“I just found out that (outfielder) Shane Peterson has played there some, too,” Roenicke said. “We’ve got a nice amount of guys that can do it.”