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The move comes after the team lost Roberto Viramontas to injury, and after watching Blaine Tyler and Sean MaGuire attempt to fill that hole.
Thum (24) is a Zimmer Award-winning third baseman, but played shortstop for a season before Luis Pena took over at that position—and, in fact, played shortstop for a week earlier in the season when Pena had to sit out. While he hasn’t had to deal with the pivot before, the general expectation is that Thum’s raw athleticism and instinct should serve him well in the role. It is of note, however, that with four weeks left in the season there’s little room for error—so to speak. The Nine are struggling to catch the Sluggers in the Heartland race, and even one extra loss due to error could be devastating to that result.
“We expect we’ll be in the playoffs either way,” Brewington said, suggesting that perhaps the team has looked itself in the mirror and seen the truth of the matter. “So it will be good to know what cards we have going into that.”
Comments floating around the clubhouse say that Thum’s time at second will be spare at the beginning will mostly focus on getting him comfortable with the feeling of being on that side of the diamond. His starts will likely be made behind pitchers who are not heavy ground ballers. If things go well he might see more action the following week, otherwise he’d return to third.
If successful, the move would put Tyler and MaGuire at third, which is a more natural role for them.
“The more I thought about it, the more it made sense to give it a trial,” Brewington said.
The team faces Valencia over the next three days before traveling to Long Beach and Twin Cities. Any stumble will see the team fall out of contention for the Heartland pennant.
