Will Omaha give Yong another season at shortstop?(42.04)

[niles08]

As fans begin to pencil in their off-season fantasy lineups for their favorite club, many in Omaha aren’t sure who to pencil in at shortstop. This uncertainty is a regular occurrence in Omaha as they have had the same regular shortstop in just 2 of the past 11 seasons. That regular was Jake Williams, who was a big disappointment to many having compiled a -1.8 career WAR in 303 games so far in his career.

So who is the shortstop in Omaha for 2041?

The team acquired Tu-Fu Yong in 2040 from Nashville and he performed okay, but not spectacular. By okay, he was -1.6 ZR in 60 games. He shifted to 2B in 2041 for 75 games where he was a plus defender but also played Short for 78 games, coming in under the mark of average with a -4.2 ZR. Yong still did okay at the plate however, hitting a combined 68 home runs over those two seasons along with scoring 168 runs and batting in 165. He also stole 37 bases. However, the team seems unwilling to send him back out there to cover the gap between the 2nd and 3rd base or at least they haven’t committed to it yet. With James Monger covering 2nd base, and unlikely to shift again to shortstop, it seems that the team may be correct to move Yong. He is signed to a contract that pays him $11.5 million a year for the next 2 before a team would decide If he was worth $11.5 million in 2044.

What other options does Omaha have?

James Monger. We mentioned Monger briefly but Monger isn’t any better than Yong at shortstop and is a solid second baseman. He played shortstop in 2041 while Yong shifted to second, and his result was a -5.8 ZR in 61 games.

Emilio Morales? He has the fielding ability to handle shortstop, well at least he might have had the club allowed him to spend time there over the past decade. Now that he is 31, it’s a lost cause. Morales will need to be at 3rd or 2nd, where he is still very reliable.

Jose Montano. This is probably one of the more likely scenarios. Montano was acquired last season for Justin Jackson at the trade deadline and is a likely candidate to find playing time from the shortstop position after showcasing his impressive defense throughout the minors and spending some time in September on the BBA roster.

Jake Williams? I mean Williams is still on the club and is the brother of GM Justin Niles. Williams has underwhelmed through his first 4 seasons and at age 25 maybe more of a utility player now.

That’s it. There is nobody else, unless the club is willing to dive into free agency where quite frankly, there also is not a whole lot of great options. The club is looking at having upwards of potentially $40 million in cap space, however that money is probably better suited for a starting pitcher than an average shortstop.

[HoosierVic]

Wareham will be on the free agent market … .390 .OBP with a fielding percentage to match!