With spring training concluding, Treasure Valley Sports has received information about the final 27-man roster and Opening Day lineup for the Boise Spuds. The following report includes opinions and analysis from Will Bigby, lead baseball correspondent for TVS.OPENING DAY LINEUP
RF Félix Román
CF Dennis French
1B Yunosuke Terada
DH Norris Rutledge
LF Pedro Holguín
3B Rob Thomas
SS Motonobu Yamashita
2B Ramón Vela
C José Rivera
Manager Barrett Callahan saw enough in spring to pencil in rookie Román into the lead-off spot against right-handers...the 20-year-old could struggle in the early going against some of the league's best lefties, so Callahan plans to slide Román down in the order into the five-hole versus southpaws...all-world French finds himself batting second, similar to last season...while he won't have a true on-base machine in front of him like he did last year with Alfredo Salazar atop the lineup, French should enjoy hitting behind his protégé Román...French will hit in the #3 spot against lefties...Terada is primed to have a huge bounce-back season and adds a dangerous bat to protect French...versus lefties, Terada's fantastic eye will serve him well in the two-hole ahead of French...newly acquired Rutledge was brought in to do one thing: mash righties and batting clean-up, and a newly created platoon role at DH will allow him that opportunity...a favorite of Boise general manager Joe Lederer, Holguin not only made the roster but will platoon in left thanks to his track record of excellent on-base skills...Thomas, much like Rutledge, is new to the Spuds this season and will be asked to do most of his damage against right-handed pitching...Yamashita is the second rookie to make the starting line-up and will bat 7th most days but against southpaws, he'll be asked to put his impressive contact skills to the test atop the line-up...hopes are Vela stays healthy and repeats, if not improves on, his 2039 season...with several platoon players hitting ahead of him, Vela could have plenty of RBI chances despite batting 8th...due to a pre-season injury to Hank Brewer, Rivera survived roster cuts and will start the season behind the plate and batting 9th...the offense-first backstop will need to come out of the gate hot, otherwise his spot on the active roster could be in risk once Brewer returns in a week or two
BENCH
C Ignacio Marrero
1B Carlos Muñóz
INF Norm Smith
INF Pedro Nava
3B António Baca
LF/RF Pedro Díaz
Marrero is on the 27-man roster purely for his defense...with Brewer on the IL and Rivera a sub-par defender, Marrero will see plenty of late-inning action in the first few weeks of the season...Muñóz will be the starting clean-up hitter against left-handers and provide a right-handed bat off the bench on days when a righty starter is on the mound...once Joaquín Torres was traded to Chicago for Rutledge, it opened the door for Smith, who was battling Torres for a bench spot as defensive infield specialist and pinch-runner...Smith was likely over-extended last year as a starter and the club hopes he finds better results as a reserve...Nava is best at third base but can play every position on the infield in an emergency...despite having several third basemen on the active roster and coming off a horrid spring training, the team captain will be asked to take a leadership role in the clubhouse while filling in when starters need a rest...Baca will be under the microscope from Day One after posting one of the worst offensive showings in the entire league last season...Baca will start the year batting 7th and playing third base against left-handed starters, allowing Thomas to come off the bench in a pinch...any signs of a struggle at the plate could result in Baca being released by Boise...on days in which the Spuds face a lefty, Holguin will move to the bench and Díaz will play left field and hit in the #6 spot...last year Díaz had an OPS of .880 against lefties
ROTATION
RHP Pancho Germán
RHP Celio Marin
LHP Francisco Barrera
RHP Robbie van Mierlo
RHP Francisco Ruíz
Germán is the only returning starting pitcher from last year's opening day squad...after a break-out season, Germán becomes the Spuds' de facto ace...Marin was traded for during the winter to add veteran stability to a questionable rotation...Barrera is the lone left-handed starter in the rotation and while he has limited upside, he posted over 1.0 WAR for four straight seasons before last year's disappointment...van Mierlo entered the year on the roster bubble but after a strong spring (1.57 ERA in six starts), Callahan is willing to give the 27-year-old a chance to impress...Ruíz appeared in 22 games last year for Boise, including three starts...the three-time All-Star has seen his career derail the last two seasons, so this could be the veteran's last chance as a starter
BULLPEN
LHP Marko Efremov
RHP Marcos Sánchez
RHP Bailey Attoehow
LHP Bill Pidduck
LHP Dave Walsh
RHP Naomichi Harada
RHP Tom Warren
Efremov will be asked once again to fulfill the dual-role of LOOGY and middle relief...Sánchez posted the best K% and BB% of his career but due to suffering from gopheritis, had a career-worst ERA...the Boise front office is willing to roll the dice and hope for a bounce back year from Sánchez, as he will see most of his innings in low-leverage or mop-up duty...Attoehow was signed to a minor league deal in late February and it's looking like a bargain...all Attoehow did this spring was go 1-0 with three saves, a 2.74 ERA and 0.91 WHIP, plus a 7.0 K/BB ratio, all while leading the team in innings pitched out of the bullpen...Callahan and Lederer have collaborated together with an idea to start the year with the dreaded "closer by committee"...Pidduck, Walsh, Harada and Warren will all be designated as late-inning stoppers, with Walsh and Warren asked to come in as early as the 7th innning, while Pidduck and Harada will see action starting in the 8th...Harada, a rookie, could see the bulk of save opportunities after a fantastic season in Triple-A, which continued into the spring, where he pitched 15 innings without allowing a run...after spending time between the rotation and bullpen in 2039, Walsh may also be asked to also serve as Boise's second lefty specialist
