Marlins’ Brian Anderson producing in fifth spot of lineup. Plus, a COVID-19 update
Maybe it’s just the natural progress the Miami Marlins hoped to see as he entered his third full season. Maybe it’s the extra help throughout the lineup. Maybe it’s the comfort of knowing where he’s batting in the lineup and where he’s playing in the field every day.
Regardless of the reasons, third baseman Brian Anderson has shown increased production at the plate through the early part of this shortened 2020 season that has put him among MLB’s best.
The proof:
Heading into Wednesday’s series finale against the Toronto Blue Jays, Anderson’s .419 on-base percentage leads all starting third basemen and ranks 15th overall in the league. His 1.030 OPS (on-base plus slugging) trails only the Washington Nationals’ Asdrubal Cabrera (1.054) among third basemen.
Anderson also leads Marlins’ regulars in batting average (.306), RBI (10) and walks (six), while his 11 hits in 11 games are tied with first baseman Jesus Aguilar for the team lead. Anderson and Francisco Cervelli are tied for second on the team with three home runs behind Aguilar’s four.
Marlins manager Don Mattingly has kept Anderson in the No. 5 spot of the lineup every game so far this season after originally toying with Anderson batting second during spring training. Hitting behind the likes of newcomers Jonathan Villar, Aguilar and Corey Dickerson has taken some of the pressure off Anderson compared to last year, when Anderson at times was the team’s only consistent offensive threat.
“I think what we’ve tried to do is leave him alone,” Mattingly said. “We talked about moving him back and forth with lefties and righties, but we’ve tried to leave him in that area. Some days, he may slide to fourth, but for right now, he seems comfortable. It’s a good RBI spot. He’s going to come up with men on base. We feel like it’s been a good spot for him. We just want to be consistent with him.”
COVID-19 update
Without naming specific players, Mattingly said Wednesday that some of the team’s 18 players who tested positive for COVID-19 have begun taking the next steps toward getting back to the field.
When they will actually make it back to the lineup is still uncertain.
Mattingly said “a number of guys” have applied to MLB’s Joint COVID-19 Health & Safety Committee for reinstatement to the team, which is one of the steps the league’s operations manual has in place for players returning to the field following a positive COVID-19 test.
“What that process is like and how long that process takes, I’m not sure,” Mattingly said.
The group of players that tested positive have been quarantining in South Florida for a week and a half now. Mattingly said the group is asymptomatic and that “they feel like they’re ready to go” in terms of getting back to the field and practicing. The anticipation would be that players would go to Jupiter first to get practice reps in before returning to the active roster.
Lopez to start Marlins’ home opener
Pablo Lopez, the de facto ace of the Marlins’ makeshift starting rotation hit hard by the team’s COVID-19 outbreak, is scheduled to start Miami’s home opener against the Atlanta Braves on Friday at Marlins Park.
The Marlins will have played just two games between Lopez’s last start on Sunday and the home opener Friday. However, a pair of off days on Monday and Thursday that surrounded their two-game set against the Blue Jays in Buffalo will have Lopez on his normal schedule of four days rest between starts.
Lopez quickly became the Marlins’ active starter with the most big-league experience after Sandy Alcantara, Caleb Smith and Jose Urena all went on the injured list following the team’s coronavirus outbreak in Philadelphia. In two starts, Lopez has given up three runs (two earned) over 10 innings. He has 11 strikeouts against four walks and has held opponents to a .184 batting average.
The rest of the Marlins’ rotation for the series against the Braves is to be determined.
DH tracker
Dickerson is the sixth player the Marlins have used in the designated hitter spot through 12 games this year. Aguilar (four games), Villar (three), Logan Forsythe (two), Garrett Cooper (one) and Matt Joyce (one) are the others.
