Noelvi Marte Expected to See Time at New Position for Reds in Spring Training

After moving from third base to the outfield midway through last season, Noelvi Marte is expected to see some time in center field this spring, according to Charlie Goldsmith.

Marte is very athletic, and the Reds think he has a chance to be an above-average defensive outfielder. We saw glimpses of that at times last season, whether it was showing off his arm throwing runners out at the plate, or his season-saving catch he made at the wall against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Nick Krall was asked about Marte getting reps in center earlier this offseason on the Reds Hot Stove.

“I think, he’s obviously a top-of-the-line runner. So, as a game changer, and I don’t want to discount TJ (Friedl) either, not at all. I think you’re going to see some of these guys go and say, okay, well, what’s the best you know who can who can do this? Who can’t do this? And you know, when you look at Marte, he played two months in the big leagues, well two months in his career in right field, and they were in the big leagues after basically taking some shagging some balls for a while.”

Friedl is the team’s center fielder. Dane Myers will also most likely see a good amount of playing time there. However, the Reds feel Marte could be the future at that position and want to see him continue to work on it.

“You’re going to see in spring, Noelvi play right and some center,” Francona told MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon. “Just because he worked out there this winter and he really liked it. We all think physically, he can do it. TJ is our center fielder. We’re also going to move him to left on some days just in case.”

Defensive flexibility is a good thing. It’ll be interesting to see how Marte looks in center field this spring.

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Noelvi Marte Expected to See Time at New Position for Reds in Spring Training

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