The Cleveland Indians are apparently considering utilizing Carlos Santana in the outfield as he prefers to be in the field.
Ensuring that a player is happy is definitely an important aspect of managing a baseball team. Carlos Santana is apparently not a fan of being a designated hitter. Santana prefers to play in the field and that presents the Tribe with a problem. With the acquisition of Jake Bauers and an unsettled outfield this presents a problem. That is where the conversation about Santana seeing time in the outfield comes from.
Obviously at some points throughout the season Carlos Santana will occupy the DH role, it is just going to happen. Santana has done so many times throughout his career. In fact about one-fifth of his appearances have been at the DH position. The overwhelming majority of his time has been spent at first base, followed by catcher, third base and lastly the outfield. Santana has eight regular season appearances in the outfield.
While Carlos Santana is an excellent athlete, it is better to keep his a player of his age (he turns 33 in April) at first base or as a designated hitter. While Santana may make some appearances in the outfield this season (most likely against National League teams on the road), it is not necessarily the best option.
Cleveland has other options in the outfield they can turn to
As mentioned above the Indians outfield situation is a bit unsettled. In fact it is a mess. The group of Leonys Martin, Tyler Naquin, Matt Joyce, Greg Allen and Jordan Luplow does not necessarily strike fear into the hearts of their opponents. It is understandable to want to add a legitimate threat at the plate in Carlos Santana to the mix to make that group better. At this moment in time the outfield is the group where the majority of question marks reside.
Jake Bauers in the outfield or DH instead of Carlos Santana?
There is also the possibility that Jake Bauers may see some time in the outfield or even the designated hitter role. In just one season Bauers has more appearances in the outfield than Santana does in nine. While Bauers does not have as much experience as a designated hitter, spending time in this role could also help improve his hitting. In this scenario Santana would see the majority of the time at first base allowing Bauers to focus on improving his performance at the plate. This solves two issues. It keeps Santana in the field, which he prefers. It also allows Bauers to improve while Cleveland attempts to solve their outfield issues.
Essentially what it comes down is that there are other positions that the Cleveland Indians can play Carlos Santana. First base should be the primary option while given days off as a designated hitter. Outfield would be more of a desperation option considering that the team currently has a plethora of options in the outfield.
