So rumors are circulating that the Nationals are considering moving Felipe Lopez to left field, at least until Wily Mo Pena and Elijah Dukes work through their injuries. The potential move is interesting. Okay, and Jim Bowden just confirmed on MASN that Lopez will start in left field tomorrow.
Lopez told Debbi Taylor that he’d pitch if he had to, to be a starter. So, it’s no surprise that he’s open to moving to left field. Barry says he was seen taking pop-ups out there today.
It gives Felipe a chance to play everyday, for awhile, to see if he can bust the slump with a change of scenary. The obvious comparison is to Alfonso Soriano — a move that turned out well for the team and Soriano. He’s a young guy now, with tons of potential, but as Lopez gets older it will certainly help to be able to play multiple positions. His good attitude about the move is a great sign that this could work - at least for awhile.
Lopez is fast and his speed should help him out in left field. I’m just surprised the Nats would get this creative. Alright, I guess the GM is all about finding places for pieces that don’t fit, so it’s not that big of a stretch.
I hope he just explodes at the plate and finally looks like he’s alive out there and loving every minute of the game, the way you want to believe he does.
What do you think?
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April 2nd, 2008 at 7:34 pm
I think it might be a good idea - I mean why not try it out while Dukes and Pena are out right? Plus it might be just the think Felipe needs to get his spark back. I’m anxious to see what happens.
April 2nd, 2008 at 8:55 pm
It’s definitely worth a shot. He doesn’t have near the power of Soriano, but he should be a smoother fielder. It’ll be interesting to see where Manny puts him in the batting order. The 1-4 slots look pretty set.