Cincinnati Reds have one of the best shortstop situations in Major League Baseball as long as Zack Cozart remains
The Cincinnati Reds have defense, depth, and a little bit of pop in their three deep organizational chart at shortstop.
The Cincinnati Reds have seen Zack Cozart develop from a defensive only shortstop into a well-rounded offensive player. Before a season ending knee injury in 2015, Cozart was looking like the best all-around shortstop in the National League. He followed that up with another solid season on both sides of the ball in 2016.
When Cozart went down in 2015, the Reds called up the newly acquired Eugenio Suarez and let him take control of the shortstop position. Suarez had some difficulty playing the position defensively, but he acquited himself well as a batter. Suarez followed that up by transitioning to third base and hitting 21 home runs in 2016.
This season when the Reds shut Cozart down, they installed Jose Peraza who came over in the Todd Frazier deal in at shortstop. Peraza played mutliple positions for the Reds this season and filled in nicely for Cozart. He has also shown the potential to be an elite base runner.
That trio is all at the MLB level. The Reds also have an up and coming shortstop in All-Fall League player, Zach Vincej. Vincej has long been viewed as a defensive specialist with suddenly a consistent offensive upside.
Having three above average shortstops on the roster is a blessing that no other MLB team can match.
All three shortstops had OBP over .300. Peraza led the trio with an OBP of .352. Peraza was also successful on 21 of 31 stolen base attempts.
All three also have OPS of higher than .725. Peraza led in this area as well with an OPS of .762. That is a little surprising since he only had 25 RBIs
The power merchant of the group is Suarez. He belted 21 home runs over 151 games at third base. Peraza only had 3 in 72 games.
That’s what makes this trio so impressive. They are varied in age and skills. Whether Suarez can cover shortstop for an extended term at the MLB level may be open for debate. Suarez may also stay at third base until 2016 number one pick Nick Senzel is ready. That lessens the shortstop depth.
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The trio could also make up the entire infield with Joey Votto on opening day. Brandon Phillips is on the trade block and Dilson Herrera didn’t look ready to play everyday. That leaves these three and whomever the Reds find to back-up the infield.
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