Baltimore Orioles: Looking Forward to Jose Iglesias

Throughout the 2000s, the Baltimore Orioles have had some notable players at short stop.

The newest Baltimore Orioles short stop, Jose Iglesias, should keep up the tradition.

In the last 20 years, the Baltimore Orioles shortstops have been workhorses. Between 2004 and 2006, Miguel Tejada had three All-Star seasons where he had 162 starts with the O’s. In 2004, he earned a WAR of 7.4.

Then, in the 2010s, J.J. Hardy took over the position and held it for seven seasons. He had one All-Star season, but was the face of consistency before he retired after the 2017 season.

In 2018, Manny Machado took a break from third base for a season at short. Despite the doubters who thought the Platinum Glove third-baseman wouldn’t be able to handle the change, he earned a starting spot at the All-Star Game. Then, a couple of weeks later he went to the Dodgers where he played both third and short.

Sadly, Orioles fans have not yet been able to see Iglesias during the season. We got a glimpse during spring training, where he hit .389/.450/.444. But those stats were elevated from only 20 plate appearances.

Iglesias is a consistent hitter at the plate, but don’t expect him to hit for power. His career numbers are .273/.315/.371. In 2019, in his one season with the Cincinnati Reds, he hit 11 home runs. Prior to that, he was always in the single digits.

While he’s a decent hitter, his prowess is on the field. He is an acrobatic shortstop who can make tough plays look easy. If there is a player who is underrated, Iglesias is it.

During his time with the Detroit Tigers, he was consistently above average in range and fielding percentage. He regularly made TV highlight reels for his ability at short.