Blaze Alexander's early exit forces the Orioles to use unexpected emergency third baseman

In the second inning of last night's game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Los Angeles Angels, Orioles third baseman Blaze Alexander fouled a ball off his knee. This is something that happens fairly often, and Alexander stayed in the game to finish his at-bat, but after he returned to the dugout, he began to limp in pain and grab at his right leg. It was quickly evident he was not going to be able to return to the game to play third.

The Orioles' other third baseman, Coby Mayo, would normally be the backup, but he was in the DH spot, and with it being so early in the game, the Orioles didn't want to lose their DH. Jackson Holliday has also played third this season but has been battling a groin injury, and according to manager Craig Albernaz, in the post-game, Holliday was never under consideration to come into the game.

With Alexander and Holliday out with injuries and Mayo already in the lineup, the Orioles had no more infielders to turn to at third base. So when the next inning started, Leody Taveras took the field as an Orioles third baseman.

Last night Leody Taveras played third base for the first time in his proffesional career

Taveras has been in the big leagues for seven years. He has played in 600 games, and in not one of those games did he ever play third base. In fact, in the majors, he's never even played left field, so that whole side of the baseball diamond is something he's only touched when playing offense. Sometimes, MLB outfielders start their careers as shortstops or other infield positions. Not the case with Taveras, who in 691 career minor league games only ever played the outfield. He's an outfielder through and through.

Yet when the Orioles needed him to get on the infield dirt and do something he'd never done as a professional baseball player, Taveras answered the call.

As is often the case in baseball, the ball will find you, and the very first Angel's batter of the inning hit a hard grounder to Taveras' right. Taveras made a nice backhand snag, and although his first throw across the diamond wasn't perfect, it was close enough for Pete Alonso to scoop. Taveras passed his first test.

Over the course of the game, Taveras remained at third base. Orioles infield coach Miguel Cairo was busy all night coaching him up between innings and pointing and positioning Taveras all through the night. The rest of the game passed without incident for Taveras, as the Angels were very considerate and did not hit another ball in his direction. The Orioles' offense rolled and gave them a comfortable lead, and Kyle Bradish kept the Angels on their heels all night.

Post-game, the official word on Blaze Alexander was that he had a knee contusion. Albernaz seemed optimistic that it's not serious and suggested that if the Orioles had had a little more time before having to take the field, they might have been able to get Alexander out there.

It'll be interesting to see how this develops with Alexander, who has been the Orioles hottest hitter for two months now. A contusion is not the worst thing that can happen, and compared to what Orioles fans were thinking might have happened when they say Alexander grabbing his knee, it's great news, but stuff like that does hinder performance.

The other thing worth keeping tabs on is Holliday. Holliday has been dealing with this tight groin, and he came out of the last game he started and has now missed two games in a row. When asked about it, he's made light of the injury, but the fact that he was hurt enough that Taveras was the better option at third suggests that the injury may be more serious than the Orioles are currently letting on.

As fun as it was to see Taveras give it a go at the hot corner, the Orioles can't possibly want that to be the plan going forward. If Alexander's bruise keeps him out for a few days, then expect Mayo to be the everyday third baseman for a while. It's also likely that Luis Vasquez, who is currently on the taxi squad, will be on the roster at some point soon, whether that's as the corresponding move for Holliday going to the IL or Chadwick Tromp being DFA'd before playing in a game for the Orioles this year.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow