Blake DeWitt (2B-LAD) – We already know DeWitt has won the second base job, beating out Ronnie Belliard and Jamey Carroll, but now we also now know that this won’t be a platoon situation, at least initially. DeWitt will get the start on Opening Day against left-hander Zach Duke, likely hitting eighth. DeWitt has hit .349/.461/.556 this spring in 63 at-bats, including eight XBH’s (2 HR) and a solid 13:11 K:BB. Belliard hit just .163 and the Dodgers clearly prefer Jamey Carroll as a utility guy, so DeWitt will get quite a bit of rope early in the season. He’s shaping up to be a solid NL-only sleeper given he’ll have 2B and 3B eligibility in many leagues.
John Bowker (OF-SF) – Bowker has beaten out Nate Schierholz for the starting RF job in San Francisco. Bowker has batted .307/.384/.627 with six homers and a solid 11:10 K:BB in 75 at-bats this spring. So any reason for optimism? Minor league triple-slash like for Bowker: .301/.369/.489 in over 2,000 at-bats. Bowker turns 27 in July and while has does sport a sub-.700 major league OPS, he is at least somewhat interesting in NL-only leagues. He’ll bat near the bottom of the order, but Bowker did have a 1.047 OPS in Triple-A last season, so at least in the PCL, he does know what he’s doing.
Freddy Sanchez (2B-SF) – Sanchez was placed on the 15-day DL on Sunday, and is likely to miss a good portion, if not all, of April with a strained shoulder. Juan Uribe batted .309 with three homers this spring and is likely to fill in while Sanchez is out. Sanchez has a 0.43 career EYE, but he hasn’t approached that number since 2006 and it’s possible the Giants will be better off with Uribe at second base.
Franklin Morales (RP-COL) – Huston Street begins the 2010 season on the 15-day DL, leaving Morales as the Rockies primary closer. He’ll likely have a quick hook in favor of Manny Corpas, but given Morales’ career 4.6 BB/9 and 6.5 K/9, he’s certainly no sure thing to perform as a top-notch closer. Morales has always had good stuff, and though his star has dimmed somewhat, Morales is still just 24 and makes for a solid late-round NL-only play.
Todd Wellemeyer (SP-SF) – Wellemeyer was named the Giants’ No. 5 starter Sunday, beating out the velocity-less Madison Bumgarner for the job. For the spring, Wellemeyer had a 2.00 ERA in 27 innings, but his lack of dominance is reflected in his 12 strikeouts. Wellemeyer regressed significantly after 2008’s 3.71 ERA, primarily due to a regressing in his command (4.2 BB/9 vs. 2.9 BB/9) and a BABIP that spiked to .346. Wellemeyer is unlikely to keep a starting job for the balance of the season, but there are worse NL-only speculative plays.
