Will Cameron Maybin be a starter in Miami or in Charlotte?

Over the last couple of weeks, we have looked Spring Training position battles and rotation battles involving prospects. This week, we have some stats under our belts now, so we can look at how things stand in a few of those battles.

First up, we have the Boston Red Sox rotation, where the injury to Curt Schilling appeared to have opened up a spot for stud prospect Clay Buchholz. That is not working out as well as Buchholz might have hoped, however, as he is 0-2 with a 12.60 ERA in two appearances, one as a starter. In five innings, Buchholz has allowed eight hits, three of which left the yard, one walk, and seven earned runs. The positive for Buchholz is that Julian Tavárez and Kyle Snyder have both also struggled this spring, and those two are his likely competition for the fifth spot. Still, Buchholz is likely to start the season in the minors.

Sticking with the Red Sox, Coco Crisp has made just two appearances this spring, as he has been limited by a groin injuries and root canal surgery. Fortunately for him, Jacoby Ellsbury has not impressed, hitting only .190 in 21 at-bats, with one home run, one stolen base, and four RBI. General manager Theo Epstein has stated that Crisp can win his spot back in the lineup, and Ellsbury is giving him a window of opportunity.

In Atlanta, the question we had was whether Mike Hampton was going to return to previous form or if his spot would be taken by prospect Jair Jurrjens. So far, no answers – Jurrjens is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in two appearances, while Hampton has neither a decision nor earned runs allowed in two appearances. We are going to need some more innings from both to get a better idea here.

The Marlins made a deal in the offseason for arguably one of the top outfield prospects in the game, Cameron Maybin. Center field was not going to be a lock for him to open the season, as he would have a battle on his hands with Alejandro De Aza for the spot. De Aza looked great last year early on before an injury would knock him out for months, and he struggled upon his return. Through five games, Maybin has 14 at-bats, a .286 batting average, 2 RBI, and 1 stolen base. De Aza, meanwhile, has a .368 batting average and .478 OBP in 19 at-bats over eight games, with two stolen bases. Considering how little experience Maybin has at Double-A or higher, and how poorly he did in the majors to end the 2007 season, a Triple-A stint would probably be best for Maybin’s continued development.

Sticking with center field, will the Reds give Jay Bruce the spot he deserves, or will they play the newly signed Corey Patterson? Bruce continues to show that he is ready, hitting .400 so far, but the Reds, and especially new manager Dusty Baker, are not exactly known for making the smart call. In other words, Bruce should be the starter, but he probably will not be.

Will Jayson Nix finally get a chance to be the starting second baseman for the Rockies? The signing of Marcus Giles did not help his chances, but Giles would not be a factor if Nix would perform like he should in spring training. So far, however, he has not. Through his first 11 at-bats, Nix has just one hit, while Giles has five in his first 13. Sure, the sample size is incredibly small, but so is spring training in general, and Nix has little time to impress. While the team wants Nix to be the second baseman, they also want to return to the playoffs, and they will stick with whoever is hitting when camp breaks.

Staying with the Rockies, how are Franklin Morales and Ubaldo Jimenez doing so far? Jimenez has just seven innings under his belt, six hits, two walks, four strikeouts, and three earned runs. Morales has not pitching much either, with just five innings, where he allowed four hits, two walks, and one earned run, and he has struck out three. Mark Redman, meanwhile, who is fighting with them for a spot, is 1-1 with a 6.75 ERA in three appearances, one as a starter, with thirteen hits and six runs allowed, but he has also struck out eight and walked none in eight innings.

That wraps up our playing time battle report for this week. Next week, we should have a little clearer idea of who is up and who is down as we get a little more action. No matter what though, Dusty Baker will still be an idiot – you can take that one to the bank.