PT TOMORROW: AL WEST—The Pujols problem
Mar 12 2020
Who will spell Albert Pujols (1B/DH, LAA) at 1B? The club still seems committed to their 40-year-old first-basemen largely due to the $60m that remains on his contract through 2021. But Shohei Ohtani will be the club's DH when not the mound, and Pujols's creaky lower body has left him with just 168 1B starts over 2018-19—a number isn't likely to improve going forward. Further complicating the picture is Pujols's ongoing decline vR, against whom he posted a .236 BA with just 12 HR over 326 AB in 2019.
The best left-handed-hitting complement guesses for now would be Matt Thaiss (1B/3B, LAA) and Jared Walsh (1B/LHP, LAA), both of whom are currently battling for Opening Day utility roles. Always a patient hitter, Thaiss...
Almost!
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