SEATTLE — This was one of the reasons the Seattle Mariners acquired Luis Sardinas in a trade last November from the Milwaukee and a major reason he made the club as their utility infielder.
Sardinas profiles as a gifted defensive shortstop.
“Luis has been an awesome surprise in his ability to play all over the field,” manager Scott Servais said, “but he’s a natural shortstop. That’s what he was signed as. That’s what he’s played pretty much his entire minor-league career.
“He’s played some second base and some third base. We’ve experimented more than other teams he’s been on, but he is a natural shortstop.”
Sardinas, 22, played shortstop Tuesday for the first time this season when he replaced a slumping Ketel Marte against Texas at Safeco Field. His only previous start came in left field; he also closed out two earlier games at first base.
“I’m most comfortable at shortstop,” Sardinas said, “but my role now is to do everything — to be ready for every position.”
Sardinas had not played first or the outfield in his seven professional seasons until this year. But shortstop? That’s his comfort zone.
“Luis is a very confident player,” Servais said. “He believes, when he steps on the field, he’s the best player on the field. He plays very relaxed. He has a very slow heartbeat. He’s never in a hurry, which serves him well.”
Servais judged that Marte simply needed a break. He was hitless in his last 11 at-bats with five strikeouts, including 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in Monday’s 7-3 loss to the Rangers. His average was down to .160 (4-for-25).
“Obviously, he didn’t have a great night (Monday) night,” Servais said, “but he’s not going to play all 162 games … Ketel has shown flashes of what he can do. We’ll give him the night off and see where it goes from there.”
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