Carlos Santana Talks About Third Base

credit: Jordan Bastian, indians.com

The Carlos Santana Third Base Experiment is Under Way

We’ve talked about it all winter long and it has become the focal point of the Indians spring training workouts thus far. Of course I’m talking about Carlos Santana and his move to third base. It’s the one move this off-season that could have the most lasting impact on the team not just this season, but for seasons to come.

Up until this point, the Indians had been pretty quiet on the topic of Carlos Santana playing third base. All they had really mentioned up until this point is that they would evaluate the move once spring training began. That was about as non-committal s it gets. There was serious doubt as to whether or not they would take the move seriously even though Santana had spent the majority of the winter league season manning the hot corner.

credit: Jordan Bastian, Indians.com

Well, now we’re beginning to get our first reports from the Tribe and so far things sound promising.

In the video below, Carlos Santana explains why he wants to move to third base and the main difference between playing third base and catcher. Primarily, he believes that the move will help him at the plate since his legs can stay healthier throughout the season. From that stand point, anything that can make Carlos Santana a better, more productive hitter is a positive.

Also in the video, Terry Francona explains how hard Santana has worked to get to the point he is at right now. He’s putting in extra work and doing all the things that need to be done in order to get better. In Francona’s own words, he’s “proud of the work Santana has done to this point.”

However, perhaps the most encouraging statement made by Francona is in the final moments of the video. Francona explains that while Santana wants to play third, that in no way means it’s a guarantee that he will play third base. He has a responsibility to the team to put the best lineup out on the field that he possibly can. If that involves Santana playing the hot corner, then that’s what he will do. But, if it turns out that Santana simply cannot handle the responsibilities of playing third base, then they will go with another option.

You can watch the video below. (Refresh the page if player fails to load)