Cincinnati Reds: Who plays third base while Eugenio Suárez recovers?

1. Mike Moustakas

The Reds will be hard-pressed to find a better option than Mike Moustakas to take over at third base while Eugenio Suárez is recovering from shoulder surgery. The Reds signed Moustakas this past December to a four-year/$64M contract. Moose was slated to begin the season at second base, but it looks like those plans may change.

Moustakas is a three-time All-Star, and while he started 40 games at second base for the Milwaukee Brewers last season, his best seasons have come while he was playing the hot corner. Moustakas is not an elite defender, however, according to FanGraphs, Moustakas has 9 defensive runs saved while playing third base.

Moose also brings a bat that will help supplement the potential loss of Suárez. Last season for the Brewers, Moustakas slashed .254/.329/.516 with 35 home runs and 87 RBIs. It’s very possible to view Moustakas as the No. 3 hitter in the Reds batting order while Geno recovers from surgery. While table setters Joey Votto and Shogo Akiyama ahead of him, Moose could do some damage.

While this was far from the plan heading into the season, injuries happen. Having Moustakas available to slide over to third base is a luxury that most teams do not have. Hopefully Geno’s injury is not a long-term problem and by April both he and Moustakas are hitting in the middle of the Reds order.

While Mike Moustakas makes the most sense to take over during Suárez’s absence, there are several players on the Reds roster who may be given the opportunity as well. Let’s see who else may be given a chance to fill in for Suárez to begin the 2020 season.

2. Nick Senzel

File this one under not very likely. While Nick Senzel had spent the majority of his college and minor league career playing third base, it sounds the Reds are sticking to their original plan of converting Senzel to an infielder. According to The Athletic’s C. Trent Rosecrans, Reds GM Nick Krall already downplayed the idea of Senzel playing third base to start the season.

I know a lot of Reds fans, myself included, have been pounding the drum for Nick Senzel to return to the infield. However, with the way is the roster is currently constructed, I don’t see that happening. The Reds seem satisfied with Freddy Galvis starting at shortstop on Opening Day, meaning we’ll likely see Senzel back in center field.

That is, of course, if he’s healthy enough to be on the Opening Day roster. Senzel ended his rookie year on the injured list and battled various injuries all season. Senzel had offseason shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum, and his availability for the beginning of the 2020 may still be in question.

With Shogo Akiyama now on the roster, the Reds have a talented outfielder who could play center field on a regular basis until Suárez returned, allowing Senzel to make his way back to the outfield grass. I never say never, but it seems highly unlikely that Senzel will play third base to start the 2020 season.

3. Kyle Farmer

Okay, let me just say that I love what Kyle Farmer brings to the team. His fun-loving nature and versatility, including his ability to play catcher, is something we rarely is baseball. That said, while Farmer could be a spot-starter for a game or two, I find it hard to believe he’ll take over third base duties while Eugenio Suárez is out of the lineup.

That’s not to say that Farmer can’t handle it. In fact, I think he’s more than capable, but Farmer’s value is as a utility player who can play all over the infield, not just third base. Along those lines, expect to see Farmer in the lineup a bit more than usual, perhaps filling in at second or third base during the first couple weeks, or however long Geno is absent.

Something Farmer brings to the table that Moustakas does not is a right-handed bat. It would be very easy to see Farmer gather a couple starts against left-handed starters. Farmer did quite well against southpaws last season, slashing .274/.338/.484. That said, Moustakas wasn’t too shabby against lefties either.

Again, the reason we’re unlikely to see Kyle Farmer taking regular reps at third base is due to his versatility. Depending on how the roster is constructed, Farmer could very well be the backup shortstop to Freddy Galvis. Cementing Farmer in one role is not wise, as his greatest asset to this team is adaptability.

4. Matt Davidson

Matt Davidson, a non-roster invitee in spring training, may have more big leagues innings at third base save for Mike Moustakas. Davidson has a big bat and isn’t afraid to swing it. He didn’t play an inning in the majors last season, but tore it up in Triple-A. Davidson slashed .264/.339/.527 for Triple-A Nashville in 2019.

Davidson has power, but struggles to make contact. For his career, his on-base percentage is below .300, but his .730 career-OPS is elevated due to his .435 slugging percentage. It’s kind of feast or famine for Davidson, as he’s likely to wallop the baseball over the fence, or go down swinging.

For his career, according to FanGraphs, Matt Davidson has a 34.5% strikeout-rate. Conversely, his career walk-rate is 7.9%. Those numbers are not very promising, and he’ll have to see an improvement in that area during spring training if he has any hopes of making the team out of Goodyear. By contrast, Eugenio Suárez’s career strikeout-rate is 24.8%.

Davidson has power, which is one thing that few others on this list possess. The only player who comes close is Mike Moustakas, who’s career slugging percentage (.441) is just a few ticks above Davidson’s. It’ll be an uphill battle for Davidson to make the roster, but a good showing during spring training, combined with Eugenio Suárez’s absence could provide Davidson an opportunity.

5. Josh VanMeter

This, in my opinion, is the worst of the five options to take over at third base. That’s going to sound harsh, but I just don’t think Josh VanMeter has the chops to play third base on a regular basis. Now, if Mike Moustakas takes over the duties at the hot corner, I’m all about VanMeter getting regular playing time at second base until Eugenio Suárez returns.

VanMeter was David Bell‘s go-to, as the season progressed, to play multiple defensive positions. VanMeter saw time at both corner outfield spots, both corner infield spots and second base. Appearing at third base just six times, the only other position VanMeter had less exposure to in 2019 was right field where he played two games.

In the same vein as Kyle Farmer, Josh VanMeter’s biggest asset to the club is his versatility. As mentioned earlier regarding Farmer, if VanMeter becomes a regular in the lineup, you take away one of his primary functions as a member of next year’s team. thee difference between VanMeter and Farmer, other than Farmer’s superior defense, is that VanMeter is left-handed.

In limited action last season, we saw VanMeter have much greater success against right-handers than left-handers. The Indiana native slashed .250/.336/.431 against right-handed pitchers, while putting up a paltry .125/.250/.208 slash line against southpaws. All of VanMeter’s home runs came against right-handed pitching last season.

To be clear, there’s no one on the Cincinnati Reds roster who can replace Eugenio Suárez. However, with the plethora of talented infielders, combined with the versatility of several others on the club, Cincinnati has the horses to weather the storm until Geno returns. Suárez has always been quick to return from injury, so perhaps all this worry is all for naught.