JUPITER, Fla. – It didn’t take long for Brian Anderson to make his Miami center field debut Tuesday, catching Brandon Nimmi’s fly ball for the first out of the game, which the Marlins lost 10-0 to the Mets.
From there, Anderson’s defense at the position had mixed results. He was unable to complete the final outs of the third and fifth innings. Due to a lack of communication with the Venezuelan right fielder, Avisaíl García, a Dominic Smith fly ball fell. On a drive by Francisco Lindor in the fifth, Anderson perfectly chased the ball (.930 expected batting average), but couldn’t catch it on safety track.
“The first ball of the game went to me. I was fighting nerves,” Anderson confessed. “I had a day to prepare and was able to get some reps. It’s one of those things you just have to keep working on. I’m not where I want to be, but I’ll get there.”
The Marlins have said they will prioritize favorable matchups and defensive versatility to maximize their production at bat. Left-hander Joey Wendle complements the infield while right-hander Jon Berti can play both infield and outfield. Without a natural central patrolman, Miami is testing with the Dominican Jesús Sánchez, between the Cuban Jorge Soler and García.
With Sánchez in pain and Berti starting at shortstop in Tuesday’s game, manager Don Mattingly thought the time was right to test Anderson at center.
“The conversation was simple,” Mattingly said. “I told him yesterday I was going to use it in center field. We’re not asking him to win a Gold Glove there, either. When you build a roster this way, you know you’re going to have some shortcomings. We are asking you to do the best you can. Catch the balls you’re supposed to catch and don’t try to do too much.”
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