Amarista Earning The Love For His Play

During a baseball season, roles for players on a certain team can change due to another player getting hurt, or because of a lack of performance. Alexi Amerista was thrown into the shortstop role after Everth Cabrera suffered two hamstring injuries that put him on the shelf for a while. Quickly though, he took to the position and has made some lights-out plays to be a bright spot in what otherwise has been a disappointing season.

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For 51 games, Amerista has held down the fort at shortstop, making plays that you could only dream of other shortstops making. His ability to execute plays such as the double play at a high level is something special. This position really utilizes all of Amerista’s natural tools as a player. It tests his ability to cover ground, throw accurate relay throws to the right player and to know how to hold a runner on when needed.

Now, his offensive numbers he has posted this season have not been anything to write home about. The organization itself know how valuable Amarista is to the organization. A man who can cover all the infield positions and not only fills out the spots,  but play each position at a high level is something the Padres are very lucky to have in their hands. Some have said that Amarista is better suited as being in the role of a utility-man, who just continues to fill different positions within the infield. It would keep him relatively sharp in terms of how to man and execute while in a certain position.

It is unclear on what the Padres will do with Amarista heading into next season. It is very hard to find such a dynamic and talented player, who is very much willing to play anywhere in the field that manager Bud Black says. No matter what develops, Amarista has shown through his hard work and dedication to the game, that any player can make himself into a useful and effective player, who can find a way and make an impact on a team like he has done for the Padres.