Rookie outfielder Alejandro De Aza has won the starting centerfield job in Florida. One of the losers in the battle, Alex Sanchez, was released, and the other, Eric Reed, was assigned to AAA. In other Marlins' news, LRP Taylor Tankersley and RF Jeremy Hermida have been placed on the DL.
Alot of ink is going to be spilled trying to predict how De Aza will do. His OBP and strikeout rates are better than Eric Reed's, who has apparently never met a pitch he couldn't swing at and miss. If he can hold onto his walk rate, he should get on base enough to be a factor with his speed. In mixed leagues, he holds little value. In NL-only ones, he is a sleeper for speed. If he produces enough to hold the job all year, then he should be a quality speed option.
| Year | Team | Lg | Age | Level | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | GCL Ddgers | GCL | 18 | Rk | 128 | 27 | 29 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 16 | 2 | 22 | 17 | 0.227 | 0.346 | 0.313 |
| 2003 | Ogden | Pio | 19 | Rk | 208 | 36 | 48 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 24 | 15 | 6 | 23 | 34 | 0.231 | 0.336 | 0.322 |
| 2004 | Columbus | SAL | 20 | A | 341 | 63 | 87 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 45 | 24 | 10 | 38 | 54 | 0.255 | 0.346 | 0.352 |
| 2005 | Jupiter | FSL | 21 | A+ | 472 | 75 | 135 | 24 | 9 | 3 | 37 | 34 | 17 | 58 | 87 | 0.286 | 0.370 | 0.394 |
| 2006 | GCL Marlns | GCL | 22 | Rk | 24 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0.458 | 0.536 | 0.500 |
| Jupiter | FSL | 22 | A+ | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0.143 | 0.143 | 0.429 | |
| Carolina | Sou | 22 | AA | 230 | 40 | 64 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 27 | 10 | 21 | 46 | 0.278 | 0.346 | 0.374 | |
| Totals | 1410 | 249 | 375 | 71 | 16 | 12 | 140 | 119 | 48 | 166 | 242 | 0.266 | 0.355 | 0.365 |