Red Sox infielder/outfielder Michael Chavis isn’t shying away from it. He’s facing an uphill battle to make the Opening Day roster this spring. In fact, he knows exactly where he stands.
“I’m not even sure I have a place on the team,” Chavis said Wednesday. “That’s what I’m trying to earn. I’m not ashamed to say that. I’m not worried about it.”
Chavis, who struggled to a .212 average with five home runs in 42 games last season, has fallen behind newcomers Kiké Hernández and Marwin Gonzalez on the depth chart. Chavis also looks to be behind Christian Arroyo and the hot-hitting Yairo Muñoz in the competition for the last remaining bench spot on the roster, even though another could open up if Franchy Cordero isn’t ready for Opening Day.
More likely than not, Chavis will begin the year at Triple-A Worcester after playing his last 137 games in the majors. Manager Alex Cora already said this spring that Chavis needs to make adjustments and prove he can be a consistent big-leaguer.
“It’s obviously a little bit of an awkward situation,” Chavis said. “I’m huge on mental skills, everybody knows that. It just goes back to, I’m able to rest my cap knowing I did what I needed to do to prepare for this. I worked really hard this offseason. I truly did everything I could to prepare for this.”
After the season ended, Chavis returned home and began a rigorous program focusing on his swing, speed, athleticism, conditioning, pitch recognition and virtually everything else he thought he needed to improve on after a down year in 2020. Aside from proposing to his longtime girlfriend, Sarah, in November, Chavis said he didn’t do much other than work on perfecting his craft.
“I feel so much more athletic and it’s showing up in my swing and on defense, which is great,” he said. “How I feel day-to-day has been better, just being a little bit lighter and in better shape.”
Chavis, who came up a natural shortstop before being shifted to third base in the minors, split his rookie year almost evenly between first base and second base but didn’t stick at either spot. In 2020, the Red Sox experimented with using him in left field, adding another potential position to his resume.
With Hernández, Gonzalez, Cordero, Hunter Renfroe and Danny Santana having all been added since the end of the year, the Red Sox have plenty of options at all three spots Chavis has played in the past. In fact, Chavis said he has had zero conversations with the club about playing the outfield since arriving in camp. His future – whether at Triple-A or in the big leagues – appears to be at second base or maybe a corner infield spot.
In camp, Chavis has embraced the chance to learn from Hernández and Gonzalez, two of baseball’s best utility men throughout the last decade. But he’s not comparing his performance to how the more established players are doing.
“Just because somebody else is a good player, that doesn’t change what I do,” he said. “Yes, we have a bunch of utility players and guys who can play the same position as me, and they’re great ballplayers and there’s nothing wrong with it. I’m just confident in what I do and I’m confident in what I did this offseason to prepare for this. Worrying about anything else outside – where I’m going to play, if I’m going to play – there’s no real positives to it.”
Less than two years after bursting into the majors by posting a .967 OPS and hitting 10 homers in his first 28 games, Chavis appears to be on the outside looking in. He knows his future will be dictated by how he plays. He’s off to a good start in camp, hitting .429 with two homers a double in 14 Grapefruit League at-bats.
“Perform,” Chavis said when asked what he needs to do to make the team. “That’s it. I’m not going to make the team by not performing, being a nice guy or smiling on Twitter. I’m going to perform, that’s it. I worked all offseason for that.”
TANNER HOUCK is a starter, and the Red Sox won’t mes around by putting him in the bullpen to start the season.
The exciting 24-year-old right-hander made his debut as a starter last season, and it’s going to stay that way.
“I think we’ve been through that road as an organization, right?” Cora said Wednesday. “For the last 15 years. We’re considering him as a starter.”
Houck burst on to the scene at the end of last season, when he went 3-0 in his first three starts, allowed one earned run and struck out 21, but walked nine, in 17 innings. But he doesn’t have a guaranteed spot in the rotation to start the season. Barring an injury to someone in the rotation this spring, it seems likely that Houck will start the year with Triple-A Worcester.
Houck is scheduled to make his second appearance of the spring in Wednesday’s game against the Braves.
XANDER BOGAERTS seems confident he’ll be good to go when the season starts.
The Red Sox shortstop, who’s been nursing a sore shoulder that shut him down from camp, is progressing well. In a radio appearance, Bogaerts said he was optimistic that the injury won’t keep him out of the lineup on Opening Day, which is three weeks from Thursday.
“I think I will be ready by Opening Day barring any other weird injury that might come up or something,” Bogaerts said. “My shoulder feels, I think pretty close to 100 percent and it’s just trying to get that strength back in it and just strength, mobility and making sure that this doesn’t happen again. It’s been a great rehab so far. The training staff, they’ve been getting me back in good shape.”
Cora said the injury stemmed from the shortstop being too aggressive with his offseason throwing program. Bogaerts has begun throwing again, and Cora said he’s expected to take batting practice on Wednesday.
WEDNESDAY’S GAME: Bobby Dalbec hit his fourth homer, a grand slam off Victor Arano, as Boston beat Atlanta, 5-3.
Boston newcomer Matt Andriese gave up three runs and three hits in three innings.
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