JUPITER, Fla. – One of the personality traits of Geminis is versatility.
Connor Norby, who was born on June 8, is living up to his Zodiac sign this spring.
After making 11 consecutive starts at third base to open Grapefruit League action, Norby has gotten looks at first base (March 14, 17) and left field (March 20-21) over the past week.
“On the defensive side, we talk about it all the time, just giving them that option,” Norby said pregame Saturday. “Got to be ready for anything. I'm athletic enough to play there. And like I said, it's all about obviously just catching the ball. You don't give away those extra 90s, and let our pitching kind of do its thing. I feel good. I feel comfortable out there. I'll continue to get more work. When we get down there [to Miami], I'm sure I'll have ground balls at third, ground balls at first, and then followed by some outfield reps. So the work never stops.”
Even before outfielders Kyle Stowers and Esteury Ruiz sustained injuries during Friday night’s split-squad games, the Marlins intended to get Norby some outfield reps. This latest development, however, could have a ripple effect on how the roster is used should either or both miss time.
Manager Clayton McCullough purposely sent Norby back to the outfield for Saturday afternoon’s game rather than at third base following the Stowers and Ruiz news.
Norby made every catch in left field in Friday night’s contest in West Palm Beach, including Jose Altuve’s fly ball on Eury Pérez’s first pitch. But Norby dropped a sinking fly ball with runners at first and second during Saturday’s first inning. Luckily for him, center fielder Jakob Marsee backed him up and fired to third for the 8-5 forceout.
“With how things went down last night, just texted him, ‘Let's get back in the outfield tomorrow. We have opportunity there,’” McCullough said of Norby pregame. “And from all accounts, last night in West Palm, it went as well as it could, the first time out there. We have today as a chance to get back out there. Again, how much that ends up playing out potentially during the season, don't know, but felt like it was maybe a better use of his capital today, to get some more reps in the outfield as we get down here to the end.”
Added Norby: “You don't want to jump to any conclusions. But also, we're all smart enough to kind of see some of the things that might happen. Obviously, I need to be ready, whether it's at third, whether it's left, whether it's potentially at first.”
Being adaptable isn’t new to Norby, who is a natural second baseman. During his time as a prospect in the O’s system, he played 11 games (eight starts) in left field at three Minor League levels in 2022. The following two seasons, Norby combined for 53 games (51 starts) in left and 24 games (23 starts) in right at Triple-A Norfolk. With such a loaded farm system, Baltimore tried to find ways to get him at-bats.
Once Norby joined the Marlins’ organization in the Trevor Rogers trade, he began learning third base. This offseason, defensive improvement at third remained a priority (-10 defensive runs saved 2024-25) for Norby after an all-around forgettable ‘25 season (three IL stints, 90 OPS+).
Graham Pauley, who entered the spring as Norby’s competition (3 DRS in 2025), has yet to play defense there after imaging came back clean on his throwing elbow. He is scheduled to do so in Sunday’s Grapefruit League finale.
Miami doesn’t appear concerned about the left-handed-hitting Pauley’s readiness for Opening Night. Assuming Pauley is healthy enough, paired with the possibility of Stowers beginning the season on the injured list, the right-handed-hitting Norby could be an outfield option in the All-Star Stowers’ absence. So are right-handed-hitting Heriberto Hernández and Javier Sanoja, and left-handed-hitting Griffin Conine. Conine and Norby went back-to-back in Saturday’s fourth inning.
“I came up as a second baseman,” Norby said. “Second base has always been my position. Playing here, obviously, it's all about versatility and giving them options, and also giving yourself options as well, and expanding talents. … Outfield I would say feels more comfortable than first base, for sure, just having done it before a little bit. But honestly, every time I play the outfield, I look at it like almost recess. I get to go play in the grass and go dive around.”