PEORIA, Ariz. -- Sung-Mun Song hasn’t quite become the versatile roster piece the Padres envisioned when they signed him in December. Not yet, at least.
This spring, Song has worked exclusively at second and third base -- which was precisely where he spent all of last season while playing for the Kiwoom Heroes in the Korea Baseball Organization.
That’s by design. Shortly after he signed a four-year deal with the Padres in December, Song sustained an oblique strain. It slowed his buildup to Spring Training. And although he says he’s fully healthy now, the Padres wanted to ease him into action at the positions he knows best.
Bigger challenges lie ahead. In the coming days, the Padres will get Song work on the back fields at both shortstop and in left field. He hasn’t played shortstop since middle school. He can’t recall ever playing a game in the outfield. He’s ready for both.
“Whenever [manager Craig Stammen] needs me to,” Song said through interpreter Jun Yi. “It’s going to be different playing in the outfield or at shortstop. But if the team needs me to play it, then I have to prepare for it.”
That preparation should start soon enough. The Padres wanted to get Song comfortable with his new environment before giving him a new challenge. And he’s starting to look comfortable. After a slow start, Song has rapped hits in each of his past two games.
“I got my first hit [Thursday], and then my pressure is kind of gone,” Song said. “I’m getting along with my teammates good. So it’s been a good two days.”
Now, about those new positions. It’s worth noting just how valuable Song could be if he proves capable of handling left field and shortstop. The Padres have an opening in their starting lineup against right-handed pitching, presumably at DH if Gavin Sheets is handling regular first-base duties.
But Stammen has cited a desire to use that DH spot as a revolving door for his regular starters, keeping them off their feet while also keeping them in the lineup. He’s also cited his preference for a roster with versatile defensive options. That’s where Song comes in.
If Song can play third base on a given day, that’s a respite for Manny Machado. If he can play second, that’s a respite for Jake Cronenworth.
Of course, playing second base would also allow Cronenworth to move to first, giving Sheets a DH day. Shortstop? That’s a DH day for Xander Bogaerts. Left field, that’s a day for Ramón Laureano. Or, if Laureano slides to right or center, it’s a DH day for Fernando Tatis Jr. or Jackson Merrill.
It’s a long way of saying: If Song makes the transition the Padres hope he can make, he’ll be able to give just about every regular starter a day off (or a day at DH) when necessary.
The Padres have other options for most of those positions. But they also believe in Song’s bat. He’s coming off consecutive seasons with an OPS above .900 in Korea. In particular, the Padres are hoping that the lefty-hitting Song holds his own against right-handed pitching.
Song has noted the uptick in velocity and the increase in movement against big league-caliber arms. Through four spring games, he’s 2-for-9 with three walks. He figures to see an uptick in starts, with Machado having left for the World Baseball Classic and Bogaerts set to follow on Sunday.
“I’ll get more at-bats during the game,” Song said. “Then I’ll see more pitchers, and that hopefully makes me more comfortable.”
There’s competition with Song for those starts against righties. Both Nick Castellanos and Miguel Andujar are better against left-handed pitching. But they hit righties, too -- and they bring versatility of their own. Castellanos can play the outfield corners, while Andujar has played third.
Still, Song should theoretically give the Padres much more with the glove. He showed it on Friday at third base, ranging to his left to make a nice play on Ezequiel Tovar’s grounder, before spinning and throwing a strike to first. Song is a natural defender -- a major reason the Padres believe he’ll be able to handle both shortstop and left field, even though he’s never played there.
That’ll change soon enough.
“We’ve just got to get him on the practice field doing those things,” Stammen said. “And then we can put him in a game.”