LAKELAND, Fla. -- The first ball in play off of Casey Mize on Wednesday was a Christopher Morel fly ball to medium-depth center field. It was hit right at Riley Greene, who read the depth, hastily backtracked a few steps, then camped under it for the first out of Detroit’s 5-1 win over the Rays at Joker Marchant Stadium.
It’s the type of play Greene made a thousand times while commanding center for the first two years of his Tigers career. He got it in his first inning in center field this Spring Training.
Four innings later, Kameron Misner crushed a ball that sent Greene speeding towards right-center and reaching over his head. It would’ve been a highlight grab, a throwback for Greene to his rookie days in center, but Misner’s drive cleared him and carried to the warning track.
“I told him, ‘The ball finds you,’” manager A.J. Hinch said.
Greene made a running grab in the right-center gap the inning after that, tracking down a Junior Caminero drive that had a 70 percent hit probability according to Statcast. All in all, it was as instinctive as riding a bicycle for Greene, who spent the vast majority of his time in left field last year.
With the Tigers’ current outfield issues, center might become an increasingly comfortable and tempting option.
When Parker Meadows and Matt Vierling were initially sidelined, the Tigers’ initial plan was to keep Greene in left field and use a rotation in center, including Wenceel Pérez. That could still work, but with Pérez sidelined by lower back tightness for the past week and a half, Greene got his first start in center on Wednesday, a game the Tigers had been hoping Pérez would return in before he reported soreness after a simulated game Tuesday.
“I talked to Riley a while back about getting some reads [in center in a game],” Hinch said. “When Parker went down, that’s the first question that I was going to get.
“I mean, there’s going to be an in-game move, as you guys know, that pushes [Greene] to center. Today I was going to play Wenceel. Now, I play Riley. The day might have changed, but not the motive.”
Greene, for his part, is fine at whatever position.
“I told A.J., wherever he needs me to play, I’m in,” Greene said. “It doesn’t bother me. It’s good to get reps out there because you know how much A.J. uses our bench. I could be out there a bunch. It’s nice to get out there, get some looks. I might not play it, but just in case.”
More to the point, Greene said, “I’m willing to play anywhere, not just center. If I need to play shortstop, I’ll play shortstop. I’m here for the team, and I’m here to do whatever they ask.”
That last part is an example of why Greene sets the tone for this team. Still, there’s a reason the Tigers moved Greene to left. It allowed Meadows to take over in center, but it also allowed the Tigers to watch Greene’s running and limit his wear and tear after injuries limited his playing time in his first couple seasons.
Greene is still getting his legs under him this spring, which explains some of his up-and-down hitting. When he slumped early in Grapefruit League play, he said he wasn’t getting his legs into his swing. He feels better with it, allowing him to get some better swings off, but still searches for consistency. He went 0-for-2 Wednesday, but turned a nine-pitch battle with ex-teammate Alex Faedo into an RBI groundout.
Theoretically, keeping Greene’s legs strong could be easier if he doesn’t have the extra burden of covering center field on defense. Still, the optionality of playing Greene in center opens some possibilities on offense.
Wednesday’s lineup included Justyn-Henry Malloy in left field and Jahmai Jones in right. Kerry Carpenter started in right field five times in an eight-day span before starting Tuesday in left. Zach McKinstry started in right field on Tuesday before moving to third base Wednesday.
All this could be moot if Pérez is ready to return in the next few days as hoped -- or better yet, if Meadows’ upper arm nerve awakens in time for him to be ready for Opening Day, though time is running out on that. But the longer the uncertainty lingers, the more comfortable the option of Greene in center could become.