Into Left Field

As Vernon Wells continues to struggle at the plate this year there may be a case to experiment with moving him to left field. The chances of this affecting his play at the plate may not be obvious at first, and it probably shouldn't be obvious. After watching the Yankees and Jays game on Friday I look at Johnny Damon who recently has switched to left field after playing most of his career in center field. Although it may not be fair to compare the two players as they are very different in how they play the game. Wells was a Gold Glove center fielder in the prime of his career and is still very capable in center field. Damon was never as capable in the field as Wells. Both players are more than capable at the plate, both have good contact bats and great power. Although Damon has more career home runs he also has played 15 seasons to Wells's 11 seasons. Currently Wells's has a better career slugging percentage at .474 compared to Damon's .438. The similarities are there but the option isn't. At this point there is no one in the Jays system that is superior to Wells's play in center field. This idea has been brought up many times by many people before and will continue until it is finally put to rest. The prospect of Wells playing left field is intriguing but with the Jays outfield already crowded it seems like a very unlikely one.