Andruw Monasterio Is Making A Strong Case to Crack the Opening Day Roster

Andruw Monasterio may have been a relatively unknown quantity that came over in the trade that brought Caleb Durbin to Boston, but his spring training performance has thrust him into the Opening Day roster conversation. He has quickly established himself as a go-to option for Alex Cora and that should bode well for him as we get closer and closer to the start of the regular season.

Offensively, Monasterio has been better than anyone imagined. Through his first eight games, he’s slashing .389/.522/.611 with one home run and two steals. Dive a bit deeper, and you'll come across a 194 wRC+ and a walk rate (17.4%) that's quadruple his strikeout rate (4.3%). He’s been incredibly dependable at the plate when he’s in games and has handled left-handed pitchers with ease. It’s that last fact that makes his presence on the Opening Day roster likelier right now, as Romy Gonzalez is still dealing with a shoulder injury that may require surgery. If Gonzalez misses significant time, and that is looking more and more likely as time goes on, the team will need someone to platoon across the infield who can handle multiple roles in the infield.

Monasterio is making his case on the defensive side of the ball as well. He has made multiple appearances at first, short, and third. He’s widely been believed to pencil in as Marcelo Mayer’s platoon partner at second base this season, but he’s yet to see time there during Grapefruit League. We’re hedging our bets here a bit, but his work at first base is what makes him far more likely to make the Opening Day roster than anything else right now. Alex Cora is giving him some runway to prove himself across the infield, but being able to slot in behind Willson Contreras as a capable defender at first while providing speed on the base paths late in games is going to be crucial for the success of this team.

It’s looking like the team will be without Triston Casas through at least part of April, so there needs to be someone on the roster who can cover first base. Gonzalez was a passable, if unimpressive, first baseman last season, but Monasterio has the potential to be better than that. He’s only logged 36 1/3 regular season innings at the cold corner, but the early returns are promising. He’s committed no errors and turned five double plays at the position. He’s spent the bulk of his professional career at third (671 innings), second (398 1/3 innings), and shortstop (236 innings). Adding regular playing time at first will make him even more valuable as Cora puts daily lineups together.

If and when Gonzalez gets healthy this season, there will be some difficult conversations that will have to be had in regards to playing time. Monasterio has minor league options remaining, as does Gonzalez, but Isiah Kiner-Falefa was signed for $6 million this season, which all but guarantees he’s going to stick on the roster as long as he’s healthy too. Having too many capable infield platoon options isn’t a bad problem at all, but it’s going to be tough to choose between a returning Gonzalez and a potentially even more adaptable Monasterio at some point this season.

Craig Breslow has proven to be a shrewd president of baseball operations when it comes to swinging trades that improve the organization as a whole. If Andruw Monasterio continues to be impactful on both sides of the baseball, he could go down as the best sleeper addition that Breslow has made during his tenure in Boston.