The Detroit Tigers third-baseman position is up for grabs for the 2020 season, and there’s going to be some healthy competition for who ultimately earns the spot.
Jeimer Candelario and Dawel Lugo are making their cases to skipper Ron Gardenhire as the team works in Summer Training Camp at Comerica Park for the shortened 60-game campaign that kicks off later in the month.
Gardenhire himself gave a quick update as to how the competition is faring so far:
“(Candelario) and (Lugo) are gonna continue the battle right here. We haven’t made the final decision on that one yet. Candy, I think, was probably doing a little bit better than (Lugo), but I like (Lugo) a lot.”
Candelario, who was acquired by Detroit in 2017 from the Cubs, didn’t have his best showing in 2019, eventually earning a demotion to Triple A Toledo. In 94 games with the Tigers last year, he hit eight home runs while hitting .203/.306/.337.
Meanwhile, Lugo appeared in 77 games in 2019 for Detroit, hitting .245/.271/.381 with six home runs. He spent time playing third base while Candelario was in Toledo.
– – Quotes via Cody Stavenhagen Link – –
