St. Louis Cardinals: Matt Holliday continues first base workouts

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday continues to put in work at first base. Could he really see significant time there in 2016?

We are just a week away from St. Louis Cardinals pitchers and catchers officially needing to report for Spring Training. Several players have already arrived to Jupiter, Fla. to get in some early, informal workouts, though. Among them is outfielder Matt Holliday, who has been taking more and more reps at a different position.

According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Holliday continued working out and taking reps at first base during Wednesday morning informal workouts. This is no surprise as it was reported as early as December that Holliday had begun fielding grounders at first base. Still, the fact that he continues putting in work there is news, especially with Spring Training right around the corner.

So, what does it mean?

Well, right now — nothing. Holliday told Goold: “I wanted to challenge myself, and I had the time” when referring to first base reps ahead of Spring Training.

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There’s probably more to it than that, and for me, this is one of the most intriguing storylines heading into Spring Training this year. Holliday actually started out as a third baseman in the Colorado Rockies Minor League system logging 244 games there. But when Holliday shifted to the outfield it stuck, and never once has he logged innings at first base in the majors. So, why try out the position now? Especially given the fact that Stephen Piscotty proved last season that he can handle first base at the Major League level, and he even has prior experience there at the college level.

Still, first base has to be the biggest question mark in St. Louis heading into 2016. Matt Adams and Brandon Moss will be the two main contenders for the position, and I’ve got my cards on Moss to win the starting job because of a longer track record of success and a more consistent power stroke than Adams.

While still not an easy position, first base probably is the one that would be much less physically demanding for Holliday’s legs than the outfield, and that is a great reason to work him out there. The 36-year old is built more like a first baseman anyways at 6’4″ and 250 pounds.

But what does Holliday playing at first base really do for the Cardinals? The need for Holliday to add this kind of versatility would have made much more sense if St. Louis had gone out and signed a guy like Justin Upton or Yoenis Cespedes, but they didn’t. If Holliday logs starts at first base then the two options to fill in as the third outfielder are Tommy Pham or Moss. Getting Pham more playing time is something I’m not against, but I don’t see it happening too often.

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The fact is, it’s still early and Holliday can take all the grounders at first base that he wants right now. This story only gains more traction if manager Mike Matheny actually gets the 36-year old some starts or innings at the position during Spring Training. If that happens and Holliday can prove to be a reliable option at first base, then this debate will really heat up heading into 2016.