MIAMI -- Marlins rookie Liam Hicks’ legs feel fresher these days.
Hicks, who opened the season as the club’s Opening Day backup catcher, debuted at first base in Sunday’s series finale against the Giants at loanDepot park. Including Monday night’s 6-4 loss to the Rockies, he has started just once behind the plate over the past week, as the club rotates opportunities between him, fellow rookie Agustín Ramírez and veteran Nick Fortes.
“I've been doing a lot more in the weight room and stuff, and they were asking me how I was feeling,” Hicks said. “I was like, ‘Yeah, I really feel pretty good.’ The last couple days [have been] a little bit of a break from catching. Obviously, I want to be back there catching, but it's not too bad.”
To keep his bat (121 OPS+ entering Monday) in the lineup -- rather than relegated to a designated-hitter role or stuck behind Ramírez and Fortes on the depth chart -- Miami decided to try Hicks out at first base. This experiment was made even more possible after Matt Mervis was designated for assignment by the Marlins on Friday.
Plus, the experiment isn’t completely out of the blue. During his Minor League career, Hicks played in 48 games (44 starts) at first base compared to 121 games (117 starts) at catcher.
“He's got about a week and a half now of just early work and trying to acclimate him to the group, but he's done a lot of really good work,” infield coach Tyler Smarslok said. “He's played actually a lot of first in the Minor Leagues, so now it's just getting his big league taste of it. [He] moves his feet really well. He's got really good hands. He's got the catcher hands that can really work short hops, so we're expecting him to do pretty well out there.”
So on the Marlins’ most recent road trip, the club approached Hicks with the idea. He began getting some early work in Anaheim. It progressed to the point where Miami informed Hicks on Friday that he would start at first base on Sunday, giving him a few days to focus on the move.
“I want to play, so I'm going to be open to anything,” Hicks said. “They can tell me to go play anywhere, and I'll do it as long as I get to play. So I was excited. Obviously, cool opportunity. I feel like it brings value to yourself if you can be able to play multiple positions. So that's something I'm happy to do.”
Across eight innings on Sunday, Hicks had 10 defensive chances. He recorded an assist and was part of two double plays. While the hands are similar to catching, as is being involved in every play, the positioning is different.
“Felt fine,” manager Clayton McCullough said. “It was good that he got his feet wet, and his comfort level will continue [to increase] if he gets more opportunities over there. I was glad he was able to come away able to play [Monday] after the collision with [Matt] Chapman [on Sunday].
“Even the ground ball when he came off the bag that [Mike Yastrzemski] hit, kind of slowly hit, to get the lead out, that's kind of all your job is right there. So I think as he continues to get over there with more work pregame, his comfort around the bag will increase. You trust Liam because you know he prepares for whatever's asked of him.”
That includes practice with catching coach Joe Singley. Over the past week, Hicks has entered midgame at catcher twice. Knowing that’s a possibility, he does catching drills earlier in the day.
It’s all a balancing act for Hicks, who celebrated his 26th birthday on Monday. He doubled to left to open the second and scored on Jesús Sánchez’s second double of the game. In the fourth, Hicks led off with a single to center, but he was stranded at third.
Asked whether learning a relatively new position might impact his bat, Hicks said he didn’t think so. He credited the coaching staff’s ability to keep players ready via pinch-hit appearances or purposeful batting practice.
“Maybe if you're not comfortable at the position, but I think with this coaching staff, they're going to put a lot of confidence in you that you're ready to do it,” Hicks said. “And I think as long as you're putting in the work and preparing, I don't think it's really going to affect you too much at the plate.”