PORT CHARLOTTE, FLA. – Willians Astudillo had an eventful day on Wednesday. He started at third base against the Rays and turned a couple of ground balls into outs. After a few innings, he switched to catcher, caught a pop-up, and just missed throwing out an incautious baserunner with a no-look snap throw to first base.
He smacked a line drive to center field, just past the Rays' diving shortstop Greg Jones, bringing home two Twins runs. And perhaps weirdest of all for the contact-centric Astudillo, he watched four straight pitches go by for a walk in the Twins' Grapefruit League victory.
"He does not lack confidence," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said of his most adaptable player, a 29-year-old Venezuelan who has started more than four consecutive games only once in his career, yet somehow seems to be in the middle of everything when he does.
For the fourth straight season, Astudillo comes to camp without a guaranteed job, without a defined role, without anything but a cross-your-fingers chance of making the Twins' roster. And for the fourth straight season, he's making it hard for his manager not to include him in the team's plans eventually.
"Willians is very proficient, all around the field," Baldelli said of Astudillo, who is 4-for-9 with two walks so far this spring. "I mean, we saw him over at shortstop [on extreme shifts], making plays. … He's very comfortable [moving around]. He wants to play shortstop and center field. I don't know if we're going to see all of that, but he's always ready."
Astudillo's most direct route to a roster spot is behind the plate, though Mitch Garver and Ryan Jeffers are ahead of him. But "I would think there will be times this year when we are going to be carrying three catchers," Baldelli said. "Could it be opening day? Absolutely. … We could see him all over the field, and I feel very comfortable regardless of where we start him."
Three coaches cut loose
The Twins parted ways with three minor league coordinators on Wednesday, with a source confirming that hitting coordinator Donegal Fergus, infield coordinator Billy Boyer and catching coordinator Michael Thomas are no longer with the organization.
The team "declines to comment on personnel matters," a spokesman said, but the Twins have no plans to hire replacements immediately.