Padres News: Xander Bogaerts is Aging Well As a Defensive Shortstop

Xander's defense is aging like fine wine

The San Diego Padres went big game hunting this past offseason and landed on one of the biggest free agents, Xander Bogaerts. Bogaerts spent 10 years in Boston and played at shortstop; the Padres, on the other hand, weren't lacking a shortstop but couldn't pass on the opportunity to land another superstar. 

That caused San Diego to move their former shortstop and superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. to the outfield in right field. Padres 2022 shortstop Ha-Seong Kim moved to second base, where he is killing it at the plate and at the four spot. The shortstop position is the most athletic position in the diamond, and although Xander may not look like it, he's proving to be an elite defensive shortstop. 

They were just fine with either one of them at short, but the defense of Xander has made them love his addition even more. Bogaerts wasn't an elite defender as a Red Sox, but he's improved at every facet year after year. Xander spoke to Padres beat writer AJ Cassavell and said he knows the shortstop position like the back of his hand. 

"I feel comfortable coming in, because I know the hops I can get from the drills that I do," Bogaerts said. "If I get a bad hop, I still feel like with the right mechanics and the right habits that you create, I can still get it." 

(via MLB.com)

Cassavell mentioned how Bogaerts is ranked fourth among all shortstops in Statcast's Outs Above Average when before, he was a poor defensive shortstop by most metrics when he was a Red Sox. 

Padres skipper Bob Melvin loves what he's seeing from his veteran shortstop this season. 

"Everybody has their strengths and weaknesses," manager Bob Melvin said. "What he does is he does everything on the run really well and throws from different arm angles. That's just kind of been who he is his whole career. He attacks the baseball and does a lot of stuff on the move, which you don't see a ton of in the game."

Xander's bat may have faded away from the start of the season, but his defense has been constant. If his bat can get back to where it was, then the Padres will be scary. 

Bogaerts has been a great addition to the team and is aging like fine wine as a defensive shortstop.