small segment, holla

if arod gets shifted to yet another position he shouldn't be playing i will be greatly displeased.

oe Torre said in an interview with Reuters yesterday that the Bombers have considered the possibility of moving Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez to center field to fill the hole vacated by Bernie Williams.

"We've thought about it," Torre told the international wire service. "We just haven't made a commitment to that. We haven't broached it with the shortstops."

His use of the plural in that sentence is noteworthy, since A-Rod was once considered the best shortstop in the game but moved to third base to facilitate a trade from the Rangers to the Bronx, deferring to Jeter as the incumbent shortstop.

Now, it's possible that one or both could be moving again; Rodriguez could be shifted to center or, if Jeter became the center fielder, A-Rod could slide back over and take over shortstop. GM Brian Cashman didn't return a phone call late last night, but Torre pointed out that such a move wouldn't be unique.

"That's happened before, hasn't it?" Torre told Reuters. "Bobby Murcer, Mickey Mantle. Hank Aaron came up as a second baseman. Robin Yount went to center field. It certainly is a consideration."

Speculation about Jeter making a move to the outfield isn't new and, if one of the players were to move he'd be the more likely candidate. Even before A-Rod arrived in New York there had always been a small segment of the Yankee population proposing that the captain's ability to read the ball off the bat and his uncanny ability to go back and catch fly balls over his shoulder made him a natural candidate to finish his career as an outfielder. [daily news]