Never wasn't...or something like that. Mid-season, maybe before, I was calling for him to get a bunch of CF time in Tacoma. I saw that position as his more natural spot with the M's. I will admit that I didn't see him as a day-to-day SS, but that is because I'm comfortable with Miller in that role. Oh..I like Taylor, too. Marte has shown some stuff, however. Glovey stuff and double-roping stuff. He's hit 14 doubles in a bit less than 1/3 of a season. If he hits 35 on a regular basis and walks 70 pts, he's ours for the next 8-9 seasons! Maybe more.
His 70 pt eye was clearly unexpected as it had no A-AA-AAA basis. But he looks like he can run for a long time on a 60+ pt eye.
I love versatile-scrappy-glovey-spray ball guys like this. Witness my baseball crush on O'Malley.
But I must admit, I'm even more impressed with Marte than I thought i would be.