Adrianza will begin the season as Atlanta's primary utility infielder.

The decision to send both Vaughn Grissom and Braden Shewmake to Triple-A Gwinnett was in part prompted by the team's desire to have maximum middle infield depth, which means (eventually) adding Adrianza to the 40-man roster and keeping him on the big-league bench rather than letting him go. The 33-year-old switch hitter saw time at second base, third base, shortstop and left field in 2022, but his .470 OPS over 110 plate appearances between Atlanta and the Nationals -- the second time in the last three seasons he's posted a sub-.600 OPS -- doesn't exactly suggest he would have been hard to replace. If Orlando Arcia gets replaced as the starting shortstop by either Shewmake or Grissom, he would presumably take Adrianza's utility role and bump him to the waiver wire.

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