Isiah Kiner-Falefa made his first career start in center field on Sunday when the New York Yankees defeated the San Francisco Giants by a 6-0 final (box score). Kiner-Falefa batted seventh but went hitless in an 0-for-4 showing. Defensively, he faced three fielding opportunities and converted each into an out.
Kiner-Falefa, 28, had never before played the outfield during a big-league game prior to Sunday. All 534 of his performances had came either on the infield or as a designated hitter. He did have some experience from his minor-league days, albeit in the form of just 10 appearances, and none since 2017.
It's notable that Kiner-Falefa made his first start before two other outfielders on the roster, in Aaron Hicks and the recently signed Franchy Cordero. Estevan Florial, designated for assignment on Saturday, had also not made a start. In other words, it seems the Yankees may view Kiner-Falefa as more than an emergency option in the outfield.
The Yankees attempted to give Kiner-Falefa a crash course on playing the outfield after it became apparent that either Anthony Volpe or Oswald Peraza would displace him as the Yankees' everyday starting shortstop. (Volpe, a rookie, won the job and recorded the first two hits of his big-league career on Saturday.) Kiner-Falefa's education included instruction from former big-league outfielder Nick Swisher.
Sunday Matinee in the Bronx.#RepBX pic.twitter.com/PAQ3VhTErL
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 2, 2023
Kiner-Falefa disappointed in his first season with the Yankees. He batted .261/.314/.327 (84 OPS+) with four home runs and 22 stolen bases. Publicly available defensive metrics were split on his glovework at shortstop, but the Yankees nevertheless kept him around this winter. Now, it appears they'll deploy him in a super-utility role.
