aybar is one of the best defensive shortstops in the MLB at the moment.. while i’m not saying figgy couldn’t play serviceable defense at SS, in fact i think he’d be prettty decent, but there’s no way he displaces aybar from the positions.. 2B is much more likely..

It did come to pass that the Sailors did come unto the place of the Seraphim, even under the shadow of the mighty Alpha.
And yea, though the King did sore try the Seraphim, were the Seraphim victorious, ee’n though the mighty lizard did fail.
And on the next night did the Clothmaker and the Bellringer lead the Seraphim unto victory!

I have been a large Aybar critic in years past. His defensive skills were incredibly raw and unschooled. His foot work was all wrong, and he used his speed to and arm strength to compensate for his lack of instinct and lack of positioning (both before a ball was put into play and where he put himself to make a play). Also, his cannon arm was not under complete control. Meanwhile, he brought nothing to the offense that the team did not already have in quantity. Including horrid bunting.

Wrong. Shortsightededly wrong. This kid has completely smoothed out his defensive liabilities and become a HUGE asset at SS. Not just for the Halos but for baseball (he needs to get intot he WS at this level of play so that all baseball fans can enjoy). I don’t know whether it was maturity, repetitions, confidence, or a buttload of education at the feet of Tony Phillips. Perhaps all of the above. But I would NEVER consider moving Aybar out of that SS spot now in favor of ANYONE in this organization. Aybar can own that slot for the next 8 years.

BUT…what Aybar brings to the plate on offense has been nothing short of miraculous!!! Forget stats for a moment. I am sure that we could pull them up all day in praise of Aybar with the bat. Think about this: when Aybar comes to bat now, isn’t your default thinking one of something positive and exciting about to happen? How many other players create that level of confidence in his potential with each at-bat? And this is only 2009! His career arc is climbing dramatically! Right now, any cap that we might put on his offensive ability might be little more than a repeat of past mistakes. And being able to type that line, from a guy who saw nothing but trouble in this player, is not hard at all. It is a joy to have been this wrong.