From MLB.com:

 

JUPITER, Fla. -- When Spring Training opened, one of the most hotly contested positions in Marlins camp was catcher.

 

The organization weighed whether to start power-hitting Josh Willingham or go with the more seasoned defensive standout, Miguel Olivo.

 

Now, with Opening Day set for Monday in Houston, the Marlins have resolved the position. Rather than go with one steady catcher, manager Joe Girardi will divide the job almost in half.

 

Olivo is slated to be behind the plate in the opener, catching Dontrelle Willis.

 

The 27-year-old Dominican Republic native has caught Willis' past two starts, and the two are developing a comfort level.

 

"He's an energy guy on the mound," Olivo said of working with the D-Train. "I'm real excited [about] catching him."

 

Like Willis, Olivo tends to play with high intensity.

 

"He will run through the wall for you," Girardi said. "If you could say one guy will run through that brick wall for you, it would be Miguel Olivo. I'm not saying the other guys won't. But you could actually tell Miguel, 'I want you to turn and run through that wall,' he'd go do it. The other guys would say, 'You kidding?' And then do it.

 

"[Olivo would] do it because he's trying to get better. He wants to get better. He works and works. He's a high-energy guy, which for me, is important for a catcher."

 

While Willingham has made great strides behind the plate, he is slated to start in left field in the opener. In an effort to keep him fresh, and get the most out of him offensively, the 27-year-old from Florence, Ala., will be used at multiple positions.

 

Willingham has enjoyed a strong spring, batting .452 with four home runs and 12 RBIs in 31 at-bats.

 

Olivo's defense is not an issue, but offensively, he has been inconsistent. This spring, he is hitting .163 (8-for-49) with two homers and six RBIs, with 12 strikeouts.

 

"I know I can hit and play defense," Olivo said. "You have to let the game come to you."

 

Olivo attributes his struggles to being a bit too eager. Physically, he feels strong, and he says that has him literally looking to crush the ball.

 

"I have to relax and wait for the ball to come to me," Olivo said.

 

Girardi likes Olivo's energy, but notes he has to contain his eagerness.

 

"There is a fine line between being able to control your body and having all that energy," Girardi said. "He's learning how to do it. He wants to get a hit so bad that he will do anything it takes. If you told him to stand on his head, he would try it. Sometimes you try to make up for two weeks in one day. It doesn't work that way. You're anxious to get a hit. You're in a hurry to get a hit."

 

A career .229 hitter in just under three years of big-league service time, Olivo opened the year with the Mariners, batting just .151 in 54 games. Traded to the Padres on July 30, Olivo's numbers picked up, as he batted .304 in 37 games. Overall, he hit .221 with 12 home runs and 55 RBIs in 115 games.

 

Girardi says a key stat for Olivo is strikeouts. He fanned 80 times in 267 at-bats last year.

 

"We've talked to him a little bit about trying to go the other way a little bit more and trying to cut down on his swing a little bit," Girardi said. "If he puts the ball in play on a consistent basis, I think he will be pretty productive. Because when he puts the ball in play, he usually hits the ball pretty hard.

 

"I'm not really sure how productive he can be offensively. But I feel he can be pretty productive. He hit really well the last couple of months in San Diego. I don't see why that can't continue. For him, it's putting the ball in play."

 

Olivo is being given the responsibility of helping to guide a young pitching staff. The team's Spring Training success has given the players some confidence as they head into the regular season.

 

"If we play in the season like we've played in Spring Training, we're going to surprise a lot of people," Olivo said. "The thing is, we hustle. We're ready to play. We don't want to embarrass South Florida. We're going to show the people everything that we have."

Sitting a veteran for a rookie at catcher? At almost any other position, yes, but catcher? Yes, Olivo can't hit at all but other than a somewhat decent spring (which means next to nothing), what says the rookie can?

 

I don't know about this move by Girardi.

I say when Olivo is hitting below the Mendoza line come June Willy will take over full time at catcher.

Everyone's a rookie at some point. Might as well give Willy a shot to catch this year - Girardi's really got nothing to lose. Hopefully he sticks at C.

I still think this is the best move for several reasons:

 

- Olivo's defense. Yeah, Willy has improved a lot in this regard, as noted by the thrown out attempted stealers stat. But I do think Olivo is superior in this regard, especially handling such a young pitching staff. Olivo's game calling skills are probably far better than Willy at this stage, simply because Willy hasn't had too much time at catcher over the last few years due to injury and playing other positions.

 

- Keeping Willy healthy. For a guy who has had so many injuries over the last few years, I almost cringe about thinking of him catching 5-6 days a week. I think it will wear him down and he'll become more susceptible to injuries. This way he gets some relief out in LF and keeps him fresh, so we can have his bat in the line-up. We need his bat... period.

 

If we had another top LF option then sure, maybe Willy should catch, but besides Aguila we don't... and I like Aguila, but I don't know if he can produce over an entire season.

 

I think those reasons is why Olivo/Willingham is better than Willingham/Aguila in the line-up... taking both offense and defense into consideration.

I back Olivo and only because I want Willingham in LF Olivo>Matt T.

i agree with everyone else in the sense that Olivo catches and Willi plays LF

I like this a lot...I always wanted Olivo to be out there starting some games instead of being the back-up.

And Willy still gets some time too.It's all good.

JW can't catch every day, and putting Olivo in for 34 games w/Willis lets him stay fresh, but lets not kid ourselves, Willingham has a future behind the plate and Olivo only has a future behind Willingham.

screw this....

As long as Willingham is a catcher most of the time. His bat is too valuable to make him a leftfielder.

I don't see where Olivo's defense is any better than Matt Treanor's... and what's he batting this spring, .140?

Olivo is a better hitter than Treanor. Neither of them are particulary good, but at least Olivo hit .304 in the NL last year. Treanor has never even sniffed that.

 

And, if come May, we're getting more production from Olivo than whoever else is sharing LF with Willingham, Hammer should play LF. Position specific offense is silly, put the best 8 on the field.

Olivo is a better hitter than Treanor. Neither of them are particulary good, but at least Olivo hit .304 in the NL last year. Treanor has never even sniffed that.

 

And, if come May, we're getting more production from Olivo than whoever else is sharing LF with Willingham, Hammer should play LF. Position specific offense is silly, put the best 8 on the field.

 

 

Well he certainly SHOULD hit better than Treanor, but the .151 average with Seattle doesn't particularly excite me.

 

and if Olivo outhits Chris Aguila I'll eat my hat. :hat

 

I do assume he should hit better than Treanor but he sure looks god-awful this spring...

Olivo is a better hitter than Treanor. Neither of them are particulary good, but at least Olivo hit .304 in the NL last year. Treanor has never even sniffed that.

 

And, if come May, we're getting more production from Olivo than whoever else is sharing LF with Willingham, Hammer should play LF. Position specific offense is silly, put the best 8 on the field.

 

 

If Olivo outhits Chris Aguila I'll eat my hat. :hat

 

Oh, I'm not saying it's going to happen, although it wouldn't surprise me as much as some around here. He's been in the league long enough for me to not really care how he hit in spring training.

 

One thing I know is he's a better player than Matt Treanor. I like Treanor a lot, but he's just not that good.