Ellsbury Moved To LF

Jacoby Ellsbury will play left field this season, with Mike Cameron in center.

Terry Francona:

[LBJ] was worried that it was a demotion, which it is not. I kind of insured him of that. I just think we're tying to put guys where we think they can make the biggest impression. Cam was great, for a guy who is 37-years-old and played center field his whole life, he said, "Hey, I'll play anywhere." So it was just a decision based on what's best for our team.

Ellsbury's arm is better suited for left, where he played a total of 80 games in 2007-08. He'll have no trouble playing somewhat shallow since he'll have less ground to cover behind him and he should get straighter caroms off the Wall.

Theo Epstein:

It came down to the fact that Cameron's experience is almost exclusively in center and Jacoby demonstrated in 2007 and 2008 that he can be an impact corner outfielder defensively. We are more than comfortable with Jacoby in center. We just feel that -- for now -- this alignment puts us in the best position to win games.

Peter Gammons remembers Rickey Henderson telling him how the physical toll of stealing so many bases made it tough to cover center field.

Ellsbury really wants to be a great offensive player. Boras is smart enough to know that a Gold Glove is not going to go to arbitration the same way that hitting .300 and stealing 80 bases will. ... He played left field in the Cape League. They'll play Ellsbury in left field 80-100 games a year, rest his legs a little bit, and maybe it will keep him fresher over the course of the season.