Marlins experimenting with Yelich in center

MIAMI — Moving from left field to center will be a seamless transition for Christian Yelich. The 24-year-old saw substantial action at the position in the Minor Leagues, and he is agreeable to sliding over to a new position for the remainder of the season and beyond.

Marlins manager Don Mattingly said the club had considered moving Yelich to center field in Spring Training, but it opted instead to keep him in left with Marcell Ozuna in center.

As much as the Marlins are trying to climb back into National League Wild Card contention, they are also evaluating where players may fit in 2017. So they are testing some alignments in the outfield.

“The biggest thing we’ve seen about Yelly is the closing speed,” Mattingly said. “It’s been in discussion since last winter, which direction to go with that. It was hard for any of us to say because we didn’t really see a whole lot of it.”

When right fielder Giancarlo Stanton sustained his Grade 3 left groin strain on Aug. 13, the Marlins then experimented with Ozuna playing right and Ichiro Suzuki in center. …

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