Alex Bregman as first baseman may occur during Astros-Orioles series to allow Yordan Alavarez to be designated hitter

BALTIMORE, Maryland (KTRK) — In the 2011 film “Moneyball,” Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane and infield coach Ron Washington visit Scott Hatteberg, a major league free-agent catcher with an elbow issue that keeps him from playing his natural position.

Against the wishes of his scouts, Beane wants to sign Hatteberg as a low-cost batter. Without signing him as a catcher or occupying the designated hitter spot, Beane also wants him to play first base, a position in which Hatteberg has no prior history.

“The thing is…” Chris Pratt’s Hatteberg begins.

“You don’t know how to play first base,” Brad Pitt’s Beane acknowledges. “Scott, it’s not that hard. Tell him, Wash.”

“It’s incredibly hard,” Brent Jennings’ Washington deadpans, clearly showing his disinterest in Beane’s motivation.

The Washington character adds more levity to the scene, suggesting he could teach a fan to play first.

The video above is from a story produced in 2018.

While it’s not the same circumstances, the “Moneyball” dilemma and Alex Bregman’s elbow issues are similar-the Astros star is learning to play first base, a position he has no history of fielding in his career.

On Thursday, Houston Astros manager Joe Espada told reporters ahead of their series opener in Baltimore that Bregman at first base is under consideration, to the point that the LSU alum took groundballs at that position, which the game’s national telecast displayed.

Bregman wasn’t in the lineup for the first five games of their recent homestand but returned Wednesday and continued Thursday as the designated hitter, which requires no defense action.

Espada explained that the key to Bregman at first base is limiting the number of infield throws he’d make compared to his natural position at third base. Crucially, Bregman would free up the designated hitter spot for Yordan Alvarez, who started at left field Thursday. Espada said he’d like to limit the Cuban star having to handle the vast Camden Field space.

“It’s a tough balancing act because I need to keep Yordan, as much as possible, off left field,” Espada said. “Breggy will grind through it. I expect him to get his reps at third base if we know how to monitor the pain.”

Espada explained that it would be a day-to-day decision to start Bregman at first. Shay Whitcomb held down third on Thursday, and first base has been a revolving door of Jon Singleton, Zach Dezenzo, and catcher Yainer Diaz, circling us back to former catcher Hatteberg, who played seven more seasons at the position.

The Astros had Bregman starting at third base, Alvarez as the DH, and Dezenzo at first for Friday’s game. But the lineup changed with Alvarez out with reported neck stiffness and Bregman back at the designated hitter role.

To tie a bow on this story, Astros fans know Bregman was a shortstop at LSU but shifted to third due to the position occupied by fellow super-prospect Carlos Correa. However, fans might forget that Bregman fielded shortstop, second base, and left field in addition to third base during his first three seasons. For someone who has owned 18 hits since Aug. 5, though, the position change wouldn’t hurt.

Entering Friday’s game, the Astros are 69-58, 5.5 games up on the Seattle Mariners for the American League West lead, four games behind Cleveland for the second seed, and 5.5 games back from the New York Yankees for the AL’s top seed.

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