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NL Manager Charlie Manuel on why Andre Ethier is starting in center field for the All-Star game

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Asked why Andre Ethier is starting in center field for the National League in the All-Star game, Manager Charlie Manuel offered this response:

The reason he’s playing center field is because when we did the fan voting and the player voting, we uh, [Corey] Hart had the, he was ahead of the outfielders, he has to start, he was supposed to start the game, and Ethier’s the one I chose to play center field because I remember he played there a lot. We do not have what they call a true center fielder right now. We have some our roster, at the same time that was the reason why he started in center field.

Here’s our attempt to translate what Manuel said:

Because Hart was third in player voting among NL outfielders, he was pushed into the lineup when Jason Hayward pulled out of the game. Manuel looked at his three starting outfielders and remembered that Ethier has played ‘a lot of center field’ -- even though Ethier has never played the position in the major leagues.

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But Ethier’s college teammate, Dustin Pedroia, said Ethier played center field at Arizona State.

‘He’s a baseball player, man,’ Pedroia said. ‘He’ll be fine.’

-- Dylan Hernandez

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