Ryan

Roberts

The Jays aren’t going anywhere with John McDonald, so maybe they’ll give Roberts an opportunity at second and move Aaron Hill back to shortstop, which is where he was today. It’s a situation to watch for AL-only leagues.

The 25-year-old was hitting .279/.339/.445 with nine homers and five steals in 337 at-bats for Syracuse. Unless the Jays can acquire Julio Lugo, Roberts will probably stick as a reserve infielder for the rest of the season. He shouldn’t have any value in AL-only leagues.

The absence is not believed to be injury-related. Ryan Roberts is playing second base and Cody Ransom is handling third. Hill is batting .266/.363/.481 with four homers, two steals and 10 RBI in 22 games this season.

The bomb was already Roberts’ third of the spring, though he’s hitting just .200 through his first 15 at-bats. Roberts hit .239/.341/.413 after the All-Star break last season after taking a .257/.340/.439 triple slash into the Midsummer Classic.

Both two-out swipes came off of walks in the second and fourth innings, and he was left stranded at second base each time. It marked his first game of the year without a hit, and also his fourth straight game with one strikeout.

Roberts finished the day 2-for-3, with the solo blast off Johan Santana coming in the second inning. He’s off to a rough start at the plate this year, hitting just .184 with two homers and 11 RBI. Lately he’s been losing starts to Cody Ransom at third base.

He finished 0-for-3 with a walk and an RBI, and is now posting a miserable .152/.240/.242 batting line. The 31-year-old journeyman surprised a lot of people last season with a combination of power and speed that few infielders could match. But in the midst of a 1-for-28 slump, Roberts now must prove that he deserves to remain an everyday starter, especially with Cody Ransom (1.150 OPS) hitting exceptionally well.

Roberts requested $2.275 million and was offered $1.65 million from the Diamondbacks when arbitration figures were exchanged earlier this month. It took a couple of weeks for the two sides to work toward a middle ground. The 31-year-old Super Two third baseman is under team control through the end of the 2015 season.

Roberts, who is arbitration-eligible for the first time, is in line for a nice raise after hitting .249/.341/.427 with 19 homers, 65 RBI, 18 stolen bases and a .768 OPS with the Diamondbacks last season. Assuming they eventually settle around the midpoint, he’s likely looking at a salary around $2 million for 2012.

The two clubs have discussed scenarios involving one or both players, but it’s not clear how advanced talks are. The Tigers already have Jhonny Peralta at shortstop, but Rosenthal speculates that the D-Backs could ask for him as part of a trade, as his contract includes a $6 million club option for next year. Roberts could slide in at second base, where the Tigers have a clear need.