# Players forced to play out of position **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [December 27, 2013, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300 "2013-12-27T18:21:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/21 "2014-01-06T05:06:34Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > If you want a whole class of athletes who play out of position, just look at [left-handed catchers.](http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/16/sports/baseball/16catcher.html?_r=0) That article also mentions an interesting forced out of position example: Don Mattingly playing third base for three games in 1986. It was the last time a left-handed thrower started a game at third. [He handled it well.](http://itsaboutthemoney.net/archives/2013/03/04/when-don-mattingly-played-third-base/) ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/22 "2014-01-06T11:55:59Z")
> [@GreenElf](#): > > The Portland Trail Blazers were often forced to used “Forward-Centers” such as Michael Thompson as their starting center because their centers, such as Bill Walton and Sam Bowie, had a history of season-ending injuries. It would work okay until they met the Lakers Jabbar in the first round of the playoffs. In the 1990s, Warriors (NBA) coach Don Nelson was famous for avoiding using “true” centers on his team (mainly by failing to recruit them). Forward Chris Webber’s first pro job was being “forced” to play center as a Warrior – one reason among several that he was unhappy on the team, and pushed for a trade (which he got a year or two later, to the Washington Bullets). ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/23 "2014-01-06T15:04:01Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > In the 1990s, Warriors (NBA) coach Don Nelson was famous for avoiding using “true” centers on his team (mainly by failing to recruit them). Forward Chris Webber’s first pro job was being “forced” to play center as a Warrior – one reason among several that he was unhappy on the team, and pushed for a trade (which he got a year or two later, to the Washington Bullets). As a fan of those Run TMC teams, it got to be a little frustrating. An athletic center would have made things even more entertaining, but Nelson was determined to create bizarre match-ups. It was as though he was more interested in unusual ways to win rather than just winning. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/24 "2014-01-06T16:10:50Z")
Brandon Marshall started at safety for seven games during his junior season at UCF (due to a combination of injuries in the defensive backfield and apparent depth at wide receiver). He wound up leading the team in tackles. He’d played linebacker in high school. Amusingly enough, Mike Walker was also moved from wide receiver to defense that year, and led the team in interceptions. Marshall and Walker went on to be drafted, and Marshall is now a huge star; neither or the wideouts who played ahead of them were drafted or ever caught a pass in the NFL. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/25 "2014-01-06T19:01:55Z")
> [@BlankSlate](#): > > As a fan of those Run TMC teams, it got to be a little frustrating. An athletic center would have made things even more entertaining, but Nelson was determined to create bizarre match-ups. It was as though he was more interested in unusual ways to win rather than just winning. True. His coaching style made for some impressive regular-season W/L records (for a while), but didn’t work in the playoffs, where lock-down defense is key. ---
**Author:** ![Human\_Action](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@Human\_Action](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Human_Action)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/26 "2014-01-06T19:13:55Z")
Due to a series of injuries this season to Steve Nash, Steve Blake, and Jordan Farmar, [Kobe Bryant had to play some games at point guard](http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/lakers/2013/12/12/kobe-bryant-point-guard-steve-blake-steve-nash-jordan-farmar-injury-los-angeles/4003495/), before getting hurt again. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/27 "2014-01-06T20:58:56Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > If you a problem with it, kindly never watch sports again, and avoid this forum. TY. Okay, this is a warning for you. Your posts in this forum over the last few days have been increasingly personal and insulting. So here’s a warning for breaking our first rule, which is “Don’t be a jerk”. If you don’t like topics or posts in this forum, either don’t reply to them or take it to the Pit, but cut out posting how you’ve been posting in the last few days…because you got two other notes (not including this warning) in two other threads in the last three days. Dial it back…now. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/28 "2014-01-06T21:37:11Z")
sometimes the Lions put Megatron in to play pass coverage (in this case stand in the end zone)when the other team is doing a hail mary throw because he is so tall and I’ve seen some defensive lineman put in as lead blocker for a running play right on the goal line not really “forced” but going in to another position for a situation ---
**Author:** ![cmosdes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@cmosdes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmosdes)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/29 "2014-01-07T01:17:36Z")
ARod moving to third base to play for the Yankees. Edited to add: It is not uncommon in soccer for the keeper (goalie) to be involved in a corner kick late in a game just to get an extra player involved. ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/30 "2014-01-07T14:48:51Z")
> [@cmosdes](#): > > …It is not uncommon in soccer for the keeper (goalie) to be involved in a corner kick late in a game just to get an extra player involved. That brought to mind [Jimmy Glass](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KejwqhLDeOs)who scored a very late goal at the closing day of the 98/99 season that kept Carlisle United in the league. Well worth a watch… ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/31 "2014-01-07T15:01:25Z")
> [@cmosdes](#): > > ARod moving to third base to play for the Yankees. That wasn’t “playing out of position”. It was a permanent position change. ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/32 "2014-01-07T15:44:18Z")
Not really related to this thread, but I stumbled upon Hereford’s 2-1 defeat of Newcastle United in the 71-72 FA cup. Worth a watch just for Malcolm MacDonald’s sideburns… and the Ronnie Radford goal [Here](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1i7XUmCGcg) ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/33 "2014-01-07T16:09:54Z")
Another basketball one, in the March of 1989, Doug Collins decided to give MJ full reign of the offense and played him at point guard where he proceeded to rack up 10 triple doubles in 11 games. ---
**Author:** ![cmosdes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@cmosdes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmosdes)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/34 "2014-01-07T19:46:11Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > That wasn’t “playing out of position”. It was a permanent position change. If you say so. I guess I read “What are instances of team-sport players having to play out of their normal position, due to injury, rules, or whatever?” a bit differently. There are lots of catchers in baseball that moved to 1st base or DH due to aging knees, so ARod’s situation is definitely not unique. There are also lots of situations where a QB in football will line up as a holder or even as a wideout. But those are just single plays and not for an entire game. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2014, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300/35 "2014-01-12T01:18:59Z")
In football (soccer) playing out of one’s normal position isn’t that rare. Fullbacks playing as centerback and vice versa. Defending midfielders playing as back. Offensive midfielder playing forward and viceversa. The nature of the game is such that “playing (totally) out of position” only happens when the goalie is sent off and there are no substitutions available. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/players-forced-to-play-out-of-position/677300.md?page=1)