FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) -- The throw from infielder Chris Gomez pulled the first baseman off the bag, enabling Hanley Ramirez to reach safely. Without hesitation, the first baseman turned and threw to the plate, nailing Matt Cepicky trying to score from second.
If that's an example of how Javy Lopez is going to play first base for the Baltimore Orioles, then the experiment to convert him from a catcher could turn out to be a smashing success.
Lopez received his initial start at first base Thursday in the Orioles' exhibition opener against the Florida Marlins and fared remarkably well in a 6-4 loss.
In addition to his alert play in the fourth inning, he hauled in a foul pop, fielded successive hard grounders in the third and scooped up a roller while the top half of a broken bat was heading in his direction. He finished with 10 putouts, two assists and no errors.
"That breaks the ice. Now, next game I should feel a little more comfortable," Lopez said. "It's a hard position to play. You have to pay attention on every single play. But it's fun, I enjoyed it, and thank God I wasn't bad."
Far from it. After taking thousands of grounders during the first two weeks of spring training, Lopez suited up and played the position for real against the Marlins and looked as though he'd been at first base for years.
"Javy played great," Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo said. "Besides the couple of balls he made good plays on, the one I was most impressed with was the awareness on one play to come off the bag and get the guy at home plate. That's one of the things I was worried about. Situations happen and you have to react to them and he did very well on that."
The 35-year-old Lopez has made a career out of crouching behind the plate. But after the Orioles signed free-agent catcher Ramon Hernandez during the offseason, Lopez was asked to move to first base.
Because Lopez hates being a designated hitter, he made the switch.
"If I have to DH, I'll DH. But mainly I'd like to play first base," Lopez said. "For example, I struck out but then I made a good play at first base and that pumped me up. I forgot about the strikeout."
So did Perlozzo.
"Everything that he was supposed to do today he did. I thought he did it well and I'm glad he got those plays," the manager said. "It was a good start for him."
Hernandez, who was on the receiving end of Lopez's fourth-inning throw, said, "It doesn't surprise me. He's a good athlete, so he knows what to do when he plays another position. I knew he would figure out a way to do his best."
When behind the plate, Lopez can react instinctively. At first base, he's not yet comfortable.
"I made all the plays, but I felt pressure inside of me," he said. "I tried to be focused on every single pitch and forget about what's going on around me and anticipate the play before it happens. On top of that, I was nervous."
Of course, the last thing Lopez needs is to struggle at the plate and at first base.
"Even when I was catching, I got nervous," he said. "There's a little concern that I'll make a mistake and look bad out there. You've got that in the back of your head. Having that fear, you can concentrate more because you don't want that to happen."