A utility infielder is a baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 player, usually one who does not have a regular starting role on the team and who is capable of playing more than one of the four defensive infield

Infielder

An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field.-Standard arrangement of positions:In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles...

 positions

Baseball positions

There are 9 fielding positions in baseball. Each position conventionally has an associated number which is used to score putouts...

: second base

Second baseman

Second base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...

, third base

Third baseman

A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...

, shortstop

Shortstop

Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...

, and less typically first base

First baseman

First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a run for that player's team...

. Utility infielders are generally considered excellent defensive players who do not hit well enough to remain in the starting lineup, but can fill in at multiple defensive positions to give the various starters a rest, or replace a starter late in a game to provide improved defense when the team is winning.

Examples of current utility infielders include Geoff Blum

Geoff Blum

Geoffrey Edward Blum is a Major League Baseball infielder for the Arizona Diamondbacks. During his major-league career, he has also played for the Montreal Expos, Houston Astros, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, San Diego Padres and Chicago White Sox...

, John McDonald, and Ronnie Belliard

Ronnie Belliard

Ronald "Ronnie" Belliard is a retired Major League Baseball second baseman of Dominican descent.-Early life:Belliard attended Central High School in Miami, Florida...

.