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Two huge Cardinal issues: Terrible at bats with runners on and weak defense.
Kid in Springfield who drove in 75 runs in 100 starts on a lousy team, more walks than strikeouts and an .880-plus OPS and he’s a Gold Glover. He got one game. He’s going to move runners, drive in runs, get walks and make plays. Don’t see why he doesn’t get a longer look than four at bats and one game.Given the absolutely pathetic performance of Cardinal regulars with men on base and in scoring position, you wonder why they didn’t take a longer look at some hitters with a proven track record of production. You’ve got a guy who came to Memphis last year without a promise of a job or regular at bats, forced his way into the lineup, didn’t even hardly get to play on some of those West Coast bandbox trips where everybody got to fatten up their power numbers (played one game in Reno – HR), started just 100 games yet drove in 75 runs for a pretty lousy team, adding 15 HR. Add another 30 games to that total and you get maybe 18-20 HR, 90 RBI, 25 doubles (finished with 22) and people would be wondering why he isn’t in the lineup every day. And unlike another first baseman who seemed to get sick or lame when Dustin May was on the hill or some other top prospect or found a way out of the first game after a long road trip, he never asked out, at one point playing in 21 games in a row. He wound up with more walks than strikeouts 69 to 54, hit .322 with runners in scoring position, 31 two-out RBI’s, .333 with two outs, posted an OPS of .889 and was voted the best defender at his position in the Pacific Coast League. You might wanna look at this guy.
Smart at bats win games. There are so many swing-and-miss guys in this lineup, why not take a longer look at somebody who puts the ball in play, hits to all fields and doesn’t give away at bats? And before you talk about power – that seems to be the one knock – ask Ryan Helmsley about the 99 MPH pitch he hit halfway up in Big Mac Land after sitting around for 40 minutes in Summer Camp, waiting for an extra at bat. It was 108 off the bat. Which, I would think, would play.
