Jun
20
2011

Could Ike’s Injury Have Cost Him An All-Star Appearance?

An article by Clayton Collier

It may seem like a distant memory at this point, but earlier this season, before the unfortunate collision with David Wright that has left him in a boot for the past month, Ike Davis was off to one hell of a season. If Wright had not barreled into Davis in Colorado, especially now after Albert Pujols out with a broken arm, could the young first baseman have gone to Arizona this July? I think so.

Davis was on fire to start the season. In his first 36 games, Davis was batting .302 with 7 home runs and 25 RBIs.Those figures were on pace for 32 homers and 113 RBIs if spanned over a full season; that looks like an All-Star to me.

Albert Pujols was placed on the 15-day disabled list for a slightly fractured left forearm. He suffered the injury when he attempted to catch a wild throw, colliding with the baserunner, Kansas City’s Wilson Betemit. With arguably the best player in all of baseball now out for the All-Star Game, the starting first base job is wide open for a number of candidates, that unfortunately will not include Ike Davis.

Chances are Davis would not have won the starting first base job for the National League, but a reserve role would definitely not seem unreasonable. He could have probably been around the 4th spot in the All-star balloting behind Pujols, Fielder and Votto. He without a doubt would have had more votes than Freddie Freeman or Ryan Howard.

One could only imagine what kind of offensive production there would have been with the resurgent Beltran AND Davis knocking in Jose Reyes. The Mets would be a .500 team right now, possibly even 2nd place in the NL East with Ike at first.

Davis seemed to be evolving from the rookie phenom we saw in 2010 into a core member of the Mets franchise before our eyes prior the injury. Now when he gets back, he will undoubtedly continue to transform into that player, but it will most likely be too late for a 2011 All-Star appearance. It would have been nice to see Davis there alongside baseball’s finest, because that is where he belongs, and that is where he will soon be.

It’s a shame, but it won’t be long until we see Davis representing the Mets at the All-Star Game for many years to come.

Kansas City in 2012? I think so.

About the Author: Clayton Collier

Clayton, a Long Island native and die-hard Mets fan, started writing online about three years ago. He is currently a Journalism major with a minor in Broadcasting at Seton Hall University. Although very disappointed with the current state of the team, Clayton remains hopeful that the young prospects in the farm system will bring the Mets back to a respected franchise in baseball once again. Besides writing for MMO, Clayton is also a staff member at 89.5 WSOU, Seton Hall's modern active rock radio station. You can contact Clayton by following him on Twitter: @Clayton_Collier or E-mailing him at MaybeNextYearMets@yahoo.com

10 Comments + Add Comment

Brandon Butler June 20, 2011 at 8:08 pm

You make a great point Clayton.

I think Ike could have very well made the All-Star team via the final vote, or coaches picks. He probably would have put up All-Star caliber numbers but since he injuried his ankle and has been out for about a month and a quarter, i think that the injury cost him any chance at being in Arizona this year.
- Clayton Collier June 20, 2011 at 9:12 pm
  
  Thanks Brandon.
  
  Yea it is a shame, but he’ll have plenty of opportunities to make the all-star team. I am reminded of what Charlie Manuel said about Stephen Strasburg when he chose not to pick Strasburg for the All-star game. Do you remember what I am talking about?
  - Brandon Butler June 21, 2011 at 11:00 am
    
    Yeah i remember that exactly.
Matt June 20, 2011 at 9:55 pm

With Pujols going down…had Ike continued his good start to the season without injury, he appears to be a definite all-star. I also believe Ike and Reyes are the 2 positional players the Mets should build around for the future. However, “rookie phenom we saw in 2010.” Using the term “phenom” loosely, aren’t you? .264 BA, 138 K’s and 7th in voting for the ROY…hardly phenomenal. Overall, it was a nice rookie campaign, but a phenom…not really.
- Clayton Collier June 20, 2011 at 10:14 pm
  
  Notice how you only used some of the bad stats he had. Not his 19 homers and 33 doubles 72 walks or 71 RBIs without even playing a full season? Not to mention his Gold Glove caliber defense, his dugout flips and clutch hits.
  
  He was an exciting player that provided much needed offense to a depleted lineup. I would call him a phenom.
  
  He has Adam Dunn-quality power and capable of hitting .300, coupled with excellent range and D around first, hes a great, franchise-type player
  - Matt June 20, 2011 at 10:31 pm
    
    19 HRs and 71 RBIS are not “phenom”-worthy stats in 147 games. Like I said…he had a nice rookie campaign, but it was not phenomenal…the guy finished 7th in ROY voting in the NL…that means 2010 had a lot of rookie phenom’s, I suppose.
    - Matt June 20, 2011 at 10:45 pm
      
      Ike Davis 2010: .264/19 HR/71 RBI/.351 OBP/.440 SLG/.791 OPS
      Bobby Bonilla 1992: .249/19 HR/70 RBI/.348/.432 SLG/.780 OPS.
      
      Bonilla ’92 = Phenom?
      - Clayton Collier June 21, 2011 at 10:48 am
        
        Ike was a rookie and struggled during late July into August. September he batted something like .355, when it counts most. He had a good five homers robbed from him from Citi Field btw. If he played @ Shea like BOnilla he would have had upwards of 25 homers.
        
        Do you forget that 2010 was called a “rookie tsunami”? And Ike’s figures were up there with Heyward, and Sanchez, and with the exception of average, Posey.
        
        Bonilla was on the downhill, Ike was just beginning. Not a fair comparison
LL June 20, 2011 at 10:02 pm

Really tough to say. At 30 something games into the season numbers fluctuate quite a bit. He actually struggled a bit the 10 or so games before he got hurt. Was that a sign he was headed into a longer slump? Just a normal 10 day fluctuation? Hard to say.

He was playing great over those 30-something games as whole but I’d probably lean towards no on the ASG likelihood. 1b is such a deep position, and some of the bigger name, more well known guys would probably have gotten the fan and player votes.
- Clayton Collier June 21, 2011 at 10:49 am
  
  Well in the tw games before it he began to come out of it LL, he had a 2-run single in the game he got injured.

NL East Standings

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB
Braves	42	30	.583	-
Phillies	35	37	.486	7.0
Nationals	34	36	.486	7.0
Mets	27	40	.403	12.5
Marlins	22	48	.314	19.0

Last updated: 06/19/2013

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