Luke Voit. Photo via Buffalo Bisons
Just six days ago, on June 12, the New York Mets signed veteran Luke Voit to a minor league contract. Since then, Voit has impressed mightily with Triple-A Syracuse. Through 27 plate appearances and 15 at-bats (six games) with the Triple-A Mets he owns a terrific 1.460 OPS.
This figure is driven by four extra-base hits (two home runs, one triple, one double) and a staggering 11 walks to go along with only five strikeouts. On Saturday alone, he walked four times in five plate appearances. He added one more walk on Sunday to go along with two RBIs, now eight in only six games with Syracuse, and a double. As a result is OBP sits at an absurd .593.
Voit’s best season was the 2020 COVID-19 shortened year with the Yankees where he slugged a league-leading 22 home runs (career best). He also posted a starling .948 OPS across 213 at-bats. This was the second-highest mark of his career, outside the 2018 season when he batted .322 with a 1.069 OPS and 15 home runs across only 143 at-bats.
The 32-year-old first baseman/designated hitter fell on hard times the past two-plus seasons, ultimately leading to him being designated for assignment with the Brewers before signing the minor league deal with the Mets. It will certainly be interesting to see if Voit factors in with the big club the rest of the season. If he keeps hitting for power and drawing walks anywhere near the clip he has his first week-plus with Syracuse, it’s likely you will see him at some point.
