With Ike Davis all, but assured of a trip to Triple-A Las Vegas, the easy part is done. The difficult part will deciding on how to replace him, in body only, at first base.
On the current roster, we already discussed some of the options available and they range from moving Lucas Duda from left field to first base, moving Daniel Murphy over to first, or giving Justin Turner significant playing time at first as well.
None of those options sound very appealing and each one opens up a new set of problems. Instead, the solution should come from the minors.
The simpleton’s choice would be to turn to Zach Lutz. However, he has struggled of late after getting off to a torrid start and is now batting just .271/.354/.421 in 140 at-bats. Only 12 of his 38 hits were for extra-bases. Scarier still, is the 42 strikeouts. How well do you think those metrics will translate at Citi Field? Not very well I can assure you.
The smart money would be on Josh Satin. Already the starting first baseman for Las Vegas, he is having a very solid 2013 season, batting .299 with six home runs and 24 RBI. His on-base is at .410 and he boasts a .470 slugging percentage. What I love about Satin and why I feel he would be the ideal choice is this… In 164 at-bats he’s struck out just 37 times, but he has also drawn 30 walks. This is someone who is obviously ready for the next challenge.
Additionally, Satin has regularly played first base (198 games) while the position is still relatively new to Lutz who has logged just 42 games at first base in his entire pro career.
Back on May 1, I wrote the following about Josh Satin:
Satin has always been a great and disciplined hitter and one look at his career .397 on-base in six minor league seasons should have the suits in the front office with their tongues hanging out of their mouths, as would his .466 slugging percentage.
I don’t know about you, but I’m growing tired of watching Ike Davis suffocate this offense and have been calling for a reduced role for him since the season began. He’s not suddenly going to magically begin teeing off against lefty pitching as a few lingering fans still believe. That’s a wooden bat he has in his hands, not a magic wand.
Ike Davis is nothing more than the long end of a platoon player at best. I’ve said that before and continue to stand on that position.
Josh Satin deserves a chance to prove he belongs. He’s paid his dues and has nothing left to prove in the minors. Let’s get this done and right a wrong that has gone on for far too long. Let’s give this kid his well-deserved shot.
The worst thing that a team as bad as the Mets could do, is to keep trotting out the same undeserving and underperforming ballplayers while some hidden gems waste away at Triple-A when they should be here instead helping the team score runs.
Before that on April 17, in a post entitled, “Time To Promote Josh Satin and Platoon Ike Davis“, I said:
Satin has been hitting the ground running from the moment he signed his first professional contract and has posted an.865 OPS during his minor league career with the Mets, and has made the Minor League All Star Team as the starting third baseman, first baseman or second baseman every season since 2009. Wow…
I think it’s time to call this and tell it like it is… Ike Davis is nothing more than the long end of a platoon player at best.
Enter Josh Satin, who despite the gaudy stats I already posted, is even better against left-handed pitching. He torches southpaws unmercifully like a demon from Hell. Let’s get this done and right a wrong that has gone on for far too long and give Josh Satin his well-deserved shot. The fact that it’s taking this long is a cardinal sin.
I was called nuts when I wrote that, but who’s nuts now? Some guy from Bayonne who knows baseball and can see things with his eyes, told me I lost my baseball mind and that Ike was fine and I should shut up about this. 🙂
Anyway… The choice is pretty clear as to what the Mets should do, but I’m certain it won’t go down that way. After all we wouldn’t want to risk losing Robert Carson or Collin Cowgill off the 40 Man Roster to make room for someone who could actually help the team, now would we?
