Backup catcher Kevin Plawecki had a nice day at the plate on Saturday, crushing a long two-run homer in the team’s 14-9 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.
After the game manager Terry Collins acknowledged that the team is debating whether Plawecki would be better served by playing regularly at Triple-A Las Vegas or serving as the backup to Travis d’Arnaud.
“We haven’t had that discussion as to where he’s going to fit the best, or what we think is the best for everyone involved,” Collins said.
“If the conversation goes to where, ‘Hey, look, we need to have this guy ready to be an everyday guy,’ he may have to go play in Las Vegas. If we think we’re better off being able to get him two to three games a week at times, then he’s got a good chance of making the club.” (Daily News)
Plawecki, 25, batted .219 last season in 258 plate appearances after making his major league debut in April.
“Ultimately I want to prove I am a better hitter than I was last year,” Plawecki said. “I am not necessarily putting more pressure on myself, but I’ve been working real hard with Kevin Long and Pat Roessler to simplify things.”
If Plawecki fails to make the team, Johnny Monell will be the team’s backup catcher.
Original Report
According to Marc Carig of Newsday, the Mets haven’t ruled out the possibility of having catcher Kevin Plawecki start the season at Triple-A Las Vegas so he can get more at-bats, while having Johnny Monell start off as the backup to Travis d’Arnaud.
However, Plawecki disagrees and thinks that he would learn more at the major league level, even if it means being a backup.
“Just in general, I think you learn more on a day-to-day basis even if you’re not playing as much,” Plawecki was quoted as saying.
“You learn just as much, actually in my opinion more, just because you’re around the game and around the guys in the locker room. You’re constantly learning every day. That’s what I learned last year. And this year, we’ll just kind of see how it plays out.”
The Mets logic is sound, and keeping Plawecki fresh and having him get more reps at the plate could prove to be crucial, especially if he is forced to jump into combat should the oft injured Travis d’Arnaud miss an extended amount of time.
Plawecki, 25, hit only at a meager .219/.280/.296 clip last season in 258 plate appearances after he was called up in April when the aforementioned d’Arnaud was hit by a pitch and broke his hand.
However, the former 35th overall pick by the Mets in 2012 has always proven he could hit through his time in the minors, so it’s only a matter of time before he starts to find his groove in the bigs.
“He’s a good hitter,” Terry Collins said in regards to the young catcher. “He was signed because he’s a good hitter. They’re working on a couple of things. They’re spreading him out, dropping his hands a little bit to get the bat flatter through the strike zone. He got a good swing on it today.”
And that he did, as Plawecki went 1-for-3 and stroked a double in the Mets 3-1 win over the Astros Saturday afternoon.
