It was an up-and-down first full year in the big leagues for New York Mets shortstop Amed Rosario. At just 22-years old, Rosario got off to a bit of a shaky start last season.
Over the first half of the season, he was hitting just .246/.289/.379 with 64 strikeouts, four home runs, and six stolen bases. Rosario was over swinging often and like most young players looked a bit overmatched at the plate.
However in the second half, he took some major strides in his development. Over 64 games post All Star break, Rosario hit .268/.302/.383 with ten doubles, five home runs, and eighteen stolen bases.
Rosario looked much more relaxed at the plate and he showed some flashes of his top prospect potential. This certainly caught the attention of Mets manager Mickey Callaway, who took notice of the improvements his young shortstop was making.
“He can still be a very, very good player at the Major League level while he’s developing, and we saw that in the second half. He did a great job on his defense. He did a great job at the plate, laying off some pitches and putting pitches in play,” Callaway told reporters including Anthony Dicomo of MLB.com.
He carried over that success into Spring Training, as he put together a strong showing in Grapefruit League Play. In fourteen Spring Training games, Rosario hit .350/.447/.550 with two doubles, two home runs, and a trio of stolen bases. Recently, the young shortstop told Dicomo that the continued success has his confidence flying high heading into his second full year in the big leagues.
“I have a lot of confidence going forward. I feel like I’m better. I feel like I’ve been putting in a lot of work. That’s really all it is for me,” Rosario said.
With a more advanced approach at the plate and sky high confidence, many are expecting a breakout year from Rosario. And in his second full year in the league, Callaway says the Mets are taking the training wheels off the youngster.
“We protected him at times last year, and the gloves are off this year. He’s going to have to go out there and continue to do what he did last year, and understand what he did last year that made him more successful,” Callaway said.
“He’s going to have to carry that over into a spot in the lineup where it’s probably a little harder to accomplish that. So we’re asking a lot of a young player. But if anybody can handle it, Rosie can. He comes with a passion every day. He comes to get better,” Callaway added.
Rosario certainly has the skill set and the potential to become a star in this league. A breakout 2019 season could certainly go a long way towards making an already solid Mets lineup even stronger.
