So the Mets have finally come to this: Lucas Duda, playing first base. The guy isn’t a right fielder, he isn’t a left fielder. Not his fault: he doesn’t have the raw skills to cover remotely enough range.
Now, playing him at first base has to do with, one figures, showcasing him for a trade. After all, his bat is sufficient at first base or designated hitter, but the Mets have a first baseman in Ike Davis, and do not employ a designated hitter.
Here’s the thing: if we assume that Davis is the 2013 first baseman, and Duda is trade bait, I would absolutely play Duda and Davis in a strict platoon from now until the end of the season. But the Mets appear ready to play Duda against tough lefties, and Davis against righties.
If the idea is to trade Duda, that’s crazy.
If the idea is to showcase Duda, specifically to show off his bat, playing him against lefties (career OPS of .650) makes a lot less sense than playing him against righties (career OPS of .814). If the intention is simply to get Davis some time off, there’s nothing to be gained by doing it in a way that hurts Duda’s perceived trade value. And letting Davis hit against lefties, a skill he needs to improve (.531 OPS this year, .633 career against them) should even help ahead of playing every day in 2013.
The flip side of this could well be that the Mets view Duda is the starter at first base, and want to maximize Davis’s offensive numbers ahead of the offseason. This isn’t the craziest idea, if the Mets believe Davis will get them more in trade. Personally, I think Davis has the far higher upside than Duda, so I wouldn’t approach things that way, nor do I think Davis will earn the kind of return that makes up the difference between the two players. But that remains to be seen.
Anyhow, whoever the Mets plan on trading this offseason, Davis or Duda, shouldn’t be facing tough lefties they don’t hit over the last three weeks of the season.
9 Comments
Wouldn’t this be a step backwards? Duda has not shown any power at all this year, and I wonder if he has the ability to make the necessary adjustments.
Both Davis and Duda should be on the Mets next year because, lets be honest here, 2013 will be another “evaluating” year….or at least it should be for those two. How much value could Duda or Davis even bring back at this point? There are more questions about them now, than there was in the spring.
That would be so Mets. They traded Rusty because they believed Mike Vail was ready well he got hurt and just before that we traded Rusty Staub to Detroit for sir Blimpy Mickey Lolich. Mets have had a past of dumb decisions. so why is this a surprised Hoboken. i be ticked off but never shocked. even if Ike is vaulable Mets will find a way to get ripped off in a trade.
Ownership must sell now
The only way you’re going to learn to hit lefties is to face them.
No one’s value is going to be greatly enhanced or hurt in the next 20 meaningless games.
hi andrew silvestri mets have problems they have the same problem fo five years no hitters power speed plenty of pitchers i knew joe mcllivaine if you look their minor lleague prospects cory vaughn23 yaers old flores 21 what they waiting for
Trading Ike would be silly. He’s still young and contract is more than manageable. As for Duda he does have potential and people forget he’s still a young player. Some figure it out sooner than others. Who knows Duda might have a breakout year next season. It might take 2 or 3 more. Or perhaps this this is the best we get out of him.
In the long run I think Ike is the better bet. If Ike was 28 or over trade him, but his age makes little sense.
Am I missing something here? Duda stinks. The guy had a decent two months last year, one of which was September when he was hitting against minor leaguers every other at-bat. This guy’s awful. I highly doubt some AL GM is thinkin’, “Man, if we could only pry Duda away from the Mets …”
You learn to hit lefties and curveballs in high school/college or the minors, not at CitiField. New York is not a training ground for little leaguers in big league uniforms.
I don’t think this has to do with showcasing for a trade…I think the idea is to let Duda focus solely on hitting for a few weeks. Playing first base, his natural position, takes the pressure of the outfield play out of the equation. The Mets are simply trying to see if Duda is a legit MLB hitter before making any further decisions.