Read more about Pascucci from Ted Berg at Flushing Fussing.
Read R.J. Anderson on Pascucci at Beyond the Box Score.
Fortunately for The Boss, the Mets front office probably pays attention to MetsBlog. Unfortunately for the Mets, their front office pays attention to MetsBlog.
Bringing up Pascucci would rectify some wrongs, but it wouldn't change the fact that for two weeks the Mets have had this roster:
[x] Old first basement with a .618 OPS vs. lefties
[x] Right-handed back-up second baseman playing first base vs. lefties
[x] Slow, switch-hitting third catcher with career line of .236/.303/.380 getting plenty of time as a pinch-hitter
[x] 22-year old first baseman with minimal outfield experienced called up from AA and starting in the outfield
[x] Former power-hitting third baseman way past his prime starting games in the outfield
[ ] Valentino Pascucci
[x] Edit: On the DL, a 37-year old backup infielder who can sort of play outfield, pretty much guaranteed a roster spot as soon as he comes back from having his robotic exoskeleton installed
[x] On the DL, a 34-year old backup infielder with a career 84 OPS+ who is a bad infielder and who can theoretically play outfield, whose job is guaranteed because of a nebulous pinch-hitting "ability" and a short, unsustainable run of success with the team in the past, and because the manager likes him
It doesn't make any sense. Yes, Val's abilities are extremely limited. Yes, he has a lot of flaws and is not good enough to play every day in the big leagues. The Mets have read his scouting reports, which say something like: "Very big and very slow. A quadruple-A player, his bat won't play in the big leagues, where his big swing will be exposed. Would strike out about 180-190 times in a full season, without the secondary skills to compensate. Perhaps useful as a platoon vs. left-handers or strictly as a pinch-hitter." The Mets concluded based on this that they won't give Pascucci a chance, leaving them with the absurd situation above. They have a bench full of proven veterans who have "proven" that they aren't very good any more. They have a first baseman whose skills are rapidly declining and who could use a platoon partner. They have a 22-year old who plays the same positions as Pascucci but does not yet belong in the big leagues. It's absurd.
Edit: The Mets signed Raul Gonzalez to a minor league contract. A sign of Pascucci's impending promotion? (Or José Valentín's?)
Another Edit: In an interview with Aaron Dorman at Mets Geek, Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus weighs in on Pascucci:
MetsGeek: What are Valentino Pascucci’s pluses? Can he help the Mets at all?Goldstein's a smart guy, but I don't see where he's coming from here. Has he seen the players on the Mets' bench? No one is asking about Pasucci's "future" with the Mets. They are clamoring for him to platoon with Delgado and be the primary pinch-hitter instead of Raul Casanova, Damion Easley and Marlon Anderson. Kevin must coming at the situation like a scout, because as a fan and evaluator of major league talent, he has to see that the Mets could use an .800 OPS bat on the bench and to spell Delgado vs. lefties. It's not like the aforementioned bench scrubs aren't "organizational players" themselves.
Kevin Goldstein: No, not really. Obviously Val Pascucci is having a great year, but he is one of those classic Quadruple-A hitters. Off the top of my head, I’m guessing he’s 29 or 30 years old. He’s always been a guy who draws walks, hits home runs, and strikes out a lot. I think the problem is that if you took him up to the big leagues, he’d strike out even more. He does most of his damage against lefties, he really struggles against right-handers. He’s really kind of an org player, Quadruple-A hitter. Maybe an occasional insurance policy, but he has no important role at all in the Mets’ future.
MetsGeek: So we shouldn’t be rooting for the Mets to release Delgado and call him up?
Kevin Goldstein: (Laughs) No, you should not. I mean, you might, just because it’s hard not to dig a guy named Val Pascucci. And as big as he is, I have a personal bias in favor of big baseball players, and he certainly is enormous, but on a skill level, he’s up and down, played in Triple-A, played across the sea a few times, he’s the definition of what an org player is.
preseason computers projected val for a 800 ops.
ReplyDeletewow this blog is bitter
ReplyDeletehuh? Easley and Anderson can sub in at multiple positions and be passable. Does any team carry a 'pinch hitter' who only plays one position and should be subbed out defensively anymore?
ReplyDeleteA lot of sound and fury on this issue, IMO. Plus remember that singles hitters are slightly better as pinch hitters, and that some players have serious trouble pinch hitting.
At the positions the Mets need, Pascucci is fine. Remember, Easley and Anderson are being used at first base and the outfield. Both aren't very good outfielders. Tatis and Evans are both right-handed, and neither are very good outfielders. Really the Mets already have four players up with the flexibility of Pascucci, except they can't hit as well as him. I suppose Easley and Anderson can "play" second base, but neither are very good at it anymore. They certainly aren't outfielders just because the Mets play them there.
ReplyDeleteI know it's a small issue. That's why it's so damn frustrating that the Mets can't get it right.
ReplyDeleteto further add to my point, people with extreme platoon splits like pascucci are often useless as pinch-hitters because teams will just take out their left-hander for a right-hander when they see him coming.
ReplyDeleteagain i think the mets are making a mistake with nick evans but i think your dismissal of goldstein is somewhat unfounded. you want the mets to retain a guy with an extreme platoon split who can't play the field.
triumph:
ReplyDeletehe can play the field - at first base. he also happens to hit lefties really well. and what do you know, the current mets' firstbaseman can't hit much of anything, but especially against lefties. damned if pascucci wouldn't make a good fit for a platoon there. this platoon value is far greater than, say, anderson's pinch-hitting value, for instance, or casanova's pinch-hitting/third catcher value. or nick evans' left field/out-of-position/in-over-his-head/what?!-another-rushed-prospect?-what-the-fuck-is-wrong-with-this-organization? value. this is pretty basic roster construction/organizational management stuff here.
the yankees have basically the same player in shelley duncan. except that duncan can DH against left-handers and play RF. they also don't exclusively platoon anyone because they're capable of having that versatility due to the DH.
ReplyDeletewillie has said he won't platoon delgado. so unfortunately for the mets it's one of those spots where the roster could be constructed more optimally, but won't be. willie thinks about delgado, 'you don't pull down eight figures a year without having it too-gether against left-handed pitching.' the mets aren't alone in this attitude - but it is unfortunate, the veteran-friendly bubble that omar minaya has constructed.
Honestly the Mets also need a DH for when they play in AL parks (3 games left this year, I think?) Guys like Easley and Anderson end up DHing. Those guys are career second basemen, and they are DHing. That's just not how it should be. The Mets' primary pinch-hitters are those same guys (and Raul Casanova! woo!). And don't tell me they have more value as pinch-hitters because they are singles hitters, because Easley's career batting average is .251 and Anderson's is .266.
ReplyDeletePlus, Pascucci can play the outfield. He's a career outfielder. Don't try to convince me that Damion Easley (17 career games in outfield), Anderson (110 poorly fielded games), Tatis (15 games) and Evans (lol) are significant defensive upgrades over Pascucci, enough to compensate for how much better he would be with the bat.
The veteran bubble extends far beyond Delgado, my friend.
triump started one of his statements with the real root of the problem... "willie won't platoon delgado."
ReplyDeletethats the problem. pascucci shouldnt be a pinch hitter.. he should be playing everytime a left handed pitcher is on the mound.