Matt den Dekker is not known as a power hitting outfielder. The 17 home runs he hit between Double-A and Triple-A in 2012 are the most he’s ever had in one season. But Las Vegas is a home run haven, so there is so trepidation with relying on those numbers. Yet for some reason, den Dekker has been batting sixth in the lineup since being given mostly everyday duties in left field on August 10th. He’s not known as a tremendous base-stealer either, but of the two qualities he’s probably more associated with the latter. For having a pedigree to hit higher in the lineup though, den Dekker has yet to sniff the lead-off spot in the Mets lineup. It’s becoming clear that either den Dekker doesn’t have the overall ability to make it as an everyday outfielder, or he’s not being used properly.
To say den Dekker can’t cut it in the outfield everyday is false for two reasons. One, his tremendous defense means he’s better than every other player the Mets have thrown in left field for the past few years. And second, he’s never been given a lengthy opportunity to prove what he is capable of. Now is that chance, but if he’s still being used improperly in the lineup, there is little to suspect he will earn the position he covets.
There has been talk about den Dekker batting lead-off in place of the sometimes ineffective Curtis Granderson. However, lead-off can be intimidating. Therefore it’s perfectly understandable if the Mets front office and/or manager don’t want to throw him into the deep end of the pool right away. Afterall, this is the same player who has a career 28.6% K rate through the Mets system, which only in this season has started to come under control. Since August 10th, that rate is down to 19%, and the BB rate is at 9.5%. Nice solid improvements.
However, not batting lead-off still gives the Mets options to utilize den Dekker’s abilities, while also trying to promote his new, more patient approach. Batting second would not only give him an opportunity to watch the first few pitches up close, but also gives him the comfort of having the heart of the order behind him. Of course, that means moving Daniel Murphy from his favorite spot, but the Mets need him hitting third now more than ever. And yes that means moving David Wright down in the order. But after the season Wright has had, dropping him in the order is not so much a punishment or lack of faith as it is just a ball club trying to see what they have moving forward. If that can’t be done with hurting someone’s feelings or causing a rift in the clubhouse, then this team have more problems than we realize.
2014 is a lost season. The dream of 90 wins drifted away on the clouds of summer. Now is the time for looking ahead. The young players are being given extended playing time so that the organization can properly account for what they have waiting in the wings. But if you aren’t going to put those players in the correct spot in the lineup, then what is the point of having them play? Lucas Duda isn’t batting sixth anymore because he’s better suited in the cleanup role. Curtis Granderson was moved from batting cleanup because he wasn’t being productive there. Although now he needs to be moved again, but eyes are wide shut on that front. den Dekker is just another case of not being in the right position to succeed.
Murphy hitting third, Duda in cleanup, and Travis d’Arnaud behind him is the only thing that seems to make perfect sense at the moment. After that, everyone else should be moved to fit what is needed. On teams that gel together, things like this are no problem, but it’s not clear if the Mets are one of those kinds of teams. den Dekker could be the new lead-off for the Mets. Should he be? No one will know until he’s given an opportunity. If getting the young kids into the proper position means that feathers get ruffled, so be it. This team on most nights lacks a certain spark. Maybe angering a few of them off will finally get something going.
Hard to know whether to laugh or cry.
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“…he’s never been given a lengthy opportunity to prove what he is capable of. ”
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Den Dekker has had over two thousand hundred plate appearances in pro ball since the age of 22. Past minor league hitting is as accurate a predictor of future major league hitting as past major league hitting.
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To think anything resembling ‘we don’t really know what we have here’ is absurd, and betrays a lack of even basic knowledge of how players are evaluated. In any case, with Lagares solidly cemented as the everyday CF, dD doesn’t even have an outside shot at a place on the team. A good glove on a team that only has room in the OF corners is meaningless insofar as figuring him into future plans and lineups.
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DD’s the sort of player who might luck into a gig on a team with some truly bad gloves in the OF, as a 5th OFer, and before he becomes too expensive. Still, unless he shows he can hit ML pitching at all, no one’s going to bother with him.
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“…his tremendous defense means he’s better than every other player the Mets have thrown in left field for the past few years.”
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I’m optimistic you realize you’ve set the bar on the ground.
I have to agree with Jack in that den Dekker has usually struggled offensively, but I do feel he can be a productive piece to the puzzle. His best spot is #7 or #8, not #2. If he can hit consistently over several months, then worry about moving him up. However, this team has better options at #2 including David Wright. What this team needs is a better evaluator of how to put a roster together because from not having backup SS to having two projects like Granderson and CY on the same roster, this team always seems hamstrung.
If I would make one change to this lineup or roster, it would be to get Hanley Ramirez as a free agent for the middle of the lineup. Then, we can put Murphy at the top, Wright, Ramirez, Duda, TDA, Granderson, Lagares, MDD. This is our best option offensively and the defense would be adequate at best, but this lineup would win games.
Ramirez is often injured, but is what this club needs. If not Ramirez, the Mets can look for a leadoff type SS, and keep Murphy and Wright at 2 and 3 in the order, respectively. However, another crap performance by Wright and our prize $60MM signing from last year will hamstring this team again and make even the 2016 season look bleak.
Sorry, I cant see HanRam as the answer for the Mets. Gonna cost a ton, hes in decline, he often injured, and I think he could pose personality issues.
Id be more inclined to think about JJ Hardy.
weve got 30 more games to see what Matt can do. Hopefully we’ll get an indication of future ability to hit MLB pitching. I dont think you can bat him lead off with granderson, murph, duda as 2,3, and 4. That would be four lefties at the top of the order. you could do…
MDD
Lagares or Wright
Murph
Duda
TDA
Grandy
Wright or Lagares
SS
P
MDD was promoted because he was leading the PCL in hitting.He was then handed the LHB of the left field platoon. In 141 at bats, on two seperate call ups, his average hovers at .200 and his OPS .522. He is 27 years old. He is blowing his slim chance of being a reserve outfielder on a major league team. Batting him 7th or 8th is where he belongs until he can show that he can hit.
A similar player, bats lefty , same age, can play 3 outfield positions, and is carrying a .777 OPS this season, and an .850 OPS vs RHP, is buried on the bench.
I understand that MDD should have been given the first chance at the platoon since the Mets are in evaluation mode. MDD now has more AB’s then Kirk. The Mets should now go back to Kirk and see if he can sustain those numbers until the end of the season.
Let’s face it, we are only talking about a caddy for Lagares and neither of the two are every day players.
I don’t think that’s a fair summation of MDD this year.
He was brutal in his first stint – posting a .424 OPS in 49 sporadic PA before being sent back to the minors. Then they reworked his swing and he started hitting everything in site. In 12 games since coming back, he has a .599 OPS. Still not good but it’s so few PA (42) that I wouldn’t read a ton into it. Back-to-back games on the West Coast trip where he went 0-8 are dragging down his numbers. He’s batting .300 outside of those two games.
I’m not advocating we throw out stats — just pointing out that our sample is so small that two games take him from strong to poor.
Meanwhile, Wilmer Flores sits with a .457 OPS after 60 PA. But the Mets are going to spend September giving him a bunch of PA, just like they should MDD. At least MDD gives you defense, too. Just like Tejada should sit for Flores, Nieuwenhuis should sit for MDD. We know what Tejada and Nieuwenhuis are — capable reserves who can start for three weeks if you need them without killing you. Now it’s time to see if Flores and MDD can reach (or exceed) that same level.
Brian, agreed. But, wouldn’t it have been nice to start this evaluation in mid July? Why are the Mets decision makers constantly the last ones to see that their players need to play so they can be evaluated? Every year we have our Ankiels, our Baxters and our Abreus, players that should not even be on the roster, yet are getting several key at bats that some youngster should get. Why?
Because we are somehow under the misguided belief that we are perennial threats for the playoffs, without coming to the realization that could hardly be further from the truth. In general we overvalue our talent (hmm, maybe Niese, Gee, and Flores will get us Stanton…), and fail to understand that post season baseball is played by much better teams than what we have. So rther than play our youth to see what we have, we bring in aging talent to help us get ever so close to October…and it aint even September…
The manager consistently has no idea on how to use his rookies. I think Matt should be leading off. Forget the pressure factor Collins talks about, Pro Sports is about pressure. I also think Flores should be hitting sixth, based on his minor league RBI production. Matt does have some power, but his successful change in batting style, negates some of it. I think Collins is setting up these players to fail.