I have been writing about Travis Taijeron, on and off, since 2011. Taijeron, a former catcher, was drafted by the Mets to be a power-hitting corner outfielder. Over his minor league career he’s managed an .878 OPS with a robust .510 SLG. His power is a legitimate threat and so is his preponderance of strikeouts.
In 417 games from Brooklyn to Las Vegas, Taijeron has struck out a total of 459 times. This is a rate that would make success at the major league level difficult and this is something that Taijeron has never been able to remedy. Consider this trend:
- 2011: 33%
- 2012: 31%
- 2013: 31%
- 2014: 32%
- 2015: 38%
With all this said, Taijeron is still the offensive player most likely to make an impact at the major league level. Some people will point to his success in AAA being mostly an impact of the PCL and Las Vegas in general, but Taijeron has shown power in almost every level of the minors. He’s got too high of a strikeout rate to maintain success but he could be a shot in the arm to a team in need of some positives.
AAA:
Darrell Ceciliani is heating up – He’s hitting .421 over his last 10 games and has 6 stolen bases. If Juan Lagares goes down Ceciliani should get a shot at leading off for the Mets.
Steven Matz hasn’t missed a beat – His last outing was 7.2 IP in which he only gave up 2 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks and 9 strikeouts.
AA:
Brandon Nimmo is steady if not spectacular – The OPS is steady at .788 but its mostly his batting average. He needs to hit for more power. Nimmo left Friday’s game early with a twisted knee and now is on the disabled list.
Jayce Boyd back at it – He rose to some small amount of prospect status as he and Kevin Plawecki put on a hitting show two seasons ago. He’s starting to hit again but still lacks the power to be a first baseman.
A+:
Amed Rosario still improving – He’s got his feet under him and his statistics are trending upwards. Hopefully he starts to crush the ball and make waves.
Dominic Smith is finally hitting – 7 hits in the last 5 games is positive… not nearly positive enough.
For a power hitter, the OBP can mitigate the strikeouts but you have to be very productive on the SLG side.
If minor league pitchers strike you out 38% of the time – what are major league guys going to do to you? In 926 PA in Triple-A, Kirk Nieuwenhuis had a 25.5 K% and MLB pitchers have fanned him at a 31.3% rate. If Triple-A hurlers whiff Taijeron 38% of the time, it’s frightening to think what MLB will do to him.
My pal Rob Whalen fanned 6 in 6 IP in his start this week. In his last three games he has 16 Ks in 17.1 IP.
Was close to including Whalen and Gsellman in the roundup. Whalen’s likely got a ceiling of a #3 starting pitcher right now.
While I have never seen Ceciliani play I think he should be strongly considered right now for Kirk’s 4th outfielder position. An offensively challenged team like the Mets can only afford so much impotent dead wood on the bench. We all know Recker and Tejada can’t hit.
Nieuwenheis has one of the slowest bats I have ever seen. My son commented yesterday that Kirk swings like he has forgotten to take the weighted doughnut off his bat before coming to the plate.
If Nieuwenheis is out of options then so be it. IMO he is not a major league player and if someone else wants him then so be it.
Supposedly Kirk’s claim to a job is that he is a CFer who can cover when Lagares is out. Ceciliani is playing center in Vegas.
I like this line of thinking, and agree. Although I like Kirk, he’s got to do more than this to keep his job.
I see Taijeron as “Kirk Right” because of his propensity to strike out. If Cuddyer or Mayberry get injured he is logically the next in line.
Jayce Boyd, who I have seen play for the Gnats, is a fine gap to gap hitter. He moved to left field this year because he doesn’t have 1B power.
Ceciliani is pushing for Kirk’s job. Kirk is playing so poorly that he would clear waivers.
Reynolds should have been promoted instead of Campbell with Flores moved over to 2B until Wright comes back. It would have been informative to see how that double play combo would work. I believe it was a missed opportunity.
For what it is worth, Reynolds has not been good in Vegas lately.
The best bet to replace Capt. Kirk is Puello since he can field all 3 outfield positions and has the speed and arm combo. Unfortunatelly he has disappered altogether.
I think he’s on the DL.
Not a believer in Taijeron.
bump…
Taijeron is having a helluva Spring.