From the desk of: HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET
Who's On First
Can Adrian Gonzalez still wield a productive bat?
New York Mets: On the Recent Past, a Questionable Present, and the Potential Future at First Base.
When Ike Davis recorded 32 home runs and 90 RBI in 2012, a bunch of us fans thought the Mets were set at first base for years to come. However, health issues would hasten his unfortunate demise.
The Mets then passed the torch to Lucas Duda. One of the most streakiest hitters in recent memory - if not all-time - he often amassed most of his numbers within just two to three offensive outbursts per season. Otherwise his home run to RBI correlation was generally a source of chronic exasperation. There's no denying he was well liked. But unless Duda proved himself ultra-worthy of a long-term extension, the front office plan was to expend all his controllable years until Dominic Smith could take over. Thus, Duda is now with the Kansas City Royals.
Meanwhile, Smith's Mets career has gotten off to a somewhat bumpy start. Last year, Sandy Alderson's 2013 first round draft selection (11th overall) was taken to task over his conditioning, and this year has recently been disciplined by Mickey Callaway over tardiness. He's presently nursing an untimely (quad) injury.
Enter Adrian Gonzalez. The position of first base appears his to win.
This is a classic example of trying to strike lightning in a bottle - no harm in the Mets present situation. They're paying him the major league minimum, and therefore have absolutely nothing to lose by bringing him aboard.
Gonzo will turn 36-years old in May. He was still a productive player as recently as two seasons ago when he slashed .285/.355/.435, with 31 doubles, 18 home runs, and 90 RBI for the Dodgers. He was compromised last year by injury which limited him to 71 games played.
Best case scenario: he regains health and anchors the middle of the line-up. I'd also gladly settle for reliable production lower in the order.
Worst case scenario: the end of Gonzo's long individually successful fifteen year is confirmed.
That's why Dominic Smith is by no means out of the picture. The less Adrian Gonzalez potentially pans out, the more starts Dom will surely make. On the flip side, the better Adrian does the more Dom can expect to stay active at Las Vegas.
The Mets will have everywhere-man Wilmer Flores, and to a lesser degree Jay Bruce available to fill in at first if needed.
That's why it would behoove Smith to learn from Gonzalez while the two are still in Florida.
In any event, it now seems as if both Gonzalez and Smith are merely holding down the position until prospect Peter Alonso further develops and ideally takes over ... perhaps as soon as the 2019 season.
Alonso was the Mets second round selection of the 2016 draft. After 82 games last season at Port St. Lucie, he was promoted to (AA)-Binghamton where he played 11 games for the Rumble Ponies.
He slashed .286/.361/.516, with 16 home runs and 58 RBI through 82 games and 308 at-bats for the (A+)-Port St. Lucie Mets. He then slashed .311/.340/578, with four doubles, two home runs, and five RBI in just 45 at-bats with Binghamton.
If he excels at Binghamton over the first half of the upcoming season, I suspect the Mets would promote Alonso to Las Vegas - creating more reason for Dominic Smith to get his act together.
I briefly caught a close-up view of Peter Alonso in 2016 when he played for the Brooklyn Cyclones and loved what I saw.
In the meantime, the rest of spring training will determine who opens the season at first base.
First baseman Peter Alonso with Binghamton
