If I told you the Mets had a catcher last year that got on base at a .350 clip, what would you say? If I then told you it was only 118 appearances would you then throw soup at me and say I’m extrapolating too much? Maybe.
| Kevin Plawecki | ||||||||
| Source | PA | AB | H | R | HR | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Baseball Prospectus | 154 | 26.268 | 16 | 4 | 0.242 | 0.309 | 0.375 | |
| ZiPS | 392 | 90 | 38 | 9 | 0.253 | 0.311 | 0.382 | |
| Steamer | 171 | 154 | 38 | 16 | 4 | 0.247 | 0.311 | 0.382 |
| ESPN | 249 | 62.997 | 23 | 5 | 0.253 | 0.33 | 0.357 | |
| MLB.com | 225 | 56.025 | 23 | 6 | 0.249 | 0.337 | 0.382 | |
| Baseball Reference | 274 | 241 | 58 | 25 | 6 | 0.241 | 0.322 | 0.361 |
| Average: | 247.75 | 217.25 | 55.215 | 23.5 | 5.666667 | 0.2475 | 0.32 | 0.373167 |
| 2017 Stats: | 118 | 100 | 26 | 11 | 3 | 0.26 | 0.354 | 0.4 |
The computers do not see Plawecki returning to those insane for him 2017 numbers, but If he got on base at a .320 clip, that would be a massive improvement from what we’ve seen overall. There has already been reporting this year (thank you The Athletic) that over the last several years he has changed his batting stance. He couldn’t keep up at the major level and was hitting standing up. He’s crouching more now.
With d’Arnaud, the Mets need Plawecki to step up this season. There’s reason to be happy with Plawecki in 2018. My gut tells me that catching is d’Arnaud’s job to lose. He should be catching 75% of the time but if Plawecki starts off strong maybe it becomes more 50/50. And as always health is a major question.
