Tom Brennan – YEP, THAT ADRIAN GONZALEZ

 

Tom Brennan – YEP, THAT ADRIAN GONZALEZ

The Mets recently signed a player that in his career has received MVP votes in 8 different seasons (once as high as fourth) and made the All Star team 5 times. 

Yep, THAT Adrian Gonzalez, not the other one.

Seven seasons with 27 or more homers, 10 years with 90 or more RBIs. 

Yep, THAT Adrian Gonzalez, not the other one.

By now you’re wondering who the other Adrian Gonzalez is – there isn’t one – I just thought it sounded cool to write it that way.

Coming off a poor year impacted by a herniated disk and turning 36 this coming May, he certainly did enough the prior 11 years to make one think he could be a very good 1B starter if healthy.

But what about Dominic Smith the first rounder (no, not the other one)?  The one of whom Adrian Gonzalez (yep, THAT Adrian Gonzalez) said (according to Michael Mayer) that “Dom Smith has a beautiful swing and he should hit for power”.

Matt Ehalt quoted Gonzalez as saying, “For me it’s about helping him (Smith) be the best player he can be. In spring training, we’re going to work a lot and talk a lot.”

So what do I infer from all that?  That Gonzalez feels healthy enough to play well again, and that he sees himself as a player to help transition Smith from being a struggling rookie to a bona fide major leaguer.

But, you might ask yourself, isn’t that a harsh way to treat Smith?  Shouldn’t he get the vote of confidence, and be given the chance to fight his way to success while playing for the Mets every day? 

My answer is two-fold: 1) The Mets want to contend in 2018 and do not want Smith to learn on the job from day 1 (with the failures that can accompany that learning), and 2) the Mets will groom him further in the minors for hopefully future stardom.

Gonzalez has been a big MLB star for years – how about his transition to the big leagues?  Was he handed the job as a youth or did he have to earn it?

Answer? Earn it, just like Smith appears he will have to.

Gonzalez’s major league debut occurred 19 days short of his 22^nd birthday in 2004, when he went .238/.272/.381 in 44 plate appearances, followed by just 162 PAs in 2005, when he underwhelmed again at .227/.272/.407.

In 2006, though, the matured Gonzalez exploded as a 24 year old at .304/.362/.500.  And was borderline great for years thereafter.

When Smith debuted in 2017, he was just 76 days older than Gonzalez when he debuted.  Why should we fans assume Smith will tear it up next year, when the nearly-great Gonzalez did not blossom until the third year of his MLB career?

We as Mets fans should want to contend in 2018, and try as he might, Smith may well just need more time – he only turns 23 in mid-June.  Many guys are not ready at 22 – and some become stars as they get just a little older. Like, YEP, THAT Adrian Gonzalez.

Assuming Smith is sent down to AAA again, he should set as his goals three things: 1) eliminate weaknesses, like hitting into shifts and his current struggles against lefties, 2) toughen up while keeping weight in check, and 3) realize that Gonzalez needed time too, but then blossomed as a star - he may need that time, too, to be MLB’s next nearly-great Adrian Gonzalez once Smith gets some more seasoning.

Because, heck, if Smith, like Gonzalez, can have 311 career homers, 1176 career RBIs, and a .288/.359/.488 lifetime split as he goes into his age 36 season, he’d make Mets fans very happy for years to come.

We just have to hope that he progresses until he plays like:

Yep, THAT Adrian Gonzalez.