Most of us likely remember when a portly fellow named Dom made his major league debut a few years back. It didn't go well.
He took a lot of flak for looking obese like a 30 year old Prince Fielder.
To his credit, he dealt with it.
Shed the weight.
Got his game on.
A few months back, I compared his trajectory at the same age to former star Adrian Gonzalez.
True to form, in the early going of the bizarre 2020 season, after hearing he was crushing the ball in camp, he now has a highly productive 4 homers and 12 RBIs in 38 at bats.
(Whoops, he had a HR, and another hit and 2 more RBIs Friday night after I had written this article, so I won't change the article, but factor that in, will ya? Thanks much).
One problem: just 38 at bats in 20 games.
I asked Joe Biden about it, and he had the same reaction I did: "C'MON, MAN!"
The New and Improved Dom showed up in 2019, but unfortunately, was hurt and missed 8 weeks.
But, over the past 2 seasons now, he has had 219 at bats, with 15 doubles, 15 homers, 37 RBIs and .279/.355/.553.
Extrapolate those 219 at bats over the Brennan "full season, but not 162 games" standard of 550 at bats, here's what you get:
550 ABs, 105 R, 153 H, 38 doubles, 38 HRs, 93 RBIs, .278/.355/.553.
And in 2019 and 2020, he has handled lefties as well as righties, like great hitters do.
And he is doing that while playing sporadically.
Which causes one to ask a simple question:
WHY THE HECK IS HE NOT PLAYING EVERY DAY?
I know Big Pete ain't goin' nowhere.
But if I got a guy that can produce like that, and I'll say it again, PRODUCE LIKE THAT, I get out the shoe horn and make it happen.
Smith should not be sitting.
He should just be HITTING.
AND PLAYING EVERY DAY.
Pray, folks, that the DH stays in the NL. This man deserves 4 portions of at bats daily. Adding 500-600 more hitter plate appearances due to a DH will make room for a guy like Dom to play every single dag gum day.
One last note to ponder: let's say you erase 2019, and were watching Alonso and Smith in 2020 and had to choose one as your everyday 1B. Who do you pick? I know who I'd pick.
14 comments:
Can't help myself...short answer? YES
He has been such a pleasure to watch. The walk off homer at the end of last season was one of my favorite games.
Yes
Personally? I think if Alonso were not at first base, Dom before long would be an NL All Star 1B.
It would have made even more impact if I had waited a day to do my 550 at bat projection, and included last night's results, too. Then his projected HRs over 500 ABs would have been a much more eye-catching FORTY. very rarified air for Mets hitters, that 40 homer plateau.
Dallas, that was truly a great moment for him, for his team, and for us fans.
If the DH becomes part of the NL permanently, then Alonso can do what he does best with his bat and insert Smith at his normal position at 1B. You don't bench a Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion who hit 53 HRs last year.
Dom Smith is a player. Gotta find ways to keep him in the lineup. Too bad he can’t catch.
That Adam Smith, from what I hear, the lefty Dom Smith has a catcher's mitt and is ready in a pinch. Frankly, I never got why there are no lefty catchers. Anyone want to weigh in, be my guest.
One guy who'd probably make a good catcher (and I know it takes time to develop those skills) is JD Davis. Strong arm, strong bat.
The length of someone's hot hitting often tells if someone is streaky or just great with the stick. Before the season started, here is what Rojas said about Dom: “He’s had a tremendous camp at the plate,” Rojas said. “His bat right now is hot. We like it, we want to maintain it, so we’ll think ahead which days we definitely get him in there.”
Cespedes opting out, and even Cano getting hurt briefly, was a huge blessing in the sense it opened up steady at bats for Dom to show that he can be a superior hitter when given the opportunity.
To me, it would not be surprising (on this team with several excellent hitters) if the answer to the question at season's end, "who is the best hitter on this team?" turns out to be Dom Smith.
We actually have an OVER-supply (if all stay healthy) of players who are capable of playing every day, for the first time I can remember in my Mets history, even with the DH.
If Pete (for example) DHs with Dom at 1B, and JDD stays at 3B, we've got 4 ML-level players for 2 IF spots. Squirrel, Nimmo and 4to seem set in the OF, but we can fill in with Hamilton, Marisnick or Dom.
Deeper than I can remember.
on an unrelated subject, in an article appearing in MetsMinors.net this afternoon, they stated: "The Mets announced Saturday that the team has added RHP Matthew Allan and C Francisco Alvarez to the Club Player Pool. Both players will report to the Brooklyn site and put the 60-man pool at capacity." the Mets' GM Brodie Van Wagenen had previously stated he only wanted payers on the 60-man pool to be able to help the major league club. These players would have normally been playing in low A this year, so they're clearly not able to help now; however, they're also generally regarded as being amongst the Mets top prospects, and only players on the 60-man pool are eligible to be traded this year before the trade deadline. I certainly hope the Mets are planning on doing anything stupid like trading these two, in a crazy effort to win on their way out the door...
Jon
Good pick up.
Tom - my long-awaited comment is this- GREAT article. It's well-known that I was waiting for Smith to get his chance, pre-Alonso; I met with a number of people out here in Los Angeles a few years ago who couldn't stop raving over his bat & smooth moves at first, but moreso what a great kid he was from a great family. The only common knock was his shape.
Fast forward to last year, and his extreme shape change, and it looked like the "real" Dom was ready to shine. An injury and a HUGE step up by ROY Big Pete A relegated Dom's break-out to a secondary position.
Now, to be fair I am NOT in favor of sitting Pete, any time, period. That being said, having the 2 of them in the line-up day in, day out, is imperative to this team's success. Whether LF, DH or 1B, rotate him and Pete and Cano at DH and the field and keep them all fresh and contributing every day and this is a VERY different team.
Let's see...
Conforto
Nimmo
Alonso
Smith
McNeil
Rosario
Giminez
Guillorme
Nido
deGrom
Matz
Peterson
Lugo
Gsellman
Familia
Oswalt (yuck)
Sewald (double yuck)
And to a lesser extent (developed by Mets) Thor
What do they all have in common???
Products of Met drafts or minor league free agent signings (international). Not too shabby for a team that has had their farm system blasted FAR too many times, And why this site in particular is SO vital for true fans of this team.
So - Dom Smith playing every day?????
He has MORE than earned that right!!!!
Now let him prove us right - or should I say, let him CONTINUE to prove Tom right!!!!!!!
*Just do NOT sit or trade Alonso, Tom!!!!!! LOL
Yes.
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