I've now learned never trust a guy who performs well in September.
Daniel Murphy burst onto the scene last year with little fanfare, but made an immediate impact in the Mets lineup. He was patient at the plate. He was hitting to all fields. He had a sound mind at the plate.
That player does not exist anymore as Daniel Murphy has struggled this season. Sure he's been forced to play two positions which are both out of his natural comfort zone. Sure he's missing the protection in the lineup that he had last year because of all the injuries. Sure he's hitting the ball well of late. But for me he's just not cutting it.
We had visions of grandeur that he was going to be the next Pete Rose, but that was just a ridiculous assessment by most Mets fans. To me he's not an everyday player in the Big Apple. In Cincinnati or Kansas City or Pittsburgh? Sure, he's an asset to the lineup, but for what this Mets team needs, Murphy is not the answer.
The Mets need a big bat at first base. That's not Murphy. So if he's not playing first base, where does he play? Do you really want to stick him back in left field? I think that's too much of a risk.
Murphy is in the unfortunate position of being a man without a position. If the Mets didn't have Wright or Castillo, you might get away with putting him at second base to fill a need, but even that seems like a stretch.
I like the kid. I like his hustle and his glove is surprisingly decent at first base. But I'd rather replace him.
2 comments:
I could not disagree with you more. he has done everything he has been asked to do. He has been shifted in the lineup more times than can be imagined. Hhe has played an outstanding first base, showing great range to his right, a terrific arm and a good sense of the bag. Sure he needs more work there but your expectations for him based on last September is ridiculous. He came from AA for crying out loud. He should be the Mets first baseman for the next 15 years. At worst he will be another Dave Magadan and at best he will be another Keith Hernandez. In 3 years he will be battling for a batting title. I usually love your work but this time you must be looking for another scapegoat while there should only be two of them, Omar Minaya and his moron sidekick Jerry Mmanual.
Rich- I think comparing Murphy to hernandez or magadan is a bit of a stretch at this point. What has he done to deserve that comparison? He has shown a decline in his plate discipline. His best stat is that he leads the league in productive outs. Declaring him a future batting champ is like saying niese is a future cy young candidate. You can't prove it nor disprove it. I like the kid but I think your expectations are a bit pollyanish.
However I do hope you are right about him for the mets sake
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