When the New York Mets announced that they had traded prize prospect Lastings Milledge away to Washington this past winter for two players, everyone shrugged. Mets fans, the media, bloggers and TV talking heads all wondered why the Mets would trade Milledge away for two part-time players.
Then, the analysis began. Brian Schneider, the principal player the Mets traded for, was considered by many to be one of the games' best catchers. Not much of a hitter, but the right choice to replace Paul LoDuca, who had played his way out of Flushing.The other player received, 29-year-old OF Ryan Church, was a bit of a mystery. His statistics were average at best, except for the amount of doubles he accumulated. Last season, Church finally got more than 400 at-bats. He smacked 43 doubles and and 15 homers, knocking in 70 runs.
Those seem like docile numbers to the naked eye, but Church was hitting in the cavernous RFK Stadium last season, where home runs get transformed into doubles and fly-outs.
Mets' GM Omar Minaya, who was the GM of the Washington/Montreal franchise before joining the Mets, knew that Church had a lively bat. His defense needed some work, but he could hit.
Teamed with Schneider, Minaya felt he was getting more than fair value for Milledge, who had fallen out of manager Willie Randolph's good graces.This season, Randolph has placed Church in several slots in the lineup, depending on whether a right- or left-handed pitcher is going for the opponent.
Against righties, Church is usually slotted in the two-hole between Jose Reyes and David Wright. He has flourished in this role.
Against lefties, Church is moved down to the sixth slot, behind either Moises Alou or Carlos Delgado. It won't be long before he moves ahead of Delgado and/or Alou, since they have been either injured or inconsistent.One of the reasons for Church's early New York success is due to a change in his batting stance.
Mets hitting coach, Howard Johnson attributes it to hitting from a more upright position instead of crouching more like he did in Washington.
"He's able to stay on top of the ball," Johnson said. "He's been much more consistent with his mechanics."
The results have been positive for Church and the Mets thus far. He leads the team in batting (.328) and is tied with David Wright for the team lead in homers with 6.
At this rate, Church will get over 500 at bats this season - a season that may jettison him as one of the cornerstones of the Mets for years to come.
published from Mr.Flushing
Comments (6) Add a comment »
from 7 days ago
I think, to some extent, we have to accept the fact that Church started off the season hot and that he's going to cool off at some point. Still, he's been a great addition and he looks like he's going to continue to be. The thing that surprises me is his fielding. I knew he had a strong arm, but he's been quite accurate with it, and he's also made some impressive running grabs. A huge improvement on Green.
from 7 days ago
Church is the kind of player I was hoping the Mets would get for years - a good (not great) outfielder who can hit in the 20 home run neighborhood (probably more this year), play solid defense, and hit in a non-crucial spot in the lineup.
You needs guys who know how to hit 7th just as much as you need guys who know how to hit cleanup, 3rd, lead off, etc.
I think Church is overachieving right now and while I expect good production, the Mets shouldn't rely on him to hit in the heart of the order.
from 7 days ago
just imagine if Beltran could hit and we had a regular left fielder! We'd have some outfield...
from 7 days ago
With the guys on this roster, you'd think Church would be hitting no higher than #7 in the order. Problem is that when Alou gets hurt, Delgado can't do a darn thing, Beltran goes through a funk, and Luis Castillo can't even hit the ball his requisite 120 feet, Church is trying to do all these guys' jobs at once. It has actually worked for a little bit, but can't last forever, especially when Brian Schneider/Raul Casanova is next on the pecking order.
from 6 days ago
Did you really just say that Church isn't a great defensive outfielder? Do you watch the Mets?
from 6 days ago
No, I didn't. Personally I haven't seen enough of him to make a judgment -but I like what I see so far
The scouting reports after the trade was made classified him as an average fielder, but apparently that may not be the case......
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