Maybe Mauricio Shouldn't Be a Switch Hitter

[Edgy MD]

It may be too early to give up on switch hitting for Ronny Mauricio, but I looked at his lefty-righty splits in the minors, and while they aren't as grossly distorted as they are in the majors, it seems to be a consistently stark difference every year.

Here are his MLB numbers. The minor-league numbers are harder to sort through for posting, but the pattern is certainly clear.

 

[TABLE][TR][/TR]
[TR][/TR]
[TR][/TR][/TABLE]

[TH][/TH]	[TH]OPS vs. L[/TH]	[TH]OPS vs. R[/TH]
[TH]2025[/TH]	[TD].234 (35 PA)[/TD]	[TD].857 (115 PA)[/TD]
[TH]2023[/TH]	[TD].491 (46)[/TD]	[TD].767 (55)[/TD]

[roger_that]

Funny thing is, some switch hitters have splits that are just as bad, or worse, than if they'd just hit fulltime from their good side. Backman was one of those, as I recall.

[Cowtipper]

Mauricio, Baty, Vientos and Alvarez should all be put in a package deal during the offseason. Clean the slate. Restart with Williams, Clifford, Gilbert et al.

[Edgy MD]

Well, I really was more interested in discussing whether he has a future in switch-hitting.

[Cowtipper]

For another team, optimally.

[roger_that]

If the Mets had won 11 out of their last 12 games, with the offense performing exactly as it has, I think we'd be hearing a different song.

[smg58]

I wouldn't necessarily abandon it yet -- he's coming off an injury, and getting into any sort of rhythm from that side when the opponents start a lefty maybe a third of the time is going to take a while. I'm not sure if he's still eligible for Arizona, but I'd get him full time ABs somewhere and see if there is any improvement. I've been comparing him to Wally Backman as well, though, and he should be functionally treated as a left-handed hitter until he proves otherwise.

The Mets should have tried to find a righty infield bat last month, although it's possible still that a team will try to put somebody through waivers that hits lefties better than you think.

That being said, he's earned the right to keep starting against right-handed pitching.

[Centerfield]

In 2021 he had a higher OPS as a right handed hitter. So it’s not impossible. But even then all his power was from the left side.