Adopted: Matt den Dekker

[Frayed Knot]

Dekker makes this week 'Hot Sheet' in BA for his 10-25 w/2 HRs & 5 2Bs week:

Den Dekker's hot week at the plate extended his hitting streak to 11 games and bumped his batting average up to .305 for the season. The Mets' 2010 fifth-round draft pick had a three-hit game yesterday and a ninth-inning leadoff double on Wednesday that set the stage for a Binghamton walkoff victory. He hit just .235 in 72 games with Binghamton last season, but this year he leads the B-Mets in almost every offensive category and sits atop the Eastern League in total bases. The center fielder out of Florida still has a high strikeout rate, but his improving average and power numbers show signs of promise.


Then, during a Q&A about Dekker's future BA writes: Fourth OF is probably the safe bet, but with the numbers he's putting up in Double-A (.305/.363/.543 so far), we'll have to reconsider that projection if he sustains it. He has the range to be big league center fielder, how much he'll hit has been the question.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Three hits today, extending his hit streak to 15 games. He's up to .309/.369/.527 over the season's first 40 games.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Went hitless last Wednesday to break the streak at 18. But he's gone .320/.391/.510 for May, and .310/.408/.410 (with 7 BB in 49 PAs!) over his last 10.

He's at .306/.373/.513 on the year, over 211 PAs, with 6 HR and 25 XBH.

Also, he's an excited first-time uncle, and a Heat apologist:

Michael Jordan won his first championship when he was 28, Lebron is 27 so everybody relax!

[Ceetar]

Back to Bingo after the big win in Reading. @Wheelerpro45 was workhorse of the night with his walk and run scored.

[MFS62]

His 5 for 5 tonight makes him 16 for his last 24.
I think he's up over .330 now.
Later

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Indeed. His flame-on act in the last few weeks (.450/.476/.750 with 7 XBH and 10 runs in his last 10 games) has buoyed his season-long AA numbers to .336/.395/.563.

Also, as an uncle, he's been doting as hard as he's been hitting.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

As per Toby Hyde (and others), Mr. Poop-Joke-Twitter-Handle is your Eastern League PotW, which tends to happen to one when one hits .630 in a given week. He's riding a 6-game multi-hit streak, is up to .340/.397/.563 on the year, and generally has Eastern League baseballs praying for his swift promotion.

Also, he's enjoying the Stony Brook story as well.

[Guest themetfairy]

He looked good in the B-Mets 12-0 win over Trenton on Saturday.

Then again, everyone looked good in the B-Mets 12-o win over Trenton on Saturday.

[MFS62]

He was promoted to Buffalo today.

Later

[Edgy MD]

And Dustin Martin farmed out to Bingo.

[MFS62]

Matt went 1-4 in his AAA debut, with an RBI double and 2 Ks.
Later

[Guest themetfairy]

Den Dekker was knocking the hide off of the ball against Trenton on Saturday - hopefully he'll do the same as a Bison.

[MFS62]

Over 10,000 fans were there to see MdD's first AAA home run tonight.
They were probably there to see the usual Buffalo Friday night fireworks show.
But still ...


Later

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Just 4 hits during his first week in AAA... but 3 of those were for extra bases (including that one HR).

In 5 games, he's at .211/.286/.474 with 3 R in 21 PAs.



And, like, 3 diving catches.

[Edgy MD]

'Nudder homer for DD today. Up to .261 / .308 / .652 // .960.

Gotta be happy with that.

[Edgy MD]

Just made a leaping grab at the warning track.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Yeah, he'll do that.

He'll also head into tonight's game hitting .219/.261/.484, with 9 of his 14 hits at AAA being for extra bases.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Good Buffalo news: the Bisons won last night's marathon 14-inning game on a Matt Tuiasasopo single.

Bad Buffalo news: on a night when the good guys put up 13 hits and compiled 9 walks, our hero MDD went 0-for-6 with a sacrifice. He's scuttling, at .189/.218/.411-- with 26 Ks-- over 22 games.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

2-for-5 with 2 steals and 2 runs in a comeback win against a loaded Pawtucket squad.

That bumps him up to an Ike-ish .219/.242/.456-- with 4 BBs and 33 Ks-- in 26 games. His baserunning judgement has improved somewhat, with 6 steals in 7 tries; he'd been hovering around a 60% success rate at AA.

[Edgy MD]

Ike at least has a .070 walk rate to chew on.

But, of course, DD is getting his slugging done.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Not so much slugging these days; the only power my man is producing is clean, clean wind.

58 K in 190 PA where the Bisons roam, for a 31% (!) strikeout rate; .197/.228/.404 over that same stretch.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

BELATEDLY...

The numbers at Buffalo came up a bit from that repellent start, to a merely-disreputable .220/.256/.373 over 310 PAs in Wingville.

Totals between AA and AAA: 569 PAs, .274/.321/.458, 84 R, 17 HR, 76 RBI, 31 2B, 8 3B, 21 SB (w/9 CS!), 154 K, 34 BB (less than 7% walk rate).

His ticket to PSL's majors-camp is assured; with those K/BB rates, though... anything beyond that-- outside of good glovin'-- is much less so.

Toby Hyde agrees.

However, he struck out in 28.4% of his plate appearances in AAA. Looking over past seasons in the International League, I did not see a single productive big leaguer, who struck out as much as den Dekker >28%, over as plate appearances >300, for as long as Fangraphs has the data. John Mayberry comes closest, with a 26.3% in AAA in 2009. After a productive (2.5 fWAR) 2011, Mayberry was close to a replacement level player in 2012. That�s den Dekker�s future. His ability to play centerfield will get him to the big leagues, but his inability to make contact will hold him to just a shade above replacement level at best.

But hey-- he still catches good!

[DocTee]

Sounds like Rich Becker to me.

[MFS62]

Sounds like Dave Schneck to me.

Later

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Number 68 in your PSL scorecards, Tweeting dogs-in-hats pictures, with a real long shot to break camp with the bigs squad.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Because you can't spell "Den Dekker" without a LOT of D... after this earlier in training camp, another one against the Astros today.

[Frayed Knot]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Because you can't spell "Den Dekker" without a LOT of D...

Unfortunately the spelling also requires a lot of Ks.

[Edgy MD]

Yesterday's report had a scout calling him the best outfielder in the division.

Not that we want to carry a bat that's utterly unready, or hamper any possible development he's got left by putting him in a position to fail, but a superior defender in the middle could help mask a lot of defensive flaws in the team's lineup.

[Ceetar]

Edgy MD wrote: Yesterday's report had a scout calling him the best outfielder in the division. Not that we want to carry a bat that's utterly unready, or hamper any possible development he's got left by putting him in a position to fail, but a superior defender in the middle could help mask a lot of defensive flaws in the team's lineup.

I think it's possible if Duda is actually mashing (and hopefully meaning the offense is looking okay as a whole) but still looking significantly negative defensively you'd be more likely to see MdD.

or hell, he's a great 25th man in the playoffs, defensive replacement/pinch runner guy.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

If he ends up with the big club this year, it won't be until late May, at least... thanks to one hell of an owie.