Christmas Presents for Former Cyclones

December 23, 2008   ·   Patrick Hickey, Jr.   ·   Jump to comments

Rather than talk about presents for former Cyclones in the material sense, I figured I’d talk about what gifts these young prospects can really benefit from.

Ike Davis- Teach this guy to change his approach at the plate. Unlike Reese Havens, who realizes very quickly he wasn’t going to be a power hitter in pro baseball, Ike Davis was fighting himself the entire season in Brooklyn this past summer. The result? Zero homers. In spite of that, it seemed like the last three weeks of the season that Davis was beginning to see how effective he could be hitting balls up the middle and in the gap. As I’ve said before, I see him as a Lyle Overbay type, and not as a power hitter. There’s nothing wrong with that though either. However, if he doesn’t continue to stay back and be smart at the plate, he’ll project as nothing more than a bench player.

Wilmer Flores- Give him some time in Brooklyn to develop before calling him up to higher levels. Still only 17-years-old, Flores looked out of place in Brooklyn after his hot start. Still getting used to pitchers with good off-speed pitches, Flores would benefit a ton from proving himself in the NY-Penn League. I know it’s the Mets mentality know to push these kids ahead to see how they deal with adversity, but this kid is still developing at too rapid a pace. He needs to build confidence and some kind of consistency. He also needs to learn English and make friends on the team’s he plays on, rather than be thrown around the organization like a rag doll. At his age, he’s way too delicate emotionally as well and could benefit from some camaraderie.

Roy Merritt- Help him develop another off-speed pitch to compliment his slider and changeup. At the NY-Penn League level, this guy was simply dynamite. However, even his uber-supportive pitching coach, Hector Berrios agreed last season that he has to work on something else this offseason to keep hitters guessing. I personally think a decent sinker, that he can use just to mix things up a bit would do the trick, especially since his slider moves like a curveball attached to a frisbee.

Josh Satin- An injury-free 2009. Easily one of the best hitters on the team when healthy, Satin fought a smörgåsbord of injuries in 2008. Solid on the field and at the plate, I like this kid’s major league chances if he can stay healthy.