One of the mysteries for the Mets going into Spring is what are they going to get out of Andres Torres. Torres is looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2011 campaign after a great 2010 season. As of right now, he is the current starter in center for the Mets and is projecting to be the current lead off hitter. However with a few OF coming up through the minors (hello Captain Kirk), there will be pressure on Torres throughout the season to produce. Here are is 2011 numbers, followed by the Baseball Prospectus Projection MLB.com Projection:
2011: 348 AB, .221 BA, 4 HR, 19 RBI, 19 SB, .312 OBP
BP Projection: 584 PA, 12 HR, 66 RBI, .247 BA, .316 OBP, 24 SB
MLB Projection: 411 AB, .243 BA, 10 HR, 30 RBI, 22 SB, .325 OBP
Some interesting highlights stand out. BP projects a lot more Plate Appearances, hence more AB’s for Torres, and higher Batting Average. Both systems have similar projections for batting average. MLB has Torres playing a lot less, but hitting for more power, and stealing more bases. BP, even with the jump of AB’s, says he will have a lot more RBI’s.
If these are his numbers, they are a nice bump, a really nice bump out of what he produced last year, but how is it compared to what the Mets had before in Pagan:
2011: 478 AB, .268 BA, 7 HR, 56 RBI, 32 SB, .322 OBP
BP Projection: 621 PA, 8 HR, 65 RBI, 31 SB, .266 BA, .317 OBP
MLB Projection: 500 AB, .280 BA, 8 HR, 60 RBI, 34 SB
Torres’ 2012 projections are better than what the Mets got from Pagan in 2011, but not as good as Pagan’s 2012 projections. BP and MLB are in much more agreement for what Pagan will do next year, which looks like he will play a full season, not hit for power, and steal a lot of bases. The Mets look to be losing speed without Pagan, but gain some pop potential with Torres. None of this is a surprise though as anyone could have you told you this in the winter.
I’m curious to see what we will get out of Torres, especially since, like many Mets, he will be paying with a chip on his shoulders from naysayers and people calling him a 5th OF. And some OF’s breathing down his neck from the minor league level in 2012.
