It wasn’t completely unexpected, but the Pirates designated Ike Davis for assignment yesterday. The Pirates were going to have Alvarez switch to first base next year and at that point, Davis doesn’t have a position. Although Davis has great defense skills, he still hasn’t figured out how to put together a season like his 2012 season where he slammed 32 homers.
In 30 Plate Appearances with the Mets last year, Davis hit one homer. In 397 with the Pirates, he hit an additional 10 finishing the season with a .233 batting average. For the Mets, Lucas Duda went onto a great season after the trade. Same can’t be said for Davis.
But that we all already knew.
What is next for Davis? MLB Trade Rumors projects that Davis would be looking at 4.4 million in arbitration. Right now it is difficult to imagine a team giving him that in this manner. He is still young, and could still hit a ton of bombs again, so 4.4 million would be cheap. He could also bomb out again, and it would be a strain on payroll. Probably an MLB team would feel more comfortable signing him to a incentive filled contract, which just can’t happen right now.
So is he going to clear waivers? That’s a good question. He’s an expensive gamble that can pay off, or just blow up in the face of the team that signs him.
