Coming into 2018, White Sox fans were probably most excited to see what Yoan Moncada could do in his first full year in the MLB. After showing flashes of brilliance both offensively and defensively in 2017, “YoYo” seemed ready to make a big time impact in year 2 on the South Side.
So far, that really hasn’t been the case. He actually was riding a very exciting hot streak at the plate before he went on the DL for a few weeks. Ever since he came back from injury, he has looked bad. Well, completely lost might be more appropriate. The thing with Moncada was that even when he was not collecting hits over an extended period of time, he was still getting on base anywhere from a .330 clip to a .350 one thanks to his patient approach and the ability to work the count to draw walks. Now he is walking less to go along with battling his extensive cold streak at the plate. He does seem to get squeezed more often than most, but he also has a habit of staring at strike 3 when it’s right down the middle.
Call hurts #WhiteSox
Strike 3 should be ball 2
Bot 1 Blackburn vs Moncada
10% call same
2.6in from edge pic.twitter.com/ykb0DGvH5F— WhiteSox Strike Zone (@WhiteSoxUmp) June 24, 2018
Call hurts #WhiteSox
Strike 3 should be ball 4
Top 6 Kluber vs Moncada
0% call same
6.1in from edge pic.twitter.com/CjofWbnUOe— WhiteSox Strike Zone (@WhiteSoxUmp) June 20, 2018
Once he learns how to better protect the strike zone with 2 strikes, he’s going to take off. But enough about the bad and the ugly Moncada has shown this year. Let’s look at some of the good.
For all the easy plays he has uncharacteristically botched at second base this year, he still has the range to make plays like this:
Yoan Moncada with the web gem 👀 pic.twitter.com/5pEk1zPhf8
— Sox On 35th (@SoxOn35th) June 28, 2018
And he’s strong enough to do this:
YOU CAN PUT IT ON THE BOARD, YES! pic.twitter.com/6nNa1a9XMV
— Sox On 35th (@SoxOn35th) June 24, 2018
And fast enough to do this:
Moncada SCORCHED this ball then turned on the jets
— Sox On 35th (@SoxOn35th) June 27, 2018
So the talent is obviously there. He is still just 135 games into his MLB career and only 23 years old. If you take his current MLB stats and project them over 162 games, it would look like this:
139 hits, 30 doubles, 6 triples, 22 home runs, 69 RBI’s, 13 stolen bases, and a 3.1 WAR. And those are his stats when people are complaining how BAD he’s been. Imagine what those numbers will look like when he gets more experience in the league. He could be a regular 30-30 player at his peak. But how do we know he actually will pan out? Well we really don’t for sure, but if you look across town at the Cubs second basemen Javy Baez, it is easy to see some comparisons.
First 135 games
Baez: .222/.272/.376 20 doubles, 16 HR, 43 RBI, 10 SB, 32.7 K%, 5.5 BB%Moncada: .226/.308/.401 25 doubles, 5 triples, 18 HR, 11 SB, 35.1 K%, 10 BB%#WhiteSox #Cubs
— Adam Sager (@AdamGSager) June 30, 2018
Not quite identical, but pretty damn close. The season Baez is having for the Cubs right now is proof that it is still much too early for fans to be giving up on Moncada. I mean, there are fans out there actually asking what we could get back for Yoan in a trade. I don’t know if those people are just trolls or are actually idiots. Either way, that nonsense talk needs to stop. No, Moncada isn’t putting up Gleybar Torres numbers, but Torres is also batting in a lineup with Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Gary Sanchez, and Miguel Andujar. Moncada is being asked to be one of the main offensive producers on a bad team with very limited protection around him.
White Sox fans need to just calm down and take a breath. Moncada is a kid and is still learning. By no means is he even remotely close to a finished product. The strikeouts will always be a part of his game, but the same can be said for Baez, and he will probably get some MVP votes this season. Instead of ripping on Moncada, you should eagerly watch him develop before our very eyes. Because once he takes off for good, it’s going to be a blast on the South Side for many years to come.