Spring Training stats don’t mean anything unless guys can actually produce (looking at you, Kyle Kendrick). But I found a guy who hit well in Spring Training and is still hitting. Or, to be correct, he started hitting again in May, but since then he’s been quite something. And that would be Sam Travis.
On Thursday, he went 5-for-6 with two doubles for the PawSox, which means he’s hitting .368 with three home runs and four walks (and four strikeouts) in 14 games this month. Meanwhile, as of Thursday afternoon, Moreland was two for his last 17 and hitting .179 with a .594 OPS in his last 23 games….
Instead of ragging on Moreland, focus on Travis for a second. He’s getting comfortable at the plate against Triple-A pitching. He’s one of the top prospects in the Red Sox organization, and he’s hitting well in the upper minors without striking out that much. So what’s that mean? It’s official! We’re putting on the Sam Travis watch.
Let’s track his progress–if you weren’t already–see how he’s doing, see how long he can keep up this hot stretch of hitting and if he can, then you’ve got to think the Red Sox will give him a shot, especially if Moreland continues to be unseasonably quiet, like how it was unseasonably hot out on Thursday.
It’s still too early in the year to think about this, but maybe, just maybe, Travis ends up overtaking Moreland around the trade deadline, even if there are no injuries. He’s always looked pretty good at the plate in Triple-A, but his glove isn’t as good as his bat.
Not to sugarcoat the whole situation and be generic about it, but let’s see where Travis is at in a month and where Moreland is at in a month because right now, Travis could be emerging as that guy–especially (at least) against left-handed pitching. All he (might) needs is a little more time before he gets to that next stage.