I Like Ike

Ike Davis started the 2011 season off with 7 HRs and a 0.302 AVG in 36 games. Then he broke his ankle thereby ending his season. The big question in 2012 is: Can he continue to hit the same after the injury as he did before it?

After being drafted in the first round by the Mets in 2008, Ike did not show much power. His OBP and SLG were exactly the same his first year in the minors (0.326). Since then, his power has slowly increased. In 2010 he hit 19 HR in just over 600 PAs.

In 2011, he hit for a good AVG (0.302) and was on pace for 28 home runs when his season ended. The left-handed hitter was putting put up a decent number of home runs considering he was playing half his games in Citi Field (Citi Field has a HR PF of 0.90 for LHH). Citi has not been entirely bad to Ike. Exactly half of his home runs have been at home so far in his short career. With the Mets moving the fences in for 2012, his HR total will likely go up.

Another reason to like Ike is that he has good plate discipline. In the majors, he has K’ed 23% of the time and walked 12% of the time. He has shown the patience to wait for a good pitch to drive.

Ike’s bat will have to carry him because he is as slow as molasses. He had a total of 0 SBs in the minors over 3 years. In 2010, he was able to steal 3 bases with the Mets. I would consider any steal total over one to be a windfall.

The big question for 2012 is how much the ankle injury will hurt his production. All reports point to him being 100% healthy for spring training. I would watch carefully to see if he misses any time at all because the injury. A team drafting Ike may need to take some need insurance in case he does not come back 100%. A late round pick of someone like Todd Helton can give an owner some insurance with little risk.

Ike Davis‘ 2011 season started out promising until he injured his ankle. He has already shown that he can hit for power at Citi Field and with the fences moving in, his power numbers will likely improve. The key to his 2012 value will be if his ankle is completely healed.