Since coming over from the New York Yankees, Jesus Montero has been one of the best offensive options the Seattle Mariners have had this season. Still, he's having some issues at the plate, broken down by ESPN's David Schoenfield below.
Here is Schoenfield's take on Montero's problem at the plate.
With five home runs, he's displayed the power stroke scouts projected. His overall batting line of .256/.285/.411, however, isn't much to get excited about, as the occasional long ball is marred by a poor 29/6 strikeout/walk ratio.
Against "hard" stuff, he's hitting .362 (25-for-69) with four home runs and five doubles. Against "soft" stuff, he's hittng .133 (8-for-60) with one home run and no doubles. So if pitchers get ahead in the count, they can get Montero to chase the offspeed stuff out of the zone.
Ruh roh. But that's not all, Schoenfield continues to break down Montero's lack of opposite-field power this season so far:
A final issue is Montero's ability -- or lack of it -- to pull the ball. While he's known for his opposite-field power, I'm not sure you can live off that trait alone. Of Montero's five home runs, two have gone to right-center, one to center and two to left-center. His hit chart is littered with fly balls to right field and the right-field line.
He also used the phrase 'work in progress' to describe Montero's catching abilities, so there's that too. In conclusion, if you were feeling good about Montero as of late, Schoenfield made sure you no longer do.
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