The 2016 Arizona Fall
League ended yesterday and in a league of six teams and just over 200 potential
future MLB players it seems like the only name that shows up is Tim Tebow.
He had a tough time playing
for the Scottsdale Scorpions and because he remained with ESPN as a college
analyst he missed out on a number of weekend games which hurt his potential. In
all he had 71 plate appearances going .194 with 2 RBIs and 20 strikeouts. The
positive is that he did get better over the weeks but the question is whether
this was a one and done thing for the Mets?
In case you are
wondering how he compared to another out-of-their-element guy who also played
for the Scottsdale Scorpions a little over 20 years ago, His Airness. Michael
Jordan had 153 plate appearances and hit .253 with 8 RBIs and 34 strikeouts. Look how young Nomar Garciaparra looks in 1994 when he was with Scottsdale. I wish he could have won a World Series, he is just the kind of guy you have to root for no matter which team he was with.
Back to Tim Tebow, his
#15 Mets jersey was one of the top sellers this year and Mets GM Sandy Alderson
said the goal is for Tebow to come back for Spring Training and compete for a
spot on their Single-A roster so maybe the Mets do intent to actual continue
forward with this experiment.
Baseball collectors will
have to wait for his first official baseball card.
The big "concern" Mets scouts had with Tebow in the AFL was the lack of power. He had none...in the dry thin air of Arizona. When they signed him, initially, it was one of those, "Well, if we can get him to hit the ball, it'll go a mile" things. 0 homers for the T-man. Personally, as a Mets fan, I just wish he would go away. But I suspect the Mets will give him a season in rookie or short-season A ball, just to be thorough.
ReplyDeleteConsidering that there was an Eric Lindros Blue Jays card back when, I don't see any reason why there wouldn't be a Tebow card in a product like Bowman Draft or next year's Pro Debut. Why not? Its all about the Benjamins and Topps wouldn't mind goosing those releases.