Ike Davis stepped to the plate in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday afternoon with no one on and one out. After taking one practice swing, Davis stepped into the batter’s box and hit the first pitch he saw from Astros reliever Wilton Lopez.
When Davis hit it, you could tell he thought it was gone as he gazed at it before starting to run to first. However upon second review, Davis wasn’t sure if it had the distance.
Ike Davis, whose fielding has been much more consistent than his hitting, playing first in a game against the San Francisco Giants on April 21. PHOTO COURTESY: TOMASSO DeROSA/AP PHOTO
“I thought I hit it a little bit better than I did,” Davis said according to the NY Daily News. “The outfielder kinda deked me a little bit and it scared me. I would’ve looked like a fool because I didn’t run out of the box and get on second base.”
As the ball narrowly escaped the glove of Astros right fielder Ben Francisco, everyone at Citi Field erupted as the Mets won 2-1 powered by two Davis solo homeruns. After taking two of three from the Astros, the Mets won their first series since they won three of four in San Francisco at the beginning of August.
Since that series against the Giants, the Mets have struggled to score runs. Ironically, as the Mets offense has become nonexistent, Ike Davis is finally coming around and he could end the season with surprising stats.
After Sunday’s game, Davis’ 24 homeruns lead the team and he is second on the team with 70 RBI’s. For most of the season, his batting average has been at or under the .200 mark but he is now up to .223 and will have a month to keep improving his average.
Davis has been up and down this season but at the end, he could very well have 30 homeruns and 100 RBI’s. It’s hard to argue that the Mets could have asked for better numbers in those areas from their young first baseman.
Unfortunately for Davis and the Mets, his average had dropped so low at points this season that it was impossible for him to be the protection that David Wright needed in the lineup. With a month left in the season, Davis’ improved play can hopefully help Wright, whose power and average both dropped in August.
The Mets will need Davis to have a strong September in hopes that a hot month can carry over to next season. The Mets will likely not be big players in free agency, and will be relying heavily on Davis to be a big left handed bat in the middle of the lineup that they missed for much of this season.
The Mets will likely need more than just Davis to be legitimate players next year, but having Ike as consistent hitter behind Wright is a start.
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Contributor-Dave Ragazzo-@DRagazzo_Sports
The post Through it All, Ike Davis’ Season Won’t Be That Bad appeared first on New York Sports Kings.
Original Story:
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August 29, 2012
