New York Mets outfielder, Mark Canha, is far from a star. He’s just a really solid player, that I’ve enjoyed watching all season long.
When the Mets first signed Canha, I do what I always do. I checked out his career numbers on Baseball-Reference.com (bWAR:11, .248/.346/.429 with an OPS of .775), Fangraphs (wRC+: 116), and baseballsavant.com (Average exit velocity:88.4, hard hit rate just above league average))
I wasn’t too impressed. The Mets needed some thump in the lineup. And there is no thump in Canha’s game. I even mentioned this to the commissioner of my big fantasy baseball league. He’s a journalist in the Bay Area, and has seen Canha play in Oakland.
“A quality player”
“You’ll love him”
“Give me a 1st round pick for him”
High praise from the Commish, indeed. I was still a skeptic. I’ve also been wrong before.
Then I watched Mark Canha play. Canha might not be flashy, but he’s a really good, overall pro. He might not put up eye-catching numbers. But he always seems to get the job done.
Take Friday night, in Anaheim. Canha’s first at bat of the game came in the second inning, with the bases loaded. There were two outs, and the Mets just scored the first run of the game. A couple of tack on runs early would be huge.
Cahna had yet another solid at bat, battling the entire time. With 2 strikes and 2 outs, he refused to give in, fighting off some tough strikes. The final pitch was about a foot out of the strike zone. Cahna recognized the situation. He slapped that outside pitch right down the right field line for a double, scoring two more runs for the Meties.
Canha could have taken that pitch. He could have decided not to fight so hard. His swing wasn’t pretty. The exit velocity probably pretty low. Launch angle not ideal. But it’s a double in the books, and on his OPS. Add 2 more RBIs for Cahna and 2 more runs scored for the New York Mets.
That’s getting the job done.
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