Wil Myers is having a sneaky-good season that is going under the radar. Even amidst another bad season for the Padres, Myers seems like a promising young player that is finally playing to his potential. His play in 2016 suggests that he will be the future of the San Diego Padres. Then again, that is just the concoction for another trade in San Diego.
A.J. Preller made a ton of moves when he came onboard after the 2014 season, making the acquisition of Myers one of his first blockbuster trades. The poor play in 2016 has seen a lot of Padres names in the trade-rumor headlines, including James Shield who was recently traded. Myer’s name has not been one of those… for good reason too.
After last night’s win against the Colorado Rockies (where he hit the game winning home run), Wil Myers has played in 60 games this season. That already matches the number of games he played last season when he first joined the club. As many of us remember, Wil has a rough injury history, never playing more than 88 games in a season (the year he won AL Rookie of the Year). San Diego fans saw this bug follow him as he was oft injured in 2015. He had the same bone splint issue in his wrist that he dealt with in Tampa Bay after an outfield collision.
The worst part of Myers injury issues in 2015 was that we saw how good he could be when healthy. He was batting in the high .200s for most of the year, only to slip when he tried to play through the wrist injuries. He also had 8 home runs, 29 RBI, and 40 runs scored in that time. Not spectacular numbers but pretty promising for a 60-game, injury-riddled, stretch.
Wil Myers numbers in the first 60 games in 2016 may surprise you. As stated in the opening line, he has been sneaky-good. Myers is hitting .294/.328/.517, the batting average and slugging percentage being career highs if he can keep the pace. Myers already has 13 home runs and 37 RBI as well. 13 homers ties his career high (also same year as AL ROY award), which has to be great news for Padres fans considering it is only June.
Lets face it, he is on absolute fire. A player that can combine power with great contact hitting is so valuable in the Majors these days. He also has speed on the base paths as he’s already stolen 8 bases, which is another career high (previous-6). In a pre-game quote last night, Myers mentioned to a Padres’ reporter that his goal is to reach 20 stolen bases for the season. He can do that.
San Diego’s poor season, and the fact that they are such a ‘small market’ team, will probably mean they will only get one guy for the All-Star Game. In reality, Drew Pomeranz, Fernando Rodney, and maybe even Matt Kemp deserve legitimate nods to make the mid-season squad. With that said, Wil Myers numbers are outstanding and he may end up being the guy.
He is certainly making a push for the ASG as of late. In 9 June games, he is batting .453/.463/1.054… that is a 1.517 OPS. WOW. He has also hit 6 home runs, 4 doubles, and 15 RBI in those 9 games.
The major issue that may prevent him from getting picked is the fact that he was moved to first-base this year. He has definitely played great at first and the move was ultimately an excellent decision for his injuries/career, but the fact is there are a lot of stud first-basemen in the league. Think Anthony Rizzo, Brandon Belt, Adrian Gonzalez. All big time names that are having big time seasons.
Don’t let that diminish the fact that Myers is having an excellent season. Hearing Matt Kemp’s name in trade-rumors this week leads me to believe the Padres are opting to go young. Meaning, it doesn’t seem likely that they will trade Myers. He may become increasingly good over the next few seasons and then they make a trade then, however, the fact that he is so young (25) and has shown so much potential leads me to believe they will retain him for the rest of the season.
Fans can only hope. The kid has a great career ahead of him if he can stay healthy. Every San Diego fan has been burned to the core with their trade history, being the ‘farm team’ of the MLB, as many have joked. Padres fans should vote for Myers in the All-Star Game by clicking here.
Baseball Thirty 