San Diego Padres: Possible universal DH options
The first San Diego Padres player that comes to mind for universal DH is…
Franchy Cordero, who since his major league debut has teased us with his potential, but injuries (elbow and leg) has limited his playing (79 games) time the past three seasons.
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The jury is still out on Cordero’s potential, but he’s been impressive in those rare appearances. No doubt, Cordero is heading into the prime of his baseball career, but he hasn’t proven his case to be a mainstay in the lineup. All we can confirm is that he can hit mammoth home runs that leave spectators speechless in what they have witnessed.
Now, the Padres have the perfect opportunity to evaluate Cordero’s talents in a hybrid role. He could split his playing time between the outfield and at the DH position. Cordero’s versatility to play all three outfield positions makes him a viable candidate to play every day moving forward. It allows him to preserve his body while better defining himself as a starting outfielder simultaneously.
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Still, Cordero needs to cut down his strikeouts (accounts for over 38 percent of his at-bats) and show more patience at the plate. That means recognizing pitch sequences and capitalizing on pitcher’s mistakes that come into his hot zone.
It won’t take the Padres long to judge whether or not Cordero has taken his skills to the next level. Let’s hope our expectations aren’t tempered because Cordero’s shortcomings at the plate are exposed by major league pitching. It will come down to if he can stay healthy and make the necessary adjustments to become a significant contributor in 2020.