As I kind of do, then he's just not a super valuable commodity. My worry is his OBP skills are going to keep him from reaching that 4 WAR upside. It's just unrealistic to think he could slug .550 in Safeco as a RHB. I know, this isn't exactly a move the meter position to take, valuing OBP over SLUG, but I think it's important to note. If you walk 8%, you're going to have a roughly 60 point patience score. DJ hasn't hit the 8% mark in his last 3 levels, though again, we're not talking 1,000 PA's either. If you slot him at a 50 point patience guy, and around a 21% K guy, maybe his first year or three, you're looking at a 250-270 average, and thus a 300-320 OBP. Add to that a 430-460 SLUG, which is a reasonable mid projection in my opinion, and you've got 260/310/450. Does that have value? Sure, some.
For reference, Lucas Duda and Garrett Jones both have a K rate at 21%, and normal BABIP's, and their BA's are both in the 250's.
Here's a reasonable template: 6% BB rate, 21% k rate. .165 ISO. Guess who's producing that this year? Dayan Viciedo. He's got a 240/290/400 slash line. What if that were DJ's sort of low end mid projection? Based on the rate stats, he's in that general vicinity. Jan Gomes: 6% BB, 23% K, 175 ISO, for a 260/305/435 slash line.
Bottom line for me is this. If you're going to post below average walk rates, I don't really want you on the Mariners, unless you have something else you do really well. If DJ can ISO over 230, or get his K% under 15% or could play above average corner outfield defense, then I'd get more excited about him. As it looks now, to me, he's another guy that is going to live or die on his power, and I don't think he has enough of it to live.
I do understand that he's only 22, and has 1st round pedigree, and that he could jump a level or two and become an 850+ guy. There are legitimate reasons to have hope for him. But that's his upside, and his plate discipline, or lack there of, is going to make it that much harder to reach.
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