It has certainly taken a while for Jose Iglesias to even become lukewarm at the plate. However, in recent games (the last two series particularly), it appears that Iglesias may have finally found himself at the plate. In Iglesias’ 1-3 performance last night’s 4-2 loss to the Orioles, he actually broke a string of four games that the young shortstop has scored a run.
September 20, 2012; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox shortstop
Jose Iglesias(58) hits a single in the sixth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE
With Iglesias the only shortstop prospect that the Red Sox have that’s really even close to major league ready, and a better longterm solution than Mike Aviles, it’s good that he’s finally showing what he can do. Although he isn’t great with the bat, even in Pawtucket this year, he only batted .266/.318/.306, he’s always been known for his glove. Just in his brief time in Boston so far, we’ve seen Iglesias make some fantastic plays, including a couple of very difficult double plays last night.
There’s a pretty solid chance that Iglesias will be the frontrunner to be the 2013 starting shortstop, as the Red Sox may pursue a trade of Mike Aviles this offseason. Of course, they could always acquire someone else, but the free agent market is weak and they would have to completely mortgage their farm to make a primetime acquisition like Troy Tulowitzki or Starlin Castro.
No matter what the plans are for this offseason, though, it’s always nice to see a young player performing well. While .143/.265/.238 in 17 games is pretty brutal, the .286 (4-14) with 2 runs scored, a home run, and 2 walks in his last five games is definitely better. It would be excellent if Iglesias could manage to bring his average up above the Mendoza Line before the season’s end (10 more games). Even if he doesn’t, though, he’s probably the shortstop for the next two or three years and we’ll just have to get used to it.