Here it is: May the 14th, and now we must start getting serious about when Dustin Ackley will be called up.
There are, however, a few obstacles that have to be overcome in order to justify a call up for Dustin Ackley. First off, he has to be ready, and if you look at his current stats, you probably wouldn’t say he is ready, but lets take a closer look.
So far, Ackley is hitting .253/.382/.411. These numbers aren’t bad, but they are not what you would expect from the No. 5 prospect in baseball. Mainly, It wasn’t the start to the season he was looking for; he hit a meager .211/.336/.305 in April.
Dustin has finally found his groove in AAA Tacoma, and has been on a tear since May 1st. In May he is hitting .333/.462/.608. He has also shown impressive power with five HR’s so far. This recent explosion of hitting was definitely needed for him to have any shot at getting an early promotion. After all, his bat is what is going to carry him.
So now that Ackley is legitimately hitting, the next obstacle is “Super 2 Status.”
This is, of course, the rule that gives the the top 17 percent of players each year with more than two, but less than three, years of service time eligibility for arbitration.
The cut-off date is normally around late May, sometime after the 20th or so. This means it won’t happen for a least a week.
The last obstacle, or As I look at it, question that must be answered, is: Who does Dustin Ackley replace?
The obvious choice is Jack Wilson, since he is the current starting second baseman. The problem is that Jack Wilson is a decent fielder, and Ackley is not. Also, Jack is hitting .250 this year.
GMZ has already recently been quoted saying Ackley will be given every opportunity to stay at second base, but It might be in Seattle‘s Best interest to stick him out in left field.
That Spot has been in trouble since Raul Ibanez left in FA prior to 2009. Endy Chavez did well there until he collided with Betancourt in 2009. Recently, a hole has been created with the DFA of Milton Bradley, and Saunders has not shown the ability to hit after a couple of years.
I am not saying that Ackley needs to move off of second base, I am simply saying that for a team that preaches pitching and defense, they should want their best possible fielders up the middle.
Either way, Ackley may just be ready for his Major League debut within a few weeks.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com