Monday, November 10, 2014

In the Cross Hairs: Scott Van Slyke

You might have noticed on Twitter a few days ago that I brought up Scott Van Slyke as a potential solution to the Royals right field search for 2015. Scott, who is the son of former Cardinals first round pick Andy Van Slyke, currently is stuck in the midst of a glut of outfielders with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers currently have one of the most crowded outfields in professional baseball and as a result will be pressed to make a move this offseason. Given the Royals strength at the back end of the bullpen and the Dodgers need of late inning help, it bares to reason that the two organizations could match up in a trade this winter.

Obviously, when it comes to the Dodgers, I would love if the Royals could get their hands on the Pacific Coast League MVP Joc Pederson, or the dynamic Yasiel Puig. However, I don't think the Royals are pulling back one of the aforementioned players, even if they are moving one of the HDH triumvirate. So another player who is catching my eye is Van Slyke.

First, off Van Slyke makes sense because he is right handed. This allows him to slide in nicely as a platoon partner with Royal Jarrod Dyson. Here is a look at what each of the outfielders did in 2014 against opposite side pitching:

Van Slyke vs L: .315/.415/.630 in 130 plate appearances
Dyson vs R: .274/.326/.337 in 233 plate appearances

The combination of the two would allow both players to be put into excellent situations to succeed. As you can see, with Van Slyke in the lineup the Royals would receive a nice boost offensively. When Dyson is roaming the outfield the team would get a bump in the speed and defense department. The two players offer quite differing skill sets which would mesh extremely well on the roster.

Unlike many of the free agent options, Van Slyke is a strong defensive outfielder. For his career he has posted a 13.7 UZR/150. Not only does he have solid range, but his arm is rated average by the metrics.

The final pro with a Scott Van Slyke acquisition is the cost. Van Slyke will only be owed the league minimum in 2015 and will not be eligible for arbitration until following the season. In fact, Van Slyke wouldn't even be eligible for free agency until after the 2019 season. This means that the Royals could control the outfielder for five seasons. Granted the Missouri native is already 28 years old, but there is good reason to believe he would mesh well with the roster the Royals already have in place.

If the Royals were to acquire Van Slyke in a trade involving Greg Holland, they would immediately gain approximately $9 million more dollars in payroll flexibility for next season. Would a trade of Van Slyke plus a prospect for Holland be enough to get the Royals to pull the trigger? Most Royals fans would say no. They would argue that one of the top closers in the game should fetch more than a platoon player and prospect. I wouldn't necessarily disagree, but what fans should realize is that the Royals would also gain a huge amount of additional funds to put toward a starting pitcher and designated hitter.

One negative to note is Van Slyke's .394 BABIP from 2014. He also had an unsustainable HR/FB rate. However, he did square up the ball in over 20% of his at bats and walk 11.4% of the time. While a part of Van Slyke's success in 2014 was definitely BABIP driven, he still garnered the Dodgers 2.8 fWAR. Greg Holland, despite all of his hype in the postseason, earned the Royals 2.3 fWAR.

It is going to be hard to pull the trigger on a trade for any of the big three at the back of the bullpen. Is Van Slyke enough to get it done? Not in my opinion. First, I would ask for Pederson. When that doesn't happen, I'd turn my attention to a package that includes Van Slyke and one or two more prospects or pieces. Relievers are volatile and I think the Royals are well equipped to deal  with a loss of Holland.

Follow me on Twitter @Landon_Adams!

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