The Case for Mike Morse

Mike Morse has been one of the most pleasant surprises for the Mariners this spring, hitting .581 with 2 home runs and 10 RBI. Despite this offensive explosion, though, he has virtually no chance of being named our starting first baseman. It's true that Morse has had only 31 at-bats and that its just spring training, which is often not a good indicator of how a player's season will go. But even so, his numbers so far this spring are absurd. Richie Sexson would have to triple his average for it to even approach .581.

Even disregarding Morse's incredible spring, he has managed to hit .302 in 291 big league at-bats over the past three seasons. His career statistics suggest that he is capable of performing much better in the big leagues than Richie Sexson did during 2007. His on-base percentage is low, but at .365 it still beats both Sexson's 2007 and career OBP, by 70 points and 20 points respectively. While many Richie fans argue that his power makes up for his low batting average and on-base percentage, his slugging percentage from last season exactly matches Morse's career mark at .399. In 2007, Sexson did drive in a run once every 6.8 at-bats, slightly higher than Morse's career average of an RBI every 7.8 at-bats. Over a full season of 600 at-bats, though, that's only a difference of 12 RBI. Morse more than makes up for this loss with a career batting average that is 97 points higher than the .205 Richie batted in 2007.

In addition to being a productive hitter for the Mariners, Morse has improved his performance each time he has been called up:

Year BA/OBP/SLG3w

2005 .278/.349/.370
2006 .372/.396/.488
2007 .444/.500/.556
2008 .581/.658/.903

The Mariners wouldn't lose anything defensively by getting rid of Sexson either. According to John Dewan's Plus/Minus System, which ranks players according to which defensive plays they made in comparison to their counterparts on other teams, Richie tied with Prince Fielder for being the third-worst first baseman in baseball last season. The year was pretty typical of Richie's defense, as his 2005-2007 plus/minus score was -25, which ties him for fourth-worst in either league. While we don't know how Morse will perform defensively over a full season, it is unlikely that he would end up being one of the bottom five defensive first baseman in baseball, especially considering he's never made an error as a Mariner at any position other than shortstop. Another defensive advantage of inserting Morse in the lineup is his versatility; he is capable of playing shortstop, third base, left field, or right field in addition to first base. This is in contrast to Richie Sexson, who can play first base and DH... if you want your DH hitting .205.

Despite all this, the Mariners are not even considering adding Morse to their starting lineup. In fact, he is not even guaranteed a spot on their bench. Morse is out of options this season, and if he's sent back to Tacoma the Mariners won't be assured they can keep him. It would be a shame to lose a talented and versatile young player who could become one of the cornerstones of the team's future because the Mariners are unwilling to part with aging former sluggers like Sexson and Brad Wilkerson.

I realize that Sexson is an expensive player to bench, and it is highly unlikely that the management would ever agree to it. Maybe Richie can have a comeback season, returning to his 2005-2006 form and hitting .260 with 30 home runs and 100 RBI. But if he keeps struggling to keep his average above the Mendoza Line this season, the Mariners are going to have to consider replacing him at some point. And when they do, I hope they'll consider the young man with the .581 batting average.