St. Louis Cardinals: Leadoff options are tricky

#3 Stephen Piscotty

Something I overheard from the Warmup was Stephen Piscotty‘s name being tossed into the leadoff bat bucket, via St. Louis Post Dispatch’s Derrick Goold. Interesting choice, so I thought about it.

Piscotty finished up 2015 as one of the hottest hitting Cardinals. He swept onto the scene in late July, and just kept hitting from that point until the final out of Game 5 of the National League Division Series with the Cubs.

Piscotty hit well out of the #2 hole, so why not bump him up one spot to help the lineup shape up better for smoother run production. Piscotty is the type of hitter who can burn you with anything at any given moment.

A single, double, triple or home run. He is versatile and doesn’t get extra hungry at the plate. While his 20 walks in 233 at bats in 2015 won’t scream patience, he has the makings of a kid who could mature wisely at the plate.

Piscotty, over the course of four years in the minors, walked 144 times with only 194 strikeouts in 390 games. He has a wise bat and could mature into an unorthodox leadoff type hitter. Who thought Carpenter was that kind of guy years ago? You never know until you try it.

However, Piscotty hitting #2 could fit this team a little more. He showed pop and sizzle in the 6th spot in the order, and could slowly move up through the order. The idea of Piscotty at leadoff, however, isn’t a mindless one.

He compiled a .359 OBP in his minor league career before jumping to the Majors last season. It makes some sense and deserves some discussion.

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