For the first time in his major league career, Christian Arroyo is going to get near-everyday at-bats, and it’s hard to say he doesn’t deserve it. The former top prospect has finally found a footing in Boston after short stints in San Francisco, Tampa Bay, and Cleveland, and has proved he is a major league caliber hitter. In 144 games spanning two seasons, Arroyo has slashed .277/.323/.426, good for a 103 OPS+, and has homered 12 times.
You may be saying to yourself “wait a second. 144 games is quite a small amount of games to be playing over two seasons”, and there lies the biggest issue with Arroyo: He just can’t stay healthy. Over his tenure in Boston, he has missed time with a left hand contusion, a right knee contusion, a left hamstring strain, two severe cases of Covid, and a groin strain. Some of these have just been bad luck, but you have to wonder if all those lower body injuries are going to take a toll on the middle infielder.
It’s also worth mentioning that even when Arroyo is healthy, he’s a poor defender. He ranked in the 10th percentile in Outs Above Average, and while that number is inflated by some truly terrible outfield play, he has a career -2 OAA at second base. That certainly isn’t unplayable, but it’s not what you’re looking for when a guy is giving you just average offensive production, and certainly not what you’re looking for when your two most promising starters are sinkerballers.
The Adalberto Mondesi trade will at least take some of the pressure of Arroyo, assuming Mondesi will overcome his own lengthy injury history, but it still makes me a little uneasy to give a starting role to a guy whose never played more than 100 games in a single season. This isn’t to say Arroyo isn’t a good player: Anyone with that kind of versatility who hits .296 against lefties is more than worthy of a spot on a major league roster. The bat will play. The bigger question is: Will Arroyo?
Stat Predictions: 115 games .271/.324/.436 9 HR 50 RBI 1.2 WAR
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