As we were talking about when Ike Davis will make his return to the Mets in the big leagues, he’s been bestowed with today’s Pacific Coast League Player of the Week award.
The first baseman enjoyed a week in which he hit a healthy .474/.630/.1.263 in six games. That line includes four home runs, seven RBIs, and eight walks. Those four homers came in back-to-back games; he enjoyed a pair of two-homer games. He probably forgot what this type of production felt like after months of struggling in Flushing to start 2013.
Adam Rubin reported the news of Ike getting this award on twitter, and had this to say:
Ike Davis named PCL player of the week. I’m sure he’s thrilled. #mets (yes, week)
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinESPN) June 24, 2013
Why did he say it like that, you ask? He explains:
Remember covering player with Birmingham Barons in late ’90s who was 3-time Southern League (AA) All-Star. By 3rd time, it wasn’t an honor.
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinESPN) June 24, 2013
While Rubin does make a good point, I disagree with him on this one. Would Ike rather be the NL Player of the Week instead of the PCL Player of the Week? Well, of course he would! However, after looking at how badly he struggled through the first few months of the season, I’m sure he was in dire need of a confidence booster. This solid week of play is just what he needs to start getting that self-confidence back. He has to come back to the major leagues and prove himself, but you have to start building a house from the bottom up.
Wherever a player is located, they enjoy getting recognized for how they perform, and I don’t see this being any different. Instead of this being some sort of dubious honor, I’d rather view this as the beginning of Ike bringing himself back to the type of player we envision him to be.
Congratulations to Ike on being recognized. Hopefully, he’ll carry this production into the big leagues once he gets recalled from Las Vegas.