McGewho?

Over the weekend I watched the middle game of the Cubs/Brewers series. The Brewers bludgeoned Rich Harden behind Casey McGehee’s four hit, five RBI afternoon against his former team. In the wake of McGehee’s performance, I scoped his player page and subsequently raised my brows, for this is perhaps the quietest .343/.396/.567 line in the land. It’s only 150 plate appearances though, and there isn’t much reason to believe McGehee will continue to hit like this.

With the Cubs McGehee spent three seasons in Triple-A Iowa, hitting .282/.335/.410. His career best OPS in the minors came in Double-A when he hit for a .776 figure. Consider that McGehee’s current slugging percentage nearly tops that on its own and you can understand why most Cub fans are scratching their heads at the idea of McGehee becoming the Brewers version of Jake Fox.

An ISO resting comfortably around .220 is a power surge unlike any we’ve seen from McGehee before. A .385 BABIP suggests he’s finding every hole and gust on the field, and he’s even walking more than usual while striking out less. McGehee’s defense at second base has been average, and in the past Baseball America named him the best third base defender in the Southern League, so there’s a chance his glove work is legitimate.

McGehee is 26-years-old, making some improved performance likely, just not this extent. Not many players can rebound from three straight below average offensive seasons in Triple-A to suddenly hit better than any other time in their professional careers. What McGehee has accomplished by simply reaching the majors is impressive, but this hot streak serves little predictive power. Fortunately for McGehee, there are a few GMs more than willing extend opportunities based on it.