Poll reax: Sabatella by a mile

The second poll in the history of Barnstormin’ ended up a lot like the first. It was a landslide. Turnaround wasn’t as heavy. This was more like a mid-term election than a presidential race, probably because fans didn’t really get to know many of the players on the list. They weren’t here long before the season ended. Here’s the tally (84 votes):

Which late-season addition would you like to see get a second chance in 2009?

1. Bryan Sabatella … 54 votes
2. None of the above … 13 votes
3. Gary Harris … 10 votes
4. Monte Mansfield … 7 votes
5. Mac Nelson …0 votes

Sabatella was the obvious choice and the voters recognized it by giving him 65 percent of the vote. The 6-4, 220-pound outfielder put up impressive numbers during his 24-game trial run in the Atlantic League.

.323

3 HR

11 RBI

.376 OBP

.484 SLG

There’s plenty to like about Sabatella. The Long Island native was originally a ninth-round pick out of Quinnipiac University, so he was once highly-regarded by scouts. He excelled at two independent league stops in 2008, including these stats in 84 games in the low-level United League:

.340

14 HR

54 RBI

.432 OBP

.517 SLG

Sabatella can run (42 steals in 108 games last season), is an adequate defender, has hit for power and average and has an opposite-field stroke that should serve a right-handed batter well at Clipper Magazine Stadium.

There are concerns. At 24, Sabatella is still young for the Atlantic League and he has never faced this level of competition for a full season. He was 5-for-28 in his final seven games after a torrid start here. His time in the affiliated minors included two seasons in A ball and produced only modest results.

Should the Barnstormers bring Sabatella back? Sure. Why not? But they shouldn’t count on him being a middle-of-the-lineup force like he was for much of September. They should plan on him batting toward the bottom of the order. If he continues to hit like he did here last season, you get a huge boost. If not, the team should have some more experienced hitters to pick up the slack.

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About the poll:

There was one surprise: None of the above was the second-most popular choice.

The Barnstormers have shown a propensity to rely on the same players year after year and that was probably reflected in this poll. The organization hasn’t paid enough attention to its player procurement operation and it has resulted in a bad team for two years running. I can understand why some fans might want an overhaul. I’m inclined to agree with them.

That said, you can still take pieces of the 2008 team and make them fit into a winning puzzle in 2009. Sabatella could be one part of that puzzle. Another could be Gary Harris, who wasn’t too shabby during his brief stay in Lancaster. Harris’s stats:

.286

2 HR

26 RBI

.295 OBP

.440 SLG

Harris only received 10 votes, probably because most people saw Sabatella as a superior option. But if Lloyd Turner doesn’t want to come back to fill the super-utility role, Harris could be a good fit. He can play second base, third base and can cover a ton of ground in the outfield with his speed. During his September cameo, he struck me as a good guy to have on a team because he was upbeat and played with a lot of energy. You need that in indy ball.

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One last point:

Mac Nelson received zero votes. One could make a pretty good case for bringing him back and I’ll do that in a future post.