Making Joe Panik’s Case for the Mid-Summer Classic
In 2014, the San Francisco Giants appeared to be on their way out of a playoff run near the trade deadline. The Giants were dealing with season-ending injuries for Matt Cain, Marco Scutaro, and Angel Pagan, and a lot of questions at the second base position. Scutaro was the first to set off the dominoes, as Brandon Hicks, Dan Uggla, and Joaquin Arias failed miserably.
For Brian Sabean, the pressure was on for him to bring in the highly-rumored Ben Zobrist, but he didn’t have that idea in mind. The Giants went with a youngster named Joe Panik.
A first-round pick out of St. John’s in 2011, he was selected as a shortstop after being the college player of the year that season. Through the minor leagues, the Giants were waiting for his bat to develop as his defense was progressing just fine. Sure enough, the call-up last season in July turned out to be another call-up the Giants were familiar with, the last coming in 2010 with Buster Posey.
More from San Francisco Giants
- Thank you SF Giants for a fun, wild, surprising 2020 season
- SF Giants lose in heartbreaking fashion and miss 2020 MLB playoffs
- SF Giants: Mike Yastrzemski named 2020 Willie Mac Award recipient
- SF Giants: Chadwick Tromp placed on IL with shoulder strain
- SF Giants: Tuesday’s game against the Seattle Mariners postponed
When Panik came up, he slid in at second base and appeared to play like a veteran. The chemistry between Panik and Brandon Crawford on defense was in sync, and it looked like poetry in motion. While the defense was impressive, his bat in the lineup was a can’t-miss. Panik doesn’t provide the big blasts over the wall, but he is a pure hitter and hits to all sides of the field with ease. Starting near the bottom of the batting order with the call-up, Panik found himself batting second by the playoffs, where he has carried that over to the 2015 season.
Passing on Zobrist — which may have required Panik to be in that trade — the Giants organization appeared to get that decision right. A big part to the World Series championship with a pivotal defensive double play in Game 7 of the World Series, Panik earned himself a spot with the team for quite some time, and is starting to become a household name.
The 2015 season started and there were a lots of doubt cast on the Giants, as to who would be the run producers this year. The lineup was stripped of its power with the losses of Pablo Sandoval and Michael Morse to free agency. Hunter Pence too was removed from the lineup with a broken forearm, which took away almost a month and a half of his regular season.
To compensate for these losses, Pagan was moved to the three hole and Brandon Belt to the fifth spot in the lineup. With multiple unknowns, Nori Aoki, Panik, Crawford, and Belt have been some of the biggest surprises for the offense this season carrying the load.
As for Panik, we are seeing one of the better performances out of a second baseman in the league this season.
May 27, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; San Francisco Giants second baseman Joe Panik (12) completes a double play after forcing out Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Adam Lind (24) in the sixth inning at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
The Houston Astros’ second baseman Jose Altuve took all of baseball by storm last season, but 2015 has been a different story. So far, it has been Panik’s chance to shine.
Through 61 games this season, Panik is batting .316, with six home runs, 25 RBI, 34 runs scored, 73 hits, 15 doubles, two triples, 22 walks, and a mere 30 strikeouts in 231 at-bats. Offensively, Panik’s success has come greatly from the increase in plate awareness and patience.
On defense, Panik is the National League’s best defensive second baseman in fielding percentage with .996 and only one error. Yes, one error. We have seen the craftiness of Panik and Crawford’s glove, and their chemistry has been a highlight reel since July of 2014.
So, does Panik deserve to be the National League representative to start at second base in Minnesota next month?
There are two second baseman that stand in the way of Panik — based on votes cast so far: Dee Gordon and Kolten Wong.
All three second baseman have had phenomenal seasons and it is going to be a close one when it is all said in done. Based on team success, Wong has the edge as the St. Louis Cardinals hold baseball’s best record at 41-21. Gordon, on the other hand, leads Major League Baseball with 92 hits. Then there is Panik who leads in all the other categories besides steals, home runs, and runs scored.
Wong is the worst defensive second baseman in the National League so far, and Gordon is just known for getting on base, and occasional shaky defense.
More from Golden Gate Sports
- Raiders: Rookie stock report following Week 3 performance
- 49ers sign new long snapper amidst a flurry of roster moves
- Oakland Athletics win Game 2 of Wild Card round with late-inning drama
- 49ers: George Kittle and Deebo Samuel cleared to return to practice
- 49ers expected to place DE Dee Ford on injured reserve
Despite the statistical lead in many categories, Panik remains behind in fan votes and needs to make up ground. Panik has performed extremely well out the gate in helping the Giants remain 3.5 games out of first place.
Ultimately, the All-Star Game is all show and a clear response from the fans who vote. It indicates who votes more and shows who gets snubbed. There is nothing more that Panik can possibly do statistically, other than remain consistent until voting ends July 2nd.
While the expectations are high to make a voting jump over Wong and Gordon, it is up to Giants’ fans and other fans of the game to make a statement and vote, if they want to see Panik play in the Mid-Summer Classic on July 14th.