Steve Pearce went to Lakeland (FL) Senior High. So did Chris Sale. Good to know, right? Not that important, however.
There are some things that should be prioritized when digesting the Red Sox' newest acquisition, one of which is a bit more subtle than the narratives being thrown around late Thursday night.
The easy payoff in the Red Sox reeling in the 35-year-old is that he hits left-handed pitching pretty well. This season against southpaws, Pearce has hit .306 with an .889 OPS. But there are no guarantees he will be the weapon Dave Dombrowski is banking on. The outfielder/first baseman did, after all, manage just a .207 batting average vs. lefties a season ago, having an every-other-year success rate against left-handers throughout his recent campaigns.
"Well, we've been looking for a guy that can hit vs. left-handed pitching. Even though we've done better in recent times – we've swung the bat better – we still have talked about trying to add one more guy that we could put in the lineup vs. a tough left-hander. He's traditionally hit left-handed pitching very well," Dombrowski said after making the deal with the Blue Jays. "He was out for an extended time this year with an oblique. He's come back from that and hit very well. So, he's a threat to drive in runs, drive the ball out of the ballpark. A key cog for us against certain left-handed pitching. And he can hit right-handers, too, I mean, don't take that away from him, but that's going to be the role we were looking for."
Other places Pearce might be able to help? Well, this doesn't seem to be the cure-all when it comes to the Red Sox' pinch-hitting woes, with the veteran righty hitter managing just a .193 batting average in 122 cracks at serving as a pinch-hitter. (The Red Sox' pinch-hitters are just 4-for-30 with two walks this season.)
But here's where Pearce could become a difference-maker ...
The veteran of five big league teams has had success against some potentially key opponents, in some potentially important places.
- The pitcher Pearce has more at-bats against than anyone is Yankees starter CC Sabathia, having gone 9-for-33 (.273) with an .848 OPS against the lefty. He has also managed to handle Masahiro Tanaka (5-for-15) and David Roberson (2-for-3) when given the chance.
- He has absolutely owned one potentially key pitcher in this pennant race, J.A. Happ. The Blue Jays left-hander, who the Yankees will most likely be targeting at the non-waiver trade deadline, has allowed 10 hits in 28 at-bats when facing Pearce (.357), including five homers.
- Pearce has had significant success at Yankee Stadium, hitting .299 with a .975 OPS. He owns eight homers in the Bronx, which is more than the utilityman has hit in twice as many at-bats at his most recent home, Rogers Centre.
- Looking down the road at the Astros? Pearce has had great success against both Charlie Morton and Brad Peacock, going 4-for-7 vs. each pitcher. (Don't expect a start against Dallas Keuchel, however, having gone 2-for-19 with 11 strikeouts against the Houston lefty.)
They are all some items to chew on as the Red Sox figure out if Pearce is a legitimately valuable piece when it counts the most.
