Kolten Wong lobbying to be Cardinals' leadoff hitter
With Matt Carpenter's future at the leadoff position in the St. Louis Cardinals in question because of a breakout season in power numbers, Kolten Wong is campaigning to take over as the table setter for the club in 2016.
"Seeing what [Carpenter] did last year, the power numbers he put up, you have me in leadoff, I'll get into scoring position, and if he hits one in the gap, I'm going to score," Wong told MLB.com. "I think that would be a good thing to do. ... We'll see what happens. Hopefully, No. 1 is the spot."
In the weeks leading up to pitchers and catchers reporting for spring training for the Cardinals, there has been much debate whether Carpenter should continue in his leadoff role or slide down to hitting No. 3 in the lineup. He led the Cardinals in 2015 in home runs with 28 and RBI with 84, numbers more characteristic of a middle-of-the-order batter.
Manager Mike Matheny has stated he will let the lineup play itself out in spring training, but he doesn't mind his players looking for ways to use their talents to improve the club.
"I love it," Matheny said of Wong's campaigning for the leadoff spot. "For me to hear that from Kolten is kind of just him looking at the landscape of our club and thinking, 'How can I jump into this and help us more?' And he thinks him being at the top of the order could allow him freedom to do other things. I'm excited to watch what he does."
Wong started 51 games for the Cardinals hitting leadoff in 2015, with Carpenter hitting lower in the order. While Carpenter's numbers declined when not leading off, Wong hit .247/.303/.400 with 28 runs scored, 21 RBI and six home runs. Known as an aggressive hitter (Carpenter is more patient at the plate), Wong would need to work on improving his on-base percentage to be an effective hitter in the leadoff role. His career average is .303, while Carpenter has been at a .386 OBP since being the regular at the top of the order in 2013.
"If [Matheny] does decide to put me at leadoff, have me lead off from Day 1 of spring training," Wong said. "If I can really start buying into being a leadoff batter from the beginning, I feel like that will help me and help the team come this season."
While Wong has his goals in mind to start the season at the leadoff spot for the Cardinals, Matheny isn't handing over any roles for the lineup prior to spring training.
"I don't think it's a great idea to make up our mind ahead of time when these guys spend the whole winter working and preparing and trying to improve in certain ways," Matheny said. "We'll wait and see. And after that, we'll adjust."
