J.P. Crawford: A Gold Glover at Shortstop… but is it enough?

J.P. Crawford is the most recent recipient of the gold glove, taking home the honors for the first time. The question needs to be asked… Is it enough to make him the long term answer at shortstop?

Heading into the winter meetings in 2018, the Seattle Mariners decided to trade away Jean Segura for J.P Crawford. Crawford had entered 2017 as the number 54 prospect in all of baseball, a great fielder with a great arm, and a decent bat.

Throughout his minor league career, he had been a top-five pick, the top shortstop prospect, and the number two prospect in all of baseball.

Yet, his value was diminishing as he failed to produce to expectations throughout 2017 and 2018. Where others may have seen someone who couldn’t perform in professional baseball, Jerry Dipoto saw something else. A chance to trade away Segura before his contract extension even kicked in, in exchange for a prospect that could be had for a great price.

Sending away a 29-year-old shortstop who was involved in a midseason fight with his double-play teammate, that had possibly derailed the team’s stellar start, for a 23-year-old that was under control through 2024. I’m guessing that Jerry Dipoto would do this 100 out of 100 times if he had the opportunity.

The team now had a legit shortstop prospect set to fill long-empty shoes. At least by anyone that fans wanted filling them. A former top pick/prospect? Sign us up, and let’s see what the 23-year-old can do.

We’ve now seen 600+ plate appearances from Crawford in a Mariners uniform. The youngster is out of prospect status and will be 26 when the 2021 season starts. Is it a big enough sample to make the all-important decision?

Is J.P. Crawford the answer for the Seattle Mariners at shortstop?

Keep him… trade him… Let’s take a glimpse at each side of the argument for what to do with J.P. Crawford.

Keeping J.P. Crawford

It’s what you would think of when taking a look at a 25-year-old shortstop who is fresh off a gold glove with four years of control left.

A part of this decision is about appeasing the fans. When was the last time that the Mariners had a promising young shortstop? Do you want to take a second and think about it? Go ahead, I’ll give you a minute.

You could argue Ketel Marte. That would be reasonable, but he doesn’t play that position anymore, switching once he left Seattle.

Brad Miller? I don’t think he fits the mold either. Sure, we liked him, but he didn’t have near the promise or ceiling that was assigned to Crawford.

Then there’s Mike Morse. Never really played as much shortstop as we thought he would, and struggled as a Mariner.

Yuniesky Betancourt had some pretty good seasons for the Mariners and did it while he was young. He was an okay defender, but again, he just wasn’t expected to be great.

Figure it out yet?

It’s the year 2001, and Alex Rodriguez is gone. Enter the young shortstop that the Mariners had traded for, along with Freddy Garcia (I miss that sweaty guy) for Randy Johnson. Carlos Guillen has played a bit like a utility guy, filling in behind David Bell, Mark McLemore, and A-Rod over the past two seasons.

He’s probably the last, real, prospect that we have had that seemed promising and had high expectations at shortstop. We’ve had nice seasons from Betancourt, Josh Wilson, and others, but Guillen was probably the last one. If you want to argue he doesn’t even count (He was 25, and probably didn’t have a season as Crawford has), I would understand.

That means the answer is A-Rod.

We haven’t had a real shortstop prospect produce this millennium. We’ve had prospects. We’ve had shortstops produce. What we haven’t had is both. That’s the biggest argument, to me, for keeping J.P. Crawford. It’s been so long since we have had hope and a legitimate answer at the position. I’m 32 now and was in middle school the last time it happened.

The Gold Glove defense is likely going to stay. It does in most cases. If the bat can pick up a little bit, we are going to be looking at Crawford sliding into the second tier of shortstops in baseball. He would still be below those top guys, but a Gold glove Defender who hits .255, with a decent eye, 10-15 homers a year, and 15-20 steals is nothing to scoff at, and would easily fill the role for the next ten years.

But what if… what if Crawford could become a good to a great hitter as well? Is it really that far fetched?

Crawford’s going to be 26. He is approaching his prime, and should still be improving, at least hopefully, over the next couple of years. He hit .255, with two homers, six steals, and a decent eye, holding an OBP eighty points over his average.

What if he improves the average to .270? Finds a bit of power like division hopefully rival Andrelton Simmons did in a few of his season, and ends up in the 15 home run range. The speed stays there, and the steals increase as he gets on a bit more from the better average. Six steals in 50 games becomes 25 steals in a full season. The OBP separation stays about the same, and he ends up with a slash line of 270/355/385.

Gold Glove defense. A 15/25 split on homers and steals. Good average.

That sounds like a solid foundational piece that the team could help build around, planning on being a part of the squad long term, hopefully with Rodriguez, Kelenic, and some of the other top prospects the team is going to be seeing over the next few years.

Keep him… or trade him?

When we get to the question of keeping J.P. Crawford, it all depends on whether or not you think he is going to keep growing on offense.

If he can turn into the hitter that I mentioned, approaching a combo of 35-40 homers and steals, with a 270/350/380 type slash line, he would have to be mentioned with the best shortstops in baseball. He’s never going to hit for power like Story or put up the kind of numbers that you would see from Lindor.

He is going to be one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball for the next decade. This isn’t 1994 though, and a top defensive shortstop with the bottom of qualifier offensive numbers just isn’t good enough anymore.

It’s tough, we have waited so long in Seattle for a good shortstop. Not just good, but young, with a high ceiling as well. A real, respectable prospect that you could build around.

It’s what every fan base wants, which was why Crawford was so highly-touted when he was sitting as the number two prospect in all of baseball.

I’m split. A lifelong fan, he seems like exactly what we need. Is it enough though? Would we be settling with Crawford, taking someone just above mediocrity after literal decades of below-average play?

When it comes down to it, I think we should trade him and look for an upgrade. I’m worried that the offense isn’t going to show up, and we are going to be looking at a poor man’s Andrelton Simmons. Not elite defense (still great though), and a below-average bat. Someone who holds onto the position into their 30’s, never good enough to love, but not bad enough to replace.

What about you? Should the Seattle Mariners keep the talented young Gold Glove shortstop? Or should Trader Jerry put J.P. Crawford back on the market? My answer is to roll the dice and trade J.P. Crawford for a stronger candidate for the position.