The Cincinnati Reds have picked up outfielder and first baseman Jordan Patterson off of waivers from the New York Mets. He has spent each of the last two seasons in Triple-A in the Rockies organization. He spent a handful of days in the Mets organization, who just claimed him earlier in the week.
Jordan Patterson has some Major League experience, but it’s rather limited. In 2016 he played in 10 games with the Rockies, hitting .444/.474/.500 over 19 plate appearances. The left handed hitter hasn’t been in the Major League since. In 2017 he played in 131 games in Triple-A Albuquerque. While there he hit .283/.348/.539 with 32 doubles, 7 triples, and 26 home runs. Last year he posted a rather similar line, still playing for the Isotopes, hitting .271/.367/.525 with 23 doubles, 2 triples, and 26 homers in 118 games.
When spring training begins, Jordan Patterson will be 27-years-old. He’s capable of playing at first base and in either of the corner outfield spots. The power probably isn’t as good as the minor league numbers indicate, but he does have solid pop in his bat – the Pacific Coast League, however, has been helping his cause. As a lefty, he’s been better against right handed pitching in his career. There have been times, though, where he has had some success against lefties. He probably does project more as a platoon type of hitter, though.
It you only look at his home-and-road splits for 2018 you may get the sense that he was benefiting from a massive home field advantage. But the year before, at the same level with the same team, he hit much better on the road than at home. The entire league is hitter friendly – so don’t let the one-year splits fool you.
There’s a chance that the Reds made this move to try and designate him for assignment and sneak him through waivers. It’s a move they’ve tried several times in the past. It’s been successful, and failed, over the last few years. But if he sticks around, there’s a little bit of versatility to be had with Jordan Patterson. He could provide some pop off of the bench, and be a solid backup option at first base if and when Joey Votto needs a day off. His arm will also play well in right field, where the Reds currently don’t have a strong arm to play.