Arizona Diamondbacks: Peralta or Inciarte
By Cody Fincher
June is approaching and the Arizona Diamondbacks are sitting at 21-22, good for 3rd place in the National League West. There have been excellent performances turned in so far for the D-Backs, including very good play from both David Peralta and Ender Inciarte. So who should be given the majority of the playing time? Peralta or Inciarte?
Honestly, Chip Hale is doing a very good job at mix and matching both Peralta’s and Inciarte’s playing time. Both players bring different things to the table, but all those things have helped bring in wins.
May 18, 2015; Miami, FL, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks left fielder David Peralta hits a game winning double in the thirteenth inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. The Diamondbacks won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports
Peralta is hitting .248 so far this season with four home runs and 21 RBI. When starting, Hale usually places Peralta in the middle of the lineup, usually around the 5th or 6th spot in the batting order. Peralta has provided some big hits so far this season and that is what he means to this team. He’s a good bat in the middle of the lineup behind Paul Goldschmidt and Yasmany Tomas. Last year, Peralta came up to the big leagues and provided a real spark and that is exactly what he’s been doing again this season.
May 24, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks left fielder Ender Inciarte (5) singles in the third inning against the Chicago Cubs at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Speaking of spark, Inciarte provides it night in and night out, but in a different way. He is usually slated towards the top of the lineup in the leadoff spot and sets up many key at-bats for his teammates. Inciarte is hitting .302 this year with one home run and 16 RBI. His on-base percentage is at .330, which is very good for any player. He has also scored 27 runs, which is 3rd most on the team. He’s the kind of player that can easily bunt for a hit or shoot one in the gap for a triple and then you let guys like Goldschmidt drive him in.
So far, both their playing time has been pretty evenly split with Inciarte playing in 43 games this season and Peralta playing in 40. Hale has done a very nice job at getting all of his outfielders, including A.J Pollock and Mark Trumbo, enough playing time.
But to answer the question of who should get more playing time between the two, I would have to go with Inciarte at this point in time. He is the leadoff hitter that Arizona needs in their lineup.
They have so many guys who can drive in runs, but need there to be guys on base in front of them. Inciarte provides that service. Peralta is a key piece for this team, but right now, Inciarte fills a greater need for the D-Backs. They have enough run-producers in their lineup, so their need is for others to get on base in front of them.
Inciarte fits that bill.