Andruw Monasterio’s Inconsistency Might Jeopardize His Postseason Roster Spot

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Andruw Monasterio is in a slump, hitting just .111/.155/.130 in 58 plate appearances in his last 16 games, but the doubts of the Boston Red Sox are much more pressing in this final stretch of the season: how much can the team trust that he will return to offering the depth they need? Will he be able to get close to his July version at the plate, the only outstanding stretch this year?

As the postseason approaches, there are more doubts than answers surrounding the versatile Venezuelan infielder. Monasterio has had a season plagued by inconsistencies. His swing has improved against fastballs and off-speed pitches compared to last season, but that has not been enough to avoid his inconsistency.

During the first half of the season, Monasterio produced a puzzling .229/.280/.414, with 89 wRC+. Then July arrived and, for a moment, his swing caught fire and produced an offensive line of .338/.413/.631, with a 1.044 OPS and 185 wRC+. He added almost 100 points of wRC+ compared to the first half of the season. The improvements came with two key adjustments: he stopped chasing pitches outside the strike zone, reducing his O-Swing% rate to 22.9%, the lowest percentage in any month of this campaign. He also stopped hitting a large number of ground balls—his rate dropped to 21.2%—getting more optimal contact, which influenced the overall results deriving in a 49.1% Hard Hit%.

Even so, Monasterio did not manage to extend his best adjustments. The small peak of offensive heat began to decline again. For four weeks, he had recorded more than his best peripheral numbers, the quality at-bats that the Red Sox needed. His problems against breaking pitches, which have been frequent all year, also began to worsen again. Monasterio had produced .395 xSLG in July, after carrying .223 and .210 averages in May and June, respectively. The inconsistency returned, falling to .266 in August and .037 this month of September.

The problem went beyond offense and, being honest, that is what has complicated everything. Monasterio’s versatility has been an important part of his value to the team. That is undeniable. He has played most of the time as a shortstop this year, but he has also moved to second, first and third base. That has had a heat, especially when Monasterio took care of covering Trevor Story’s absence due to injury. On paper, it is difficult for a team to discard the contribution of a player capable of adding great defensive depth on his own. In many cases, offensive inconsistency can be forgiven. However, in Monasterio’s case this year, that ability to play several positions has not become a defensive strength at each of them.

If we look at the offensive aspect, I think it is a little surprising that Monasterio has been able to provide his best production at such a demanding position as shortstop. In the 53 games he has played as a shortstop, he registers 99 wRC+, his highest average at any position this year. On the other hand, here is the point that the Red Sox should analyze the most as October approaches: Monasterio has -14 Outs Above Average this season, and he is the worst defender on the team in FRV. Much of that negative result comes from his regression with -9 as a shortstop, but he has also had a negative balance with -3 at second and -2 at first.

His offensive collapse and the terrible season he has gone through on defense is going to put the Red Sox in a difficult position once postseason rosters need to be set. The final few weeks of the regular season will be decisive for Monasterio's immediate future with the team.