White Sox: Will Adam Eaton regress in 2015?

May 23, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago White Sox center fielder Adam Eaton (1) during the fourth inning at U.S Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports

Last season was a great first season with the Chicago White Sox for centerfielder Adam Eaton as he batted exactly .300 and saw his career take a direction in the right step.

After the White Sox acquired Eaton from the Arizona Diamondbacks, the White Sox began the rebuild of their roster last year, making Eaton their leadoff hitter, plus the everyday centerfielder for the ball club.

As mentioned earlier, Eaton did finish the season with a .300 batting average (in 123 games), and to do so, he went 3-for-3 in the final game of the season against the eventual AL champion Kansas City Royals.

As for his projected average for the upcoming 2014 season, Steamer has Eaton batting .273 in 138 games, with 79 runs, 49 RBIs and 20 stolen bases.

His numbers last year in comparison were 76 runs, 35 RBIs and 15 steals.

With Eaton though, having him on the White Sox is more than just his numbers and projections … he makes the White Sox fun and energetic, which goes a long way during a grueling season.

Here is what he tweeted to Melky Cabrera when he signed with the White Sox:

I don’t understand these projections one bit. How can a player who had the best year of his career thus far (he played 88 games with the Diamondbacks in two previous seasons) regress his batting average 27 points?

Barring another injury, I just don’t see a possible 100 more at-bats leading to Eaton’s batting average dropping 27 points. Maybe it will drop some, but with the way Eaton likes to play the game— All Out— maybe his style of play will allow him to bat his way onto the bases even more.

With Eaton having just 211 games at the MLB level in parts of three seasons, it is tough to project just what type of player Eaton will become in ’15 and beyond.

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I love his style of play, and like I’ve said, I do not see his batting average dropping 27 points. Maybe he doesn’t bat .300, but if I were a wagering person, I would take a bet that he finishes the ’15 season (if healthy for a majority of it) with an average of above .285 with more than the projected 79 runs.

That is just based on who is now batting behind him in players like Melky Cabrera, Jose Abreu and Adam LaRoche, for starters. There is a good chance Eaton (if he can get one base some way) can score 85-plus runs this season.

Maybe I’m completely off on this and being more of a homer than Hawk Harrelson, but I really believe in what Eaton brings to this ball club, and he’ll continue to make a positive difference in ’15.