Yasmany Tomas off to a flying spring start

Yasmany Tomas has hit the ground running after returning from a knee injury that kept him on the sidelines for much of the spring.

In eight games, Tomas has gone 11-for-25 with five doubles and six runs. This is encouraging– Tomas has been a constant cause for concern since coming to the country from Cuba. He had a disappointing rookie year last year, batting .273/.305/.401 in 118 games with nine home runs and 48 RBI. This is very disappointing considering the spectacular rookie years of his Cuban peers, like Yasiel Puig, Yoenis Cespedes and Jose Abreu put up in their rookie years.

If Tomas keeps this up during the final week of spring, he could fend off Socrates Brito’s insurgent run for a starting outfield spot. The 23-year-old Brito has batted .360/.385/.500 this spring with a home run, seven RBI and three steals this spring. Tomas will likely get the benefit of the doubt thanks to his cumbersome contract.

But this spring has probably the first time Tomas has flashed his true potential in the United States. The Diamondbacks better hope Tomas can keep this up into the season– a productive campaign from Tomas could make all of the difference in the Diamondbacks’ lineup. They already have two superstars in Paul Goldschmidt and A.J. Pollock and a big-time sleeper in David Peralta. If Tomas can perform like he has this week the Diamondbacks could be in for a great offensive season. The team was second to just the Rockies in runs scored last season, so this could be baseball’s best batting bunch if Tomas realizes what he is capable of.