Mark Wasikowski oddly declines to explain putting Mason Neville at designated hitter spot

The Oregon Ducks are gearing up for a late-season push and postseason run. Ahead of that, head coach Mark Wasikowski made the decision to move power hitting outfielder Mason Neville to the designated hitter spot. That’s where he’s been for the last four games.

Mark Wasikowski was asked about the role change following the team’s midweek win against Saint Mary’s. However, he wasn’t interested in getting into the details and declined to talk about his thought process.

“That’s something I don’t want to get into,” Mark Wasikowski said. He would oddly offer no further explanation for the decision.

In the four games since Mason Neville has been moved to DH, the Ducks are 3-1 and won a weekend series against Michigan State. In that same stretch, Neville is 5 for 15 at the plate with three home runs, six RBIs, and two walks.

For the season, Mason Neville is hitting .329 with a .471 OBP and a .835 slugging percentage. That’s a 1,306 OPS. He has 24 home runs, 14 doubles, and 52 RBIs for the season. On top of that, defensively, he has a .969 fielding percentage with just three errors for the season and 92 putouts. He had largely been playing centerfield, a key defensive position to this point in the season.

Mason Neville began his college career at Arkansas before transferring to Oregon for the past two seasons. He’s also spent time playing summer baseball in the Northwoods League and the Cape Cod Baseball League.

Given that Mark Wasikowski didn’t explain the logic behind his decision, all that’s available is guesswork. It could be to let him focus on his offense. It could also be to try and find a better defensive option. Then, the move could be about other players and getting the right lineup in play, which could include another outfielder forcing him to find a new position for Mason Neville.

The Oregon Ducks are currently 34-13 overall and 16-8 in Big Ten play for their first season with the program. That’s good for a tie for third place in the conference standings with USC, only behind Iowa and UCLA. The Ducks also have a slight one-game lead on Washington.

Moving forward, Oregon has another midweek game against Saint Mary’s. After that, the Ducks will wrap up with two straight key Big Ten series. First, they’ll take on Washington in Eugene. After that, they’ll hit the road to take on Iowa.