Minor League Wrap (8/10-6/09)
I’m heading out early this morning and will be out until Saturday, so I won’t be able to answer anything nor provide any longer reflections on the draft deadline signings (9pm today!), which I’ll probably be oblivious to for the better part of five days. I’m hoping there’s enough time for me to get something together in what remaining time I have on that weekend. We’ll see.
To the jump!
Tacoma Rainiers (2-4 this week, 59-63 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, August 10th 2009
Tacoma 6, Albuquerque 8 (LA + 11)
W: Alvarado, C (10-9, 3.58); L: Baldwin (6-8, 4.59); SV: Strickland (25)
Tuesday, August 11th 2009
Tacoma 9, Albuquerque 5 (LA + 10)
W: Vargas, J (2-2, 3.21); L: Bonilla (3-9, 6.10)
Wednesday, August 12th 2009
Tacoma 6, Albuquerque 8 (LA + 11)
W: Choi (8-1, 2.23); L: Stark (1-2, 5.82); SV: Leach (1)
Thursday, August 13th 2009
Off day
Friday, August 14th 2009
Iowa 0 (CHC + 1), Tacoma 4
W: Morrow (2-2, 4.04); L: Atkins, M (6-11, 6.88)
Saturday, August 15th 2009
Iowa 7 (CHC + 2), Tacoma 4
W: Mathes (11-6, 3.60); L: Seddon (7-7, 4.35); SV: Parker (15)
Sunday, August 16th 2009
Iowa 4 (CHC + 3), Tacoma 0
W: Russell, J (3-1, 3.72); L: Baldwin (6-9, 4.59); SV: Gaub (1)
Player of the Week:
IF Matt Tuiasosopo, R/R, 5/10/1986
6 G, 22 AB, 5 R, 7 H, 2 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 5/4 K/BB, .318/~.423/.681
August has been pretty good to Tui so far. Right now, he’s batting .364/.463/.691 with half the month over, five of his six home runs coming in that span. He seems to be more comfortable at the plate, as he’s gone from a 22/9 K/BB in July to 13/8 in August. Of course, the thing that interests me the most is that he’s apparently in good enough athletic condition at this point that he saw some games at second base in the past week. I’ll give you a few seconds to absorb that. I don’t have any reports on how he did out there, but he didn’t make any errors, for what little that is worth.
Possible September Call-up Mention:
C Adam Moore, R/R, 5/8/1984
4 G, 13 AB, 2 R, 6 H, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 1/2 K/BB, .462/~.533/.615
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Brandon Morrow, 7/26/1984
1-0, GS, CG (SHO), 0.00 ERA in 9.0 IP, 4 H, 2/1 K/BB, 12/13 G/F
Well, who else was it going to be? Morrow solved a Cubs lineup that proved to be a bit trickier for Chris Seddon and Andy Baldwin, not that we expected CGs out of either (guys, feel free to throw them). Aside from adding that he threw 61.5% of his pitches for strikes and only needed ninety-six of them to get through the game, I don’t know what more I could add that Jeff Sullivan didn’t yesterday morning. The performance, particularly the use of the change-up and the fastball command, was encouraging. The lack of strikeouts or press on his bendy pitches is slightly concerning.
Local Guy Mention:
RHP Eric Hull, 12/3/1979
0-0, 2 G, 0.00 ERA in 3.1 IP, 2 H, 5/5 G/F
From The Training Room:
The call-up of Josh Wilson brought Oswaldo Navarro off the DL. Jesus Delgado was added to the injured pitching ranks.
They Said It:
“Everything he’s got is a plus-pitch,†Brown said. “It’s easy for people to get excited about watching the radar gun. But his other pitches are plus-pitches and he’s going to have to use them to get outs at the big-league level, and he did that tonight.â€
Manager Daren Brown, on Morrow’s outing, Tacoma News Tribune, 8/15/09
West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (5-1 this week, 27-23 in the second half, 55-66 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, August 10th 2009
Carloina 1 (CIN – 11), West Tenn 7
W: Hill, N (4-4, 2.76); L: Horst (0-3, 9.20)
Tuesday, August 11th 2009
Off day
Wednesday, August 12th 2009
Chattanooga 5 (LA + 6), West Tenn 2
W: Bastardo (5-2, 4.47); L: Rohrbaugh (1-3, 3.12); SV: Sartor (11)
Thursday, August 13th 2009
Chattanooga 3 (LA + 5), West Tenn 5
W: Munoz, L (6-6, 4.53); L: Castillo, J (7-8, 4.71); SV: Aumont (4)
Friday, August 14th 2009
Chattanooga 1 (LA + 4), West Tenn 9
W: Cortes (1-3, 6.46); L: Adkins (5-9, 4.86)
Saturday, August 15th 2009
Chattanooga 0 (LA + 3), West Tenn 2 (seven innings)
W: Bray (5-6, 3.11); L: Withrow (1-2, 4.73)
Chattanooga 2 (LA + 2), West Tenn 5 (seven innings)
W: Hill, N (5-4, 2.75); L: Chick (6-6, 4.17)
Sunday, August 16th 2009
Off day
Hitter of the Week:
1B/OF Johan Limonta, L/L, 8/4/1983
6 G, 18 AB, 2 R, 8 H, 4 2B, 4 RBI, 2/4 K/BB, SB, .444/~.545/.667
The easy claim I can make here is that Limonta, who can play both outfield corners and center in a pinch, beats Hubbard on position versatility even if his power output is rarely as good. But what about the right-handed splits, which would likely comprise the bulk of what either would face at a major league level? Hubbard hits .287/.411/.481 against northpaws. With sixty-four strikeouts to fifty-one walks in 268 at-bats, those are some quality peripherals, quite difficult to compete against. So what of Limonta? He has a thirty-two strikeouts to thirty-eight walks in 253 at-bats and is hitting .336/.428/.518 against right-handed pitching. He also hasn’t been stuck in double-A for three-and-a-half years. I think I’ll take that guy.
Defensively-limited Hitter Mention:
1B Marshall Hubbard, L/R, 4/16/1982
6 G, 23 AB, 4 R, 9 H, 3 2B, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 6/1 K/BB, .391/~.417/.783
Why Not? Mention:
RF Gregory Halman, R/R, 8/26/1987
5 G, 18 AB, 3 R, 7 H, 3B, 3 RBI, 4/1 K/BB, SB, .389/~.421/.500
Pitcher of the WeeK:
LHP Nick Hill, 1/30/1985
2-0, 2 GS, 2 CG, 1.69 ERA in 16.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 12/3 K/BB, 22/14 G/F
Technically, Hill got two complete games this week, the second one being a seven inning affair, but impressive nonetheless. Right now, he incidentally has as many innings in as a starter as he did as a reliever (39.1), so let’s compare, shall we? He allowed thirty-six hits as a starter (.240) to twenty-eight in the rotation. His ratios have suffered a bit, 45/10 K/BB as a reliever with a 2.29 G/F, compared to 34/11 and a 1.77 G/F as a starter, but it should be also noted that he’s averaging about six and two-thirds innings each time out, and has yet to pitch less than five and a third.
Back in the Southern League Mention:
LHP Robert Rohrbaugh, 12/28/1983
0-1, GS, 1.80 ERA in 5.0 IP, 4 H, R, 6/1 K/BB, 5/4 G/F, HB
From the Training Room:
LHP Danny Christensen was suspended for violating organization policy, while RHP Brodie Downs came off the inactive list. Orta and Fields are also on the DL, Fields with an oblique injury that could sideline him for the remainder of the season. Rohrbaugh replaced Fields already, so I’m guessing that LHP Edward Paredes got Orta’s spot after being promoted from the Cal League. Pena, Parker, Kahn, Prettyman, Triunfel, and Mojica are all still on the DL. The D-Jaxx lead their division in spite of all this.
Strange Happenings:
Dan Cortes had a one-hitter in six innings, striking out four. He also allowed a run because, you know, he walked six.
High Desert Mavericks (3-3 this week, 26-24 in the second half, 69-51 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, August 10th 2009
Off day
Tuesday, August 11th 2009
High Desert 5, Rancho Cucamonga 4 (ANA – 1)
W: Jensen (3-1, 3.48); L: Carmona, I (0-7, 5.66); SV: Richard, S (10)
Wednesday, August 12th 2009
High Desert 1, Rancho Cucamonga 11 (ANA 0)
W: Miller, J (5-7, 3.90); L: Wild (5-7, 3.72)
Thursday, August 13th 2009
High Desert 6, Rancho Cucamonga 5 (ANA – 1)
W: Hume (15-5, 4.40); L: Flores, M (0-2, 4.34); SV: Richard, S (11)
Friday, August 14th 2009
High Desert 5, Inland Empire 6 (LA – 8) (ten innings)
W: Prado (2-2, 4.11); L: Penney (1-2, 4.50)
Saturday, August 15th 2009
High Desert 1, Inland Empire 8 (LA – 7)
W: Sexton, T (8-11, 3.17); L: Ramirez, J (6-9, 5.01)
Sunday, August 16th 2009
High Desert 5, Inland Empire 0 (LA – 8)
W: Robles (1-1, 4.05); L: Miller, J (0-3, 5.63)
Hitter of the Week:
3B Alex Liddi, R/R, 8/14/1988
5 G, 19 AB, 2 R, 5 H, 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 4/2 K/BB, .263/~.333/.631
Try as I might, I didn’t think I could quite overlook Liddi this week. Funny, coming from someone who has been talking him up all season, but this time out he did get a bit more distance out of hits than the other candidates who had more hits overall, so it seemed hard to justify anything to the contrary. Liddi hit his fortieth double this week and is up to twenty-three home runs. Baseball America’s Prospect Hot Sheet finally took notice when they realized, oh snap, he could lead the minors in six categories! Take the park caveats into account, but he’s still pretty good.
Second Fiddle Mention:
1B Joe Dunigan, L/L, 3/29/1986
5 G, 19 AB, 3 R, 6 H, HR, RBI, 4/1 K/BB, .316/~.350/.474
Getting Back into the Swing of Things Mention:
OF James McOwen, L/R, 9/26/1985
4 G, 16 AB, 2 R, 5 H, 2B, 7 RBI, 4/2 K/BB, .313/~.389/.375
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Aaron Jensen, 6/11/1984
1-0, 2 G, 0.00 ERA in 6.2 IP, 5 H, 5/0 K/BB, 6/8 G/F, WP
Remember the 2003 draft? The one that yielded us Jones, O’Flaherty, and Feierabend? Okay, that’s getting a little depressing, but Jensen is one of the few holdouts remaining in the system from that class. He was regarded as a fine pick for the 16th-round and quite talented, but he’s had a bit of trouble staying in the game, suffering a few non-pitching injuries and then having Tommy John surgery last year. He’s only allowed three runs (two earned) to score since the beginning of June and is running a 14/5 K/BB in 22.1 IP. Nothing crazy, but not bad at all for a rehab year.
Comical Command Mention:
LHP Mauricio Robles, 3/5/1989
1-0, 2 GS, 0.75 ERA in 12.0 IP, 3 H, R, 12/9 K/BB, 13/7 G/F, WP
I wrote this before I saw Jensen’s numbers. If you prefer Robles, that’s entirely justifiable.
I don’t know if Robles so much won this one as everyone else lost it, but it’s something that he was able to walk six in five innings on Tuesday and only have one run score against him. Sunday’s outing was clearly better, with one hit, three walks, and nine strikeouts through seven innings. Perhaps he figured he could pitch more comfortably in one of the few parks that doesn’t knock the scales over in favor of hitters. Whatever the case, no one is hitting him right now, so it’s just a matter of getting him to where isn’t walking nearly this many.
From the Training Room:
No changes that I can see. Pineda may force one as he gets back into the pitching rhythm.
Clinton Lumberkings (2-5 this week, 23-26 in the second half, 63-56 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, August 10th 2009
Clinton 4, Kane County 6 (OAK – 2)
W: Huttenlocker (1-1, 4.50); L: Renfree (2-2, 2.52); SV: Murray (11)
Tuesday, August 11th 2009
Clinton 4, Beloit 6 (MIL – 7)
W: Blevins, S (3-4, 3.60); L: Moran (0-1, 2.16)
Wednesday, August 12th 2009
Clinton 4, Beloit 2 (MIN – 8)
W: Carraway (2-0, 3.18); L: Tippett (8-5, 2.74); SV: Josselyn (1)
Thursday, August 13th 2009
Clinton 7, Beloit 1 (MIL – 9)
W: Kasparek (10-5, 2.17); L: Berlind (3-12, 5.02)
Friday, August 14th 2009
Clinton 0, Beloit 2 (MIN – 8)
W: Pugh (3-4, 3.13); L: Cleto (0-2, 5.73); SV: Bullock (5)
Saturday, August 15th 2009
Cedar Rapids 6 (ANA + 3), Clinton 2
W: Shoemaker, M. (4-1, 3.41); L: LaFromboise (7-7, 3.78)
Sunday, August 16th 2009
Cedar Rapids 18 (ANA + 3), Clinton 3
W: Chatwood (5-7, 4.38); L: Vasquez (1-2, 6.75); SV: Hurst (1)
Hitter of the Week:
LF Jake Shaffer, L/L, 8/16/1987
7 G, 26 AB, 3 R, 8 H, 2B, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 4/1 K/BB, SB, .307/~.333/.577
Not quite as good as the end to last week, when he went 9-for-14 over the course of three games, but overall, Shaffer’s been a been having himself a nice August, with three of his seven home runs in the month, two of which came in the past week. He’s been benefiting a bit from additional playing time, but aside from a jump in average and a corresponding jump in OPS, he hasn’t improved in any facet of his game. His discipline and extra-base hits have been about the same as they ever were from the first half to the second.
Had a Double This Week Mention:
IF Luis Nunez, R/R, 12/31/1986
5 G, 18 AB, 2 R, 6 H, 2B, 3/2 K/BB, 3 SB, CS, .333/~.400/.389
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Kenn Kasparek, 9/23/1985
1-0, GS, 0.00 ERA in 7.0 IP, 4 H, 4/0 K/BB, 8/9 G/F
I opted for the lower strikeouts and fewer hits runs over the eight-K, one run performance that Carraway had in six innings. I’ll probably get around to talking about Carraway again one of these days anyway, so for now, how about we talk up Kasparek a little more? Through his past ten starts, he hasn’t given up more than two runs in any of them and is averaging five and two-thirds innings. In fact, for August, in 21.1 innings so far, he’s only allowed one run, earned or otherwise. That’s helping him lead the league in ERA at the moment. His 120 strikeouts are second, and his 124.2 innings rank sixth, but two of the guys ahead of him have one more start than he does.
Runner-up Mention:
RHP Andrew Carraway, 9/4/1986
1-0, GS, 1.50 ERA in 6.0 IP, 7 H, 8/1 K/BB, 2/6 G/F, 2 WP
Possible Starter Mention:
RHP Blake Nation, 5/16/1987
0-0, G, 0.00 ERA in 4.2 IP, 5 H, 5/2 K/BB, 6/2 G/F
From the Training Room:
The most notable of the few moves this week was that Cleto came off the DL and threw two innings on Friday, allowing a run to score on three hits while striking out a pair. Daniel Cooper also joined the pitching staff from Everett. Savastano also came off the DL, which pushed Royster back to Everett, which is a shame.
Strange Happenings:
Cedar Rapids scored eighteen runs against the Lumberkings on Sunday. Most of them were earned this time.
Everett Aquasox (2-5 this week, 32-24 overall)
Monday, August 10th 2009
Eugene 5 (SD – 9), Everett 11 (seven innings)
W: Stanton (3-2, 4.47); L: Bagley (0-1, 5.24)
Tuesday, August 11th 2009
Everett 7, Boise 12 (CHC – 7)
W: Quezada, A (2-2, 5.02); L: Reid (3-1, 4.44)
Wednesday, August 12th 2009
Everett 6, Boise 2 (CHC – 8)
W: Moorer (1-1, 3.38); L: Rusin (0-2, 3.77)
Thursday, August 13th 2009
Everett 7, Boise 8 (CHC – 7)
W: Nunez (3-1, 2.35); L: Staehely (4-2, 3.18)
Friday, August 14th 2009
Everett 2, Boise 8 (CHC – 6)
W: McNutt, K (2-0, 1.23); L: Kirkland (2-4, 5.25)
Saturday, August 15th 2009
Everett 3, Boise 4 (CHC – 5) (twelve innings)
W: Quezada, A (3-2, 4.85); L: Reid (3-2, 4.18)
Sunday, August 16th 2009
Everett 3, Salem-Keizer 7 (SF + 16)
W: Westcott, C (1-0, 3.52); L: Esquibel (2-2, 4.84)
Hitter of the Week:
C Brandon Bantz, R/R, 1/7/1987
5 G, 18 AB, 6 H, 2 2B, 3B, HR, 4 RBI, 2/1 K/BB, .333/~.368/.722
The Aquasox were averaging five and a half runs per game for the week, so when they lost, it was mostly the fault of the pitching, which gave up close to six and three-quarters per game. Bantz has been a surprise on the staff, a senior catcher drafted in the 30th-round who has slugged .769 in thirteen games since joining Everett. Maybe it’s not all that surprising, as he had thirteen doubles and ten home runs this year at Dallas Baptist, but it’s still pretty nice.
The Pride of Brewster Washington Mention:
2B Hawkins Gebbers, R/R, 7/29/1986
7 G, 30 AB, 6 R, 10 H, 3 2B, 2 RBI, 7/3 K/BB, .333/~.394/.433
Pitcher of the Week:
LHP Brandon Pullen,
0-0, 2 G, 0.00 ERA in 5.0 IP, 2 H, 1/1 K/BB, 8/5 G/F
The starting pitching doomed the the Aquasox this week, so we have Pullen. His main claim to fame is that he was a teammate of Strasburg at San Diego State, briefly, but only for one year after transferring out of an Arizona community college. He’s originally from Idaho, though I can’t say how familiar I am with their baseball programs (mostly I know Montana). He was used as a situational reliever in college, but this year he’s been having trouble versus southpaws, with an 8/4 K/BB in 7.1 IP, compared to 14/1 against right-handers in 17.2 innings. They’re also not hitting him as well.
The Lesser of Five Messes Mention:
RHP Taylor Stanton, 1/15/1988
1-0, 2 GS, 2.77 ERA in 13.0 IP, 12 H, 6 R (4 ER), 10/3 K/BB, 14/14 G/F
From the Training Room:
Chad Cordero is logging rehab innings in Everett now, and they’re about as interesting as they’ve ever been (not very). Royster is back. Avila might be on the DL, as he hasn’t played since Tuesday, but it’s hard to tell with him.
Pulaski Mariners (3-3 this week, 21-28 overall)
Monday, August 10th 2009
Pulaski 4, Bluefield 1 (BAL + 2)
W: Suda (2-1, 4.29); L: Bundy (2-5, 4.76); SV: Merry (3)
[Note: Monday’s game was suspended due to rain after three innings and resumed on Tuesday]
Tuesday, August 11th 2009
Pulaski 2, Bluefield 10 (+ 3) (seven innings)
W: Moore, J (3-2, 3.74); L: Maurer (2-4, 4.42)
Wednesday, August 12th 2009
Bluefield 6 (BAL + 3), Pulaski 3
W: Beal (4-3, 3.97); L: Housey (1-2, 2.31); SV: McCrory (1)
Thursday, August 13th 2009
Greeneville 4 (HOU – 11), Pulaski 6
W: Merry (2-1, 2.77); L: Belliard, J (2-3, 3.18)
Friday, August 14th 2009
Greeneville 4 (HOU – 10), Pulaski 3
W: Smink, T (1-0, 6.86); L: Ortiz, Ri (1-2, 4.82); SV: Migl (1)
Saturday, August 15th 2009
Greeneville 1 (HOU – 11), Pulaski 2
W: Tome (3-3, 4.95); L: Garcia, G (0-4, 7.91); SV: Merry (4)
Sunday, August 16th 2009
Rain out
Hitter of the Week:
OF Brandon Haveman, L/R, 6/21/1986
5 G, 10 AB, 7 R, 5 H, 3B, HR, 1/4 K/BB, SB, .500/~.643/1.000
Haveman, like McGonigle before him, is another late-round pick that I don’t have a whole lot to say about. He was drafted as a fifth-year senior after three years at Purdue, the first of which he redshirted. Before that, he was at Lake Michigan College for two seasons. This past year he hit .422/.462/.616 for the Boilermakers, and .379/.453/.525 last season. He hits for decent power considering he’s a smaller guy (5’9, 165 lbs) and he’s left-handed. Since he’s twenty-three already, it’s hard to know what to expect of him at the higher levels.
Also Hit .500 Mention:
2B Fred Bello, R/R, 10/6/1987
4 G, 12 AB, R, 6 H, 2B, 3B, RBI, 2/2 K/BB, 3 SB, 3 CS, .500/~.571/.750
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Jean Tome, 9/5/1989
1-0, 2 GS, 0.81 ERA in 11.0 IP, H, R, 11/2 K/BB, 8/13 G/F
You probably heard about it by now, but Jean Tome had a no-hit bid going for seven and a third innings on Saturday, eventually giving up a triple to Jiovanni Mier. The article will give you the basics of it, first nine retired, then a walk, then the next thirteen, but aside from him being Brazilian, which is a bit of a novelty, I can’t say I know what he throws. I did some digging and couldn’t really come up with anything, but what I did find out is that the sport is gaining momentum in Brazil. Japanese immigrants brought it over years ago and it used to be that the sport was almost exclusive to them, but these days, it’s about 50-50. Still, Brazilian baseball players are required to study both English and Japanese, just so they can keep up in the leagues. I wonder how he and Kenta Suda get along.
Speaking of Which… Mention:
RHP Kenta Suda, 7/22/1989
1-0, 2 G, 3.00 ERA in 6.0 IP, 5 H (HR), 6/2 K/BB, 3/9 G/F, HB
From the Training Room:
It looks like C Tommy Johnson might be on the DL now, since he hasn’t played in a week and a half. RHP Ogui Diaz seems to have replaced him on the roster.
Dispatches from the Land of Rehabbers:
RHP Michael Pineda: 0-0, GS, 0.00 ERA in 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1/0 K/BB
OF Julio Morban: 4 G, 12 AB, 2 R, 3 H, 2B, RBI, 0/1 K/BB, SB, .250/~.250/.333
RHP Francisco Valdivia: 0-0, G, 0.00 ERA in 1.0 IP, H
Comments
30 Responses to “Minor League Wrap (8/10-6/09)”
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Thanks for the update.
Just because it’s bothersome to look at, you have an italics formatting error. Just after the Editor’s note in the High Desert Mavericks, there needs to be a close italics code. Feel free to delete this comment after it’s put in, so neither of us look like a goober.
My question is: Will Tui get another September call-up? Will he try shortstop if Jack Wilson’s injury persists?
Fixed
He has to get a call-up, considering the left side of our infield lacks serious depth if Jack W’s injury continues to bother him. I heard a while back that the team is planning on an Adam Moore callup pending some extensive defensive work. I would also hope to give Bryan LaHair another shot, especially if it means less AB’s for Griffey and Designated Hugger.
Looks like a good week for Brandons in our system.
On another note, if you don’t mind my asking, Churchill has a post up asserting that Aumont has a degenerative hip condition and that’s why he’s been shifted permanently to the bullpen. (Along with it, he seems to me to be asserting that the FO’s stated reason for that move is a bald-faced lie.) Does anyone else know anything about this?
I am very curious to see how JZ and Wak treat the September roster expansion. I hope that they give more playing time to callups than the previous management team did. More data on what these guys can do can only help them decide what to do going forward.
I wouldn’t expect to see much of LeHair, though. I think he’s gotten the AAAA label, and Branyan probably wants to max out his counting stats. Griffey might as well keep going out there for the fans, and then retire in October.
BTW, the chances of making the playoffs are around 1%, per Baseball Prospectus and Cool Standings.
Lahair is the new Morse.
There’s nothing there that a good team wants. If they want to give him a call-up at 10-20 PAs in September as a reward for being a loyal and hardworking organizational soldier, that’s cool.
Lahair has had a good season for Tacoma. His OPS trails only Saunders, and is essentially tied with Shelton, and ahead of Tui, Carp and Nelson.
If we dismiss that result, then we are either saying:
1. Lahair’s 2009 is a fluke or a career year not to be duplicated, or
2. There’s nobody in Tacoma who is ready to hit in the Majors.
I think a case could be made for either of those but which are we saying is the case?
Paul B: or 3. He’s profiting from repeating the level for the second time.
Robles looks to be the best lefty starting prospect the M’s have had in a long time. Also Tui is getting ready to be a super sub in the bigs, outfield will be where he learns to play next.
Fourth time?
No, third time, actually — this is his fourth year in AAA.
If we dismiss that result, then we are either saying…
That prospect analysis isn’t looking at OPS and making assumptions from there.
LaHair is not a major league player.
Once we hit Sept. 1, is there any logical reason for any of the following people to get an AB?:
— Griffey
— Sweeney
— Beltre
— Johnson
On a related note, is there any data on how prospects below AAA are ‘hurt’ by being given ML opportunities and not succeeding? In other words, other than contractual status, is there a predictable downside to seeing what people like Liddi or Hill could do?
Larry Stone has a running thread on his blog page for draft signing updates
Griffey – yes, farewell tour, attendance
Sweeney – no, he can tickle in the dugout
Beltre – yes (if completely healthy), stay sharp, and build some goodwill so that he resigns
Beltre – no (if not completely healthy), let him get to type A, offer arbitration
Johnson – yes, he’s going to be some part of the Catcher timeshare next year and he needs work on both hitting and catching
Avila got hit in the head in the Boise series. I was at the game and it didn’t look good. Jones had an awesome catch in right. He also has a really good arm.
Once the kids are back in school, this lame argument loses all remaining justification.
I apologize for my losing wrestling match with the quote function.
There’s no world in which Adam Moore is a better player right now than Rob Johnson. There’s no world in which Alex Liddi should go from A-ball to the majors. There’s no world in which Ken Griffey Jr should be cast aside for the final month of the season so the team can play Bryan Freaking LaHair.
Honestly, I don’t know what the obsession is with running out a AAA (or worse) lineup in September. Our offense is bad enough already.
Dave, would that be the same then as my earlier #1, basically saying LaHair’s results in Tacoma in 2009 are either a fluke (small sample size) or a career year that he won’t repeat or at any rate wouldn’t be representative of what he would do in Seattle?
Seems to me it would be saying the same thing, but you cut that part from the quote so maybe I’m wrong and you are ssying something different.
Um, how about LaHair is a AAAA player? (see Jeremy Reed).
SSS caveat applies, but Johnson has hit .295/.386/.409 since July 1st. Granted his defense during that span has been less than inspiring but the dude has been hitting…
Yeah, I think you can survive with a catcher with a 780 or so OPS….
His passed balls are another story though….
– Are kids the ones who are the target audience for Griffey’s farewell tour? I’m pretty sure most kids who are going back to school were barely old enough to remember Jr.
I think we should build a time machine and go back to convince Bob Melvin and Bill Bavasi to play Andrew Zapp full time at DH the final month of 2004 instead of Edgar Martinez.
Seriously? You could stick LaHair, Nelson and Shelton in a box named “random replacement level 1B”, pick one out while you were blindfolded, and you’re just as likely to get a decent performance as a sucky one. They are free talent. AAA ball has plenty of these players. I don’t see why you would go out of your way to take a dump on the player who is arguably going to be the first guy wearing your cap in the Hall of Fame in order to find out that, yes, you indeed have a replacement-level 1B/DH type. Giving them a Small Sample Size audition in a season where the M’s aren’t in the playoff chase isn’t particularly useful in this context. Let Junior have his goodbye tour, and realize that the seasons LaHair/Nelson/Shelton/etc. have had in Tacoma are MORE useful for talent evaluation than a handful of September PAs (see: Bloomquist, Willie and Reed, Jeremy).
Oh, and incidentally- Junior is an 0.2 WAR player this year (.333 wOBA)… in other words, a replacement level 1B/DH type, just like the other guys. So you aren’t even materially improving the team.
Last year, Johnson was 305/363/441 at Tacoma. This year he has a semi-regular major league job.
This year Moore is 299/349/421 in about 300 plate appearances at the same place. So the argument isn’t that he’s a better player now; but that if the organization’s methodology is to give a chance to young guys with some promise at the major league level, why not let him show off what might be equal offensive prowess…and clearly better defense?
Concerning Liddi, Dave, your comment doesn’t really answer my original question. Is there ever a time when it’s beneficial to pull promising players from lower levels to the big team for a month? And if so, is there any common data on which to make the decision?
To me, that sounds like an argument to make changes rather than stand pat. (Even if competitiveness for the rest of the season were the primary objective, which I don’t believe it should be).
Is there ever a time when it’s beneficial to pull promising players from lower levels to the big team for a month? And if so, is there any common data on which to make the decision?
There isn’t really much data on it because nobody does that, because it’s not generally a good idea.
– You seem pretty sure about this. As long as we’re throwing out unproveable opinions I’m going to go with saying that if Griffey announces his retirement (and probably even if he doesn’t) more people will come to see Jr “one last time” in the month of September then any other month (except for maybe April). Americans in general don’t usually bother with something until the last minute.
As shown above…keeping Griffey in the lineup doesn’t really matter much either way. Getting 30-50 ABs to “evaluate” one of those players would seem to be a pretty small sample to have a significant meaning.
Ah, it appears the M’s have signed Ackley. Huzzah! No details yet it appears…Twitter and all.