Minor League Wrap (5/2-8/11)
I’m going to be in New York next Monday, so there probably won’t be a wrap next week, or at least not one that’s on time. Since I’ll be getting back late the following Saturday, that probably also means a delayed wrap or none at all for the following week. I doubt I’m going to have a lot of time to be writing about baseball while I’m there.
Anyway, the high minors affiliates are doing well, and Jackson is continuing to run off some good streaks. The lower levels are not so hot and have been having issues. But Taijuan Walker debuted this week, we saw a 10+ K performance and an inside-the-park grand slam, and the on-base stuff that we’ve been seeing to start the year is still in full-effect with a lot of guys.
To the jump!
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Rejoice, Mike Wilson has been Called Up
Divish has the news, and it’s been reported plenty of other places now. I don’t think that I have to really introduce him, as during the regular season I tend to get e-mails on a weekly basis asking me why he hasn’t been called up yet and thus putting me that much closer to an asylum tenure, but for the five of you out there who still don’t know who he is, here’s a Mike Wilson primer.
Wilson was drafted in the second round of the 2001 draft, ahead of guys like Dan Haren, Ryan Theriot, Jeremy Guthrie, and, hilariously, Ryan Howard, who was a fifth rounder that year. At the time, the Mariners’ modus operandi for the draft was to grab the toolsiest guy available regardless of whether or not he had ever played baseball before, or, from the pitching end of things, guys that profiled to be something like Jamie Moyer. This was the same draft that brought us Michael Garciaparra (once a promising soccer recruit), Rene Rivera, and Bobby Livingston. Wilson was supposed to go to the University of Oklahoma on football scholarship, and one look at him would explain why, but for whatever reasons, he signed with the M’s, who thought they were getting an athletic, switch-hitter with promising power potential, and one of those things is still true.
Mike Wilson spent three years in the short-season leagues to start out his career, having inked too late to play in 2001. By the time he cracked a full-season roster in Wisconsin, he was of legal drinking age. He also nearly hit thirty doubles and twenty home urns the same year. The next season, he split his time between Inland Empire and San Antonio, which should tell you exactly how long he’s been around. He finally cracked 20+ home runs for a season and was .276/.360/.494 in 449 at-bats that year with a 144/50 K/BB ratio.
It was enough to get him added to the 40-man in the offseason, but then injuries hit. Between a hamstring and a quad strain, he only played 57 games the next season and was a casualty when the M’s needed room on the roster. In 2008, he hit twenty-seven home runs for the Diamond Jaxx and was added to the 40-man again, only to lose his spot to Griffey after an ankle sprain and oblique strain. Last season, he was reasonably healthy and hit .278/.374/.523 between Tacoma and West Tenn, with another twenty+ home runs and an improved 101/58 K/BB in 392 at-bats. Even though he was a free agent in the offseason, as he has been a couple of times already, he re-signed with the Mariners because Zduriencik seemed legitimately interested in him as a player.
And that brings us to now. Mike Wilson’s career trajectory has been as weird as any. I’ve seen enough players who aren’t native to baseball flounder over my years of watching, so it’s strange to see one seem like he could pan out, particularly after such a slow start to his career. Guys don’t usually get 2200+ at-bats before reaching triple-A on a semi-regular basis (Saunders only had 1200+). He’s 27, and in his physical prime, so the M’s could probably do worse than to have him around just to see what happens for the major league minimum. He’ll strike out. He’ll walk now and then. He’ll hit the ball with an awful lot of authority, but probably not hit for a high average. If spring training was any indicator, he’ll also play some at times groan-inducing defense. Don’t let the CF tenure in Tacoma fool you, they simply don’t have better options out there.
And that’s Mike Wilson. He’ll hit, perhaps. The Mariners would like it if he hit.
It’s Time To Let Milton Bradley Go
Update: It’s possible that the M’s agree with the post below – Ryan Divish is reporting on Twitter that the Mariners will recall Mike Wilson from Tacoma before Tuesday’s game. The associated roster move has not yet been reported. It could be as simple as Michael Saunders going down, though given the OF defense over the weekend, I doubt the M’s want to make it worse, which that swap would do. That also wouldn’t open up a spot on the 40 man roster, so they’d need to also DFA someone else in order to add Wilson – seems unlikely. I’d guess that either Bradley or Langerhans is going away. I vote for Bradley, obviously.
When the Mariners swapped Carlos Silva for Milton Bradley, we were pretty happy, believing it was a risk worth taking. But, let’s be honest – it hasn’t worked out. As a Mariner, Bradley is hitting .205/.296/.345, and at age 33, he’s not exactly on the upswing. His power isn’t completely gone, but it’s diminished to the point that it doesn’t offset his lack of contact ability, and at the very best, you could consider him a league average hitter.
There is a place on most rosters for league average hitters, but they need to bring something else to the table – defense, baserunning, positional flexibility, cuddliness… something. For Bradley, though, all he has is his bat. He’s absolutely atrocious defensively, and was an embarrassment in left field over the weekend, letting balls fall in that should have been easy outs for most left fielders. In reality, he’s a DH that the M’s are playing in left field because they don’t have many other alternatives.
He doesn’t provide any flexibility on the roster, and in actuality, his injury-prone body and angry-prone personality actually hamper roster construction, as the team always has to be prepared for Bradley to come out of the game – either via pain or ejection – at any given moment. And, let’s be honest, Bradley is not on this team for reasons related to team chemistry or leadership. He might not be the worst teammate ever, but he’s definitely not in the running for the best, and I don’t think you can make a case that he’s an asset in the locker room.
The M’s brought Bradley here because they thought he might hit, and they’d put up with the rest of the package in order to get some offense. He hasn’t hit, though, and there’s no reason to think he’s going to start hitting any time soon. Dating back to the start of the 2009 season, Bradley has hit just .233/.341/.375 in a span over nearly 900 plate appearances. Yes, he was a great hitter in 2008, but that is so far in the rear view mirror at this point that it can barely be accounted for.
This M’s team isn’t great, and they don’t need to be sacrificing the future to win now, but Milton Bradley is certainly not a part of any future this team has, and he’s also not making them any better. The combination of average offense and terrible defense is simply not providing any value, and the Mariners can and should do better.
No, they don’t have a lot of viable in-house alternatives, even after Franklin Gutierrez comes off the disabled list. Michael Saunders is still a wreck at the plate and probably needs to work things out in Tacoma, and I don’t think even Ryan Langerhans‘ biggest fans think he should takeover as the starting left fielder. None of the kids in Tacoma are ready for the big leagues. The M’s simply have a hole at left field, which is likely why Bradley is still on this team. However, the M’s should not let that stand in their way – there are outfielders in other organizations who could use a chance to prove their skills, and at the very least could offer comparable offensive performances while also being able to run down a simple fly ball.
Ideally, I’d like to see them target a guy like Chris Heisey, who is currently serving as the Reds fourth outfielder but could play everyday for the M’s, but he might be a little tough to pry away from Cincinnati. So, maybe they end up with a guy like Nate Schierholtz, Fred Lewis, Laynce Nix, or Chris Dickerson – all of whom could likely be acquired at little cost in talent and would present an immediate upgrade over Bradley in left field.
Milton Bradley simply doesn’t offer this Mariners team anything of value. While I understand the inertia against making changes when a team is doing fairly well, the organization should be actively shopping for a new left fielder. There’s just no real point to having Bradley around anymore.
Game 35, White Sox At Mariners
Bedard vs Buehrle, 1:10 pm.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the mom’s reading this. Now that I live 3,000 miles from Seattle, I don’t get to see my Mom all that often – generally, once a year or so. It’s probably the worst part about living on the east coast. My mom is awesome. Love you, Mom.
Ichiro, RF
Rodriguez, 3B
Bradley, LF
Olivo, C
Smoak, 1B
Cust, DH
Wilson, 2B
Saunders, CF
Ryan, SS
Game 34, White Sox At Mariners
Fister vs Floyd, 6:10 pm.
Well, I have good news – Miguel Olivo is not hitting clean-up. That’s probably because he’s not playing – Chris Gimenez gets the start behind the plate, giving Olivo a long overdue day off. The new cleanup hitter? Adam Kennedy. It’s hilarious that this team has won 8 of their last 10. Fun, but still hilarious.
Also, Free Luis Rodriguez!
Ichiro, RF
Figgins, 3B
Bradley, LF
Kennedy, 2B
Smoak, 1B
Cust, DH
Ryan, SS
Saunders, CF
Gimenez, C
Game 33, White Sox At Mariners
Hernandez vs Humber, 7:10 pm.
Happy Felix Day!
Remember when we used to consider Felix inconsistent? Now, he’s actually maturing into one of the most consistent pitchers in baseball.
2009: 2.68 BB/9, 8.18 K/9, 53.4% GB%
2010: 2.52 BB/9, 8.36 K/9, 53.9% GB%
2011: 2.45 BB/9, 8.50 K/9, 50.7% GB%
His walk and strikeout rates have improved, but that’s mostly just changes in the league norms, as offense has declined over the last several years. By and large, Felix is putting up the same performance he did last year, which was also the same as the year before. He’s become a model of consistent dominance. Long Live The King.
We’ve talked a bit about how batting order doesn’t really matter all that much, and it’s basically true that there isn’t much of a difference in terms of expected run scoring between an optimally aligned line-up and one that is put together with gut feel and hunches. Still, I have to say that I’ve just about seen enough of this Miguel Olivo, Cleanup Hitter nonsense. Against lefties, fine, I get that there are no right-handed hitters with any thump on this team (besides Justin Smoak, who Wedge seems dead set against moving out of the #5 spot), but against right-handed hitters, Olivo is usually the second worst hitter in the line-up.
You know what he’s hitting against RHPs this year? .175/.221/.222. Small sample, you say? Sure, but his career line against RHPs is .229/.267/.390. Miguel Olivo is a lousy hitter whose one redeeming skill is being able to hit for some power against southpaws. When a right-hander starts, he has no redeeming offensive abilities. He should hit no higher than 8th vs RHPs. This is getting ridiculous.
Ichiro, RF
Figgins, 3B
Bradley, LF
Olivo, C
Smoak, 1B
Cust, DH
Wilson, 2B
Saunders, CF
Ryan, SS
Game 32, Rangers At Mariners
Vargas vs Lewis, 7:10 pm.
Chone Figgins is sick, so Luis Rodriguez gets the start at third base tonight. I’m not one to wish illness on anyone, but, well, I’m okay with this one.
Ichiro, RF
Rodriguez, 3B
Kennedy, DH
Olivo, C
Smoak, 1B
Langerhans, LF
Wilson, 2B
Saunders, CF
Ryan, SS
Michael Saunders New Swing Isn’t Working
My latest piece for the 710sports.com blog is now up, and it deals with the poor early returns that Michael Saunders is getting from his reworked swing. The first few paragraphs are below, and you can check out the rest over at their site.
So far, the two huge bright spots for the Mariners on the season have been Michael Pineda and Justin Smoak, who have both shown why they were so highly regarded while they were climbing the minor league ladder. These two have both established themselves as building blocks for the future, and even at present, two of the best players on the team. They give the organization reason for optimism, which is really what this year is all about.
Mariners outfielder Michael Saunders is hitting .195 with a .293 slugging percentage this season. (AP)
However, they’re not the only two young guys on the team trying to make an impression. The other notable youngster who came up with considerable promise is outfielder Michael Saunders, and unfortunately, his third tour in the big leagues isn’t going so well.
Also, I’ll be on with Brock and Salk today at 11:30. 710 AM in the Seattle area or listen online at 710sports.com.
Franklin Gutierrez Update
As Dave mentioned, that the M’s are hanging with the AL West leaders despite missing their starting CF is a welcome surprise. Given the M’s poor defensive numbers thus far (and thus the disparity between the Mariners’ FIP and runs allowed), Gutierrez’s recovery is all the more important. The fact that Michael Saunders still can’t figure out MLB pitching is a factor as well.
First, the good news. Gutierrez has now played three games in three nights, and he’s racked up 12 plate appearances. He’s logged some (uneventful) time in center field, and he’s taken hacks against lefties and righties. Given his fatigue issues in spring training, these ‘accomplishments’ are nothing to sneeze at.
On the other hand, he’s yet to play a full game defensively: he played 5 innings on Monday and Tuesday, then played a full game tonight as the designated hitter. He’s popping a lot of balls up, and his one hit (he’s 1-12) came when strong winds blew what was a normal FB to the LF alley warning track.
Gutierrez’s seemingly undiagnosable intestinal issues sapped him of strength, and they prevented him from getting the kind of reps in during spring training that he needed. That said, it’s great to see him on the field again, and you’ve got to figure he’s on schedule to rejoin the M’s some time in the next month or so. He’s struck out only twice, and he’s just missing the sweet spot. Some BABIP luck and a tiny sample make him look worse than he is, but honestly, he’s yet to hit a line drive. I’d love to report on his defense, but he made zero put-outs in his 10 innings in CF.
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Game 31, Rangers At Mariners
Pineda vs Wilson, 7:10 pm.
This isn’t a great team, we all know that, but you know what, it’s May 4th and the team is two games out of first place. With Gutierrez and Aardsma having contributed zero innings each, Figgins and Cust not hitting, and Miguel Olivo now residing as the clean-up hitter, I don’t know that we could have asked for much more than that out of the first month of the season. Nice job, fellas.
Ichiro, RF
Figgins, 3B
Bradley, LF
Olivo, C
First Baseman Of Greatness, 1B
Cust, DH
Wilson, 2B
Saunders, CF
Ryan, SS