Thread: Oakland released Luke Hughes

Originally Posted by Roger Sterling

Advanced defensive metrics take about three seasons' worth of data to be reliably stable measures of true talent. Hughes has started only 36 games at second base in the majors, a sample size much too small to draw any conclusions from. That would be the equivalent of about 12 games of hitting, and no one would take seriously someone claiming a hitter is definitively above or below average based on only a 12 game sample size. Similarly, it is impossible to definitively state at this point that Hughes is above average defensively as a major league second baseman based on those metrics.

I am not talking about MLB. And if the sample size is too small to make him a "good" defender, must be too small to make him a "bad defender" also, correct?

Originally Posted by one_eyed_jack

I still don't get the fascination with this guy.

It's a strange phemonenon in Twins Territory: every few years there is an infielder who convinces a good chunk of the fan base that he's the long-term answer at his position even though all evidence points to him being nothing more than a fringe MLB player. Terry Tiffee and Brian Buscher had their share of fan boys too.

I don't specifically remember anyone here saying that (certainly not large swathes). People liked him mostly because he was a valuable kind of utility player. I don't remember people clamoring for him to take Carrol's or Valencia's spot. I just think people thought he was a valuable guy to have on the roster in case a guy like Plouffe was unavailable.

Originally Posted by thrylos98

I am not talking about MLB. And if the sample size is too small to make him a "good" defender, must be too small to make him a "bad defender" also, correct?

As I said, it is impossible to state for certain any conclusions about his defense at this level with that amount of data. You are the one who mistakenly did so.

Originally Posted by Roger Sterling

As I said, it is impossible to state for certain any conclusions about his defense at this level with that amount of data. You are the one who mistakenly did so.

That was in reply to someone who said that he was a bad defender...

Originally Posted by ashburyjohn

Is it common for a team to claim someone and then turn around a week later and try to get him through waivers themselves? Is it not viewed as kind of a d*ck move, pardonnez mon français? I could see Terry Ryan thinking "if he's gonna be at AAA, why shouldn't he be on my AAA team?" I wonder why some kind rule similar to what controls Rule 5 drafts wasn't ever written for waiver claims.

Of course maybe a Pittsburgh or a San Diego does claim Hughes, as mentioned above, making the question somewhat moot. But it still rankles.

The Twins did something similar with Pedro Florimon. It was off season so he was available when the Orioles took him off the 40. The Twins had to add him on the 40 to claim him and later removed him from the 40 where he went unclaimed and remained with the Twins.

Originally Posted by thrylos98

That was in reply to someone who said that he was a bad defender...

Oh, then that makes perfect sense then..............