Max Kepler

[Seth Stohs]

Check out this video that includes game video from Saturday's Kernels game... great defense, power, etc.

 

[video=youtube;JvugBWiKpZg]

[Sssuperdave]

Kepler has rebounded nicely from his 1 for 22 slump the 2nd week of July. From July 15-28 he hit .333/.455/.533 (.988) with 2 homeruns and more walks (10) than strikeouts (7). He also stole his first two bases of the year. The slump a few weeks ago is pulling down his overall numbers quite a bit to .273/.361/.468 (828). I'm moving into cherry-picking territory here, but if you expclude his 1-22 slump his full year slash line looks very nice at .316/.412/.547 (.959) with 18 walks compared to 19 strikeouts.

 

His splits have improved slightly since clutterheart's post above, with 6 more at-bat's against lefthanders and only 1 more strikeout. His OPS vs lefties is a putrid .437, but that's actually a couple hundred points higher than it was 2 weeks ago. Of course, 29 at-bat's is a very small sample size.

 

Max has seen a lot more action at first base lately, having played there 9 times since July 15th. The rest of his time in the field has been at left, where he had played a decent amount of CF earlier in the year.

[blairpaul715]

I was at the Cedar Rapids game on Saturday night, and Kepler looks very athletic and agile, he played a great game at first base. Not sure how much bigger he will get, not sure what it is but he reminds me of Joe Mauer, hopefully with more power. I don't know if he is projected to be a high average guy, but love the swing and on this night loved the athleticism and agility he displayed. He looked natural at first base.

[TRex]

It's funny you would say that, bp, as I thought the same thing when I watched the video Seth posted. I think for me what makes the two similar is that it looks like someone grafted a pitcher's torso onto Miguel Sano's hips!

[howieramone1406390264]

Looked like he could be in the mix for our 1B of the future.

[Badsmerf]

I'm not surprised they are playing him a little there. The OF will hopefully be pretty filled by the time he is ready while 1b might be open for the taking if Sano can stay at 3b.

[TRex]

Having him play some extended first base also seems like a good way to limit the strain on his elbow, which kept him out of action earlier in the year.

[Sssuperdave]

Unfortunately Kepler suffered another injury this past Sunday requiring stiches to his right index finger. It was a freak accident, that Jeff Johnson of the Cedar Rapids Gazette described this way:

 

Kepler suffered a deep cut on his right index finger that required multiple stitches, the result of a freak accident shortly before Sunday’s game in which he was hit with a wayward bat that came from inside the indoor batting cage. Kepler was standing OUTSIDE the cage at the time. He left a trail of blood from the cage to the Kernels clubhouse.“I just saw red, and I was like ‘I’ve got to go to the hospital,’” he said. “It’s 2013. Not a lucky year for me.” - See more at: Twins benefits: Kernels win 83rd game of season | TheGazette

 

I haven't seen anything about how long Kepler will be out with this.

 

In other Kepler news, his bat has cooled off a bit since my last post, with his slash line down to .241/.320/.424 (.744)

[diehardtwinsfan]

Unfortunately Kepler suffered another injury this past Sunday requiring stiches to his right index finger. It was a freak accident, that Jeff Johnson of the Cedar Rapids Gazette described this way:

 

 

 

I haven't seen anything about how long Kepler will be out with this.

 

In other Kepler news, his bat has cooled off a bit since my last post, with his slash line down to .241/.320/.424 (.744)

 

I cannot imagine it being too long. I would think with stitches (baring infection) it would be healed up in a week or two tops.

[Steven Buhr]

I cannot imagine it being too long. I would think with stitches (baring infection) it would be healed up in a week or two tops.

 

There's a big difference between Kepler being out a week... or two. One week means he's back for the last regular season game and the postseason that starts Wednesday. Two weeks means He could miss almost the entire first two rounds of the playoffs.

 

Personally, I expect him back for the postseason, but I haven't heard anything concrete, yet.

[Steven Buhr]

Manager Jake Mauer indicated before Thursday's game that Kepler's finger is feeling good and he could be available off the bench and may be back in the lineup Friday.

[Oxtung]

Here is an article from BA about Max Kepler. It has a little about Kepler's background and how he has grown up since being signed from Germany in 2009. It more about Kepler as a person than about what his baseball abilities are, though there is a little about that as well. Interesting read.

 

Max Kepler Adds At-Bats In Fall League - BaseballAmerica.com

[Sssuperdave]

Kepler has hit safetly in 5 of the 6 AFL games he has played including 2 doubles and 3 RBI, for a .304/.346/.391 (.737) line. One good sign is that he has better numbers against lefties than righties. Check out this writeup on his 2-4 game Wednesday:

 

Glendale's Max Kepler outshines arms, Twins teammates | twinsbaseball.com: News

 

 

I imagine the Twins will have quite a dilema on his hands if he has a strong rest of the AFL deciding whether to add him to the 40 man to protect him from the rule V draft.

 

Also, I apologize for not posting more towards the end of the season. I can tell posting slowed down as this thread is now at the bottom of the 2nd page of a google search for "Max Kepler". For most of the year it was the top result.