Arcia vs. Parmelee

[StormJH1]

This could all change in a week, obviously (case in point: Aaron Hicks' performance), but after watching Arcia (22 yrs old on May 9th) play just a few games, can anyone with say any confidence that he wouldn't put up better numbers than Parmelee (25 yrs old), given a full season in the bigs?

 

And if that IS the case, then why not just leave him up all year? Arcia might force Gardy's hand on that one, or pitchers may find a hole in his swing and he could struggle. In the latter case, you haven't waived the ability to send him back down the minors and try something else.

 

I just feel like this kid looks and acts like he can play at this level, as juxtaposed with Hicks, who looks absolutely terrified he has to swing the bat. If the alternative is Parmelee, who has never been as good of a prospect as Arcia is right now, why not let him run with the MLB playing time? We have a logjam of outfielders coming, and they can't all play CF. Arcia is older and further developed than those guys, so why not keep him up and find out?

[Mike Sixel]

I don't think we know at all yet. Parmalee killed, killed AAA. I'd like to see him play for a full year before i "know" anything, and even then, I think we'll still not "know". I like Arcia a lot. I think he has great potential, but I don't think we know he's better than Parmalee with any certainty at all.

[Badsmerf]

Parmelee destroyed AAA last year. Give him a chance to make adjustments and get on track. Arcia will be up here soon. He is showing signs of jitters too. A better question in Arcia vs. Hicks, in which case I'd be all in on Arcia.

[kab21]

Couldn't you make this argument - Parmelee vs Arcia vs doumit vs Morneau?

 

The Twins absolutely need to find out what kind of bat Parmelee can offer future Twins teams this year. Morneau, Willingham and Doumit (probably not him) could all be gone by opening day 2014 and that leaves 2-3 holes to fill even if Hicks and Arcia are starters.

[ashbury]

A trade of either Willingham or Morneau instantly eases the jogjam of the corner/1B positions. There's a lot to be said for developing Parmelee to his full potential, alongside of Arcia. I don't see a value in casting anything as Arcia versus Parmelee; to whatever extent they currently interfere with each other, I recommend patience for a few weeks or months.

[Brock Beauchamp]

The reason Parmelee needs to play is because his long-term role is not in competition with Arcia. If he succeeds, he'll be the first baseman.

 

So punting on Parmelee in the short-term only postpones an inevitable problem.

[70charger]

After all the posts above me, I'm going to sound unoriginal. I don't think Parmelee long term is competing for a job against Arcia. Ideally, you don't sit either one because they have to play and develop.

 

At the very least, there will very likely be transactions in the middle of this year that will render this discussion moot, and as much as I hate to think about it, the fact that it's only been about a week tells me that the mid-year transactions may not ultimately be what moots this discussion.

[PseudoSABR]

Doumit's the guy they can afford to give less at bats to.

[70charger]

Doumit's the guy they can afford to give less at bats too.

 

I also agree with this.

 

Look at that, I look unoriginal because of the posts both before AND after mine!

[PseudoSABR]

I also agree with this.

 

Look at that, I look unoriginal because of the posts both before AND after mine!

If you're going to quote me, at least show me the kindness to fix my typos.

[Twins Twerp]

The good thing about trading Mornie is this: if Parmalee fails, we can always slip Mauer in there a little sooner. No way he sticks behind the plate for the duration of the contract. I know he has caught well this summer, but he is going to move over to first eventually.

[70charger]

If you're going to quote me, at least should me the kindness to fix my typos.

 

Caught another one. Ha!

 

Edit: I'm just playing around, not trying to be dickish.

[Brock Beauchamp]

Doumit's the guy they can afford to give less at bats too.

 

Also, I can't type. HERP DERP

 

This.

[Willihammer]

Where is the logjam? The three guys competing for jobs at 1B and RF are all OPS-ing under .700

[Willihammer]

What? No way. Unlike the rest of them, Doumit is actually hitting a little bit. He more than anyone is the guy that needs to be in the lineup everyday.

 

edit: My memory is fooling me, lump Doumit into that group of sub-.700 htiters too.

[ashbury]

Where is the logjam? The three guys competing for jobs at 1B and RF are all OPS-ing under .700

 

Early season numbers aren't indicative. Instead, I look at yesterday's double-header. I believe Wilkin was the only position player who wasn't a starter in either game; the logical person he could have replaced was Parmelee, but evidently they are doing everything they can to give him and Dozier lots of playing time to determine how they fit in. Elsewhere on this subject I used the modifier "mild" for the logjam, but I didn't here and I could have - it's not a big problem, it's just that where there is unused resource on this team, it's found at the corner/1B group of players.

[Willihammer]

I realize early season stats are volatile but I'm talking about a 5 year minor league track record in Parmelee's case. That should satisfy your sample size requirements.

 

What is the great promise in Parmelee's future at 1B that we're willing to handicap a winning team for anyway. I think we're talking something between Ike Davis and James Loney, realistically. A 1B you can backfill for a couple million bucks at the end of an offseason.

[ashbury]

I don't see Parmelee as a star. But if Davis and Loney end up as comps for him, he could be a useful trade chip if you show confidence in him, and next to nothing if you flush him now. As with Loney and probably Davis, you can't wait too long to flip him either. In this discussion I think first of trading Willingham or Morneau, but if someone offered enough for Parmelee based on his potential I could see trading him instead; all it takes is 1 team out of 29, even if most teams aren't enthused.