Ehire Of Hope: Can Adrianza Seize A Prime Opportunity?

I feel really badly for him and thought he really had a chance to take offf and solidify his future as a major leaguer this year. Now that is on hold and will be tough to get his job back if the Twins are competitive given the fact he cannot play in the post season. Looking ahead to next season though there is a potential silver lining. If Adrianza proves valuable at SS and can hit to a league average OPS then it’s so much easier to move Polanco to 2B if Dozier isn’t resigned. Or gives the team another trade chip (either one of them) if Dozier is signed.

Calling Polanco a cheater is unfair. However, calling him Stupid is accurate. An athlete has a single most valuable asset (and before the critics jump in, I know there are others) and that's their body. To take any drug assuming that another person prepared exactly what you asked for is absolutely ignorant. It reminds me of Len Bias in 1986 who decided to try heroin two days after being the second pick in the NBA draft. He died. What a waste of an asset and human. If all you want is B-12 and an iron supplement, go to the drug store and buy it yourself. Or even better, go to Costco and get humongous jars for a fraction of the price.

And as for Adrianza, I hope he is the second coming of Lou Gehrig. If not, bring up Gordon and see how he does.

Adrianza can not and will not hit. He's a utility infielder until he loses a step. He has a career wRC+ of 76 and has never even flashed an upside bat at the MLB level. His best stint, ever, was a 20 plate appearance rookie cup of coffee in 2013 where he registered a wRC+ of 100. His AAA numbers are incredibly easy to ignore. His age and far too high BABIP inflated the numbers. The idea Adrianza can or will turn a corner is just random player affection.

Adrianza does bring a potentially very good glove. How good? Tough to say as he's only had 500 career MLB innings at short stop and his fielding percentage is lower than Escobar's.

In regard to Escobar, he's an above average fielding short stop, and I don't get why people continue to lose sight of this. It's practically conspiracy level at this point, haha. The Twins haven't disliked Escobar's glove at SS, they've liked his utility everywhere else as they've used him as defensive duct tape to hold the roster together as needed. If Escobar had been used as a shortstop instead of everything and the kitchen sink, I think it's likely he would be looking forward to a big pay day in 2019 already.

In summary, there is no way in hell Adrianza pushes or challenges Escobar at shortstop. The two players are in entirely different leagues. Adrianza is a utility AAAA infielder who's all glove and can serve as a defensive replacement or an occasional breather. Escobar is a potential 3 WAR starting MLB shortstop. Whether Escobar ends up playing shortstop seems more likely to rely upon Sano's potential suspension.

Haven't read the article yet, just came to say that your pun in the title is *Italian chef kissing lips motion*, just perfect...

He has batted over .300 in three different stints at Triple-A, dating back to when he was 23. All just coincidence and luck, eh? 

 

I don't think you'll find a single person on the ground or in the scouting community who agrees with this assessment. Escobar is sure-handed and capable but lacks the range and arm to be any kind of asset at short. 

This is exactly what I'm talking about...

a19 - 8 PA, .600 BABIP

a24 - 177 PA, .391 BABIP

a25 - 22 PA, .357 BABIP

a25 - 195 PA, .389 BABIP (here's where he stops being a legit prospect and nearly loses rookie status)

a26 - 37 PA, .267 BABIP

a27 - 44 PA, .308 BABIP

Career MLB 517 PA, .276 BABIP, driven down by his very high pop-up rate. His AAA BABIP is inflated. His last two seasons at AAA, in admitted very small sample sizes, have been similar to his MLB BABIP and Adrianza has a batting average more similar to his MLB career line as a result. It seems unreasonable to look at his AAA stats without a large dose of skepticism, especially given his inability to impress at other MiLB levels and his terrible hitting at the MLB level.

In regard to the criticism of Escobar's abilities at SS, he's got a career 0.3 UZR/150 line in 2,363 innings, largely hurt only by a rough 2016. Escobar was billed as a slick fielding SS with the potential his bat could play with a little time. His bat now plays, and while he doesn't have the full speed and range he did a couple years ago, but he's got what it takes to put together an above average fielding (not great or elite) season at SS if the Twins decide to let him.

Some links with scouting information and expectations for Escobar.

http://www.chicagonow.com/future-sox/eduardo-escobar/

https://www.minnpost.com/sports/2015/09/eduardo-escobar-can-be-twins-shortstop-solution-if-they-let-him

https://minnesota.sbnation.com/minnesota-twins/2012/7/28/3199423/francisco-liriano-minnesota-twins-trade-chicago-white-sox-eduardo-escobar

In summary, I don't believe you've done much research on the subject and maybe formed some opinions based on what you've heard people say off the cuff. I could be mistaken, but I don't find anything to suggest your opinion on either subject is particularly well anchored.