ashbury

Without bothering to check I have to believe most teams have power hitting 1B/DH prospects, so I am not optimistic he would be anything to build a trade around. We can give him away if some other team thinks he's the final piece to some bigger trade. He doesn't strike me as having a great chance at a MLB career, but of course you never know. Just from looking at stats alone, I am glad to see he's a 12th rounder, because those picks always are lottery tickets at best. I would not put much too stock into a major change in a batter's swing, until a year or so passes and it turns out that opposing pitchers have not found a counter-measure. Here's hoping for the best, for his sake and for the franchise's.

None of these guys got their first managing job of any kind at age fifty eight.

Honest question: with all a catcher has to do behind the plate, he has no role or responbsibility for noticing something like his pitcher tipping pitches, does he? I'm talking about Berrios, obviously, but I kept wondering about Nolasco and Duffey too.

That one goes into my handy dandy quote file.

Saves wear and tear on the guys we care about?

CERA is a topic studied many times in the past, which demonstrated very little consistency from year to year, due (probably) to the non-uniform pairings with pitchers and the resulting small sample sizes even within a season, mentioned above. Imagine your reputation being at the mercy of whether Good Gibby or Bad Gibby shows up on a given day, over just one season. That said, if ever there was a catcher I'd expect to see consistently bad CERA from, it's Suzuki. I just wouldn't use CERA itself as very much of a criterion to base a move upon.The bottom line is runs prevented, but teasing out the cause and effect just from the runs scored is hard. This would be a cool moment for Jack Goin to jump in and contribute some thoughts, without divulging any top secrets, on how his team evaluates catchers' contributions on defense.

Until 2016 he played more SS than 2B in the minors. Even with 2016 the ratio is still toward SS. If they concluded anything about him at SS, it was from watching him try to play it for six seasons. Granting that the farther back one goes, the more one should discount whatever was seen, I still dislike the narrative that the Twins force-fed him at 2B and ignored the potential value of developing a good-stick shortstop. They tried. And he doesn't pass the eye test for me; maybe further development and improvement is possible, that is the real art of evaluation of young'uns.

Until 2016 he played more SS than 2B in the minors. Even with 2016 the ratio is still toward SS. 2015 counts as "recent", and he played 83 games at SS with Chattanooga, and only 8 at 2B; in Rochester he played no innings at 2B at all. If they concluded anything about him at SS, it was from watching him try to play it for six seasons, 2010-15. Granting that the farther back one goes, the more one should discount whatever was seen, and basically throw out age 16 and 17, I still dislike the narrative that the Twins abandoned him to 2B and ignored the potential value of developing a good-stick shortstop. Everyone recognizes the value of that, and IMO they tried. And he doesn't pass the eye test for me. Maybe further development and improvement is possible at his age - that is the real art of evaluation of young'uns, and I'm just a patzer. My interpretation of 2016 in Rochester: the brain trust said, we think he slots in better at 2B - let's find out if he's actually consistent there, instead of guessing and assuming, by playing him every day and letting him get comfortable. Nothing wrong with that IMO. And then Dozier crossed them up with a career year on a dismal team.

I haven't watched Polanco so many times as to be an expert, but the random sample of times he's played for my viewing pleasure has me pegging him as decent range with a sub-par arm for SS. People say he should work on strengthening the arm - like, that hasn't already been tried? If on a 1-to-10 scale for major league SS defense, where 5 is average (meaning damn good among all humans) and 1 means most players because they just can't play the position, I'd put Escobar at about a 4 and Polanco a 3. Escobar's fine as a utility player but a mild liability as a SS starter; Polanco a bit more so. But on a similar scale for SS offense, where 5 is again average (and below par for any other position on the field), Escobar's about a 6 and Polanco looks like potential to be an 8. He won't be in ARod territory (who else is?), but he could eventually deliver .300+ BA year after year, with a little pop and hopefully an improving walk rate as he gets experience. He could win Silver Slugger for his position some years. He's not a maybe, like Florimon was. You kind of have to keep him unless some GM knocks you over with a starting pitcher offer. Polanco needs to play 2B but is blocked. For a last place team, it's not the end of the world to stash Polanco at SS rather than trade him for less than full value. That doesn't mean he's a SS, long term. Actually, I suspect Dozier at SS and Polanco at 2B would be marginally stronger defensively, but that's not going to happen, for reasons of clubhouse chemistry and so forth; you may wish otherwise, but teams just don't move veterans very often. Long term, Dozier will eventually depart. I think right now it's just not expedient to trade Dozier, for business reasons, due to this late HR outburst; I expect fans' valuation of our second baseman has increased far more than competing GM's valuation has. That's why this dilemma is even up for discussion, and IMO will continue into 2017 if not all the way through it.

I think that song generally goes in the opposite direction.

Park's contract is a sunk cost, so unless he's blocking a better DH/1B prospect coming up, let him work out his troubles in AAA if he can, unless or until he proves he has a chance to outperform Vargas at the major league level. Then work out a trade in any of several possible directions.

I don't know. Show us some video of how you throw your changeup.

In case anyone is interested, here is an answer I received from a fellow SABR member: On August 12, 1966, Cincinnati's Art Shamsky homered in the 10th and 11th innings in a game at Crosley Field. This 10th-inning homer off Pittsburgh's Elroy Face tied the game at 9-9, and his two-run homer in the 11th re-tied the game at 11. Pittsburgh would eventually win, 14-11 in 13 innings. Then, on June 4, 2013, Philadelphia's John Mayberry Jr. homered in the 10th & 11th innings at Citizens Bank Park. His 10th-inning homer off Miami's SteveCishek, tied the game at 3-3, and Mayberry's grand slam in the bottom of the 11th off Edgar Olmos won the game, 7-3, for Philadelphia. Granderson is the first to hit solo homers in consecutive extra innings.

Hoping for HR. Instead, a trip to the OR.

On the bright side, I learned something by looking that picture up.

Not so fresh, if you ask me.

15 strikeouts. Gah.

Has anyone ever mentioned, Mauer is slow?

That's what I convinced my S.O. of, long ago.

Robbie is a player, no doubt about it.

Nice slide by Grossman. We gripe about fundamentals, so give credit where due. He reached the base ASAP, yet under control so he didn't pop up and get called out. Now, about trying to reach third base with two out...

Shhh! My wife doesn't know about my S.O.

VARGAS!!!!

Or:

I was being polite.