Jammer7

I agree. Mike Elias did say at the time of Nevin’s acquisition that he would likely be the 1B man at Norfolk in 2021. Personally, I would like to see him get stronger and get another crack at 3B.

Roch quoted Elias from a zoom call saying that they already had an agreement with Galvis before the injury. Said it had nothing to do with it. He also said Martin may miss some Spring, but it would not affect his start of the regular season.

I won’t argue with that. We could speculate deep into the weeds on this. Maybe he is exploring signing Andrelton Simmons, which would require stretching pennies into copper wire. Who knows. I will say that you his does not disgust me, nor does it alarm me. It did raise an eyebrow, however.

My bad. As you were.

Get well soon, Weams!

Was this simply just an effort by Elias to stretch the 2021 payroll to sign a FA SS or starter he has in mind? I just cannot think that Elias would sign Sanchez and Valaika for nearly $2 million combined if money was THAT tight.

Happy Birthday! Welcome to the club.

I have as much of an idea and opinion as you do. A WC spot would be a pleasant surprise, but that is optimistic in my opinion.

You will not get this content anywhere else.

That 2015 team had other guys step up to carry the load, but I do not know that Travis Snider and Delmon Young replaced anyone. That cite by you actually undermines your point. The current roster only has a few professional hitters in Mancini, Santander and probably Mountcastle. There is talent elsewhere, and we expect growth from Hays and Severino, and perhaps Diaz, Ruiz and Mullins. But the roster is nowhere near as talented as the former team you speak of. Those two guys are much more important to this team, production wise. That is not to say they cannot be replaced. I just don’t find it’s not as easy as your opinion states. I also do not think the Orioles will be contending for a playoff spot until 2024 at the earliest. And I do not think either Santander nor Mancini will be in an Orioles uniform then. It is a little sad to think that, as I like both as players, but the business side of things dictates that keeping them is not the smart move. Elias is a smart fella.

I believe you are correct. And no excuse for it. None.

It would depend on the money involved, but I doubt we can afford what it would take. And really, a 2 year contract similar to Iglesias is about all I could see. A truly outstanding SS in his prime, not sure he can stay healthy enough to be a difference maker.

This was part of my initial thought process. Set the price high now, if they take it, do the deal. If not, we still have him and I believe his value will keep growing well. As far as being a “core player,” he was voted the team’s most valuable player. That is about as CORE as it gets. Is he a core player on many contenders? That’s a separate question, and depends on the team.

No, but Dan Duquette gamed his Rule 5 time. lol

Joey Ortiz is my breakout candidate to crack the top 30. He was singled out repeatedly in various interviews during and after instructs. Of those listed, I think Luis Gonzalez has a shot to be in the GCL this year. That LH power bat may just take off. Another sleeper guy to watch is Andrew Daschbach.

That is a 25% increase in attendance in that market.

I realize that, and I am not expecting him to keep that first half up over 150 games. I was just pointing it out. It is intriguing to see what he may be capable of. We agree that he needs to stay healthy to see just what he is capable. I do see legitimate growth and maturity in his game. We'll see what he does. Perhaps the Marlins don't make a play for him. What other teams are in the market around the deadline? Perhaps my proposal was over the top for now. Just thought it was interesting and thought provoking.

That could be, sure. Or maybe Elias sees a good return for a guy that is going to get increasingly expensive before we are ready to compete for a playoff run. He wants to continue building the talent base. And he has Diaz knocking on the door, needing at bats. Perhaps they think Mullins is the CF and Hays belongs on a corner with Mountcastle. IDK. Ideally, I would like to keep Santander and build around him, unless I am convinced he is at his peek in value as you allude to. I think Kjerstad and Bleday are very similar players, I actually think Kjerstad is a little better athlete and better overall hitter. Bleday has a stronger arm.

That could be. Or maybe they think they can compete in 2021 and need a legitimate RF. A young controllable Latin American star in that market makes sense. Bleday is maybe a mid 2022 guy, I think.

Fair enough, that is why I said I would start there. To move him now, that is where I would start. His final stats for 2020 (.261/.315/.575) were a little deceiving in that he played several games with an abdominal strain. Prior to that, he was (.287/.333/.661) in the first half of the season. With a BABIP of .261, would you say he may have hit into some bad luck? Those prospects listed have no experience above A ball, and they are far from a sure thing. Misner has contact issues and Fulton is coming off TJ surgery. In mid-July, if Santander is healthy and picks up where he left off in 2020, I think that price is not far off at all. Healthy is a big factor, certainly. Perhaps Bleday is raking in AA and they just promote him to play RF.

I'm a believer in Santander. I know he has had injury issues, and he needs to stay healthy. I really like the strides he made in his approach and swing decision making. He lowered his k rate from 21.2% to 15.2%. He showed maturity in his game and appears to have slowed the game down. I believe he is about to break out in a big way. A switch-hitting middle-of-the-order bat with plus RF defense and four more years of control is a very attractive package. No? And if the Marlins are interested in him, Kim Ng must agree. Bleday has not played above A ball in 2019, 140 at bats in the Florida State League .257/.311/.379. The only knock on him is 40 speed. Everything else is above average or plus. https://www.mlb.com/prospects/marlins/jj-bleday-668709 https://www.fangraphs.com/players/anthony-santander/14551/stats?position=OF

In Roch's blog this morning, he wrote about Santander being available for trade and drawing interest from the Marlins. I would doubt he goes anywhere before the deadline, but who would the Marlins have to send to the Orioles if they want Santander? I would start with JJ Bleday, Kameron Misner and Dax Fulton, and add a DSL player. If he stays healthy and has similar production to 2020, the price would go up. Thoughts? https://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2021/01/what-to-do-about-the-dh.html

Enjoyed the article. Curious to see some of these guys like Welk, Watson, Stowers and Ortiz play after the year layoff. It was a costly year for the 2019 draftees, in particular. Minor correction that Zach Watson was a junior at LSU in 2019 when drafted. He was a draft-eligible sophomore in 2018. He will be 24 on June 25.

The first part was what Elias spoke of immediately after the draft. I agree. I get the SSS skepticism, but it isn’t as much for me about the stats as it is about the process that Kjerstad showed in the video I watched. The mechanics and approach were much improved. Therefore, I think the success he had is sustainable. Not as confident in Servideo, but he is a toolsy guy I like where they got him. A guy I have cited as a big junior riser who was similar is JJ Bleday. Andrew Benintendi is a very different player, but had a meteoric rise from obscurity as a junior.

I agree that it is interesting, particularly since he hasn’t done anything formal with the team. Several draft analysts have given Kjerstad another look since the initial commentary after the draft. Some, like Jim Callis, have admitted they underrated him somewhat. None have said he was as talented as Austin Martin, but admitted he belonged in the top 5 or so picks. Industry chatter among scouts they speak with must have changed their opinions, I guess. I also think they give a little more credence to the belief that Mike Elias is a very good talent evaluator and a shrewd decision maker. I wonder if Mountcastle’s unexpected performance by some bolsters the industry opinion of the Orioles player development group.