Jammer7

Two things: Wilkerson is not a SS so depends on what you may value; and Alberto may likely be DFA’d as well when Elias thinks he can pass him through.

Severino is likely to be DFA, I would think. So, Elias is trying to add more talent to the system. I’m not sure what is not to like, unless you think Wilkerson is better than Jackson.

I have been wondering the same thing. I have not seen Ruiz play defensively yet, but his swing looks great. Núñez seems to have regressed some defensively, but his exit velocity was impressive in 2018. Still a long month of Spring Training remains, and I look forward to seeing these guys in March. (We have tix to 3 games and are staying at a resort on Lido.) I do not see both making the team. There just does not seem to be room.

Yeah, he’s not Machado or Arrenado. But, at 3B you only need a quick first step. He’d have to learn the angles you play at 3B, bunt plays and such. Maybe worth a shot to look anyway.

Well, he was an infielder, SS, in high school. Was not a catcher until some his senior year. Jeff Donaldson is a recent example, but there have been many catchers over the years that moved to 3B, if for nothing else, to add some value. Sugar Bear Rayford was one, for instance. Maybe it isn’t something he can do, but why not take a look at it? His ceiling of an average, at best, catcher with some offensive capability lends itself to this change if he’s able. He may need a year to change, so be it. It’s not like we don’t have the time.

I wonder if Sisco could play 3B. Even if it is only average, it would be better than Núñez. I had some hope for Núñez, but looks like he still has the yips in his throws. And, as always, you take the best player available. I am a huge Abrams fan, and I think he will be hard to pass on. But Rutschman is making it look ridiculously easy right now. We’ll see what transpired in the next few months.

Fair enough. Owe you a beer.

Easy...as do I have much to do. Which was why I missed by one pick. And that post was not directed to you, if you look again. Easy....

Hey pal, the flogged thing was also known as humor. I am not mad. Not that sensitive. I was posting on the go. It’s all good.

You are so kind. It is my opinion, and I would rather have had Mad Bum or Jason Heyward. I know you will look it up to fact check me on my comments from then. Enjoy. And just for clarification, my thought process was as to how i would draft them in retrospect. Would you rank him as the #5 prospect in that draft now? I would not, but hey, whatever.

Off by one pick, excuse me. I should be flogged, purged. And it’s debatable whether or not he was worthy of the #5 pick. There certainly was much worse out there, and I suppose the lense I view him through is tainted by his inability to reach the hype that surrounded him. I wanted them to take Mad Bum or Jason Heyward at that slot, personally. And I am sure Frobby will look it up to see my comments from then. It was a particularly bad draft that year.

Matt Wieters did/does everything slowly. ? The bat may have slowed down because of how much of a beating he took. But he was a very good major league catcher for several years. Not worthy of the #4 pick in the first round, but he was the consensus talent for that spot at the time of the draft. Underachieved, no doubt.

The bats were much hotter then. The pitching was inferior to today as well.

I tend to agree with Frobby. Let’s see him this season with similar success, or hopefully better. Catchers are very risky due to the injuries and physical demands of the position. It’s a tough call no matter how many people say it’s a no brainer. Witt could show more refinement in some things, and be more than worthy. The guy I keep coming back to is CJ Abrams. If he shows a bit more consistency driving the baseball, and just a little more polish at SS, he’s hard to pass up for me. Another factor to consider is which is more valuable: 100-110 games a year with Rutschman or 150 games a year with Witt or Abrams? Assuming they develop and become major leaguers that produce in the top 5-10 of their respective positions. It’s a big assumption, but a valid question. You could say Rutschman could impact a staff in many ways that help them even when he’s got a day off. Or you could say that he would play some 1B or DH. And some may say that all we need is 6 years out of him. Rutschman is impressive. And if he is the pick, I will be excited. But I don’t think you can just point to some college numbers and say that it’s a no brainer before the spring season gets started. The new regime has certainly not made up their minds yet. Whatever their pick is, they will have thoroughly investigated every aspect of it and made an educated decision a short time before the draft.

Martin has missed time with several knee injuries since being drafted. We may be getting him at a time where he begins figuring things out. Maybe Jeff Manto, if he’s still in the organization, can help him understand something and it clicks. But he is an instant improvement over who we already had. I like it.

So, based on his latest surge, are you saying he deserves to be the starting 3B in Bowie next season? Encarnacion is likely to be the starter in Frederick.

Since he arrived in Baltimore, his swing has shortened some and he has impressed with his bat speed. I liked the bat immediately the first night when he hit a 2B down the left field line at 111 mph. What really impresses me is his hard work with Bobby Dickerson and how it shows in his play. At 24 years old, he’s interesting. In an interview with Roch Kubatko yesterday, he seemed humbled by his trials in the major leagues. He even called Bobby Dickerson, “Mr. Dickerson.” Respect. I love it.

Perhaps so. We know many of the same people, so I will make some inquiries to try to find out what happened. I do not know him well, though we are fairly close to some of his teammates. I wonder if it is a shoulder and not the elbow. Not sure what the Braves think about rehabbing a guy and taking a chance on him. The Nats have that track record of taking medical risks, which is what I alluded to in he previous post. Its a little surprising, though, because the kid was in a program year round that is really excellent for pitchers to grow without being overused. They had several stud pitchers there in Brevard County the last several years. Stewart’s teammate, their #2 starter, is a Florida signee, RHP Nick Pogue. Remember that name. He will be a top pick in three years. A little raw now, but he has been handled extremely well through the years. As a side rant, related somewhat, I suspect that the world of amateur scouting is what is actually to blame for these kids’ demise. All of the damn showcases are year round now. Kids burn out, plain and simple. The pitchers get little rest. Being fresh out of that grind, I can tell you I will do things differently with my younger son. They killed my son’s love of the game. And as far as I know, Carter never had arm or shoulder issues. They have to do something about this crap. It is killing the game. At least take the fall off.

I don’t even want to think about that. I am disappointed for the kid. After all you do to get to that point, and this happens. SMH. Denaburg got a nice bonus from the Nats despite some medical issues. They are both Brevard County kids and know each other well. I hope he recovers from whatever issues he is having and has a strong run at Mississippi State.

I thought the same thing when I saw that on the MLB draft tracker. I watched some video on him and honestly, it's mediocre. I've seen much much better prospects go undrafted.

Yeah, had the same thought. But I am going to stay positive with Harvey. I hope he did not do more harm by pitching with the injury. I am trying not to add to the doom and gloom around here. Pitchers get injured, but this is one is freakish.

I noticed that zing on every throw. Someone please tell him to save his ammo. There are only so many in the canon and the arm wears out. Any relation to Brian Roberts? His athleticism reminds me of BJ Surhoff. I like this pick a lot, and I want to see him catch more. UNC’s other catcher is pretty solid player as well.

Shoulder instability. Hmmm...

I would imagine they talked with his agent to see his number. And I am sure they did their due diligence on him in their scout meeting with him and doing his homework. I got from his comments that they just did not tell him they were looking to take him there, whereas some other teams may have said they would take him at pick X, etc... In any event, I am sure they know what they needed to know to take him there. This isn’t the Syd Thrift years brother Corn. The ML team is in disarray, but the amateur scouting folks and player development peeps seem to be clicking well. If only we had an international interest....

I think this is what happened here. The organization had a need and they filled it with a guy who can move quickly defensively. I wanted Xavier Edwards there, but he went next to Cleveland. I like Grenier, but I hope he takes a good bit under slot to help us elsewhere.