emmett16

Yes. I think that can breed complacency.

The O's were super exciting last year. Everyone has their hopes up for 2023. It's February 2/2 and a bunch of die-hards are fiending for anything baseball.

Yes. I assume it's a competition and I could very well be wrong. I'd say that would be a good problem to have. If the FA we signed has a fantastic year on a one year deal while one of our top prospects gets another year of development under his belt, I'd say that's a win/win (for us, no Jordan )

It's a development strategy and tactic. Nothing to do with his mental make-up which is by all accounts off the charts. How do we know who they spoke with, offered jobs, and were denied? Sure. Creating inventory and redundancies are critical to all high functioning organizations.

"Jordan, you had a fantastic 2022. Your competition for playing time in MLB is X. Here is what we believe you need to do to have success." For example. Frazier has the job Westburg wants. Thats the second vocabulary word I've learned today. Quite the opposite, they are both reported to be extremely hard workers. Iron sharpens Iron.

I imagine the cutting edge orgs like LA, Cleveland, Tampa, Houston, and (can't believe I'm saying this) Baltimore are more attractive to those players looking for jobs in baseball due to their heavy reliance on technology and new school thought of teaching hitting and pitching.

My 2 cents on Frazier. At the risk of sounding like an Elias apologist, I believe he was brought in as the last development hurdle for Westburg. Ortiz still has some time and ABs needed in AAA. His final developmental hurdle will be Westburg himself. Elias forte is obviously developing hitters and I think this is just the last part of his plan for Westburg. I'm of the thought that Elias brough in Frazier as motivation and to push Westburg & Ortiz. He hasn't rushed anyone and has been very methodical in his development plan. I don't think he wanted to simply hand Westburg a job at the risk of him falling flat on his face. Having read a bunch about the mental make-up of Westburg I can only imagine how much work he put in this off-season after the Frazier signing. I don't know that I agree with the move, but I can see his reasoning for it. It really doesn't bother me that much.

I mostly agree. I think a lot of the guys that hang around are the 'baseball lifer' types. They are likely looking for jobs in the baseball world whether it be pro, college, or HS. Pretty solid 'career training' to be part of an MLB organization. Pro athlete opens a lot of doors for players later in life. At the very least it tells future employers about their work ethic and ability to work in a team environment. Folks that are not going to have anything to do with baseball are best suited to get out ASAP and get on with their lives. There is also something more dignified to ending your career on your terms and not having someone tell you that you are no longer good enough to play.

A lot of talent on that list. I was surprised that there were not more catchers invited. I'm excited to see what Prieto can do after a full year of acclimation, I think he is a candidate to surprise.

Yes. Guys that fill the zone. In a world of HRs there is no room in the game for walks. See Spencer Watkins. It seems like the new market inefficiency.

Povich is 6’3” long and lean. At 22 y/o he’s he’s going to get stronger. He fills the zone, throws a few different shaped breaking pitches and hides the ball well. He’s got the tools to have a lot of success. If he can add 2mph on his fastball, watch out. From what I’ve read it sounds like that was his focus this off-season. I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do this year. It’s nice to see him getting some love.

The kids have about 30 seconds to agree to a deal when they get the phone call on draft day. The kids have to know the number that they want (as you mentioned, both sides know the number to get the deal done) and be ready to say yes or no when the phone rings.

They can go to JuCo or an academy and enter the draft the next year

The Astros are hands down best team on MLB. Mariners aren’t too shabby. Texas was unlucky last year. I think the AL West is about the same if not better.

I’m a big fan. I think he’s gonna hit. Wish him the best.

I am a firm believer of you can never have too much pitching. I don’t like him much, but if this team isn’t going to sign an impact player I’d rather they at least spend on inventory. One year deal for him If be OK with, so long as he doesn’t keep getting run out there if he is a disaster.

I don't think they plan on signing any high priced FAs. They are saving their money to sign our own guys when they get expensive. Seems they are betting on their abilities to develop players.

He'll remember to move the L screen next time

I'll be curious to see Westburg sprint speeds. He's sneaky fast for a big dude.

Gunnar rolls.

Thanks! It’s nice to have some names circled when going to watch the minor league teams play.

Yes RHP. Bautista may be a bad example. Just someone that no one is really talking about but has a skill set that/tools could translate to MLB success.

I can't argue with that. It was frustrating to watch. But we don't see what goes on with them the other 6 days in the week. These guys are all wearing sensors than monitor their total throws, high intensity throws, and elbow torque measured in Newton-metres. There is a sweet spot they want the athletes to be in and they have the info to make real time decisions.

@Tony-OH any deep sleepers that don't get much press here? Anyone you see potentially stepping up our standing out this year (Pitchers). Someone like Bautista who didn't' get a ton of praise last year, but appears to have caught lightening in a bottle.

Before the season or after the injury? He could very likely have been working on polishing 1 or 2 pitches in side BP sessions that pushed his side session workloads up. Pure Speculation. Just pointing out there are a lot of things that go into as opposed to a blanket pitch count per game.