LJ Hoes - Untouchable in my book!

[Flacco Machado]

So this is what I know...Off the field, has been through a lot. Former 3rd round pick. Had a case with mono, which zapped his strength a couple years ago. Both his mother and father battled serious illnesses, that same year. A man among boys.

On the field, dude is on fire. Starts off slow at each level he is promoted too, but gets better and better as time goes on. 22 yrs. old. One of the youngest players in the International League. Not flashy. Can flat out rake. Plays in a terrible park for hitters, so I believe the power numbers will come. Not great speed. Couldn't handle 2B, so he was moved to the OF. Early on, Tony said he could be Ron Gant. Or maybe Tony Phillips.

DD wants to go for it. I've got to think LJ's stock is soaring right now as we talk with other clubs. I'll tell you what, I will be extremely upset if we trade him to another organization. I think he is going to have a very good ML career. Guys like this just have that "it" factor. He may never be a superstar, but he is a guy that every team will wish they had.

Peace.

[Flash- bd]

All the sentimental stuff aside, I agree. Untouchable is a bit much but I like him a lot.

Actually I think he makes Avery very expendable. He's superior to Avery in almost all aspects except for speed, and even there the difference is not as big as people think. Avery kind of has that hype factor because he's left-handed, really fast and athletic looking, and just gives off the vibe that there's a lot of room for growth, whether there really is or not.

Let's see if he can keep up this pace at Norfolk. I expect his BA will come down but hopefully he can compensate with an increased walk % (AVG/OBP delta), as he's shown that skill at lower levels a bit more than he's shown through this still pretty SSS at Norfolk. If he stays in the .810-.820 OPS area for the rest of the year at Norfolk I'd be willing to consider him a very good candidate to be our starting LF for next year.

[Flacco Machado]

His walk-to-strikeout ratio and OBP throughout his minor league career have been very,very good. If he had about 10 homeruns right now, he would be our #3 prospect, without a doubt, and drawing a lot more attention. The lack of power doesn't bother me. The BB/SO, OBP, consistent improvement at each level, and off the field obstacles, are what make him a special player in my eyes. Again, not a superstar. Solid, dependable, built "Dodge-Ram Tough".

P.S. I'm a Chevy man. I've been brainwashed by all those commercials.

[ccbird]

Not to turn this into an LJ vs Xavier thing but they've pretty much been at every level together since both being drafted out of HS in '08 and LJ has put up the better numbers along the way. Love the OBP and K/BB rate. Never seen him play a day in my life but just envision him as being a good fundamentally sound, smart ball player. Give me fundamentals over flashy every day. If I'm laying chips down on either Avery or LJ's long term ML prospects I'm riding with LJ. I mean it seems to me this is a guy who will likely work hard at his craft along with already good fundamentals. I just envision a really solid pro. You know the guys that fly somewhat under the radar nationally as prospects but turn into good ML ball players. You look back 10 years later and say how was this guy barely a top 100 prospect. Untouchable, of course not, but this is a guy I would really prefer not to trade.

[Frobby]

The guy has been one of my favorite guys to follow since his GCL days. I agree he'll be a solid major leaguer. I like Avery, too. I'd love to keep both but that may not be best for the team.

[Roll Tide]

Meh ..... Not enough power .... not good enough fielder to play at 2B (which is where he fits offensively).... Not enough base stealing speed ... He'd be out of place in the only position that seems to fit LF.

I'd say this guy is trade-able if you can get good value for him.

[Frobby]

Meh ..... Not enough power .... not good enough fielder to play at 2B (which is where he fits offensively).... Not enough base stealing speed ... He'd be out of place in the only position that seems to fit LF.

I'd say this guy is trade-able if you can get good value for him.

Any player who can approach .350 OBP will have a place on this OBP-starved team.

[Scrat1]

I'd rather keep them both. Jones, Hoes, Avery and Markakis should be our outfielders next year.

If healthy, give Reimold a 1B mitt.

[EagleOriole]

I'd rather keep them both. Jones, Hoes, Avery and Markakis should be our outfielders next year.

If healthy, give Reimold a 1B mitt.

Reimold would/should be the DH. Reynolds will find another home. Hoes and Avery will split LF duties and lead-off. Davis will be the 1B. Machado the 3B. Need to find a 2B or live with Andino, who should get better:

LF Hoes/Avery, RF Markakis, C Wieters, CF Jones, SS Hardy, 1B Davis, DH Reimold, 3B Machado (moving to #2 hole eventually), 2B Andino

Spend money on the pitching staff.

[Roll Tide]

I'd rather keep them both. Jones, Hoes, Avery and Markakis should be our outfielders next year.

If healthy, give Reimold a 1B mitt.

With his leadoff skills one would hope Avery turns himself into a everyday player for a long time. I like Hoes and his OBP ...I just like him a lot better if he's playing 2B. IMO I think he's a guy you package if your trading for Greinke or Headley.

[Frobby]

With his leadoff skills one would hope Avery turns himself into a everyday player for a long time. I like Hoes and his OBP ...I just like him a lot better if he's playing 2B. IMO I think he's a guy you package if your trading for Greinke or Headley.

I'd like to know what kind of OBP Avery is going to put up. His .380 OBP this year at Norfolk was much higher than at any other stop in his career and I'd like to know whether he can legitimately get on base more than 33% of the time in the majors (.317 right now in very limited at bats).

[Slappy]

From all the comments I've seen from Roch / Melewski / Connolly, Daniel-san thinks very highly of LJ and it will take a very good deal to move him. I'm fine with moving one of LJ or Avery.

[CA-ORIOLE]

A 321 BA (40 points above his career BA) driven OBP and his lack of power are concerning. That type of player typically isn't very projectible. Lets wait and see if the power numbers do come up. A .140 ISO isn't too bad I guess.

[brvn52]

I love the guy. I've got to hangout with him when I was in college (one of my roommates was one of his best friends growing up). Cool guy (not that good at Madden though ). He's the guy I want to succeed the most in our system, for sure.

That said, I'm not yet sold that he'll be an everyday LFer. The lack of power concerns me. Although, I guess with AJ in CF, we can have a LFer that doesn't have a lot of power. I really wish he could've stuck at 2B.

My fear is that he'll never been more than a .700-.750 OPS guy.

However, if he develops some power (even if it's just racking up more doubles), he could become a solid player for years. One encouraging thing is that his ISO has improved every year and he's now, in AAA, at a career high .145. We'll see if he can maintain that.

The good news is he's still only 22 with plenty of time to grow and develop. I definitely hope we don't trade him. And, honestly, I don't know if we should trade him at this point. I don't see him being much more than the 3rd piece in a deal and I think if he continues to succeed in AAA, his prospect status will rise a ton.

[Spencer423]

Reimold would/should be the DH. Reynolds will find another home. Hoes and Avery will split LF duties and lead-off. Davis will be the 1B. Machado the 3B. Need to find a 2B or live with Andino, who should get better:

Hiroyuki Nakajima!