Slugger Pedro Alvarez Signs w Orioles (1 yr: 5.75 + 1.5 potential bonuses) OFFICIAL

[gmelson26]

Its a different game.

Those power relievers...

[Larry18]

So is leeching the right thing to do 70% or 80% of the time? I'd bet that UZR or whatever advanced metric you choose broadly correlates (say, within five player buckets) with subjective observation or Gold Gloves 70% or 80% of the time.

I think most criticism of advanced defensive metrics comes down to picking on a handful of extreme cases or favorite players and complaining that it has to be broken and hopeless if it can't conclude that, say, Robbie Alomar wasn't completely awesome. How much would your opinion of defensive metrics be changed if Nick was a +7 RFer for his career?

I don't know if you've read this:http://mglbaseball.com/2016/03/04/how-important-is-bayes-in-advanced-defensive-metrics/

[ChuckS]

Not sure if this has been mentioned (have neither the time or patience to sort through a 25 page thread) but Pedro's plate discipline isn't horrible. Career: .236 .309 .441 .750 and .320 OBP against righties. His walk rate is pretty average. The problem is making contact. The BA drives his OBP down. On the O's he will probably have one of the better walk rates, with only Machado, Davis, and maybe Kim/Reimold ahead of him.

[Frobby]

I'm not happy that the Orioles will again field a team on which most of the hitters can't spell OBP, and will air condition stadia all season long, but what other options were available? As others have said, we'll get to see a lot of big flies, and, if the plan doesn't work, the low OBP additions are on one year contracts.

This team may hit as many homers as the 1996 team, but that team was much better at getting on base.

When it comes to offense, I only care about one thing: are they good at scoring runs, or not? I really don't care about how they score them, or how often they strike out.

I think this team will score 20-50 runs more than last year's team did, which will put them well above average. If I'm right about that, the rest of the offensive stats are just footnotes.

[ChuckS]

When it comes to offense, I only care about one thing: are they good at scoring runs, or not? I really don't care about how they score them, or how often they strike out.

I think this team will score 20-50 runs more than last year's team did, which will put them well above average. If I'm right about that, the rest of the offensive stats are just footnotes.

I think it matters in close games and against good pitching, having a lineup that can manufacture runs. And it definitely matters in the playoffs.

[weams]

When it comes to offense, I only care about one thing: are they good at scoring runs, or not? I really don't care about how they score them, or how often they strike out.

I think this team will score 20-50 runs more than last year's team did, which will put them well above average. If I'm right about that, the rest of the offensive stats are just footnotes.

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/166585538/pedro-alvarez-agrees-with-orioles

[scOtt]

Sorry to disappoint you but I have better things to do than spend a lot of time on an Orioles message board in the offseason. Or in the regular season for that matter

And we all appreciate the little time you do spend here.

[weams]

And we all appreciate the little time you do spend here.

And lets face it. The Orioles and their park are never going to be a small ball team.

[Pickles]

So is leeching the right thing to do 70% or 80% of the time? I'd bet that UZR or whatever advanced metric you choose broadly correlates (say, within five player buckets) with subjective observation or Gold Gloves 70% or 80% of the time.

I think most criticism of advanced defensive metrics comes down to picking on a handful of extreme cases or favorite players and complaining that it has to be broken and hopeless if it can't conclude that, say, Robbie Alomar wasn't completely awesome. How much would your opinion of defensive metrics be changed if Nick was a +7 RFer for his career?

Thank God nobody ever does that when making the case that gold gloves are meaningless.

I remember this board ten years ago when all the really smart, stat guys where saying that defensive ability is so close amongst players that it was pretty negligible.

[jabba72]

So Alvarez in LF and Trumbo in RF?

[ChuckS]

So Alvarez in LF and Trumbo in RF?

I could only see this happening if Kim agreed to a Triple A assignment to start the season.

25 man is full now: Wieters, Joseph, Davis, Schoop, Machado, Hardy, Jones, Reimold, Trumbo, P. Alvarez, Flaherty, Rickard, and Kim equal 13 bats.

[sergbutton]

So a big stick in a small park. Sounds fun

[25 Nuggets]

http://m.orioles.mlb.com/news/article/166585538/pedro-alvarez-agrees-with-orioles

Alright, we got Richard Justice on our side at least :beerchug1:

"In the last three seasons, he's been healthy the whole season, he's averaged 31 home runs, and it's massive power... also on the Orioles, it's left handed power. They're a lineup that leans right with Machado and Adam Jones and a... a J.J. Hardy, so it's a good fit from that perspective. He does strike out, but join the crowd -- Chris Davis strikes out a little bit too, Mark Trumbo strikes out a little bit, so what we have, we're gonna have a little feast or famine offense in Baltimore. Gonna be lots of home runs, probably gonna be some walks and there's gonna be a few strikeouts."

[on signing a DH] "It means it's gonna be awkward. Buck Showalter typically tries to put his best defensive team on the field, that, does everything he can to put his starting pitchers in position to succeed. That's not gonna be possible in this case. This is the way it works out and one of the strengths of Buck Showalter, you know, a great manager, and he is a great manager, ah... adjusts to the players he has so, the best option is obviously we know Chris Davis is gonna be at first base. He can get some at bats in right field, I think, and probably not left field but maybe right field, but basically on opening day we're... I... eh... gonna veeza (??)... Mark Trumbo, who's not a great defensive outfielder is gonna play most likely right field, and Pedro Alvarez who like you said struggled defensively at first base last year (23 errors)... uh, he will be the designated hitter. And so, with every... there's a trade off in everything, there are not many perfect acquisitions, and in terms of Pedro Alvarez, you get a legitimate big-time middle-of-the-order... that guy, if you're gonna have, um... Manny Machado leading off and then a middle of the order with Chris Davis, Adam Jones, Pedro Alvarez, Matt Wieters, Mark Trumbo... that's pretty good right there, that kinda lineup can play with just about any in baseball.

ugh, why did I transcribe this... :slytf:

[El Gordo]

Rickard will be the secret weapon.

[JLee2027]

Sorry to disappoint you but I have better things to do than spend a lot of time on an Orioles message board in the offseason. Or in the regular season for that matter

But lucky for us, you have time now. :rolleyestf: