Ryan Mountcastle 2019

[Pheasants]

And to think I've seen demands here  recently for us to pick up an outfield veteran(s) to get us through the bad years.

[glenn__davis]

1 hour ago, DirtyBird said:

Why?

Because I think he's a good player and good players help win baseball games.

[Tony-OH]

1 hour ago, Greg Pappas said:

@Tony-OH Long term, I feel that Mountcastle would better serve the team as a 1B and occasional DH rather than by playing average-at-best defense in LF.  Now, this opinion is only based on whether Mountcastle can play a solid 1B.  What's your views on his defense at 1B? Sorry if you've answered this before... and thanks in advance.

I've heard he's playable at 1B and LF but needs more reps. From what I've seen so far he seems competent in both. He's getting better at picking at 1B, and his arm plays better in the outfield due to the throwing motion. He has more value if he can play solid average LF since it's easier to find a 1B. Either way, his stick is going to play so they will find a place for him to play. I expect Mountcastle to be promoted sometime in Mid-April next year (once they get the extra year of controllability) and become an everyday player at either LF or 1B perhaps with occasional duty at DH.

[Aglets]

Yeah Tony's prediction for Mountcastle is basically what I've been expecting all year long.  Ever since Elias spoke early in the season about him and how he was so young and wanted to see what he could do over a full season at AAA etc.

[Tony-OH]

11 hours ago, ChuckS said:

Calling him a troll is a compliment.  He needs to be called a loser more often.  That's what he is.  If enough of us come together and call him a loser maybe he will go away.  He won't though.  Why?  Because he's a loser who has nothing better to do with his life than troll this board. 

Let's stay away from the personal attacks. We have an ignore feature, I suggest you use that if he bothers you so much.

[Tony-OH]

16 hours ago, ScGO's said:

I was reading this Baltimore Sun article, https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/bs-sp-orioles-reset-ryan-mountcastle-september-callup-20190826-wwqzzlesknb2vg5adw4adirpcu-story.html

and I saw this quote

"The strides he’s made at the plate are real. Jace Peterson hit either before or after him for months at Norfolk and commended how Mountcastle learned quickly that pitchers would challenge him with high heat then sliders away. He adjusted, a sign that therI'

e’s an eye there that the walk rate doesn’t show; he just has the ability to get his bat to many of them, and drive what he gets his bat to. "

Could he have a better approach than what his BB rates are suggesting?  Could there be more BBs in the future?

I've been saying this for years while people have called him "Trumbo-light" and suggested he won't hit because of his low walk rate.

[interloper]

1 minute ago, Tony-OH said:

I've been saying this for years while people have called him "Trumbo-light" and suggested he won't hit because of his low walk rate.

Why walk if you can hit, right? The hope is that if the hits don't come at the ML level, he adjusts. So far there's some evidence to suggest he will. 

[Tony-OH]

13 hours ago, atomic said:

Looking at the last 25 winners most of them are 30 when they won.  Last guy to win at age 22 was Jhonny Perlata in 2004 and before that Jim Thome in 1992.  

And the age factor is another big reason i like him so much. People forget that if Mountcastle would have gone to college, this would have been his first full pro season. You think people would be concerned with his walk rate if he was the number one pick last year and was already the International League MVP?

[Tony-OH]

2 hours ago, atomic said:

I paid before but I got banned the day after paying.  They did not refund my money.   

Considering all the crap we have to deal with because of your interactions with people, you probably should consider becoming a member again. Sometimes i think people go overboard with you, but you bring a lot of this on yourself. Saying that, we try to be fair and everyone needs to not break the board rules which includes taking personal shots at people.

[Greg Pappas]

22 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

I've heard he's playable at 1B and LF but needs more reps. From what I've seen so far he seems competent in both. He's getting better at picking at 1B, and his arm plays better in the outfield due to the throwing motion. He has more value if he can play solid average LF since it's easier to find a 1B. Either way, his stick is going to play so they will find a place for him to play. I expect Mountcastle to be promoted sometime in Mid-April next year (once they get the extra year of controllability) and become an everyday player at either LF or 1B perhaps with occasional duty at DH.

Thanks a lot for the comments.  It's good to read that Mountcastle could be solid in LF, as well as 1B. Having this positional flexibility is reminiscent of Mancini, and a part of the reason I started the thread: Trey Mancini or Ryan Mountcastle? 
Again, much appreciated.

[Tony-OH]

12 minutes ago, interloper said:

Why walk if you can hit, right? The hope is that if the hits don't come at the ML level, he adjusts. So far there's some evidence to suggest he will. 

There's some truth to that. Would I like to see Mountcastle get into more deeper counts and take more walks when the pitchers are pitching around him? Sure. Do I see him getting himself out often? Not really. Sure he chases like any player, but honestly I see him swinging through more pitches because he'd trying to hit for power early in counts. He has such good plate coverage that he's able to barrel balls that are on the edge of the zone and even off the zone occasionally like he did when he hit the 420+ ft homer off the low changeup.

Mountcastle may got through an adjustment period when he first hits the majors like he has at most level changes, but once he settles in I think he's going to be an impact major league bat. Outside of Rutschman, he's the clear best hitting prospect in the system for me.

[survivedc]

13 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

There's some truth to that. Would I like to see Mountcastle get into more deeper counts and take more walks when the pitchers are pitching around him? Sure. Do I see him getting himself out often? Not really. Sure he chases like any player, but honestly I see him swinging through more pitches because he'd trying to hit for power early in counts. He has such good plate coverage that he's able to barrel balls that are on the edge of the zone and even off the zone occasionally like he did when he hit the 420+ ft homer off the low changeup.

Mountcastle may got through an adjustment period when he first hits the majors like he has at most level changes, but once he settles in I think he's going to be an impact major league bat. Outside of Rutschman, he's the clear best hitting prospect in the system for me.

Do they have stats for minor leaguers that include the amount of pitches outside the zone a batter swings at? 

[Tony-OH]

1 minute ago, survivedc said:

Do they have stats for minor leaguers that include the amount of pitches outside the zone a batter swings at? 

Not publicly available as far as I know.

[NCRaven]

I'm hoping that Mountcastle can play a solid 1B.  I think Hays and Diaz are best suited to corner outfield positions.  However, if Hays can play a league average centerfield, that opens left field for Santander (if he's the real deal) and right field for Diaz (if he's the real deal) and allows us to play Mountcastle at 1B.  I don't think McKenna is a future starting centerfield, but willing to have him prove me wrong. 

[atomic]

1 hour ago, Tony-OH said:

And the age factor is another big reason i like him so much. People forget that if Mountcastle would have gone to college, this would have been his first full pro season. You think people would be concerned with his walk rate if he was the number one pick last year and was already the International League MVP?

Yeah I think I mentioned  before that he is only 1 year older than Adley.  It is quite impressive for him to be the international league MVP at 22.   If he can play average defense in the outfield or first base he has a chance to be a very good player.  Hitting for power and average you have to think he succeeds at the MLB level even without the walks.