Five things we’ve learned about Elias after two drafts

[FlipTheBird]

5 hours ago, Philip said:

I don’t have any disagreement with that, and I certainly think each needs improvement.

With that in mind, having a bunch of maybe short stops is defensible, God knows we have a bunch of designated hitters and don’t need any more of them.

Maybe Mike Is considering the timeline to Contention and is starting with position players and then we were closer, he will turn his attention to College pitching that is close to being major league ready. That is quite logical. The only pitcher he chose last week is four years away, So that would make sense.

Or maybe as we get closer he'll open the wallet and buy a few arms - be it with cash, or with excess position players. The cupboards didn't have a lot in them when he got here, it's going to take time to reshape the organization.

[Can_of_corn]

3 minutes ago, FlipTheBird said:

I'm always a little loathe to call Hader a guy we missed on, since we traded him at age 19 just a year after taking a flyer on him in the 19th round, and we weren't the only team to trade him (Houston did, too). Then his success as a stud reliever appeared out of nowhere after two pretty poor stints in AAA with the Brewers. The dude's success is awesome, but it's not like we gave up on a guy that anyone foresaw this from at the time.

Davies and Rodriguez, at least, were guys that had come a lot further along in their development before we kicked them. Brault and Tarpley I don't think anyone should lose any sleep over, they were fringier players even when we moved them and haven't become anything more than run of the mill arms.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Springs_Sky_Sox

Quote

its natural grass field sits at 6,531 feet (1,991 m) above sea level.

Coors is at 5,200.

[weams]

8 hours ago, BohKnowsBmore said:

Not sure we should completely tank his positional prospects quite yet. Footwork for the IF and footspeed are not necessarily the same thing. Let's think of him as a 3B/COF whose bat has potential to carry at 1B if needed.

Na. He wants to call him a 1B/DH

I,for one, did not know Coby this time last week. Though my friends do. 

[Beef Supreme]

7 hours ago, Philip said:

Isn’t Diaz sated for RF? And Santander for RF, too?

Diaz's future is Left Field, if he makes it to the majors. Unless somehow Mountcastle ends up there and blocks him, which I would not wager on happening.

[Can_of_corn]

6 minutes ago, Beef Supreme said:

Diaz's future is Left Field, if he makes it to the majors. Unless somehow Mountcastle ends up there and blocks him, which I would not wager on happening.

Would you like to explain why?

[Beef Supreme]

31 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

Would you like to explain why?

Diaz did play a couple of games in LF this Spring. In the near term, I expect that Santander is the primary Right Fielder, thus Diaz plays Left Field by default. Playing half the games at OPACY, covering ground is more important in LF than in RF. Seems to me that Santander has a pretty slow first step before he gets the train a-rolling. Not sure if either has that great of an arm; I remember Diaz was suffering a throwing shoulder injury though I don't know what kind.

I thought my opinion was well-shared. My apologies to Philip. 

[Can_of_corn]

Just now, Beef Supreme said:

Diaz did play a couple of games in LF this Spring. In the near term, I expect that Santander is the primary Right Fielder, thus Diaz plays Left Field by default. Playing half the games at OPACY, covering ground is more important in LF than in RF. Seems to me that Santander has a pretty slow first step before he gets the train a-rolling. Not sure if either has that great of an arm; I remember Diaz was suffering a throwing shoulder injury though I don't know what kind.

I thought my opinion was well-shared. My apologies to Philip. 

So you think he might end up in left field.

 

[Frobby]

7 hours ago, Philip said:

Now think about the guys we drafted and traded? The only guys who come to mind are Josh Hader, Eduardo Rodriguez, Zach Davies and Tarpley and Brault. The last two didn’t amount to anything, although I think each spent time in the majors and Tarpley was on a New York playoff roster I think.

The others have all been outstanding successes, and each represented a buyers win.

ooooh and Oliver Drake! Can’t forget ol’ Ollie!

Arrieta.    

[HowAboutThat]

7 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Arrieta.    

Well yes, and also Bundy, of course, but I was thinking more of prospects.

Blake Snell was a Fine prospect and the Pirates were willing to include him in the package for Archer. Woops.

My point is that if you draft a guy and he busts, you haven’t lost too much, even if you give him a huge signing bonus. 

If you trade for a guy, the better he’s been, the more he will cost, and you are paying for his past and hoping for his future. Drafting someone and paying for his future is much less expensive even if his future is a failure.

the players association is very well aware of this, which is why free agency will be so high on the next CBA agenda.

Edited June 17, 2020 by Philip

[Beef Supreme]

56 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

So you think he might end up in left field.

 

Well, what I actually said was, "Diaz's future is in Left Field." In retrospect, that seems too definitive. I still think it is probable rather than he "might end up in left field," so I won't agree with that take. And seeing that highlight didn't convince me that Diaz has such a great arm for a right-fielder that he is a sure thing to stick at that position. I may like to qualify my initial statement to, "Diaz's future appears to be in Left Field with the Orioles rather than in Right, imo."

[Can_of_corn]

1 minute ago, Beef Supreme said:

Well, what I actually said was, "Diaz's future is in Left Field." In retrospect, that seems too definitive. I still think it is probable rather than he "might end up in left field," so I won't agree with that take. And seeing that highlight didn't convince me that Diaz has such a great arm for a right-fielder that he is a sure thing to stick at that position. I may like to qualify my initial statement to, "Diaz's future appears to be in Left Field with the Orioles rather than in Right, imo."

I wouldn't expect one throw to convince anyone. 

I just think he has the capability to stay in right and play some emergency center.  I'm in the not sold on Santander camp.

[Beef Supreme]

1 minute ago, Can_of_corn said:

I wouldn't expect one throw to convince anyone. 

I just think he has the capability to stay in right and play some emergency center.  I'm in the not sold on Santander camp.

Seems Santander stirs a wider range of opinion on here than most players. I agree: his future with the club is not certain.

[Frobby]

2 hours ago, Philip said:

Well yes, and also Bundy, of course, but I was thinking more of prospects.

Blake Snell was a Fine prospect and the Pirates were willing to include him in the package for Archer. Woops.

 

??  Snell was drafted by Tampa and has always been in that organization.    

[HowAboutThat]

12 minutes ago, Frobby said:

??  Snell was drafted by Tampa and has always been in that organization.    

 

12 minutes ago, Frobby said:

??  Snell was drafted by Tampa and has always been in that organization.    

I thought the Pirates traded oh wait, it wasn’t Snell... the pitcher the Pirates traded in the package for Archer, the name escapes me(haha obviously)

the point remains, I just had the name wrong.

[dabirds]

8 minutes ago, Philip said:

 

I thought the Pirates traded oh wait, it wasn’t Snell... the pitcher the Pirates traded in the package for Archer, the name escapes me(haha obviously)

the point remains, I just had the name wrong.

Glasnow