Yusniel Diaz - failed prospect?

[Frobby]

16 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

You are given a choice this winter.  D.J. Stewart or Yusniel Diaz?   Who stays on the 40 man?

Tough choice.   Low ceiling guy who’s been very meh in the majors vs. higher ceiling guy who may never reach the majors and is always hurt.   Because of the Orioles’ current situation, I’d probably roll the dice with Diaz, since if he gets his act together he could have some impact, whereas Stewart will never be much more than what we’ve seen.  And Diaz is 3 years younger.    But if I were just betting on who would have the better career, I’d pick Stewart.  

[RZNJ]

21 minutes ago, Frobby said:

Tough choice.   Low ceiling guy who’s been very meh in the majors vs. higher ceiling guy who may never reach the majors and is always hurt.   Because of the Orioles’ current situation, I’d probably roll the dice with Diaz, since if he gets his act together he could have some impact, whereas Stewart will never be much more than what we’ve seen.  And Diaz is 3 years younger.    But if I were just betting on who would have the better career, I’d pick Stewart.  

I happen to think this is the correct answer or at least what I was thinking.

[Ripken]

5 hours ago, Tony-OH said:

Diaz looks like a player who is very bored with being in the minor leagues. He doesn't play like he's having any fun and is the epitome of a guy who looks likes he's going through the motions. 

At the same time, he still has no plan at the plate and and has never learned to have one. He still swings at the bad sliders away in situations where he should know that pitch is coming. 

He might be a guy that needs a change of scenery again, but honestly, I think he's just a guy who was overrated all along and who is injury riddled.

Give a young kid a life changing amount of money it sometimes removes the motivation.  

 

[Can_of_corn]

3 minutes ago, Ripken said:

Give a young kid a life changing amount of money it sometimes removes the motivation.  

 

The same is true of folks that aren't young.

 

[Frobby]

13 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

The same is true of folks that aren't young.

 

I’m willing to test it out.  

[LA2]

3 hours ago, Aglets said:

Looks like Diaz is already on the 40 man?   Maybe we should just give him a shot soon and see what happens.   If Tony is right that it's more about him not being motivated.  Maybe a sudden shock to his system would wake him up.   

Interesting idea.

[Legend_Of_Joey]

6 hours ago, Tony-OH said:

I'd keep Diaz, but only because I know what Stewart is at the major league level and we know what his limitations are defensively. Saying that, I could remove both and would not blink an eye though I'd rather throw Diaz into a trade.

How much sage do you think the Orioles could get for him?

[Tony-OH]

32 minutes ago, Legend_Of_Joey said:

How much sage do you think the Orioles could get for him?

Not sure, but they should ask for some Oregano too.

[Legend_Of_Joey]

9 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

Not sure, but they should ask for some Oregano too.

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

9 hours ago, bpilktree said:

I would keep him over Stewart who we know who he is by now and will be getting arbitration soon. 

It's close, but I would go with Diaz. DJ looks like a platoon DH and that's his ceiling. Diaz won't be an all star, but I think he has chance to better than DJ even with this disappointing season. 

This is likely to be short term problem anyways when better prospects rise up to push these guys out the next couple years.

Then watch DJ get picked up by another team and turn into Jack Cust. 

[sportsfan8703]

How can I word this with it not being defamatory… I’d like to see his numbers versus pre-40 man versus post 40 man? I think we all know what starts to happen once a player is added to the 40 man roster. 

[Frobby]

47 minutes ago, sportsfan8703 said:

How can I word this with it not being defamatory… I’d like to see his numbers versus pre-40 man versus post 40 man? I think we all know what starts to happen once a player is added to the 40 man roster. 

In Diaz’s case, I doubt being added to the 40 man roster would affect his motivation level.  The Dodgers paid him $32 mm to sign.   He’s either motivated to reach the majors, or he’s not.   He’s a wealthy man either way.   

Injuries have been a huge factor for him.  What I don’t know is whether some of these injuries could have been prevented through better conditioning.   Certainly not the latest one (turf toe), but some of the soft tissue injuries he’s had.  
 

[Aristotelian]

I would go with DJ. Yes, low BA and terrible defense, but high OBP and power adds up to average MLB bat from the left side. I would take an established MLB bat still making the minimum over a guy who hasn't produced in the minors since early 2018. It would certainly sting if someone takes him in the Rule 5 and he actually produces. 

[sportsfan8703]

2 hours ago, Frobby said:

In Diaz’s case, I doubt being added to the 40 man roster would affect his motivation level.  The Dodgers paid him $32 mm to sign.   He’s either motivated to reach the majors, or he’s not.   He’s a wealthy man either way.   

Injuries have been a huge factor for him.  What I don’t know is whether some of these injuries could have been prevented through better conditioning.   Certainly not the latest one (turf toe), but some of the soft tissue injuries he’s had.  
 

I was hinting at PED testing for players on the 40 man. 

[Frobby]

8 hours ago, Aristotelian said:

I would go with DJ. Yes, low BA and terrible defense, but high OBP and power adds up to average MLB bat from the left side. I would take an established MLB bat still making the minimum over a guy who hasn't produced in the minors since early 2018. It would certainly sting if someone takes him in the Rule 5 and he actually produces. 

I wouldn’t call his OBP “high.”   It’s a little above average, though as we know, a walk is not as valuable as a single.   If his OBP were in the .345-.350 range, I’d consider that to be high.