RHH Outfield Targets

[Roll Tide]

1 minute ago, sportsfan8703 said:

Yeah but this goes for all the young guys, you only will get better with playing time and experience. He was the #2 pick in the draft and 1B/DH is currently occupied by Mounty and O’Hearn. We need Heston to hold down RF for at least one season. 

As for the RHH, I think Slater is our guy. I saw something that he’s had the most pinch hits in mlb over the last 3-4 seasons.  That’s valuable in his role with all of the LHH we have. Even with his career worst 1st half, he still put up a .700+ OPS with us vs LHP. 

With the new WC rules, and all these teams competing, I just expect everyone to be looking to buy, or at least “not sell”. I expect a thin market for buying. 

I’m ok with Slater but I think they need to get a RHH or two that are better than Mountcastle.

[waroriole]

45 minutes ago, sportsfan8703 said:

Yeah but this goes for all the young guys, you only will get better with playing time and experience. He was the #2 pick in the draft and 1B/DH is currently occupied by Mounty and O’Hearn. We need Heston to hold down RF for at least one season. 

As for the RHH, I think Slater is our guy. I saw something that he’s had the most pinch hits in mlb over the last 3-4 seasons.  That’s valuable in his role with all of the LHH we have. Even with his career worst 1st half, he still put up a .700+ OPS with us vs LHP. 

With the new WC rules, and all these teams competing, I just expect everyone to be looking to buy, or at least “not sell”. I expect a thin market for buying. 

But Slater was awful against LH last year. He had a .541 OPS against LH, and in 142 PA against LH had only 3 XBH. There are plenty of guys who are better fits for the RH OF role. Grichuk and Refsnyder to name a couple. Elias needs to start doing better than bare minimum. 

[Sports Guy]

16 hours ago, e16bball said:

I’m working off the notion that 1B will primarily be Mountcastle or Mayo and RF will primarily be Kjerstad.

So ideally, I’d want O’Hearn starting something like 30-40 games at 1B — though he’d also likely finish a number of games there based on PH opportunities in games started by a LHP. I’d be looking for a RH guy to pair with him that can play a passable RF in OPACY, and would otherwise mostly DH/PH in the way that O’Hearn has for the last two years. 

What I have in mind is having 4 guys to cover DH/1B/RF, with it roughly breaking down as one LH/RH pair at 1B and another in RF. That would entail adding someone in that Grichuk/Refsnyder category to be the righty RF-capable guy.  
 

To jump ahead of what I imagine might be the next question, I’d also be trying to bring in someone like McCormick that can play LF/RF and hit lefties. That probably requires letting Mateo (or Urias) go, which is a shame, but it can’t really be helped. I would envision my primary bench being Urias, McCormick, Refsnyder, McCann.

I really like this idea.

McCormick was awful in 2024 but he has been excellent vs lefties the previous 3 seasons.

He is an excellent fielder and as you said, he had good speed.

This would be a move that fans would be upset about, call the team cheap, etc…but prior to 2024, McCormick was worth 7.6 fWAR over 3 seasons.

[Just Regular]

I think the Astros keep McCormick.

Heyward is a free agent who was brought in on almost an Emmanuel Rivera or Aaron Hicks emergency basis with McCormick struggling and that "contusion" that kept Kyle Tucker out half a season.

The bad 2024 will keep McCormick's Arb number lower.

Their upper minors are kind of thin with the draft pick penalties and using several of the better prospects they had to get rentals the last couple Julys.

[Sports Guy]

7 minutes ago, Just Regular said:

I think the Astros keep McCormick.

Heyward is a free agent who was brought in on almost an Emmanuel Rivera or Aaron Hicks emergency basis with McCormick struggling and that "contusion" that kept Kyle Tucker out half a season.

The bad 2024 will keep McCormick's Arb number lower.

Their upper minors are kind of thin with the draft pick penalties and using several of the better prospects they had to get rentals the last couple Julys.

Definitely possible that they keep him.

It probably depends on what else they do.

[DrinkinWithFermi]

On 10/14/2024 at 5:29 PM, sportsfan8703 said:

Of course, I don’t really care if we have the highest payroll in baseball with all free agents on our team. I loved the 98 team. 

I just am being realistic about how “good” of a player we’ll add to be on the short side of a platoon with any of Mullins, Cowser, and Heston.

I don't think signing Tyler O'Neill or Harrison Bader instead of Cristian Pache or Ryan McKenna will give us the "highest payroll in baseball" but maybe I am DRASTICALLY underestimating their markets.