The 2010 Mariners
While I’m sure Zduriencik and company don’t want to get off to a bad start and lose 100 games next year, it seems clear that the direction this team is looking to build beyond 2009, and it’s unlikely the M’s will be contenders next year. So, if we write off 2009, what about 2010? Is there enough talent in the organization to support the idea that this team could win 90+ games in two years?
Let’s take a look at what’s here now, what it might it look like in two years, and what’s missing. Today, we’ll do the infield.
Catcher: Kenji Johjima, Jeff Clement, Rob Johnson, Adam Moore
While I think there’s a decent chance Kenji bounces back a bit next year, by 2010 he’ll be on his way to his 34th birthday, and the list of catchers who perform well at that age and beyond is very, very short. If we consider his 2006 and 2007 performances to be something close to his true talent, then even a normal aging curve from there (where his horrible 2008 is ignored) would have him lose a pretty good chunk of his value by the time 2010 rolls around. He might have enough juice in his bat to be a decent backup, but that’s probably the best case scenario.
As for the three kids, I’ve expressed my reservations about Clement’s future behind the plate, and I still feel like he’ll end up at first base sooner or later. They can afford to give him 2009 to prove his skeptics wrong, but I’m not counting on him as a long term option as a backstop. Rob Johnson just doesn’t have adequate major league offensive skills, but should stick as a backup thanks to his throwing ability. That leaves Adam Moore, who hasn’t played a game above Double-A yet, but has hit very well the last two years and is a bit better than Clement behind the plate.
In 2010, Moore will be 26, and right now, he looks like the best internal candidate for the everyday catcher role. He has to conquer Triple-A, prove that he can get around on good fastballs, and continue to improve behind the plate, but there’s some potential there for him to be a .270/.320/.400 hitter by 2010, and that’s a pretty valuable player behind the plate. With Johjima and Johnson around to fight for the backup role, the team should have a reasonably productive catcher tandem.
First Base: Jeff Clement, Dennis Raben
There isn’t exactly a great crop here – Clement’s never played an inning of first base in his life and has been extremely resistant to spending any time there, while Raben played the outfield in Everett this summer. There’s real questions about whether Clement would or could adjust to first base, and Raben would have to develop very quickly in order to be a quality major league first baseman in 18 months. In reality, the M’s need to find a stop gap here (Brad Nelson, anyone?) who can give them time to figure out where Clement fits and allow Raben to develop naturally and get to the big leagues when he’s ready rather than when the organization needs him.
Second Base: Jose Lopez, Luis Valbuena, Yuniesky Betancourt, Tug Hulett
Lopez had his best offensive season of his career, and at age 24, showed signs of what is hopefully real improvement that can be carried forward. He’s under contract through 2011 for minimal amounts of money, so the question is more whether the organization is comfortable enough with his defense going forward. It’s a real question, honestly – he’s already in mediocre physical shape and his footwork leaves a lot to be desired. The bat is probably good enough to allow for some defensive flaws, but is having him play an up the middle position optimal?
If Luis Valbuena’s bat develops, the answer is probably not. Valbuena flashed some serious range during his time in Seattle, and comes with the added bonuses of actually taking pitches and hitting left-handed, both of which the Mariners have something of a shortage of. He doesn’t have Lopez’s long ball ability, but there’s gap power in his bat, and by 2010, he should be a bit stronger than he is now. Even if he’s not as good offensively, the defensive difference and the LH stick probably make him the preferable internal choice for manning the second sack in 2010.
And, of course, if Betancourt is displaced at shortstop (as we’ll talk about in a second), shifting him to second base is an option as well. Hulett’s probably a utility player in the majors, but he could be better than people expect. Regardless of what ends up happening, it seems like the M’s have enough internal choices to where this isn’t a position they necessarily need to pursue outside players.
Shortstop: Yuniesky Betancourt
And here, we see a glaring hole in the organization. Betancourt’s got problems, as we’ve noted all year, and there aren’t any other internal options. If he got hurt, I really don’t know what they’d do next year – sliding Beltre over from third might be their best option, and that’s kinda sad. This is certainly a position that needs to be addressed from a depth perspective, and potentially from a finding-a-new-starter option. Yuni’s regression with the glove has left him as a +1 win player rather than the +2 to +3 win player we thought he might be, and that makes him more of a good back-up/part-time player than a franchise cornerstone.
With Grant Green one of the main options for the second pick in the draft, as well as guys like J.J. Hardy available in trade this winter, the M’s will have to seriously consider whether they want to go forward with Betancourt at shortstop. At the least, they need to get a realistic alternative into the organization this year.
Third Base: Adrian Beltre, Matt Tuiasosopo, Jose Lopez
If Zduriencik realizes how good Beltre is, and they can talk him into signing a new contract, keeping him around isn’t a bad plan. He’s the team’s best position player and extremely underrated around the game, as we’ve noted many times – his combination of average bat and great glove are not easily replaced.
If he’s traded, Tui seems to be the heir apparent. He made significant strides with his bat this year, and could be a pretty solid high average/gap power hitter by 2010, potentially developing more long ball power later in his career. However, the defense… it’s not good. His footwork needs a lot of work, and for a former football player, he doesn’t move all that well. Right now, he’s a real stretch there, but he’s young enough that we shouldn’t condemn him to first base just yet. He’s going to have to make some pretty big strides to be a solid defender at the hot corner, though, and if he doesn’t, the average bat/bad defense combination makes for a pretty marginal player.
The other internal option would be shifting Lopez to third. This would probably be the way to go if his bat continues to take a step forward and Valbuena develops a lot faster than Tui. In that case, moving Lopez to the hot corner would hide some of his range issues and still allow the team to benefit from a low cost, league average (or slightly better) hitter. He’s never going to be Beltre defensively, but he’d be okay at third.
Based on the individual positions and their respective depths, here’s how I’d peg the likely infield for 2010:
Optimistic: Moore-Clement-Valbuena-New Guy-Lopez
Most Likely: Johjima-New Guy-Valbuena-Betancourt-Lopez
Pessimistic: Johnson-Raben-Lopez-Betancourt-Tui
I notice there’s no mention of Triunfel. Not ready in 2010, or not an infielder in the long run? I assume he starts at AA next year, so he’d need to make up some of the time he lost this year, but it doesn’t seem out of the question.
Dave: Reading between the lines, would it be fair to say that you’d rank the prospects discussed above in the following order: Clement, Valbuena, Moore, Raben and Tui (tie), Hulett, Johnson? (I’m really looking forward to a new future forty when you have time to do it). Oh yeah, and can we assume you’re pretty sure we should replace Yuni at short?
Not ready to help the team win in 2010 – he might be ready to hit .270/.300/.360 or something, but Zduriencik really needs to slow down his development, give him a full year in Double-A and then a full year in Triple-A to get some fundamentals under control, figure out what his position is long term, and try to get him ready for 2011.
As for ranking the prospects, Conor and I will be unveiling a new Future Forty at some point in the near future. Clement’s still going to come out as the best of the bunch, but there’s a pretty big jumble of guys a step behind him, including pretty much everyone in this post not named Rob Johnson or Tug Hulett.
Dave, is the worry about Raben that he won’t ever be a good 1B with the big-league club, or that he just won’t be ready by 2010?
From averything I’ve read here, from Churchill, and from what little I saw him play on TV, he looks like an offensive keeper.
If he can’t make it at 1B, would he be a candidate for RF or DH?
I don’t support a Yuni move to 2B, but I can certainly get behind a move to another team. He has the worst comination of crappy defense and free-swinging at the plate.
I think Yuni’s lack of range would be better hidden at second base, but plate discipline is definately a cause for concern.
Aside from the well-documented reasoning behind picking up Nelson, what other free agents could potentially help us out here? If Beltre leaves, would it make more sense to move Lopez to third and hope for the best with his D, or sign someone like Joe Crede to play third, make a move for Hardy, and let the best of Lopez/Hulett/Valbuena/Yuni take second?
1) I notice Beltre doesn’t even show up in the most optimistic scenario- I take it you think the likelihood of him sticking around is pretty low.
2) I think the Double-Play Twins need to go. The two areas we need to improve the most are defense and plate discipline- Yuni and Jose are impediments to progress in both. I would welcome trading them both now, as I don’t see their value increasing in the future.
remember when it was thought the Mariners had a plethora of shortstops?
not necessarily good ones, mind you…
Well, that plethora included Asdrubal Cabrera and Adam Jones, both of whom would look pretty awesome in a Mariner uniform right about now.
I know he won’t be ready by 2010, but what is Mario Martinez’s ultimate position? Seems to have been shuffled around a lot without any real plan for where to stick him.
that’s right, break my heart again.
Every time I read the post I get excited to comment on the M’s. Then I think it out, read the thread and get depressed cause we should have a farm system and young players around.
I also noticed that Beltre doesn’t seem to be in the future plans, is that Jack Z starting over or underrating Beltre?
Putting Lopez at 3rd is an interesting idea, and one I never contemplated. I don’t think the M’s have either, given that they were starting him at 1st in the late season Games That (REALLY) Didn’t Matter. Granted, you don’t want to force him to learn 3rd in major league games (even if they don’t matter) but is it realistic to think they might send him down to Tacoma learn 3rd (and what do you do with Tui while that is happening)? Can he pick it up in winter ball?
I assume the experiment at 1B was just that, a fairly random exercise that emerged from the realities of Beltre’s injuries and Sexson’s departure, dreamed up by people who are no longer with the club.
I believe the M’s front office kicked around the idea of moving Lopez to third when they first figured out that he wasn’t a shortstop, but they decided to try him at second where he bat would undoubtedly be adequate. Lately I’ve heard rumblings that they aren’t happy with his defense at second (yeah, the same people think Raul is decent in left) and I understand they are again considering moving him to third (if not to another team). Of course, Jack Z. has yet to weigh in….
I’m going to say a couple of things that are likely get me some ridicule, but this is how I see them. *deep breath*
I don’t think the M’s are THAT far from being contenders. Talent-wise, I don’t think this is a 60-win team. I think it’s more of a 75-80 win team, in terms of innate talent- and will have to be upgraded to make it a 90+ win-team, because the Angels will win about that many in 2009.
I know the record in 2008- it aged me about seven years. And, we certainly need at least two better bats than what we have. But, what the team really has a glaring lack of is leadership. No red-ass types. We probably lead the league in pleasant guys and polite interviews….but we have 25 guys that only go about their own business.
The difficulty in that, though, is that it’s extremely hard to import a leader-type. Said import has to carry a heavy bat and have a track record to be able to speak up in a brand-new clubhouse. It’s always better to have a leader-type come from within.
I have some rosterbation ideas, same as anybody here…but as it turns out, I like Dave’s ideas just as much or better than most of mine. I worry about Clement in any defensive position, but I think 20+ taters aren’t very far away from his bat. Maybe they should groom Clement as the permanent DH. Balentien will probably frustrate the hell out of me in 2009, but I think he’ll show enough to prove he’s part of the solution. And no, he’s not a centerfielder, to me.
And I still regard Jose Lopez as the second coming of Carlos Baerga. Move him or trade him in 2009.
I’ve got every confidence Bedard will pitch for a contract in 2009. Hernandez would’ve won about 14-15 games if the offense hadn’t been so woeful. If Morrow and RRS get about 20+ wins between the two of them, that’s about 12 more than what we got from those rotation slots in 2008.
This is already a pretty long post, but those are the thoughts rolling in my head. Respectability isn’t that far away, but a playoff spot requires a decent amount of tinkering.
The idea of moving Lopez to 3B has been a round for awhile, and its really the only position for him to play if he’s going to be a productive big leaguer. In my crystal ball, Lopez takes over the job as soon as Beltre leaves, which will be any time between now and Opening Day 2010. Lopez will hold down 3B only until Triunfel is ready though.
Valbuena will probably see plenty of time at 2B in Seattle next year, depending on when Lopez shifts to third. Valbuena’s glove and his ability to contribute a little left-handed production from the 8 spot in the lineup should have him penciled in to any plans for the future that the team is contemplating.
I’m not interested in seeing Betancourt at 2B. His bat won’t play well there. His only hope for regular playing time is to recapture some of that glove potential we all thought he had at SS. For now, that’s where we need him since we don’t really have any other SS options.
Guys like Hardy would definitely be upgrades, but I’m not sure that’s what this team needs right now. Long-term and short-term, the M’s are hurting for OBP. They need a SS in the Rafael Furcal mold who can bat second and make some things happen. Young guys like Jed Lowrie and Emmanuel Burris are intriguing to me. Burris posted a nice OBP/SB combination last year after skipping AA and AAA. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear his name come up in Beltre talks this winter.
Tui is a conundrum. He can’t be an everyday 3B for a winning team. Lopez is a better fit there anyway. He’d make a solid RF, except that job is already taken. And I don’t know if he can develop the range to play LF in Seattle. Ideally he and Saunders would make a great platoon in RF, but I anticipate that Ichiro will push Saunders to LF where Baletien is a better platoon fit.
I’m guessing Clement will eventually accept the role as the everday 1B, so that leaves Tui out in the cold there too.
You might review posts made over the last several months for background on this. In a nutshell, the USSM authors believe the Mariners could easily be competitive next year and that it’s not really necessary to raze and start over.
And the problem isn’t leadership. Again that has been discussed pretty extensively here. If you want to advance that argument, use the search feature to find past discussions and respond accordingly. Otherwise, asserting that “lack of leadership” is a key problem that needs to be addressed is a comment that isn’t going to be taken seriously by most readers here.
So the M’s shouldn’t bring back Jose Guillen?
Guillen would make a fine DH…but he’s too expensive…
Well, fine with me, Steve. This is the second time I’ve posted something and been, for lack of a better term, slapped on the wrist by some mod for saying something “discussed pretty extensively”. Sorry for having the effing effrontery for being new and daring to post, I’ll go ahead and scour all of you egg-heads’ past discussions and THEN respond accordingly.
Just because a post is on territory previously trod on doesn’t invalidate it. And I’m really not liking the superior tone of you and some of the other mods, it’s begun to remind me of boarding school teachers that always make you feel like your fly is open.
But don’t worry there, Big Steve…I WILL do my homework and go ahead and research your posts before I post any further.
Take that comment seriously?
Well, no, I took your previous post — you know, the one without the petulant tone — more seriously than that one.
That said, there is a reason why we (and by “we” I mean regular readers here) don’t want to rehash the same three or four ideas in every single thread. Otherwise we might as well just have one long one called the “Leadership/Chemistry/Defense Does(n’t) Matter/What’s Wrong With Ichiro/Rosterbation” thread.
On the top bar of the site is a link called “USSM Orientation”. It’s there for a reason.
I didn’t see Mike Morse at all on this list as an option for first base. He was going to fall league if I’m not correct to hone his skills at this position. He also could be back to where he came up in at SS. Betencourt was put here because of his so called superior defence. It will be interestesting to see what the new GM thinks Mike Morse’s future will be at.
I’ve now read it. Understood.
If them’s the rules, I follow.
SOZ: Steve is not a moderator.
I didn’t forget Mike Morse. Like Bryan LaHair and other substandard options, I don’t want to fathom a future that they’re a key part of.
You’d have said that about Shane Monahan once, but now he’s a key part of beer delivery on his truck route.
Yeah, it’s too bad we let Jose Guillen walk to KC, where his leadership skills and redass turned a struggling franchise into a playoff contend-oh, wait, no he didn’t.
See, the problem I have with “what a 62-100 franchise needs is leadership” is you’re approaching this from the wrong angle. We should be worrying about the talent on the field before playing sports psychologist- and the problem this front office has traditionally manifested is going after “intangibles” (“leadership”, “grit”, “hustle”) OVER talent and using careful and modern methods of analysis to evaluate talent. I really, REALLY don’t want to go down that road again.
Tampa Bay should demonstrate quite adequately that regardless of past history of your franchise, if you do the right things on the talent side of the ledger, “leadership” and winning are the natural outgrowths of that, rather than the other way around. That doesn’t mean you should go out of your way to acquire players who are head cases and clubhouse problems (nobody wants to have a coworker who’s a lazy jerk), but it recognizes the fact that a lot of what is termed leadership is really after-the-fact fundamental attribution error. In other words, we feel better saying “they showed bigger hearts and more grit” than “they are better baseball players” (or in playoff series “it’s a crapshoot as to who wins and loses in a 5 or 7 game series”).
Sorry, Steve. I called you a moderator, my bad.
But bottom line is I wasn’t kidding- I’ve read the orientation now, know how it’s going to be around here. Subsequently, I’ll do my homework lest I be really taken to the woodshed- by anybody- next time I post.
(Of course, I realize that doing so is no guarantee of not getting the woodshed, but my odds greatly improve…)
BTW, Dave…about Mike Morse. We all know he plays four or five positions defensively, none of them very well. But, the first time I saw this guy, he turned around on a 101-MPH (no doubt fast JUGS gun) fastball from Billy Wagner and got a base hit up the middle. Not every major-leaguer can do that.
Now…I don’t have all his stats with me, but do you think he could presumably develop his bat (best tool) and become a full-time DH for us? As of right now, the power numbers aren’t there, but we’re also talking a very limited number of AB’s at the bigs. Morse as a DH? Could it happen?
tschaw. he’s moved up in the world– he’s now the manager of the Vail Home Depot.
No problem – no offense taken.
If you visit USSM regularly you’ll get into the flow of discussions. You’ll know what topics have been addressed, what issues have been thrashed out previously, etc.
If you haven’t been involved with the site much, that’s just part of the process of coming up to speed.
Now…I don’t have all his stats with me, but do you think he could presumably develop his bat (best tool) and become a full-time DH for us? As of right now, the power numbers aren’t there, but we’re also talking a very limited number of AB’s at the bigs. Morse as a DH? Could it happen?
I’m not Dave, but I’ll try this one.
Mike Morse has over 2500 at-bats in professional baseball. His slugging percentage in his entire pro career (majors and minors) is around .400, and that includes the year he was taking steroids in AA (which was his career high in SLG). The average AL DH has a line of .256/.339/.435- which also exceeds Morse’s career OBP (majors and minors- no, you can’t exclude his minor league numbers to project his hitting ability and say “but his MLB OBP is pretty good!”; it doesn’t work that way).
Basically, there is no evidence that suggest Mike Morse is a good enough hitter to play an offense-heavy position on a regular basis (1B/corner OF/DH). You basically have to do a lot of wishful thinking to get him to an everyday DH- basically, there’s a 5% chance he’s Jeff Conine waiting for a late-career surge. Realistically, he’s at best a bench player ala John Mabry (made less useful because he hits RH).
Could he suddenly turn into a decent hitter? I suppose- but there’s no reason to believe lightning would strike him as opposed to Willie Bloomquist, Bryan LaHair, or anyone else, and expecting him to carry a DH job (and otherwise neglecting the position) would be likely to backfire badly.
Mike Morse is still around? I could’ve sworn I saw him on a milk carton a few weeks ago.
…
That didn’t take long. To the woodshed!
Dave, aren’t you forgetting about Riverton, Wyoming’s own Bucky Jacobsen?
and another change– Looper has declined to stay with the team
That’s cause for celebration
Hey, lookee here: Newsday claims the Mets are interested in trading prospects for Putz. Yes please. Wait, do the Mets have any prospects?
hey, the Ms can use this helpful slideshow to select which Moyer offspring to draft.
Dillon is the traditional pitcher/shortstop, but Mac is a lefty with good control.
It’s pretty easy to see why some teams make the playoffs and some don’t. The three main stats: pitching, defense, and taking walks. Hitting is secondary.
Of the eight teams that went to the playoffs this year, all eight were in the top 11 in ERA and seven of the eight were in the top 2/3 in fielding percentage.
Again, those same eight teams had three (TB, PHI, & MIL) in the bottom 2/3 in batting average. Those teams made up for their low averages in OBP and all eight teams, again, were in the top 2/3 in OBP.
The Mariners need to clean house with guys who don’t take pitches and/or are terrible on defense. Sorry Ichiro, Betancourt, Lopez, Balentien, etc.
That was an astonishingly bad piece of analysis.
2010 bores me.. i like 2011 better
C:Adam Moore
1B:Dennis Raben
2B:Carlos Triunfel
SS:Grant Green
3B:Jose Lopez
DH:Jeff Clement
Or if Triunfel plays 3B, then Valbuena at 2B, and Lopez off the squad.
The NY media has been lost all offseason.
On the day following the Mets collapse. They had a projected lineup for 2009 for the Mets and Yankees.
For the Mets, they had Ibanez in LF, and Putz as closer.
They had the Mets trading Fernando Martinez for Putz.
Something tells me the NY media dont realize IBanez is a butcher with the glove and that Putz pitched all season looking like damaged goods.
Um, wow.
Yeah, it was a huge reach and probably worded incorrectly. I’m just sick of guys swinging at the first pitch grounding out to SS then booting double play balls the next inning.
Something tells me the NY media dont realize IBanez is a butcher with the glove and that Putz pitched all season looking like damaged goods.
Of course they don’t. Neither one plays in the eastern time zone, which means they don’t really exist. (If the NY sportswriters are still awake after 9pm eastern time, they’re too drunk to turn on the TV). Unfortunately, I think Minaya has more of a clue.
I’m just sick of guys swinging at the first pitch grounding out to SS then booting double play balls the next inning.
And that describes Ichiro how?
Like Mike Morse and Brian Lehair you are letting your personal bias get into you logic Dave. If you are going to talk about most likely scenarios that is not your opinion of the player that is applying you educated guess based off passed moves by the mariner. I believe your opinion of them would put them under your pessemestic view.
They have a new GM so this estimation is difficult to make, but Mike was being bred to be a role players and so was Lehair and to leave them off as 0% I think is definitely biased, but also not practical. Mike had the best bat in spring training . If he does the same thing I don’t see how you can say he doesn’t deserve a chance or future in the organization. Lehair I agree is not going anywhere anytime soon and his advancement into the majors is more of being at the right place at the right time. I personally think you are wrong on Morse’s chances of being in the future of the organization, but that is my opinion.
Don’t get me wrong the posts about is statistics over the past are an indicator of his future, but human beings don’t always folllow a predictable behavior. To leave out his spring training last year or his first year up with the mariners as data that is not important is simply not looking at the other data. Stats help decision making, but they are not the end all. hmm Moyer seems to be one that might fall in this category.
Tui’s only 2 years younger than Lopez; is there some reason why he would appear to be more persuaded by coaching than Jose?
Over the last few years, I’ve become appalled by the lack of maturation/skill development by guys like Lopez and Yuni at the major league level. Is the only place for teaching the minors?
And since he’s from Woodinville, Tui would be a better token local guy in 2010 than Ol’ Man Ballgame.
ajn007, I wasn’t aware that Morse and LaHair (do spell his name right) had the habit of letting their personal biases get into their logic. I’m quite sure Dave doesn’t, though. He does however have the habit of insisting on evidence to support his arguments, which habit doesn’t seem to weigh on you too heavily.
If you think Morse and LaHair are the answers, you’re asking the wrong questions.
Don’t get me wrong the posts about is statistics over the past are an indicator of his future, but human beings don’t always folllow a predictable behavior. To leave out his spring training last year or his first year up with the mariners as data that is not important is simply not looking at the other data
If you’re talking to me:
- yes, I included Morse’s first year. Surprise! He didn’t slug .400 his first MLB season, either.
- no, I did NOT include spring training. Spring training is a horrible predictor of MLB hitting ability- you’re facing everything from MLB pitchers who are working on new pitches to A ball, in tiny parks at altitude and dry air that inflate offense, and you have the ultimate in Small Sample Size Theatre.
Even the players like Raul Ibanez who surprise people in the majors have better minor league hitting stats than Morse (.295/.361/.473 for Raul, .261/.312/.408 for Morse). Bryan LaHair, by the by, is a better hitter in the minors than Mike Morse (.287/.350/.456).
You can invoke all the special pleading you want (“But his spring training in 2008 was great!”), but there’s just no evidence Mike Morse deserves anything more than a bit player role on a MLB team, if that.
Over the last few years, I’ve become appalled by the lack of maturation/skill development by guys like Lopez and Yuni at the major league level.
I can agree on Yuni, but Lopez? He obviously was promoted too early (because the 2004-2005 teams were terrible, the M’s thought “what the hell”), and really, let me show something to you before we stamp his career with a big FAIL stamp:
Jose Lopez, through age 24 season: .271/.303/.398
Player A, through age 24 season: .226/.286/.373
Player B, through age 24 season: .262/.306/.404
Players A and B? Miguel Tejada and Jose Guillen.
My feeling is Jose Lopez is probably the new Jose Guillen/Carlos Lee- he should be put in the corner OF and left alone to hit .295/.340/.500, which is fine for corner OF as long as you aren’t paying them 8 digits a year on a contract that will outlast a presidential term.
[this is not a board]
I don’t think there’s any way Betancourt is playing SS in 2010 as long as the Mariners do the smart thing and take Grant Green in the upcoming draft. Heck, by the end of 2010, he’ll probably be batting third for the M’s!
I just read that Mike Jacobs got traded to the Royals for a Leo Nunez. Jacobs K/BB isn’t much to be desired, but a Left handed power bat at Safeco is … 32 HR’s, 93 RBI last year.
Any thoughts on Jacobs? I gotta believe Z will be pulling a player or two from the Brewers farm system and I agree with Dave that Brad Nelson would be a logical place to start.
eponymous coward, I was talking more about Yuni and Jose’s defense, which to be generous, has not improved during their stay in Seattle. Why can Tui improve his defense in Tacoma, but the DP Twins can’t do it a few miles north?
The isolated patience (OBP – AVG) on those slash lines doesn’t look too good for Lopez, either.
And you left out games played in your slash lines. I’d guess Guillen played a lot fewer games than Lopez.
brad_i you make a good point about defense on the major league club. McClaren was known for not pushing his players to work on infield practice. I don’t know about Hargrove, but it has seemed to me the team’s defense and focus on consistent, excellent play in all aspects of the game has suffered ever since Lou left. I just think we keep hiring pushovers for managers and players have been allowed to slip in terms of their work ethic. Freakish exceptions like Ichiro excluded, of course.
If the O’s move Roberts to short as Sheehan suggests, maybe the M’s can bundle Bedard and Lopez to get back Adam Jones. OK, ok, that’s unrealistic. Maybe Bedard and Lopez and a PTNL for Mickolio.
[bye then]