Minor League Wrap (6/21-27/10)
The awkward cousin to the draft, the July 2nd opening of the international signing period, will come this week. I don’t know how much I’m going to have to say about that immediately, but I’ll cover what I have next time around. Let’s just say that the Mariners are planning on spending a lot of money on interesting players, as usual, and probably won’t break any records with their bonuses while they’re at it. In the meantime, the wrap is now more than 50% longer, because really, it was way too short in its earlier incarnation.
To the jump!
Bringing the Muscle Back:
Marc and Dave have already commented on it, but in the interest of beating a dead horse for kicks or lack of anything better to do, I might as well throw in my thoughts on Branyan as well.
Carrera looked like he could be at least a marginal contributor in the future, with decent defense and good on-base ability displayed last season. Triple-A, however, has been nasty to him and he’s only hit .268/.339/.315. His eye is a bit worse, but more importantly he’s suffered a dip of about a hundred points in his batting average on balls in play, which is a little odd. I don’t think that there were many teams that were looking at him as a starting CF, at least not ones that were hoping to get to the playoffs any time in the near future, but trading him now was effectively selling low, if you thought he had any significant value.
The story is a bit different with Diaz, who was held back from starting in double-A this season due the presence of two dudes on the infield named Triunfel and Ackley, or something. Diaz has been hitting .295/.345/.433, bouncing back from a miserable start to the season and hitting for newfound power in a place where numbers are generally of a dubious quality. He had been especially good recently and has proven to be somewhat competent on defense, but since he hadn’t yet made it to double-A, you could also extend the “selling low” argument to Diaz with the caveat that you’d have to think he has value beyond being a utility infielder or stopgap at short.
On a basic level, we were dealing from positions of some strength, as we have three guys on the 25-man who can handle center, and after Jack Wilson at short, there’s Josh, or Triunfel for a year or two to tide us over until Franklin is ready. While they gave up two guys who were okay, if uninteresting prospects, it’s not something that’s likely to hurt the overall health of the system.
What it seems to be a vote against is the production of Mike Carp at first, and if that’s the case then I’d side with the M’s. Carp’s main asset is that his price is right, but that’s something that primarily works when first base offense is the least of your worries, and instead we have multiple other positions that are in need of attention. Branyan, assuming his option is picked up, will provide production if his back is stable, as well as enchantingly majestic home runs, until Poythress or Raben manages to make it. The only bad part is that this move is unlikely to help us at this stage of the season. It’s a bit of a win now, win tomorrow move if you think about it, but tomorrow may not include Cliff Lee and that makes all of us sad.
Tacoma Rainiers (4-5 this week, 40-37 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, June 21st 2010
Tacoma 4, Portland 2 (SD – 19)
W: Geer (4-6, 5.59); L: Pauley (1-6, 3.68)
Tuesday, June 22nd 2010
Salt Lake 0 (ANA – 1), Tacoma 8 (seven innings)
W: Snell (1-0, 0.00); L: Reckling (4-7, 8.53)
Salt Lake 5 (0), Tacoma 1 (seven innings)
W: Rodriguez (4-3, 3.82); L: Baldwin (4-3, 4.73)
Wednesday, June 23rd 2010
Salt Lake 2 (ANA – 1), Tacoma 6
W: Pineda (1-0, 0.00); L: Kiely (0-2, 14.90)
Thursday, June 24th 2010
Salt Lake 2 (ANA – 2), Tacoma 3 (seven innings)
W: Feierabend (1-2, 5.26); L: Kohn (2-1, 1.88)
Salt Lake 4 (- 3), Tacoma 7 (seven innings)
W: French (8-2, 2.27); L: Diaz (1-1, 4.78)
Friday, June 25th 2010
Salt Lake 8 (ANA – 2), Tacoma 2
W: Davidson (7-1, 5.06); L: Seddon (8-4, 3.65)
Saturday, June 26th 2010
Tacoma 2, Sacramento 6 (OAK + 1)
W: Middleton (5-5, 2.45); L: Baldwin (4-4, 5.04)
Sunday, June 27th 2010
Tacoma 3, Sacramento 8 (OAK + 2)
W: Halama (3-1, 5.72); L: Snell (1-1, 4.00)
Hitter of the Week:
3B/LF Matt Tuiasosopo, R/R, 5/10/1986
6 G, 21 AB, 5 R, 8 H, 2 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 4/4 K/BB, .381/.480/.762
It’s weeks like these that make me wish there was some place we could put Tui defensively without it causing problems. Tui’s trips to Tacoma sure are interesting in their ways. There was a the 7/12 K/BB he had in April through eight games, and now it’s half his hits going for extra-bases in June, leading to both an OBP and a SLG over .500 overall and a batting average of around .350 in a rather small sample. And then I see the .167/.211/.241 line in the big leagues this season and that he’s been below-average wherever he plays. I think that Tui will eventually figure out how to hit in the big leagues after bouncing back and forth between various extreme of power output and plate discipline, as the more athletic players who didn’t grow up with baseball are inclined to do. I don’t know at what point polishing up his defense is really going to enter into the equation.
Probably Blocked By Bard and/or Alfonzo Mention:
C Adam Moore, R/R, 5/8/1984
7 G, 23 AB, 2 R, 9 H, 2B, 3 RBI, 4/2 K/BB, .391/.440/.435
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Michael Pineda, 1/18/1989
1-0, GS, 0.00 ERA in 6.0 IP, H, 5/3 K/BB, 7/5 G/F
Bias from having seen him in person? Yeah, probably. Around the fourth and fifth innings, Pineda started to lose a bit of momentum, which is to say that he was allowing baserunners and that’s not something he does all that often. As he was still throwing 91-97, there was nothing wrong with his arm so much as how he was failing to get on top of his pitches. Once he got that reined in it was pretty much clear sailing from then out. The turning point back to the good stuff came in the fifth inning when, with two outs, Conger on third, and McAnulty on second, Pineda was facing Peter Bourjos and threw an offspeed pitch to him to start out the at-bat, a called strike at 74 mph low in the zone. Two strikes later, the third one being another low and away offspeed, Bourjos has struck out and as soon as Moore picked up the ball and throws to first, the inning was over. It took him eleven pitches to get through the sixth, and all but one of them was a strike. Go to Tacoma and catch one of Pineda’s starts. He’s good.
Best Outing Since His Return Mention:
LHP Ryan Feierabend, 8/22/1985
1-0, GS, CG, 2.57 ERA in 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 3/0 K/BB, 7/9 G/F
From The Training Room:
Things have been busy in the Rainiers clubhouse of late. On Monday, OF Dave Winfree was signed as a free agent, RHP Michael Pineda was called up from West Tenn and RHPs Jarrett Grube and Steve Palazzolo were both sent there, and CF Ezequiel Carrera hit the DL. The following day, 1B Tommy Everidge was traded to the Round Rock Express. On Thursday, C Carlton Tanabe, who had been around just in case for the Rainiers’ series of doubleheaders, was sent to High Desert to catch one of theirs, and RHP Joe Nelson signed as a free agent. On Friday, C Adam Moore was officially optioned to triple-A, no real surprise, Saturday brought the trade of Carrera to the Indians, which was a surprise, and Sunday morning RHP David Pauley was selected and 1B Mike Carp was optioned to make room for Branyan. … Bard is .231/.259/.423 in his current rehab stint.
Strange Happenings:
In recognition of his efforts with the 2009 squad, manager Daren Brown will be leading the PCL All-Stars against the International League All-Stars on July 14th… Ian Snell had nine Ks against four hits and three walks in five innings on Tuesday. Sunday, he lasted four innings and gave up the same number of runs after five hits, four walks, and three Ks…. Halman had three home runs in a week where he batted .222.
West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (2-4 this week, 41-34 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, June 21st 2010
Off days
Tuesday, June 22nd 2010
West Tenn 3, Montgomery 4 (TB)
W: Rollins (1-0, 5.74); L: Bray (4-4, 3.07)
Wednesday, June 23rd 2010
West Tenn 11, Montgomery 6 (TB 0)
W: Robles (6-4, 4.61); L: Newmann (2-5, 4.12)
Thursday, June 24th 2010
West Tenn 11, Montgomery 1 (TB – 1)
W: Grube (0-0, 1); L: Hall (4-4, 3.13)
Friday, June 25th 2010
West Tenn 4, Montgomery 6 (TB 0)
W: Gorgen (3-1, 1.41); L: Jensen (2-1, 4.54)
Saturday, June 26th 2010
West Tenn 3, Montgomery 5 (TB + 1)
W: Cobb (3-2, 1.85); L: Rohrbaugh (2-2, 2.56)
Sunday, June 27th 2010
West Tenn 2, Montgomery 6 (TB + 2)
W: Rollins (2-0, 5.49); L: Bray (4-5, 3.44)
Hitter of the Week:
3B/LF Nate Tenbrink, L/R, 12/21/1986
5 G, 17 AB, 3 R, 5 H, 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, SB, 6/3 K/BB, .294/.381/.706
It’s a pretty good week for hitting when I’m rejecting guys with 1.000+ OPS in that span from the top spot. Tenbrink seems as worthy as anyone because the past two weeks, where he’s batting .286/.381/.629, suggest that he hasn’t really missed a beat since coming off the DL in spite of a pretty serious injury. He’s also running a 8/6 K/BB since coming back. To start a reference frame here, he’s gone from a 104/47 K/BB in 457 at-bats last year to a 43/29 K/BB in 212 at-bats this year. The walks, like everything else in Tenbrink’s offensive arsenal save strikeouts, are going up. Now, the only thing he seems to be missing is a regular place to play on the field.
I Hear There’s an OF Spot Available with the Rainiers Mention:
LF/1B Johan Limonta, L/L, 8/4/1983
6 G, 22 AB, 6 R, 6 H, 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 4/2 K/BB, HBP, .273/.375/.682
Four-Walk Wednesday Mention:
DH Scott Savastano, R/R, 6/12/1986
4 G, 12 AB, 3 R, 4 H, HR, 4 RBI, CS, 0/5 K/BB, .333/.529/.583
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Jarrett Grube, 11/5/1981
1-0, GS, 1.29 ERA in 7.0 IP, 3 H (HR), R, 7/2 K/BB, 6/8 G/F, WP
Ever since Nick Hill hit the DL back in April, the D-Jaxx have struggled with their last spot in the rotation, trying various patches like Bray. With Pineda now in Tacoma, Grube is the latest attempt to fill that spot, and if he continues as he has, I think he’ll be able to hold it down. A tenth-round pick of the Rockies way back in 2004, Grub was a reliever for much of his career with Colorado and looked like he’d given up starting back in ’06. But last year, after his release, he started twelve of sixteen games for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs in the Atlantic League, and that’s a position he’ll hope to stay at with the D-Jaxx.
Speaking Of… Mention:
LHP Nick Hill, 1/30/1985
0-0, 2 G, 0.00 ERA in 2.2 IP, 2/2 K/BB, 4/2 G/F
From the Training Room:
The experiment of RHP Steven Richard in double-A was short-lived as the moves of Palazzolo, Pineda, and Grube pushed him back to High Desert.
Strange Happenings:
Alex Liddi and Carlos Peguero were named to the Futures Game earlier in the week. Some might wonder why Pineda wasn’t with them, but there were a lot of pitchers around for the World Team, and not so many corner infielders and outfielders… Whatever worked for Dan Cortes last week, he didn’t have this week. He ran a 2/7 K/BB in 2.2 innings… Scott Savastano walked four times on Wednesday. That’s a sixth of his walk totals for the whole season.
High Desert Mavericks (2-4 this week, 37-33 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, June 21st 2010
All-star Break
Tuesday, June 22nd 2010
All-star Break
Wednesday, June 23rd 2010
All-star Break
Thursday, June 24th 2010
Inland Empire 3 (LA – 1), High Desert 4
W: LaFromboise (7-4, 4.36); L: Walter (0-3, 5.52)
Friday, June 25th 2010
Inland Empire 1 (LA – 2), High Desert 2 (seven innings)
W: Vasquez (4-2, 1.88); L: Martin (7-6, 5.03)
Saturday, June 26th 2010
Inland Empire 14 (LA – 1), High Desert 10
W: Redding (3-5, 4.70); L: Kasparek (6-2, 3.18)
Sunday, June 27th 2010
Inland Empire 14 (LA 0), High Desert 2
W: Savage (1-0, 2.57); L: Cleto (1-3, 6.12)
Hitter of the Week:
3B/2B Kyle Seager, L/R, 11/3/1987
4 G, 15 AB, 4 R, 6 H, 2 2B, 4 RBI, CS, 0/1 K/BB, .400/.412/.533
Perhaps Seager was a bit miffed at not being named to the all-star game. It’s hard to say. What I do know is that he came out of the break hitting pretty well, which is a positive sign as June has not been as good to him as previous month have been. Mostly, it’s the average, hanging down around .264, something that would be acceptable if not exciting for Halman or Sams, but not really up to Seager’s talents. Part of that might be that his BABIP this month is down at .297, whereas previously it was up north of .375. On top of that, more than half of his balls in play have been grounders this month, something that’s been climbing as the season has gone on while the line drives, if the Cal League reporting is to be believed, have dropped. At least he’s running a 14/10 K/BB this month.
Utility Infielder Mention:
IF Shaver Hansen, S/R, 12/19/1987
3 G, 9 AB, R, 3 H, 2B, 1/0 K/BB, HBP, .333/.400/.444
Homerin’ Mention:
RF Johermyn Chavez, R/R, 1/26/1989
4 G, 14 AB, 2 R, 3 H, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2/1 K/BB, .214/.267/.643
Pitcher of the Week:
LHP Anthony Vasquez, 9/19/1986
1-0, GS, 1.29 ERA in 7.0 IP, 6 H, R, 6/1 K/BB, 8/6 G/F, WP
All I really needed to do was pick a pitcher from one of the games in which fourteen runs did not score and I’d probably be okay. Vasquez made the task easy for me by throwing a complete game in the second half of a DH that was brought about because of a power malfunction the night before. For the month, Vasquez has only allowed four earned runs in thirty five innings. The strikeouts aren’t much, as he has a 20/3 K/BB in that span, and he’s still giving up roughly the amount of hits one would expect from a halfway decent pitcher in the league. One interesting note is that since his mediocre May debut, his strikeouts have come down, but the groundballs have come up and everything else has been roughly the same. Take from that what you will.
Could’ve Gone Longer, If not For the Outage Mention:
RHP Andrew Carraway, 9/4/1986
0-0, GS, 3.00 ERA in 3.0 IP, 3 H, R, 2/1 K/BB, 5/2 G/F
From the Training Room:
As Richard came in, C Hassiel Jimenez was heading out to join the Pulaski team. Tanabe would eventually take his place as the backup. LHP Nick Czyz was pushed out of the ‘pen with the addition of Richard, though it worked out okay for him because he might be a starter in Clinton now. On Sunday, OF Maximo Mendez came off the DL, and that might have been the corresponding move to Diaz leaving town.
Strange Happenings:
In addition to Mariners prospects being traded on Saturday, there were also former Mariners prospects being traded, as LHP Fabian Williamson headed to join the Stockton Ports as part of a trade between the Athletics and the Red Sox for LF David Patterson. Williamson joined the Red Sox in exchange for David Aardsma… The Mavs are tied for first with four other teams, even with the 2-2 record in the second half.
Clinton Lumberkings (2-1 this week, 39-33 overall)
The Week in Review:
Monday, June 21st 2010
All-star Break
Tuesday, June 22nd 2010
All-star Break
Wednesday, June 23rd 2010
All-star Break
Thursday, June 24th 2010
All-star Break
Friday, June 25th 2010
Beloit 6 (MIN + 1), Clinton 1
W: Stillings (7-3, 3.75); L: Gillheeney (4-6, 3.36)
Saturday, June 26th 2010
Beloit 1 (MIN 0), Clinton 6
W: Czyz (1-0, 0.68); L: Hermsen (4-2, 3.73)
Sunday, June 27th 2010
Beloit 6 (MIN – 1), Clinton 8
W: Jimenez (2-3, 2.14); L: Armstrong (0-1, 18.90)
Hitter of the Week:
1B Tim Morris, L/L, 12/11/1987
3 G, 11 AB, 4 R, 5 H, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 0/1 K/BB, .455/.500/.818
An eleventh-round pick last year, Morris didn’t join Clinton until late in May after hitting .214/.324/.318 his previous half-season in Pulaski. Whether it was due to performance or just that he wasn’t quite ready to go, I don’t know. Either justification seems probable, because despite coming out of St. John’s and some experience as a college hitter, he has some difficulty hitting for power. Average is hardly issue for him, as he’s hovered around .300, and walks aren’t bad, though they’ve tapered off since May, but the two extra-base hits in the short week comprise half his totals for the whole month. While the strikeouts aren’t at horrible levels at 20% of his at-bats this month, when the power isn’t showing up, they’re going to seem like more of a problem.
Also Showing Rare Power (and Walks!) Mention:
CF Daniel Carroll, R/R, 1/6/1989
2 G, 6 AB, 3 R, 3 H, HR, 1/3 K/BB, .500/.667/1.000
Pitcher of the Week:
LHP Nick Czyz, 4/10/1987
1-0, GS, 1.59 ERA in 5.2 IP, 3 H, R, 7/0 K/BB, 6/4 G/F, WP, HB
All-star games chewing up the better part of a week can often lead to me to highlight pitchers for reasons other than an excellent performance. Czyz doesn’t fit in that category. In his return to the league after a two-month tour of the Cal League, Czyz got a start and retired eight in a row from the first to the fourth, three of them on strikeouts. Czyz didn’t fare that well for the Mavs, running a 17/13 K/BB in 28.2 innings, but he’s been fine in his native Midwest. Adding his three relief appearances earlier in the year, Czyz is at 17/3 in 13.1 innings for Clinton, and has only allowed one hit to a right-handed hitter despite getting 9.1 innings against them. It’s a bit of an outlier, considering they had no issues with him in California, and he recorded a better K-rate against southpaws. We’ll see if he makes more appearances in this spot, and in the fifth slot of the rotation.
All-Star Southpaw RelieverMention:
LHP Brian Moran, 9/30/1988
0-0,G, 0.00 ERA in 2.0 IP, 2 H, 2/0 K/BB, 4/0 G/F
From the Training Room:
As I noted in my Aquasox report from earlier in the week, RHP Jorden Merry was sent west from Clinton on Monday. The roster was back to full strength a few days later when Czyz joined up.
Strange Happenings:
Czyz’ win against the Snappers was only the third of the season for the Lumberkings. Clinton is 3-8 against Beloit this season… Nick Franklin didn’t make it into the starting lineup for the MWL All-Star game, but he did make it into the home run derby, where he hit six and lasted into the second round… Over at the Lumberblog, which I don’t pimp often enough, manager John Tamargo suggested that the outfield of James Jones, Daniel Carroll, and Matt Cerione was likely to break out in the second half.
Everett Aquasox (8-2)
Friday, June 18th 2010
Everett 11, Salem-Keizer 3 (SF)
W: Medina (1-0, 1.50); L: Rogers (0-1, 10.38)
Saturday, June 19th 2010
Everett 5, Salem-Keizer 3 (SF – 2)
W: Fernandez (1-0, 0.00); L: Concepcion (0-1, 12.00)
Sunday, June 20th 2010
Everett 7, Salem-Keizer 6 (SF – 3) (ten innings)
W: Kessinger (1-0, 13.50); L: Sanford (0-1, 4.50)
Monday, June 21st 2010
Yakima 5 (ARI – 2), Everett 6
W: Hudson (1-0, 4.50); L: Robinson (0-1, 6.75)
Tuesday, June 22nd 2010
Yakima 3 (ARI – 3), Everett 5
W: Diaz (1-0, 6.75); L: Reagan (0-1, 12.00)
Wednesday, June 23rd 2010
Yakima 2 (ARI – 4), Everett 4
W: Hudson (2-0, 3.38); L: Wolcott (1-1, 2.77)
Thursday, June 24th 2010
Yakima 4 (ARI – 5), Everett 5
W: Fernandez (2-0, 2.70); L: Pena (0-2, 6.75)
Friday, June 25th 2010
Yakima 9 (ARI – 4), Everett 5 (eleven innings)
W: Andrews (1-0, 1.59); L: Diaz (1-1, 14.54)
Saturday, June 26th 2010
Everett 6, Spokane 2 (TEX – 6)
W: Sorce (1-0, 3.75); L: Osborne (0-2, 7.11)
Sunday, June 27th 2010
Everett 4, Spokane 5 (TEX – 5)
W: Rodebaugh (1-0, 0.00); L: Kesler (0-1, 5.40)
Hitter of the Week:
OF Kevin Rivers, L/R, 8/24/1988
10 G, 35 AB, 10 R, 13 H, 2 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 4/7 K/BB, .371/.477/.657
As I mentioned before in the preview, Rivers signed as a NDFA with the M’s last season out of Franklin Pierce, overlapping slightly with Savastano who is now in double-A. Rivers is two years younger, so it makes sense that he’s playing a little lower, but with the way he’s been hitting, he could move pretty quickly. Splitting his time about evenly between DH, left, and right field, Rivers has a hit streak spanning the whole season, and being a left-handed power hitter, might put up some silly numbers if left in Everett for too long. He already has nearly as many walks now as he did all of last season, while cutting down the strikeouts substantially. He might end up as just an org player without a good defensive position, but you never know.
Best [Right-Handed] Hitter Mention:
3B Kevin Mailloux, R/R, 3/5/1986
10 G, 38 AB, 12 R, 13 H, 4 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, SB, 8/6 K/BB, .342/.422/.605
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Yoervis Medina, 7/27/1988
1-0, 2 GS, 1.54 ERA in 11.2 IP, 5 H (HR), 3 R (2 ER), 16/4 K/BB, 10/6 G/F, WP, HB
In his first outing in the league, Medina limited the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, usually quite a powerful team, to a home run and a walk over six innings while he struck out nine. By compariaon, his second outing doesn’t look nearly as shiny, but with seven Ks and only four hits allowed in 5.2 innings, it’s hard to drop him just for that. Medina was a four-year starter in the VSL who did a little bit of work in the winter league last offseason and understandably got lit up. There are other pitchers on the staff that I’m more interested in, but Medina’s received good marks from the coaching staff and was deemed fit to open the season for the Aquasox, so it could be worth making the trip up to see him.
In Control Mention:
RHP Chris Sorce, 10/28/1987
1-0, 2 GS, 3.75 ERA in 12.0 IP, 11 H (2 HR), 5 R, 11/1 K/BB, 14/7 G/F, HB
From the Training Room:
Beyond Merry, RHPs Tyler Burgoon and Jonathan Arias, C Billy Marcoe, and LHP Jason Markovitz all joined the team.
Strange Happenings:
In case anyone had been wondering, Rich Dorman is back as the Aquasox pitching coach and seems to have retired from playing… The 7-0 start for the Aquasox was the best in their history as you might imagine. Here are the categories they lead the league in at the moment: runs (59), doubles (21), walks (45), strikeouts (101), stolen bases (18), caught stealing (9). The pitching has allowed the second-fewest hits with 67 and has the second-most strikeouts at 93, but they also lead the league in a more unpleasant category: walks, as they’ve handed out forty-four free passes already.
Pulaski Mariners (4-2):
Monday, June 21st 2010
The season hasn’t started yet.
Tuesday, June 22nd 2010
Bluefield 4 (BAL), Pulaski 8
W: Diaz (1-0, 3.60); L: Martin (0-1, 4.50)
Wednesday, June 23rd 2010
Bluefield 14 (BAL 0), Pulaski 0
W: Cespedes (1-0, 0.00); L: Nava (0-1, 12.00)
Thursday, June 24th 2010
Bluefield 4 (BAL – 1), Pulaski 5
W: Boyce (1-0, 0.00); L: Petersime (0-1, 0.00)
Friday, June 25th 2010
Burlington 7 (KC- 2), Pulaski 8
W: Bischoff (1-0, 0.00); L: Worrell (0-1, 2.45)
Saturday, June 26th 2010
Burlington 2 (KC- 3), Pulaski 6
W: Vargas (1-0, 1.80); L: Dooley (0-2, 12.60)
Sunday, June 27th 2010
Burlington 10 (KC- 2), Pulaski 5
W: Hernandez (1-0, 0.00); L: N. Diaz (1-1, 9.35)
Hitter of the Week:
3B Ramon Morla, R/R, 11/20/1989
6 G, 23 AB, 5 R, 12 H, 3 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, SB, CS, 5/3 K/BB, .522/.577/1.000
Starts to the season don’t get much flashier than what Ramon Morla has managed to do. It must be awful for his teammate James Wood, who still managed to come up a hundred and fifty points behind Morla in OPS. Morla was one of the bigger signing the M’s made out of the Dominican Republic in 2006, and his performance right now might be one of those indicators that you can’t trust DSL stats all that easily. His first season in the league, he hit .233/.364/.345. His second wasn’t much better, and average aside, his ’09 debut in Peoria was pretty much par for his established course. Now, he’s one of the league’s top hitters, though looking at the charts I wouldn’t expect him to end up with Player of the Week honors, though it’s close. I’m curious to see whether he keeps this up, as there are some flaws in his defensive game that have already shown up: he’s made three errors already.
Best [Left-Handed] Hitter on the Team Mention:
OF James Wood, L/L, 12/19/1987
5 G, 18 AB, 6 R, 9 H, 4 2B, 3B, RBI, 2/3 K/BB, SB, .500/.591/.833
Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Yovanny Olivero, 3/5/1988
0-0, 2 G, S, 1.29 ERA in 7.0 IP, 5 H, R, 7/2 K/BB, 8/5 G/F
I don’t know whether or not the Mariners subscribe to the theory of having two younger “starting pitchers” in a single game at the lower levels. It seems to be the case in Peoria though, and Olivero is one of two on the Pulaski staff that’s getting close to that number of innings without opening any games yet. He’s also been a little bit more in control than his peers, as his .192 average against would rank as one of the better marks on the team. Olivero might qualify as a bit of a sleeper, because despite being signed back in ’05, he only has two season of experience due to an elbow strain in ’07 that ultimately led to Tommy John surgery in ’08. If you consider last year to be one of recovery, there could be more to him than we’ve yet seen.
Nine Up, Nine Down in Pro Debut Mention:
RHP Timothy Boyce, 2/6/1987
1-0, G, 0.00 ERA in 3.0 IP, 7/0 K/BB, 2/0 G/F
From the Training Room:
There were a few DL placements to open the season as RHP Brandon Maurer, 1B Jharmidy de Jesus, and 2B Cesar Fuentes all landed there. Arias started the season with the team, but was later promoted to Everett, and the Pulaski M’s in turn got RHP Bryan Leigh, who signed as a NDFA out of U Mass. Leigh was 6-5 this year with a 4.80 ERA in 69.1 IP, running a 55/20 K/BB… They also picked up RHP Lance Abbott, a NDFA of Sacramento State who doesn’t look like he pitched for them this season. Does that last name sound familiar? It should: he’s Paul’s son.
Strange Happenings:
The Pulaski M’s don’t have a regular broadcast that I know of, so if you want to listen to the team on MiLB.com, you’ll have to tune into the opposition’s broadcasts. They usually have something… In Sunday evening’s game, one of the Royals’ batters hit two home runs off us and was also hit twice by M’s pitchers. This bodes well for future meetings between the two teams.
Dispatches from the Land of Rehabbers and Teens:
RHP Danny Cruz Ayala: G, S, 0.00 ERA in 3.0 IP, 3 H, 5/0 K/BB
LHP Erik Bedard: 2 GS, 2.70 ERA in 6.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 11/0 K/BB
C/1B Ji-Man Choi: 5 G, 17 AB 4 R, 10 H, 2B, 5 RBI, SB, 3/2 K/BB, .588/.650/.647
1B Jose Flores: 4 G, 15 AB, 3 R, 6 H, 3 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 2 CS, 5/3 K/BB, .400/.474/.800
RHP Nolan Gallagher: 2 GS, 5.40 ERA in 10.0 IP, 12 H, 8 R (6 ER), 7/3 K/BB
RHP Seon Gi Kim: 2 G, 7.71 ERA in 9.1 IP, 13 H, 8 R, 12/1 K/BB
CF Alfredo Morales: 5 G, 24 AB, 6 R, 10 H, 4 2B, 3B, 3 RBI, SB, 8/0 /BB, .417/.417/.667
OF Guillermo Pimentel: 5 G, 19 AB, R, 5 H, 2B, RBI, 4/2 K/BB, .263/.364/.316
RHP Tom Wilhelmsen: 2 G, 0.00 ERA in 4.0 IP, H, 7/1 K/BB
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36 Responses to “Minor League Wrap (6/21-27/10)”
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Unbelievably great job Jay! I am starting to feel guilty about getting this type of information and analysis on a weekly basis (in addition to the daily insight/therapy that USSM provides routinely during the season) – for free. I am going to make a donation – after I figure out how to do just that.
The information and analysis provided by the “operators” and “posters” is Master Degree/Doctorate level stuff. You guys should be teaching courses. I am sure the readers appreciate it. I know I do.
End of tongue bath for Jay/USSM:
Questions I had – but you answered before I asked them:
Fierabend, Limonta (who to promote to AAA), what happened to Everidge, was Zeke really any kind of loss, your opinion on Carps future, does Franklin get promoted to High Desert this season? I guess I don’t have to ask these questions now.
However, I do have two questions that I would like to ask:
1: Dan Cortes … is it just a matter of time before he is removed from the 40-man roster? It seems like his performance does not and will not ever likely match his tools. It might be time to shed him. The 40-man is filling up rather quickly.
2: What is your scouting report on Johan Limonta in regard to the 5 tools scouts evaluate. He seems to be very consistent – in comparison to Peguero who is streaky.
Jay, I really enjoy reading these reports – thank you for writing them.
Thanks Jay. It looks like Dustin Ackley’s batting average has been hovering at .250 for a few weeks now (while his OBP is still pretty high). Has Ackley cooled off a little bit since his hot streak?
I almost wonder if they told Ackley to start working on hitting for a little more power in the last couple weeks. His OBP fell but his SLG has been steadily increasing.
AVG/OBP/SLG
APR:.147/.289/.227
MAY:.303/.475/.447
JUN:.292/.385/.461
Maybe he is just finding his comfort zone.
I’d take that slash line from Ackley anytime, thanks. Do any Mariners have one that good?
Branyan? hehe
So, I am on record as not having much confidence that Matt Tuiasosopo will ever be much of a contributor at the major-league level (along the lines of snarky comments like “If Tui is the answer, you’re asking the wrong question”). But maybe I have been looking at this the wrong way, and it makes me wonder if the organization has as well.
To wit: is it possible that the team should be thinking of him as a possible “everyday” DH once the Milton Bradleys and Mike Sweeneys (and Russ Branyans, if his back can’t handle 1B)of the world are no longer with us? Has there been any thought that you know of, Jay, that part of Tui’s problems at the plate once in the Show is that he is too over-matched in the field (not least because he’s being used all over it, a sort of inutility infielder)?
It may just be that he’s one of those guys who have the necessary ability to crush AAA/Spring Training pitching but, for whatever reason, can’t translate it to the bigs. But your analysis of the situation makes me think that may not be the case. So should the M’s focus on him primarily as a hitter and worry less about what sort of position he might play? Aside from Poythress, who I assume is at least a couple of years away, I can’t think of anyone in the high minors who is both still a “prospect” in any real sense of the word and who potentially profiles principally as a DH-type. Thoughts?
Me either. I think you are right!
This is a painful concept to fathom. You do provide consistently good comments BTW, but this is a gut wrenching premise – post lunch break. I know you didn’t ask me, you asked Jay; but I think Tui is just on a mini-hot streak post demotion and his numbers at AAA will decline dramatically. Mention a potential callup to the big club and that should take care of his hot streak. He has limited tools, no plate discipline, a bad understanding of the strike zone and a long swing with many holes. In other words, he is a mistake pitch hitter … an occasional mistake pitch hitter. His only value to any team would be in a utility role and being able to play multiple positions, but he has not proven to be adept at playing any of them. He is likely going to hurt you the least playing LF … but we have better options than him. Figgins may (in 2 years or so) become the utility player – because we need a 3B who can hit and hit for power … and Ackley will likely be the 2B of the future (although the jury is still very much out on that one – from a defensive standpoint).
I defer to Jay’s expertise, but I just had to opine.
You’re assuming there that names like Eliezer Alfonzo and David Pauley, or even Casey Kotchman, for that matter, are going to continue being there through the offseason. I’d like to see Sean White go too, but that’s another matter.
I noted last week that Cortes had two starts in there where he ran a 12/1 K/BB over 11.0 innings, and it’s performances like those that make me a little bit unwilling to cut bait on him immediately. Cortes is still in that position where he’s young enough, and his stuff has improved so much over the course of his minor league career, that it’s not too difficult to imagine some mechanical tweak setting him right. Last week was a reminder of that. This week was a reminder that most guys don’t just flip a switch on and dominate consistently from then out.
Consistency isn’t exactly a word that I’d use for Limonta. As batting average goes, maybe. You can count on him being around or a little below .300 for most of a double-A season. Power is another matter. Last year he had four dingers in July and not more than one any other month. The year before, he had six in July, zero in June, and three or fewer every other month. He kind of has the Bryan LaHair issue of his power only showing up in fits and starts. The good news is that he’s able to provide doubles most of the time anyway.
This season, he’s mostly been West Tenn’s first baseman, but he can also spend some time in left field, and I’ve even seen him take center in a box score once or twice. I don’t think his arm is good enough to play in right. He’s no stolen base threat, and no one will mistake him for a good defender, but he can get the job done.
Basically, he’s a platoon hitter that you’re going to use against right-handers, maybe get ten home runs out of over the course of the season, and possesses a modicum of defensive versatility. He’s nowhere near as exciting as I make him out to be with the statlines, but I tend to like cheering for the fringe players because the odds are stacked against anyone making any kind of major league contribution.
It’s possible, but he’s also split his time between third and left in Tacoma, with a few innings at second. He just hasn’t ended up at six different positions yet.
It’s an interesting idea, I’ll give you that. However, there has been talk in the past from other guys who have tried the DH position out that it’s more difficult for them to maintain focus when they’re not on the field. Ibanez said it, and suggested that Edgar was one of the few who could seem to pull it off. So, yes, it’s an option, but there are few guarantees on it working.
As for other “DH” prospects in the system, which I don’t even really like typing out, I don’t think Poythress is one of them because he’s competent enough at defense at first to survive. It’s possible that either he or Raben could do it with the other manning first, but again, we’re speculating on two guys from the same team making it to the big leagues and playing well, and that doesn’t happen all the time as the Aquasox Wall of Fame reminded me earlier in the week. Another DH type is Scott Savastano, who hardly ever takes the field, but his contributions outside of batting average aren’t often thrilling.
Jay,
What are your thoughts on Tui vs Lopez. Would you rather pick up Lopez’ 2011 option or give Tui a shot at 3B?
Indeed, msfanmike; I floated this question not just for Jay bur for anyone, so thanks for the input. The reason I even broached the subject was Jay’s observations about the learning curve for gifted athletes (no question Tui is one) who came to the game relatively late (again, the shoe fits).
This prompted me to look at his meaningful (i.e., not rookie-ball rehab assignments, early career small sample sizes, etc.) minor league stats before this year:
2007 (AA) .260/.371/.404 — .349 wOBA
2008 (AAA) .281/.364/.453 — .362 wOBA
2009 (AAA) .261/.368/.473 — .374 wOBA, .212 ISO (59 games)
2010 (AAA) .347/.508/.531 (small sample size — 14 games)
That 2009 stint saw him post a wRC+ of 124, so it made me think that there might be (emphasis on “might”) more to this idea of him emerging as a professional hitter. He will almost certainly regress from his current hot streak, as you rightly point out, but the regression may still take him back to some respectable numbers. I guess the real question then becomes, why can’t he translate pretty impressive numbers at AAA to even respectable ones at the major league level?
Jay. I compliment ya every week, and yet the quality keeps maintaining itself or goes up! My absolute favorite report.
Regarding Tuiasasopo- I’m going to get some flak for this one.
But I don’t think he’s strictly a “comes-in-spurts” bat with okay power.
If I were him, I’d do one thing. Lose weight.
About 15 pounds or so.
He’s got a kind of heavy bone structure, the kind that ADDS weight easily…and I’m thinking right now, he needs to acquire faster twitches in his muscle mass. Right now, he has nil.
Fast-twitch fiber will add bat speed, and MAY help defense. Added bat speed may account for getting to more balls pitched to him outside, and doing something with them.
If he’s 6’2″, and 210-215 as opposed to 230, I don’t think he loses an appreciable amount of power already there.
But if this is what he is (and by all accounts, he’s worked HARD at being a ballplayer), then he’s essentially a mistake-hitter that the ball is going to find, no matter where you put him in the field.
I could be way off-base, but that’s my thoughts on Tui. He could be the kind of athlete that 15-20 pounds lighter makes all the difference on.
Thanks for the thoughtful reply, Jay (my previous post crossed yours). I don’t really like to think in terms of “DH prospects” either, but it was a thought, at least in Tui’s case, that maybe, just maybe, he might improve his focus if he weren’t worried with having to play six different positions, and poorly at that. But I hear you regarding what players say about the difficulty of DHing, which is one more reason I think Edgar belongs in the Hall, but that’s another discussion.
Interesting, SoZ: I wonder (and I don’t know the answer to this question), has he put on weight, or different kind of weight, since he started getting regular MiLB playing time in ’07, or has he trimmed down? There is a clear arc of improvement in the wOBA and the SLG since then.
Thank you for the reminder Jay. Sometimes the “pain” has set in so deeply that I forget about the obvious and necessary castaways. The 4 players you mention … all expendable … without question.
Also, thank you for the refresher in regard to Cortes’ age. I thought he was older.
Good question … and one without an obvious (at least objective) answer. The differences between Major League and AAA pitching seems to be the most logical reason. That, and the added pressure. Mistakes are easier to hit … and AAA pitchers make more mistakes.
I believe this is Tui’s last “Option” year, so the team is going to be faced with a fish or cut bait decision on him at years end. Others removed from the 40 man roster do tend to make their way back into the minor league system once they clear waivers (e.g. Josh Wilson and numerous others over the years).
With Tui, I think he could be removed now, nobody would pick him up – and then he could be re-assigned within the AAA ranks up to the point where he may or may not ever get promoted again. I doubt there is any real urgency to do this since (as Jay reminded us) there are plenty of current roster dwellers that could be cast aside without having to remove Tui from the 40 man.
Since Tui has not yet reached his “prime” years – there is still time (technically) to see what the finished product might look like. Unfortunately, I don’t think his ceiling is very high. However, I am not a scout – I only play one part time at home.
Jay, when are you going to tell us what you know about Brandol Perez? It’s not often you see sixteen-year-olds put up eye-popping numbers like he has. He’s only started one game, but he’s pitched multiple innings in his relief appearances. It goes without saying, it’s limited action so far, but those numbers just jump off the page. What do you have on him?
This is the part where I’d like to adjust my font size instead, but I’ll just tag bomb instead:
Matt Tuiasosopo has 130 plate appearances in the big leagues.
While it seems like he’s been around forever and we’ve spent eons agonizing over his ineptitude at the plate, 130 plate appearances over the course of three seasons does not account for an adjustment period, particularly when the team is asking him to play positions that he has no game experience at even the minor league level, like left field earlier in the year, right field, and first base.
It’s a gross fallacy to assume that players are going to succeed in their first few hundred plate appearances or amount to nothing at all. Yet, I continue to see it year after year. It’s an argument that really does nothing but hurt our evaluations.
Lopez has had enough of an adjustment period in the big leagues to the point where we can basically say that he is what he is: a guy who hits the same home run over and over, making him a horrible fit for this park, and who has some defensive talent marred by inconsistencies of focus not quite on the Yuni levels. I would have tried to trade him in the offseason after the 25 home runs, but seeing as how that ship has sailed, I’d say that putting Tui there for a year would be irritating at times, but isn’t likely to kill anyone. That would give us another year to see if Mangini and/or Liddi are either the future at the position or merely internal options until something better comes along.
I noticed Dennis Raben hasn’t showed up in a box score since the All Star break (only in the game that was finished from earlier in the season)
Looked around but couldn’t find anything about a new injury. Anyone hear anything?
Wow; sorry, Jay, I guess I could have looked that up for myself, but it never occurred to me that it would be so few. As you say, it seems like we’ve been agonizing for eons about Tui, so if you had asked me out of the blue where I would have put the over/under on his big-league PAs, I probably would have SWAGed it around 340-350. Still not a ton, but a hell of a lot more than 130.
I don’t usually like to talk about summer league prospects, unless it’s in brief and after the season is over.
Here are a few summer league statlines for everyone to chew on for a while:
Pitcher A: 8-2, 1.06 ERA in 68.0 IP, 46 H, 13 R (8 ER), 73/10 K/BB
Pitcher B: 2-1, 0.41 ERA in 20.1 IP, 14 H, 4 R (ER), 14/7 K/BB
Pitcher A, right? That’s Eddy Fernandez, who washed out of the system after last season. Pitcher B, who is showing some ugly command for the level, is Michael Pineda. The only reason I use these two is because I no longer have access to the VSL stats of one Cesar Jimenez, who was 7-1 with a 0.83 ERA over eleven starts as a seventeen-year-old.
There are so many different factors that go into the evaluation of DSL stats that they’re effectively meaningless. The most glaring one is that you have four teams which only play within their own division, meaning that the quality of your sample is horrible.
But beyond that, there’s reason to be incredibly suspicious of southpaws in the league. What Fernandez and Jimenez had that allowed them to succeed was a change-up. Their fastballs were never anything special, they topped in the mid-to-high 80s, but since 90% of their competition had never seen a change-up and had no idea what to do with one, they dominated. Another fun future case study might be Henry Perez. He hadn’t been killing it at Fernandez or Jimenez levels, but he was certainly no slouch either and has been kicking butt this year. So why hasn’t he been promoted? My guess is that he fits within the same basic profile.
Perez’ DSL statline is eye-catching. It doesn’t really mean a whole lot though. Not until he shows up stateside and starts doing similar things.
It’s no big deal, certainly nothing to apologize over. The debate over him just happened to hit a sour note with me. Small sample sizes are the bane of the evaluator’s existence, which is why when I do it (every week, let’s say), I try to add views of previous track record or splits to make it a more complete picture.
I don’t think Tui is that great, but I do believe that there’s been a certain disdain for him that might not be wholly justified.
Actually, that completed game was just from Thursday and was finished Friday.
There was one play that caught my eye in the game, and that was in the third inning when, after Raben had singled, Eddy Martinez-Esteve hit into a double play grounder that was bobbled so badly that both runners managed to be safe. While Raben stayed in long enough to single before the game was temporarily called in the next inning, he may have tweaked something minor when he was running out the DP earlier. Alternatively, he might have stumbled off the field after the lights went off, and that’s certainly something you wouldn’t want to talk about much in the press. In any case, he’s not on the DL.
A very, very fair and accurate analyis above Jay. No argument here. But there is the inevitable “however” … and not intended to cause any extra anxt.
I think there is a good reason for the limited 130 MLB plate appearances for Tui. He hasn’t given them a reason to let him have more. Arguably (at this point) he should have had fewer. The thought of an additional 250 Plate Appearances from Tui (before we have an answer) is making my eyelids twitch.
I do understand, agree with and endorse your point in regard to limited sample size being the bane of existence for a truly good talent evaluation process to run its course … but that “course” is shorter for some than others – based on all sorts of factors that you understand better than I (tools, scouting report, projections … and how much $ the organization has invested in the player).
Some players never get more than the “few” AB’s to stake their claim. Carp may end becoming one of those guys; although I think he possesses a much better approach at the plate with a much shorter swing (and a higher upside as an offensive player) than Tui. However, he possses zero defensive flexibility. He will be limited to one position.
I love the passion … that’s why I love this site. If we all agreed all the time, life wouldn’t be very interesting or very funny.
At least we can keep it civil. But in the interest of further amusement masquerading as analysis, it’s mystery stat line analysis again!
Player A: 130 PA, 7 R, 21 H, 4 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 44/7 K/BB, .175/.225/.275, .224 wOBA
Player B: 129 PA, 13 R, 27 H, 2B, 3 3B, 4 RBI, 40/6 K/BB, .221/.258/.279, .244 wOBA
Player A, you probably can guess from all the talk we’ve had thus far, is Tui over the course of his partial three seasons of offensive struggles.
Player B is Michael Saunders last season!
I’ve always liked Saunders a great deal more than I’ve ever liked Tui, but if you’re going to play the game of “Tui has never done enough to warrant more playing time”, I can turn around and say that the guy who is tied for fourth on the team in home runs despite having logged fewer than a hundred at-bats didn’t really prove he deserved to play either.
Re: Lopez v Tui
I agree with your assessment. In fact, I’d really like to see him at 3B now and see what we can get for Lopez. My guess is we’re probably a year away from seeing Ackley and I’d like to see Tui at 3B until then.
I would’ve liked to see this in bold as well:
Some thoughts from a guy who’s at Cheney fairly often:
I’m pretty doubtful Carrera can succeed in the majors with his current swing. The contact ability isn’t at Endy Chavez levels, and the mechanics of the swing don’t really allow for power. Oh, and he’s not the CF that Halman is. So that’s problematic, but who knows; this scouting report would work for Reggie Willits, who’s not a bad high-end comp for the guy.
On Limonta, we’ll always have a guy who puts up numbers and is quite a bit older than his teammates. This always seems to happen at AA, though you see it sometimes in A+. A few years ago, people talked about Marshall Hubbard as a sleeper, and Hubbard hit a lot better than Limonta (at the same age). System depth is very, very good to have, so he’s not worthless, but you can’t evaluate him the way you would some 21 year old prospect. Is he more consistent? Well, yeah, he better be: that’s what he’s bringing to the org.
On Cortes, I can’t be entirely rational about this, as I’ve had out-sized hopes for him since the trade and since seeing the pitch fx data on him in the spring. You can’t just cut bait (not yet anyway) on a guy with the arm he’s got. This is the second pitching coach he’s had in the org, which means he’s had at least 3 in AA so far. That’s a bad sign, but I think the M’s need to exhaust a few more options before they even consider releasing the guy. Try him with Navarro. Try him with the roving instructor. Try anybody. But keep trying.
On Tui… man, I feel like I’ve been arguing about Tui for a decade, but Jay’s right, he’s still fairly young. That said, it will probably surprise no one that the resident Tui pessimist is dry heaving at the thought of Tui as the M’s every day 2011 3B. Yes, his line in 130 MLB ABs is terrible, but the components are actually worse. He’s struck out in about 35% of his PAs in Seattle, and was over 30% in Tacoma last year. He’s been great in AAA this year, but it’s such a vanishingly small sample, I don’t know what to make of it. His defense has regressed this year, and that’s saying something: he’s not going to be a defensive asset and he really needs to hit to be an above average player. Add it up and you’re looking at a guy who gets to replacement level with some solid improvement. If he really puts it all together, he’s within hailing distance of average (and that’s a HUGE improvement). So, the M’s would trade Lopez and his manageable contract to get a minimum of one win worse at 3B and save maybe $4 million.
The only way that works out is if they punt on 2011 and decide to take a run at 2012/13. It’s a bit early to say that, I think. Even if you decide that Lopez is worth more in trade (and that’s a fair conclusion), I think the team would be better off getting a free agent on a cheap deal or seeing what Mangini could do. This isn’t entirely Tui’s fault; he was moved around the diamond in 2009 and 2010, and still doesn’t have a real position. Forcing him to play the hot corner every day wouldn’t be fair to him, and it certainly wouldn’t be fair to M’s fans.
Geez, Jay. This is like getting the Sunday NY Times dropped at door with a thud — it’s going to take the rest of the week just to wade through all the information (just in time to do it all over again).
Thanks, though.
Also, some excellent comments from the looks of it (again, I haven’t got through the post yet so I only skimmed down the comments to post this). If it’s true that there’s an inverse correlation between the a team’s results and the quality of the blogs covering it, it also seems to be true that the bad seasons bring out the best in the commentariat.
We still don’t know what we’ll get for Lee (and possibly Aardsma and Lopez), but it seems to me that 2011 is already in the bag as a rebuilding year. 2012 just seems infinitely brighter, IMO. We won’t have the Bradley/Silva contract and we’ll have a lot more clarity on Saunders, Moore, Tui, etc.
For next year (and the rest of this year), I’d like to take a nice long look at Saunders, Moore, and Tui. Next year, I hope we see Ackley and Pineda. I just don’t see the wisdom in spending money on next year’s team. Yes, it’s too early to say that with any certainty, but it sure looks that way now.
Is Pineda pitching Tuesday? Does that mean he is pitching on the 4th?
I’m always confused about what they consider a “rotation” at triple A, given double headers, and players moving in and out.
Tenbrink’s emergence is one of those wonderful surprises that you get almost every season. Someone steps up and figures something out and has a breakout campaign, and comes completely out of… well.. left field. I’m looking forward to seeing if he can keep this up. It would be nice to have another advanced hitting prospect making life easy on Jack Z.
I think I have an irrational mancrush on Scott Savastano. Seems to be one of those really high contact guys who put the ball in play quite a bit, but he has the plate discipline and patience to take walks (He’s at an 11.5% walk rate this season). His problem is his lack of power (he’s also 24). Any pop he develops could make him a first rate hitter.
I also have one on Kyle Seager. I just seem to like high contact, high walk guys, with no power.
That’s a fascinating stat line:
12 strikeouts in 9.1 innings
1 walk in 9.1 innings
13 hits in 9.1 innings
8 runs in 9.1 innings
Extremes!
How many innings? 🙂
You won’t hear any arguments from me on the first part of the quoted statement above Jay – and I am glad we view the two in a similar fashion. The jury is still out on Saunders, but I believe he has always been a more highly regarded prospect than Tui – based on tools and projections alone … and I do think he will become a good player some day; maybe even some day soon. Plus, he can field at least one (perhaps two) defensive positions competently.
In regard to the 2nd portion of the quote above, I don’t think it is so much a matter of what Tui has actually produced in comparison to Saunders (and I wasn’t making that comparison)… it is how he has looked while having “produced” it.
Tui will keep getting his chances, but the prospect of that prospect remaining a prospect … are a bit suspect. I simply think he has too many flaws to become a very good MLB player – but I understand what you are saying and don’t have any particular disagreement with it … just a difference of opinion on a projection of the player based on his merits and his merits alone.
Hey Jay,
I am from Brazil and a huge mariners fan (and now the whole mariners system too). Thanks for the reports. I want to know about my fellow brazilian Jean Tomé. Last year he was in the Pulaski roster. Where is he now? How is he doing?
Yeah, no kidding. I was a little worried last year when I’d be putting these up and maybe hitting double digits in comments, but the past few ones have been particularly active, even though about a third of that is just me not shutting up. This one has been particularly interesting, and may prompt a spin-off Tui vs. Saunders post.
Our triple-A roster is a little wonky right now, but no, Pineda is pitching today. Right now actually. Hop to it people. That means you probably won’t be able to see him until Fresno comes to town though. That homestand starts on the 8th.
For the record, I think that Tui is probably an improved Mike Morse when it comes down to it. Maybe we could trade him for that Langerhans kid who doesn’t seem to be getting enough playing time. But more seriously, because I’m playing contrarian here, I’d also say that Saunders was given some pretty regular playing opportunities last year, final few weeks excluded, whereas Tui has not ever gotten regular starts.
Oh and Tui just hit his third home run.
Hey, great to hear from Brazil. Maybe you have some info you’ll share on your countryman, Felipe Burin, who has really been hitting well for the Venezuelan Mariners team.
Unfortunately, I don’t have good news on Tomé at the moment. I see him listed on the Arizona League roster, but he hasn’t pitched yet. It’s possible that he’s injured, or the Mariners might have him on an arm strengthening program, which they have done sometimes with other prospects. It’s a shame though, I really liked what he did for Pulaski last season and was looking forward to seeing what he might do this year.
It’s really a shame cause he even got a no hitter last year. Hope he’s doing fine. Felipe is doing great in the VSL. He was the so called MVP in some regional competition in Marilia, Sao Paulo, where some major league teams have alredy opened an academy to teach and develop some players. Unfortunately, we are still a one sport country (at least we are doing good), and baseball is just a niche sport here. Hope a brazilian can make it to the majors, so we can have something to build on. Been a mariners and a baseball fan since 2000, I have been following the mariners only in the official sites until last year, when I finally discovered this blog and the seattle times one. I want to apprecieate your job, and hope that you continue with it,
Jay: For an upcoming edition of your weekly entry, could you please provide an opinion on Kasparek. Good numbers in High-A ball, but in relation to his age … are they really that good and is he an actual prospect? Follow-up question about Kasparek: why isn’t he being pushed harder through the system if he is a prospect?
I am fairly new to the Site – so if you have covered this ground on Kasparek previously, please disregard.
I don’t think you are going to have to worry about a lack of comments in future posts (like happened on occasion last year) because this is really good stuff … and very necessary as we all try to find reasons to look toward the future. It’s less “stats” oriented and more “tools” oriented … or at the very least – a nice combination and complement of the two.
If things gets dry, we can always have another debate about Tui. I am sure it is an ongoing theme between the Mariners Scouting Department and Player Develoment Department anyway.
Good for Tui and his 3rd AAA home run. I think the difference for him is the difference between hitting with a 2-1 count in AAA vs. hitting with a 1-2 count in the Majors. Every third pitch in the Majors is going to “kick your ass” in comparison to every third pitch you are going to see in AAA. A gross over-simplification for certain, but it does bore down to the essence of one key difference that he may or may not ever be able to overcome.
I’ve covered him a couple of times recently, but to briefly recap, he’s lost 3.5 Ks per nine innings from last season and become more of a flyball pitcher in the process and that has me worried.
He might come up this week, he might not.