Cactus League Game 30, M’s at Rockies
Just one more of these after this one and we’re home free.
SS Ryan
2B Kennedy
1B Smoak
DH Cust
C Olivo
CF Langerhans
3B Luis Rodriguez
RF Saunders
LF James McOwen
P Fister
This is a new lineup! McOwen ran off an amazing hit streak two years ago and then dislocated his shoulder early last season and was benched throughout. It’s nice to see him get out there and play. Tomorrow, it’s probably going to be a bunch of guys like him on the field late in the game.
News came out that Franklin Gutierrez will be beginning the season on the DL. Since it’s going to be a retroactive placement, he’ll be eligible to come off on April 6th, though at this stage, we seem to have little idea of what’s going on and what it might take to get him into playing shape.
I’m getting on a Wilhelmsen post which will end up below this one when I’m finished. Edit: hey look, it’s here
Wilhelmsen and the Future
While few were ever predicting that Tom Wilhelmsen would take his great story to the major leagues out of spring training, the fact remains that him making the club as a reliever has been a possibility in the back of everyone’s mind. His Arizona Fall League stint only solidified the opinion that he has the stuff to be able to work out of the ‘pen and soon if the organization felt like fasttracking him. Still, with the appealing starting pitching options beyond Pineda including generous estimations of Robles’ abilities and ambitious timetables for Paxton, some have come to me asking if Wilhelmsen could start, and if so, would his addition to the Mariners staff represent a setback.
Wilhelmsen is an odd duck in many respects. If you run down the list of reasons why guys are converted to relief, it’s usually stalled development (age can be a factor here), lack of command, lack of tertiary offerings, and durability concerns. Wilhelmsen doesn’t quite fit the bill. Limited experience as a pro keeps him from being “stalled”, though he is older, and durability right now is an unknown beyond reports of some nerve issues in the elbow coming off his independent league campaign. If nothing else, his arm is reasonably fresh. His command and stuff are also pretty good for a guy who wasn’t throwing for a long time, perhaps much better than they have any right to be. Much talk has been devoted to the live fastball and the bombshell curve, but all the scouting reports I’ve seen on him also mention a change-up and a sinker, both in complementary terms, which indicates that the two could be serviceable pitches in time. The two biggest marks against Wilhelmsen is that he is older, which would make an organization inclined to be less patient with him, and he lacks experience. Everything else says he has the capacity to start.
When we look at Wilhelmsen’s situation, we ought to recognize that this is really quite different from every other instance we’ve recently seen where a pitcher was aggressively promoted to the major leagues in order to relieve. Time against more polished hitters is the biggest thing Wilhelmsen is lacking. Some of this was even referenced in the articles that have been circulating, about how he realized that he couldn’t blow the ball past the better hitters and started to get himself into more trouble as he moved up the ladder last season. He doesn’t need to start from scratch with a third pitch to keep hitters honest, he just needs to figure out how to set them up and when to use each of his offerings.
If he’s conscious of this and doesn’t become a two-pitch guy in the bullpen, then using him in the bullpen won’t keep him from starting at a later date. The ambitious, best-case scenario could involve him limiting his innings by relieving this season and then getting his feet wet starting for the Lara Cardenales in the LVBP over the winter. Continuing the daydream, if he does well there, he could contend for a spot in the rotation as early as next year. All of these plans are contingent on a few factors that may not come to pass, but none of them seem improbable. Wilhelmsen may yet be a possibility for the starting rotation.
Tom Wilhelmsen Claims Final Bullpen Spot
The M’s went with upside in the last spot in the bullpen and have decided to carry Tom Wilhelmsen as the final reliever, outrighting Cesar Jimenez off the 40 man roster in the process. Wilhelmsen has the stuff to be a quality reliever, but after spending five years out of baseball and then topping out in A-ball last year, it’s a legitimate question of how ready he is to contribute in the big leagues. That said, the arm is legit, and if he can throw strikes with regularity, he could be an asset for the M’s this year. He’s certainly more interesting that Jimenez, who is lousy and offered no long term potential.
Also, the M’s made it official and placed Franklin Gutierrez on the DL – because he hasn’t played in spring training for a while, he’s eligible to come off as early as April 6th, but given that they still don’t know what’s wrong with him, that’s probably unlikely. Expect Michael Saunders to get a bulk of the playing time in center field to begin the season.
Cactus League Game 29, M’s at Rockies
You can still listen to not-very-meaningful baseball being played today. This lineup looks a lot like one that you might see to start the season.
RF Ichiro!
3B Figgins
LF Bradley
DH Cust
1B Smoak
CF Saunders
C Moore
SS Ryan
2B Wilson (I no longer have to clarify which one)
P Vargas
Available bullpen pitchers will include Josh Lueke, Brandon League, and Chris Ray, along with minor league arms such as LH Bobby LaFromboise and RH Stephen Penney. Penney is kind of interesting because he’s a strong arm with good command, though from what I remember of last season, he was just awful when it came to preventing inherited runners from scoring.
M’s Release Josh Wilson
Well, so much for Josh Wilson making the team. I read that one pretty wrong, apparently.
Now it seems like the last spot on the bench is down to either Luis Rodriguez or an acquisition from outside the organization. I guess it’s also possible that they could go with 13 pitchers and carry both Jimenez and Wilhelmsen, but given the fragility of Milton Bradley and Jack Wilson, a three man bench would be about the worst idea of all time.
Stories From Camp That I’m Reading, pt. 6
As the spring goes on, we get to the point where rosters are mostly conceived and the talk of prospects is of those that will make it, not the camp curiosities. But hey, this is the end of it, isn’t it? We’re getting on to the point where the real baseball will start, along with real-ish minor league baseball soon after that.
Read more
M’s Cut Three More
The M’s announced this morning that Luke French has been optioned to Triple-A, while Josh Bard and Chris Gimenez have been re-assigned to minor league camp. If you’re wondering about the difference, a player who is in camp on a minor league deal does not need to be optioned out, since he’s not on the 40 man roster. I wouldn’t be surprised if either Bard or Gimenez asked for their release, as there probably won’t be regular playing time for both in Tacoma.
After cutting Royce Ring and Matt Tuiasosopo yesterday, the roster looks to be pretty close to finalization, barring a trade in the next couple of days anyway. Here’s what we’re looking at.
Catcher: Olivo, Moore
Infield: Figgins, Ryan, Jack Wilson, Smoak, Kennedy, Josh Wilson
Outfield: Bradley, Saunders, Ichiro, Langerhans
DH: Cust
Rotation: Felix-Vargas-Fister-Bedard-Pineda
Bullpen: League-Ray-Lueke-Wright-Laffey-?-Pauley
The last spot in the bullpen essentially comes down to Cesar Jimenez and Tom Wilhelmsen. Jimenez is out of options and would give the team a second left-handed arm out of the bullpen, but Wilhelmsen has far better stuff and some legitimate upside. Both are on the 40 man roster, so that won’t be a factor in the decision – in the end, it will come down to whether or not the M’s believe that Wilhelmsen’s stuff outweighs his lack of experience. Personally, I think he’s probably better off starting the year in the minors – it’s not like the team couldn’t easily bring him up if he starts the year strong – but given that the bullpen projects to be pretty lousy until Aardsma returns, I can understand the temptation of having another big arm to come on in relief in April.
Of course, all of this is subject to change in the next 72 hours, as the M’s have a few days to pick up a player who might be getting squeezed out somewhere else. With what’s in camp right now, though, this is probably the roster.
Cactus League Game 28, Rangers at M’s
RF Ichiro!
3B Figgins
LF Bradley
DH Cust
CF Langerhans
C Moore
1B Kennedy
SS Rodriguez
2B Josh Wilson
P French
There were some cuts today, with Tui, Mike Wilson, Royce Ring, Denny Bautista, and Justin Miller heading out. This brings us down to thirty-five players in camp.
Some of these cuts are a little surprising. Tui wasn’t having one of his amazing springs, but at .300/.349/.475, he was competent, and probably would have remained with the team a while longer if not for the Gutierrez issues forcing us to carry another center fielder. This is Tui’s last option year.
Ring is probably the bigger surprise because it wasn’t too long ago that people were talking of him as though he was a lock for the bullpen. He walked a few too many and demonstrated that he shouldn’t face right-handed hitters ever, but the alternative was Aaron Laffey. Whatever.
Denny Bautista pitched better than his 9.82 ERA, running a 12/4 K/BB in 7.1 innings, but he also seemed to be facing a roster crunch and is the same pitcher as Jesus Colome from last year.
Tom Wilhelmsen and Cesar Jimenez are both still with the team as long as it takes for the M’s to decide what they ought to do with them. This is one of the few similarities between the two.
Cactus League Game 27, M’s at Brewers
It’s Pineda’s turn in the rotation again, this time vs. the Brew Crew. If we get Pitch f/x, prepare to scrutinize the heck out of those at-bats vs. lefties. Or maybe you just want to sit there and listen to the game on the radio. That’s cool too, I guess.
2B Jack Wilson
SS Ryan
RF Langerhans
1B Smoak
CF Saunders
3B L. Rodriguez
LF Tui
C Gimenez
P Pineda
In most spring training seasons, the biggest cut from camp typically arrives the day after the team plays its last split squad game. Camp has been quiet, perhaps too quiet, today, and the only news is that OF Gabe Gross asked for and received his release. Dave and I have both been talking about how little room there is in the Tacoma outfield, so it only makes sense.
If you must know, the next game to be broadcast will be Sunday’s game on MLB Network, then we have an afternoon game on FSN/Root Sports on Tuesday and another one with them on Wednesday. After that, it gets real again.
Cactus League Games 25/26, Split Squad Action
Today is the only split squad day we will be having. Treasure this moment.
Day Game Lineup:
2B Jack Wilson
SS Ryan
DH Cust
1B Smoak
CF Langerhans
3B L. Rodriguez
C Moore
LF “C. Jimenez” (I think they mean “Gimenez”)
RF Mike Wilson
P Laffey
The early game is on MLB Network right now. Cesar Jimenez (and not Chris Gimenez), Tom Wilhelmsen, and Chris Ray are available to pitch, along with minor leaguers Steve Richard, Robert Rohrbaugh, and Bobby LaFromboise, all kind of fringey guys who would either make an impression or not.
Jose Flores was returned to the Indians today. This was probably the least surprising move of the spring. The jump from the Midwest League to the MLB is a pretty substantial one. I guess my question would be why we picked him in the first place, but the team deemed it a gamble with some upside and little loss, so whatever.
The night game will be on FSN/Root Sports. It will feature the other half of our lineup (Olivo included?) with Erik Bedard on the mound. Some other guys you may have heard of will show up as well.
Edit: Look, here’s a lineup for that
RF Ichiro!
3B Figgins
LF Bradley
2B Kennedy
C Olivo
CF Saunders
1B Tui
SS Josh Wilson
DH Bard
P Bedard