I didn't realize how good Garcia's numbers were this season.
100 PAs or so, so SSS, but .286/ .349/ .480/ .828 would go a long way to making me feel better about the SS spot long-term.
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Good to see Santillan pitch relatively well.
Still struggling with command.
I suspect part of that is the push and pull of Ks and K/9 and BBs and BB/9.
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A nearly full complement of Also-Ran All-Stars has dominated the early-season minor league stats page for the Reds.
In AAA, Dan Longhi, Josh VanMeter, Brian O'Grady, and Aristides Aquino have all put up monster numbers.
In Chattanooga, Brantley Bell found his power, and Chris Okey has suddenly found a league average-ish bat.
Daytona has Drew Mount hitting and running relatively wild.
How much of this is early season noise and how much is a swing plane change? More importantly, how much can be repeated at higher levels?
Suddenly having four AAA guys who can hit and play multiple positions would go a long way to creating at least a good bench moving into next season.
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Does anyone know anything about Andrew Jordan? He's pitched one game this season. Pre-season, he was among my picks to click. Obviously, it's difficult to get news out of minor league parks, but for legitimate prospects, there should be something said.
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Speaking of pitching, Packy Naughton and Cory Thompson should probably move up to AA. Both are older for their league (23 and 24 respectively) and have had success both limiting opposing baserunners and racking up Ks. Doing that in the Florida Humidity League is fine, but I'd like to see what's there in a more offensive league. (Not that Chattanooga is more offensive than Florida. Not at all. Really.
Florida is the most offensive state in the union.)
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Dayton is bad. Really, really bad. The newly-renamed and much, much cooler-sounding but unfortunately 23-year-old Shard Monroe and 3B Juan Martinez are the only regulars hitting over league average.
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The Dayton pitching is worse. Those pitching peripherals are remarkable. The staff as a whole is
averaging 10.2 K/9! And 4.6 BB/9. And 9.5 H/9.
Louisville's staff is in a similar boat. Lots of Ks. Lots of BBs.
Chattanooga's staff has lots of BBs, so they're halfway there.
Only Daytona has good BB numbers. (And they're superior, at 2.6 BB/9 as a staff.)
That's what happens when you grab live arms and hope to teach them how to throw strikes, I guess.
Ick.
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In following minor league ball for awhile now, I've seen some odd career stat lines, but one of the oddest I've seen belongs to
Valentin Martinez. Only once in his career has he had more than 100 ABs. Still only 22. But he's played a tiny amount of games across three leagues-- and, oddly, hit pretty well. As a catcher. Based only on his stats, you'd think they'd give him more of an opportunity somewhere. Just to see.