i saw where he played some tonight at short. is there any chance he could be getting a look there to see if he could be our future ss? he could give us that big time power bat at short like some of the better teams seem to have.
i saw where he played some tonight at short. is there any chance he could be getting a look there to see if he could be our future ss? he could give us that big time power bat at short like some of the better teams seem to have.
there's nothing like bowling a 300 game! 13 now and retired.
Ricky henderson has a higher OBP than C. patterson and he's retired. C. Trent 6-14-2008
I've always heard Francisco is likely destined for the outfield as he's no sure thing at 3B. I have to doubt he could play shortstop.
“I don’t care,” Votto said of passing his friend and former teammate. “He’s in the past. Bye-bye, Jay.”
Originally Posted by Tom Servo
maybe the Reds addressed that when they bumped Frazier to LF and kept Francisco at third. Reds' current idea: Francisco is the better prospect and gets to stay at third.
of course, these being the Reds, they may just be waiting for Francisco to "play his way off the position." but if EdE hasn't yet played his way off third, then how dreadful would Francisco have to defend in order to get moved?
I think its more likely that they view Frazier as being a multi-position guy with power. Frazier and Valaika are both guys who I think do not project as everyday players at one spot. They both could have long productive careers in the Mark De Rosa mold (Frazier more so than Valaika I think). I can't see Francisco, at his projected size, being a guy capable of moving around like that. Besides, so far he's been viewed as a fairly decent defender at 3B and that's a nice spot to have a LH Hitter. EdE, Frazier, Rosales, Valaika, and Soto are all RH Bats. Keeping the lefty option available seems a better strategy since none are sure things and may require becoming platoon players at the big league level. If nothing else, it makes a nice place to keep the LHPH with power since its likely the other three corners will have LH Hitting starters (Alonso, Votto and Bruce).
Last edited by mth123; 04-04-2009 at 09:38 AM.
All my posts are my opinion - just like yours are. If I forget to state it and you're too dense to see the obvious, look here!
that's what I said-- he's not as good of a prospect (according to Reds) and will have to fit in where needed.
I'm not sure they have this right, but at least a decision has been made by the Indecisives
I don't know how you term a guy that struggles to reach base at a .300 clip in A & A+ ball a "prospect" at all.
Cincinnati Reds: Farm System Champions 2022
.220 ISO in pitcher's league in a pitcher's park will keep you on people's radar. As long as Fransisco can make enough contact in the zone to keep pitcher's honest, I expect his BB rate will increase quite a bit as he matures and starts laying off more stuff out of his reach. With the damage he can do when he makes contact, pitchers will respect him.
He clearly needs to make improvements in terms of his plate discipline, but when you're in A and AA, you nurture upside.
Games are won on run differential -- scoring more than your opponent. Runs are runs, scored or prevented they all count the same. Worry about scoring more and allowing fewer, not which positions contribute to which side of the equation or how "consistent" you are at your current level of performance.
Last season, in the major leagues, there were 22 players who accumulated 450 PAs at 3B, according to ESPN.com's sortables. If you go back and look at each player's OBP in his final stop before moving to AA (either in A-ball or A+ ball), this is what each one accomplished (per Baseball-Reference.com):
Chipper Jones -- .353 (A+)
Alex Rodriguez -- .379 (A)
David Wright -- 369 (A+)
Aramis Ramirez -- .390 (A+)
Evan Longoria -- .402 (A)
Melvin Mora -- .352 (A+)
Carlos Guillen -- .405 (A)
Jorge Cantu -- .313 (A+)
Casey Blake -- ..339 (A+ 2 season)
Edwin Encarnacion -- .387 (A+)
Mike Lowell -- .403 (A/A+)
Adrian Beltre -- .407 (A+)
Scott Rolen -- .392 (A+)
Alex Gordon -- .427 (AA)
Garret Atinks -- .421 (A+)
Mark Reynolds -- .419 (A+)
Ryan Zimmerman -- .377 (A/AA)
Kevin Kouzmanoff -- .401 (A+)
Chone Figgins -- .358 (A+)
Pedro Feliz -- .310 (A+)
Jack Hannahan -- .362 (A+)
Juan Francisco -- .303 (A+)
I don't get how anyone thinks the future is anything but an extremely uphill climb for Mr. Francisco. There are lots of other interesting tools there, but nothing about his OBP suggests good things for the future.
Cincinnati Reds: Farm System Champions 2022
Thats about as likely as us moving Bronson Arroyo to center
He didn't play short. Whoever was running the MLB Gameday data did a terrible job. Between that and Yonder Alonso's 'three run HR' (it was a 2 run HR, Chris Heisey scored on the previous play) it was a rough night for the person running the system in Zebulon.
Really doubt the Reds are thinking in terms of which guy is "the better prospect." They had to figure out if they thought Francisco could stay there, given his huge arm. Francisco to 3B/Frazier to left is the best choice, defensively, if the evaluation that Francisco can handle the position is accurate.Reds' current idea: Francisco is the better prospect and gets to stay at third.
I certainly hope that they are, because it's a smart philosophy. You project your best prospects and project their best positions-- not where you hope they can play, but where they actually should play. the rest fight like crazy to fill in the gaps.
but that said, my guess was that Francisco's best position was OF and that the Reds are repeating the EdE mistake with him-- putting him at a position that he'll just never master. me, if I really thought that Francisco is the best prospect and his best talent is "hitter", not "third baseman," then he goes to the OF.
Francisco needs to do one of two things.... he needs to strike out less or walk more. Its really that simple. Since 1960 with players who have had over 200 at bats in a season, onl 15 with a 4 to 1 or worse K to BB rate have posted an .800 OPS in a single season. Francisco was at 122 strikeouts and 19 walks last year. Fortunately, there seems to be a little bit of hope with the winter numbers, where he was at least willing to walk some. Took a walk against Johnny Cueto today as well. In the end though, he needs to improve at least one of those columns by a decent amount or each by a little bit or he is facing extreme odds to be a productive major leaguer. Fortunately, he has plenty of age on his side.
IMO the decision to move Frazier to LF and keep Francisco at 3B comes down to speed. Frazier is faster. At 3B, quickness and a strong are are relatively more important than all out speed. Given that they are at the same organizational level, this move seems logical.
My question is who plays SS for the Mudcats. Valaika will certainly be at AAA. Cozart is on the roster currently, but that seems to be a stretch. Frazier may stay at SS for the time being. We may all be reading too much decision making into the futures lineups.
Cozart will be the SS in AA. Talked to Todd yesterday, he will be in left field for the Mudcats this season, it is a semi permanent move (semi because he can always move later, but the Reds are keeping him in LF for now).
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