I'll take 80% strikes every time!Originally Posted by dougdirt
I'm not worried about the hits. He's supposed to throw a heavy ball and have enough movement that if he keeps throwing that many strikes, even with a 7-8 K/9 type rate, he'll be very valuable. It's definitely too small a sample, too meaningless a league and too many factors to get any real feel for his performance, but I like that he's throwing strikes as advertised.
"No matter how good you are, you're going to lose one-third of your games. No matter how bad you are you're going to win one-third of your games. It's the other third that makes the difference." ~Tommy Lasorda
Agreed. That K rate may be a bit optimistic -- I think the heavy ball is his key. Don't think he's surrendered a home run yet, and he's been getting more ground balls as he's gone along. Solid start for both Leake and Boxberger in a rough environment for pitchers.I'm not worried about the hits. He's supposed to throw a heavy ball and have enough movement that if he keeps throwing that many strikes, even with a 7-8 K/9 type rate, he'll be very valuable. It's definitely too small a sample, too meaningless a league and too many factors to get any real feel for his performance, but I like that he's throwing strikes as advertised.
Zack Cozart finished 2-4 with a double. Now hitting .333/.390/.611 with 4BB/5K in 41 PA in the AFL. Logan Ondrusek threw a scoreless inning with a K.
That's three good outings in a row for Ondrusek. I'd be inclined to throw out his first two appearances as he had not pitched competitively in over a month when the AFL began.
Spring training invite?
Spot on the 40 man roster. Spring training will be automatic.
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!
Assuming the Reds don't make a move to bring in a true major league caliber SS, any chances Cozart gets a chance to compete for the job with Janish? Not that I think he's ready -- but I'm curious nonetheless.
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.
I gotta believe those first couple outings were aberrations of some sort. He was just too consistent this year.
Now Watson's another story.
I think there is a chance it happens. In late July Walt Jocketty said that they were going to promote Cozart to AAA to see what he could do. Around that time though Cozart went down with a small injury and missed some time and never got that promotion. My guess is that the Reds would really like to give the job to someone other than Janish and really, given the money concerns Cozart is the only guy who could likely take it from him.
Just a heads up... the guy that some have wanted the Reds to take 2 years in a row, Aaron Crow is facing the Reds AFL team right now.
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index...eswin_surwin_1
I personally think it's a year too early to consider Cozart for the starting SS position. If he goes into spring training and is clearly the best option, I have no problems with it. But he took a small step back this year. I think the kid will be a good player, but he did only OPS .757 this season. I think he's a year away from truly being an option.
"No matter how good you are, you're going to lose one-third of your games. No matter how bad you are you're going to win one-third of your games. It's the other third that makes the difference." ~Tommy Lasorda
Agree that he's about a year away, but he did not take a step back last year. He skipped high A to play in AA and played well. I think he took a strong step forward.But he took a small step back this year. I think the kid will be a good player, but he did only OPS .757 this season. I think he's a year away from truly being an option.
Well, level considered, perhaps that was a poor choice of words. But his OPS did take a small bump. I don't consider that a step forward. Certainly not enough progress to throw him into the discussion as the go-to guy at shortstop.
"No matter how good you are, you're going to lose one-third of your games. No matter how bad you are you're going to win one-third of your games. It's the other third that makes the difference." ~Tommy Lasorda
His plate approach went from iffy to outstanding despite jumping from Low A to AA. The difference that we saw was his power dropped down some and that is what caused the lower OPS. While he may be a year away from what you want, is he a year away from being a better option than Janish because that is what really matters?
You don't want to rush Cozart. He's a year out of low A. Let the bat continue to develop. The Reds, at this time, are better off letting their prospects mature fully in the minors, so they get better bang for the buck in the majors. The team really has nothing to lose by giving Janish or somebody from outside on a short-term deal the SS job in 2010 while Cozart develops more in AAA. If Cozart starts to bang on the door, that's a good problem to have.While he may be a year away from what you want, is he a year away from being a better option than Janish because that is what really matters?
Posting Permissions
|
Board Moderators may, at their discretion and judgment, delete and/or edit any messages that violate any of the following guidelines: 1. Explicit references to alleged illegal or unlawful acts. 2. Graphic sexual descriptions. 3. Racial or ethnic slurs. 4. Use of edgy language (including masked profanity). 5. Direct personal attacks, flames, fights, trolling, baiting, name-calling, general nuisance, excessive player criticism or anything along those lines. 6. Posting spam. 7. Each person may have only one user account. It is fine to be critical here - that's what this board is for. But let's not beat a subject or a player to death, please. |
Reply With Quote