There are reasons guys like CC, Aj Burnett, Zambrano, and Randy Johnson had such high BB/9 rates during their minor league careers compared to MLB. Some part of that is talent progression and some part of that is the talent at the plate.
This is the time. The real Reds organization is back.
So, that Mez guy, eh?
Andrew Means has got to be soaring up the prospect chart right now. Athleticism out the ying yang, and he crushing the ball. I go back to Benzinger predicting a breakout year. When the coach picks one guy because of things hes seen behind the curtain, it means hes made an adjustment that you can tell is gonna help him.
Domo Arigato, Here Comes Joey Votto
---TRF
"I do what I want to do and say what I want to say."
--Bronson Arroyo
Glad to see some prospects getting off to decent starts. Some of the "potential" guys to boot.
Guys I'm most impressed with so far:
1. Mesoraco
2. Alonso
3. Valaika
4. H. Rodriguez
5. Lecure
I'd pretty much given up on Mes, Val and Lecure. I thought Alonso was hopelessly blocked and knew too little about H-Rod to have much of an opinion. Now I'm hopeful they all may have some value.
IMO, Valaika may be on track as the first position player recalled. Valaika up playing Cairo's role may be an improvement to the Reds bench, but I do like him getting to play every day at 2B for a season as well. Hopefully he's not rushed too much. He's not been mentioned much in Frazier's shadow, but Valaika may actually have enough defensively to make Phillips expendable. If not, hopefully H-Rod won't be too far behind him.
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!
I pegged Valaika as comeback player of the year in the Reds system. The guy is a hitter plain and simple.
Dubito Ergo Cogito Ergo Sum.
I was impressed with Valaika's defense in spring training. Of course, it's hard to judge defense by the radio, but he seemed to be making a slew of plays.
Am I the only one who's just not that enamored of Alonso? Nothing against him, and I acknowledge that he shows a lot of polish as a hitter . . . but I just have a hard time warming to somebody whose value seems to be vested so heavily in walks. Unless he's a leadoff or No. 2 batter. Which Alonso isn't. Walking as much as he does, and with the moderate power that he has, I just don't see him being that productive in the middle of the order. And he's not fast enough for the top of the order. To me, he smacks of a tweener. And then there's the position issue . . .
Valaika has always looked good with the glove. His rough spot is making throws. The move to 2B seems to be helping. Cozart seems to be the full package at SS.
Dorn's defense at 1B is definitely improved.
Francisco seems to be a little better at 3B too. (I probably shouldn't jinx him)
Re Alonso: who, in our minor leagues, has a better chance to OBP .400?
Alonso is probably a 25-30 HR guy. Lots of walks. Sounds like a guy we have playing 1B now, though Alonso has a better K/BB. For the record though, he is what Alonso has done with RISP and Men on in his career as a minor leaguer:
Code:AB H 2B 3B HR W K AVG OBP SLG OPS Men On 166 56 11 0 7 27 23 .337 .422 .530 .952 RISP 91 32 4 0 7 16 11 .352 .434 .626 1.060
Did we ever get an answer to how well Alonso is playing defensively in left? I saw that topic was closed since the discussion went awry.
How well I know, 11.
Doug, Alonso's numbers with runners on base are indeed impressive. If he can maintain those at the major-league level, he can certainly be a pretty good producer in the middle of the lineup. Of course, there are those who say that such numbers don't really project. That's another discussion. But as middle-of-the-order run producers go, I look for a guy who 1) puts the bat on the ball at a reasonably high rate, 2) does it with power, and 3) doesn't pass along his RBI opportunities by taking a high percentage of walks. Of course, if there are big-time producers in the spots following, the walks become more advantageous. But that's a luxury type of circumstance that the Reds are certainly not blessed with at this point.
You might be right about the similarity to Votto. My feeling is that Alonso is slightly more selective, while Votto has a bit more power and certainly more speed. If Alonso ran better, I'd love him at the top of the order. As it is, I think he profiles best in the 3-hole, where, in a perfect world, I'd like more speed. That's why I'm just a smidgen short of being sold on the guy--at least, to the extent that most people on here seem to be.
So you aren't sold on Alonso because he is slow?
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