So was BJ and Justin Upton, Delmon Young, Arod and Griffey.... yet I have seen them all without having any other generations spawn.... I completely agree that Bruce is going to be better than Josh Hamilton.
First off, Bruce will be in the majors about 4 1/2 years sooner than Hamilton got there. At the same ages, Jay Bruce is doing things on historic levels in High A....Hamilton hit 1 HR in 100 at bats as a 20 year old. Sure, Hamilton spent 89 of those at bats in AA.... but he went those 89 at bats OPSing .457.
Josh Hamilton as a 21 year old in A+ hit .303/.359/.507 in 211 at bats with 24 XBH in the California League (hitter paradise). Jay Bruce at 20 in A+ is hitting .350/.404/.644 with 29 XBH in 179 at bats in the FSL (pitchers paradise).
Here's how I feel about who will be better between Jay Bruce and Josh Hamilton:
I don't care. I believe both guys are going to be superstars for a long time with (hopefully) the Cincinnati Reds. I see both of them pushing each other for MVP awards in a few years. I just know I am very excited that both of them are property of the Cincinnati Reds, and I'm sure pretty much every other Reds fan feels the same way.
Amen, I haven't a clue which is best, only time will really tell (dang if my crystal ball isn't on the fritz again). But, if both of them...or all three if you include Stubbs,... live up to their billing (and thus some very high expectations from people like us) we will all have a lot to cheer about. I just hope they do develop to that level and all stay Reds for a long time to come. So far, it looks promising!
Last edited by Triples; 05-23-2007 at 06:30 PM.
Definately? No. But I bet he does because of who will be playing around him. if Josh Hamilton is still around and stays the same size, I bet he plays CF until Stubbs is ready, or the Reds go another direction with that.
Jay and Josh both have rockets for arms, but I would say Josh has one that is slightly better... of course, he has a better arm than almost anyone around. I would say that Jay is probably a little faster than Josh is right now, but Jay is still growing so I dont know how long that will last. Range wise, Bruce has very good range but I am not sure who I would give the edge to there.
Wow, so Jay Bruce could potentially be a GG caliber corner OFer?
Well, Doug, I know you don't agree, but it looks like they're going to give him 30 more games to knock around the High-A pitching. I think it's the right decision.
He didn't exactly tear up any league at any level until this last month. It'd be rushing things to do anything less then let him continue to experience what this kind of groove feels like. He'll possibly see pitchers a second time and can learn about adjustments at the High-A level. It can only help him by leaving him down for 30 more games.
Rob Neyer: "Any writer who says he'd be a better manager than the worst manager is either 1) lying (i.e. 'using poetic license') or 2) patently delusional. Which isn't to say managers don't do stupid things that you or I wouldn't."
He pretty much was running wild on the MWL until he got hurt that last month of the season. He was hitting .313/.380/.565 ish as a 19 year old which was pretty much incredible. There was a reason Baseball America rated him the best prospect in the MWL last year over guys like Maybin and Upton.
I think it will help him more by seeing better pitching in AA than seeing guys again in Sarasota that he is just better than. The thing I don't get is that he says ' He has shown us he is ready for the next level'.... well then why isnt he at the next level? Makes no sense.
The difference between High A FSL and AA Chat. ain't that much. When you build in how difficult it is to hit in the FSL then the adjustment is very small. Seems kinda silly to hold him back, but i guess they have some kind of plan in place ("the Minnesota Twin go slow--even if it's kind of silly" plan).
One other way to make sure he has accomplished what he is suppossed to is to look at his BABip. If it's way high then you can make the jump and declare some of his good fortune to be hit lucky. IIRC, he ain't hit lucky at all. I wouldn't be surprised if they haven't a clue about BABip for hitters.
I'm really excited that Bruce is getting bumped up to AA, the whole timetable seems a little bit weird to me. Obviously the club feels that Bruce is ready for AA so why not just bump him up now. It really isn't that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things but it just seems a little odd.
With that being said I'm really, really excited about Bruce and can't wait to see him playing for the big club. I got the opportunity to watch him play at Dayton last season and came away very impressed with what I saw. He just looks so smooth doing everything and just makes it look so easy. As much as I'm looking forward to seeing what Homer can do for the Reds, I'm even more excited to see Jay Bruce.
I think its a joke that he isn't in AA right now. I see no need for him to dominate high A without getting a call up to AA. Minor league records and accomplishments mean nothing. Put Bruce on the fast track and hope for the best.
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