Riley doesn’t even have a full season of ABs yet. I would probably wait until the end of year to call him valuable or a bust. He has the raw power to be a star. Just not sure the hit skill to realize it.
Riley doesn’t even have a full season of ABs yet. I would probably wait until the end of year to call him valuable or a bust. He has the raw power to be a star. Just not sure the hit skill to realize it.
Coppy
It’s important to remember Riley only has 503 career PAs, and only 120 against LHP. That’s not even a full season yet. A replacement level player with upside for more who is making league minimum is fine for the worst regular on a contending team.
He made real improvements last year, and those improvements were in the exact areas he needed to improve. This season he should get another 500+ PAs, and we will have a better idea as to whether or not the progression continues.
Projections have him at about .250/.310/.460, which is a roughly average bat that belongs in the bottom half of the order. But those same projections are also projecting no improvement in his BB rate, and a negative regression in his K rate. If he maintains that sub-25% K rate and improves his BB rate even a little, he is capable of being an above average bat with average-ish defense at 3b. That’s a 2 win guy at league minimum as the worst regular on the team...which is a great scenario.
Yes Riley made improvements last season but his play in the postseason was alarming. Good pitching destroyed him. I am worried his improved plate discipline will come at cost of effectiveness. He might just not have what it takes. But he deserves a shot for sure. Maybe more time learning pitch recognition will help. I don’t know.
Coppy
I think being skeptical of Riley is smart. That said we shall see what happens.
I will predict at least 3 stories in the preseason about Chipper and Riley being best friends and Chipper mentoring him. IF Riley does well I expect every national broadcast to talk about Chipper as the Riley whisperer.
I'm not saying he has no value or that he can't get better. But it was stated that he's a "great value" even at his current production. I just don't agree with that. His current production is not what I would categorize as great value, even for someone making league minimum.
jpx7 (02-19-2021)
Swanson won’t be traded. Not only is he a 2-3 WAR player, but he’s also a fan favorite. He loves the kids, not like my boy sleepy Joe, but you get the point.
Why is everyone trying to sneak politics in today. Are we having a sneaky political joke day.
If so I saw this one the other day.
Why is trumps presidential memoir twice the size of any other president.
Because he has 7 chapter 11’s.
Disclaimer:
The jokes in this post do not represent the views of this poster, the board or any advertisers making the chosen one money.
Coppy
"Well, you’ll learn soon enough that this was a massive red wave landslide." - thethe on the 2020 election that trump lost bigly
“I can’t fix my life, but I can fix the world.” - sturg
Someone correct me if I’m wrong. If a veteran player signs a minor league with a team doesn’t the player have to the option to void the deal and become a free agent at the end of spring training? If that’s the case there could be some interesting bench pieces available at end of spring training. It seems more veterans have signed minor league deals than past years.
The Braves bench if weak right now. Maybe AA is waiting until spring training to fill out the bench.
Most veterans that sign these minor league deals do so with a clause in their contract allowing them to become a free agent if their team determines they will not make the major league roster. Usually it is a date prior to the end of spring training to give the player an opportunity to catch on with another team and potentially win a spot on that roster
Get off my lawn!
I think that's the case pretty much all the time for the top-tier guys who sign minor league deals. Some of the lower level guys have clauses where termination rights are granted a couple of weeks into the minor league season. It also works the other way where a contract becomes guaranteed after a certain date, which leads to some guys being released at the end of spring training.
The point is there will likely be some very good players available in ST just because they aren’t the right fit for the spot their teams have available on their roster.
"Well, you’ll learn soon enough that this was a massive red wave landslide." - thethe on the 2020 election that trump lost bigly
“I can’t fix my life, but I can fix the world.” - sturg
Roster seems more or less set, with only another SS needing to be added.
https://www.mlb.com/news/braves-2021...ter-prediction
There has to be a better option than Camargo out there, though he is a decent RHH option off the bench. Barely decent, but decent nonetheless.
If the DH does come to the NL they will need a better bat to plug into the OF to allow Ozuna to DH most of the time.
Last edited by Enscheff; 02-20-2021 at 04:28 PM.
jpx7 (02-21-2021)
But as Pache went 4-for-22 with a double and a homer in the postseason, he gave reason to wonder if he already was the club’s best internal option.
https://www.mlb.com/news/cristian-pa...ter-field-role
is that an upgrade over reason to believe?
"I am a victim, I will tell you. I am a victim."
"I am your retribution."