GDT #27: 5/1/14 Braves at Marlins

Redmonds a damn good manager from what I've been observing. If the Marlins had a fan base, this could be a scary team for years to come.
 
Padres were 5-1 against us last year.

The Pads aren't in the East which minimized the effect of that. The Fish are dangerous. The 1991 Braves are a good comparison. Great young pitching with a solid offense. Outside of Mil. easily the best team we have faced so far.
 
I wanted to note that Garrett Jones, a former Braves' draft pick and minor leaguer, has carved out a pretty decent career for himself. He never got above Danville for us, but he slowly climbed through the Twins' system and blew up in AA. Never landed a full-time gig in Minnesota, but got to Pittsburgh and proceeded to make himself into a passable major league player.

This is what I'm talking about when I use the term "development arc." Some guys take longer (a lot longer) and some guys' arc falls short of having true big league talent. There's a lot of guys who end up on the scrap heap after performing the way Jones' did at the rookie league level for the Braves, but somebody with the Twins' organization saw something (of course, the Twins have always had an affinity for big, slow white guys) and Jones managed to seize that opportunity. I wouldn't exactly call that "luck," but there are likely other guys who could have done what Jones has done if circumstances had lined up differently.
 
I wanted to note that Garrett Jones, a former Braves' draft pick and minor leaguer, has carved out a pretty decent career for himself. He never got above Danville for us, but he slowly climbed through the Twins' system and blew up in AA. Never landed a full-time gig in Minnesota, but got to Pittsburgh and proceeded to make himself into a passable major league player.

This is what I'm talking about when I use the term "development arc." Some guys take longer (a lot longer) and some guys' arc falls short of having true big league talent. There's a lot of guys who end up on the scrap heap after performing the way Jones' did at the rookie league level for the Braves, but somebody with the Twins' organization saw something (of course, the Twins have always had an affinity for big, slow white guys) and Jones managed to seize that opportunity. I wouldn't exactly call that "luck," but there are likely other guys who could have done what Jones has done if circumstances had lined up differently.

Mike Hessman inference?
 
Mike Hessman inference?

Not at all. Hessman is your classic AAAA guy. I've always known that. He could maybe have found a home at the end of a big league bench in the right situation (there are probably worse guys who have hung around), but Hessman is one of those guys who has to play regularly to play well, but he doesn't play well enough to play regularly. You really can't have that with a bench player.

My point is that if you look at Jones' rookie league stats, he appeared to be a total wash out and there are folks who look at rookie league stats as being cut in stone when judging a players' chances. It just takes some guys longer.

Jones' ascent probably says something about how the Braves were coaching their minor league hitters when he was in our system, but it could have just been a bad match.
 
The Pads aren't in the East which minimized the effect of that. The Fish are dangerous. The 1991 Braves are a good comparison. Great young pitching with a solid offense. Outside of Mil. easily the best team we have faced so far.

They are not that good. They have so many guys on offense playing over their heads. Dietrich, McGehee, Salty. Yelich and Ozuna will have their growing pains. They have very little pitching outside of Fernandez - Eovaldi has pitched above his head. They are not a team to worry about, this year at least.
 
Back
Top