Spring Training 2015

I'd be really surprised if EY didn't start the season in CF.

Bethancourt has had a nice game today: 2-3 with a 1B, 2B, and a lineout.

Wang had another effective outing. 6 GB outs.

3.0 2 0 0 1 1. He hit a batter and got out of trouble with a DP in his last inning.
 
thewupk said:
We've had speed at the top of the order. We need real hitters.
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We haven't had a SB treat at the top of the order since Bourn left. If Young can get on base he can cause problems.

Just something as simple as what we just saw. Runner on 1st and he hit a ground ball to 2nd and he beat the return throw to 1st. If he steals 2nd he puts himself into scoring position for the next guy.

Having that kind of speed can help you steal some runs.

I like his attitude, hustle, and speed he brings to the table.
 
ChapelHillMatt said:
We haven't had a SB treat at the top of the order since Bourn left. If Young can get on base he can cause problems.

Just something as simple as what we just saw. Runner on 1st and he hit a ground ball to 2nd and he beat the return throw to 1st. If he steals 2nd he puts himself into scoring position for the next guy.

Having that kind of speed can help you steal some runs.

I like his attitude, hustle, and speed he brings to the table.
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Also, if he's on base, pitchers having to worry about him and throwing over constantly can really throw off their focus. Always feel that part is underrated.
 
ChapelHillMatt said:
We haven't had a SB treat at the top of the order since Bourn left. If Young can get on base he can cause problems.

Just something as simple as what we just saw. Runner on 1st and he hit a ground ball to 2nd and he beat the return throw to 1st. If he steals 2nd he puts himself into scoring position for the next guy.

Having that kind of speed can help you steal some runs.

I like his attitude, hustle, and speed he brings to the table.
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Or we can look at how he's performed to this point as a major league hitter and realize he is not good. We signed him to a minor league deal for a reason. I'm not saying we have better options but let's not act like just because he is fast and puts the ball in play it means he will be good. That line of thinking is just wrong.

And BJ is a legit stolen base threat. His problem is he can't get on base much. Same thing EY has.
 
yeezus said:
Also, if he's on base, pitchers having to worry about him and throwing over constantly can really throw off their focus. Always feel that part is underrated.
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He has to get on base first. He had a sub 300 OBP last year. So he will fit right in with the Braves.
 
Julio3000 said:
I'd be really surprised if EY didn't start the season in CF.

Bethancourt has had a nice game today: 2-3 with a 1B, 2B, and a lineout.

Wang had another effective outing. 6 GB outs.

3.0 2 0 0 1 1. He hit a batter and got out of trouble with a DP in his last inning.
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Yup...Bethancourt's swing was very impressive today. Peraza looked overwhelmed, but that's not surprising at this stage.
 
UNCBlue012 said:
Terdo should be looked at heavily. The man can hit.
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I am hoping he gets a legit shot this ST, and get get some time in the lineup if he makes the team. This follows MFII's point about EY—everyone likes EY's work ethic and professionalism, but I don't want to see him getting time at the expense of younger guys who might be more valuable if given the opportunity.
 
Julio3000 said:
I am hoping he gets a legit shot this ST, and get get some time in the lineup if he makes the team. This follows MFII's point about EY—everyone likes EY's work ethic and professionalism, but I don't want to see him getting time at the expense of younger guys who might be more valuable if given the opportunity.
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There's always a chance that Terdoslavich will play poorly- a really, really good chance, actually. And there's a good chance he'll be genuinely awful in such a way as to make clear that he's not an MLB-ready player. Ditto Eury Perez.

EY and Gomes, by contrast, have established that they are, at least, MLB players, if severely limited ones (and, in EY's case, basically a replacement-level one). They're not going to embarrass you out there. You probably maximize your 2015 win total by playing Gomes and Young instead of Terdoslavich and Perez.

But we're in a position where upside should trump reliability. Any marginal upgrade we get from playing veterans instead of youngsters is essentially meaningless.
 
MadduxFanII said:
There's always a chance that Terdoslavich will play poorly- a really, really good chance, actually. And there's a good chance he'll be genuinely awful in such a way as to make clear that he's not an MLB-ready player. Ditto Eury Perez.

EY and Gomes, by contrast, have established that they are, at least, MLB players, if severely limited ones (and, in EY's case, basically a replacement-level one). They're not going to embarrass you out there. You probably maximize your 2015 win total by playing Gomes and Young instead of Terdoslavich and Perez.

But we're in a position where upside should trump reliability. Any marginal upgrade we get from playing veterans instead of youngsters is essentially meaningless.
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Yeah, I think the team is in a delicate position, because this is probably management's assumption. Hart can't just come out and say "Hey, we're likely going to suck, so let's use this season as a testbed for some fringe prospects." I'm rooting for Perez, Terdo, (hell, add Cunningham and Hunter) to crush the ball this spring to give the team some cover.
 
Julio3000 said:
Yeah, I think the team is in a delicate position, because this is probably management's assumption. Hart can't just come out and say "Hey, we're likely going to suck, so let's use this season as a testbed for some fringe prospects." I'm rooting for Perez, Terdo, (hell, add Cunningham and Hunter) to crush the ball this spring to give the team some cover.
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What makes this an easy decision for me is that the vets we're talking about just aren't that good. It would be one thing if Young and Gomes were really solid, significant contributors who awkwardly ended up on a non-contending team. I criticized the Royals many years ago for DFAing Matt Diaz in order to sign Reggie Sanders, but Reggie was a damn good player for many years. It can be a difficult choice for even a non-contending team to jettison a genuinely good player, even if it's strategically the right move.

But Gomes and Young are generally non-entities. One of them is a lefty-mashing defensive butcher and the other is a moderately useful utility guy. They're not going to move the needle in any meaningful sense, and there really is no difference between winning, say, 72 games with Young and Gomes instead of 70 with Perez and Terdoslavich. Plus, no fan is going to buy a ticket just because Jonny Gomes and Eric Young, Jr. are in the lineup.
 
MadduxFanII said:
What makes this an easy decision for me is that the vets we're talking about just aren't that good. It would be one thing if Young and Gomes were really solid, significant contributors who awkwardly ended up on a non-contending team. I made criticized the Royals many years ago for DFAing Matt Diaz in order to sign Reggie Sanders, but Reggie was a damn good player for many years. It can be a difficult choice for even a non-contending team to jettison a genuinely good player, even if it's strategically the right move.

But Gomes and Young are generally non-entities. One of them is a lefty-mashing defensive butcher and the other is a moderately useful utility guy. They're not going to move the needle in any meaningful sense, and there really is no difference between winning, say, 72 games with Young and Gomes instead of 70 with Perez and Terdoslavich. Plus, no fan is going to buy a ticket just because Jonny Gomes and Eric Young, Jr. are in the lineup.
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This has simply proven not to be true for several years now.

They're not players you'd hope to be using consistently, but Gomes is a player that might get you a piece down the stretch when contenders are molding their benches for playoff runs. While EY's defense in CF will eventually be exposed, if he's floating around out there come playoff time somebody will scoop him up even if he's only used as a pinch-runner - if you put him in late in a playoff game and wind up going into extras, you CAN get by with him at all 3 OF positions and 2B for a couple innings to keep his speed in the game when he actually could make a difference (although I do agree he's far less likely to get you a useable piece than Gomes).

I agree that they definitely shouldn't be in the way IF Perez or Terdo happen to all of a sudden do something unexpected, but let's be honest here - both of those guys likely have 4th OF ceilings at best, and Terdo really profiles more as a 5th OF since he doesn't offer much power. Cunningham's speed and defensive versatility should put him in line ahead of Joey unless he just suddenly lights the world on fire.
 
clvclv said:
I agree that they definitely shouldn't be in the way IF Perez or Terdo happen to all of a sudden do something unexpected, but let's be honest here - both of those guys likely have 4th OF ceilings at best, and Terdo really profiles more as a 5th OF since he doesn't offer much power. Cunningham's speed and defensive versatility should put him in line ahead of Joey unless he just suddenly lights the world on fire.
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Perez was not long ago ranked around 10th among Nats prospects. So I wouldn't be so quick to call him "at best" a 4th outfielder. Further, I also like Joey T's potential as much if not more than Cunningham. Plus Joey has already had some success when starting games in the Majors. He mostly struggled after sitting a while along with pinch hitting. So it's possible he may have more to offer us with more regular playing time. Time will tell.
 
They're not players you'd hope to be using consistently, but Gomes is a player that might get you a piece down the stretch when contenders are molding their benches for playoff runs. While EY's defense in CF will eventually be exposed, if he's floating around out there come playoff time somebody will scoop him up even if he's only used as a pinch-runner - if you put him in late in a playoff game and wind up going into extras, you CAN get by with him at all 3 OF positions and 2B for a couple innings to keep his speed in the game when he actually could make a difference (although I do agree he's far less likely to get you a useable piece than Gomes).
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Sure, there's the potential trade return to consider. But I'd argue that these sorts of "sign a guy for the sole purpose of dealing him to a contender at the deadline" signings fail far, far more often than they succeed. It's a low-risk move, so it's nothing to stress over, but it's rare for these sorts of guys to really play well enough to merit any sort of meaningful return.

It's conceivable that Gomes might smack around lefties for a few months and garner interest at the deadline. It's happened before. Realistically, however, it's exceptionally unlikely for a contending team to give up much of value for the short half of a corner outfield platoon, especially when the guy doesn't offer much defensively or on the bases. In the very, very best case scenario you probably get a guy who wasn't as good a prospect as Perez or Terdoslavich were in their minor league days.

Young...honestly, I don't think there's any realistic shot of converting him into something valuable. I agree he has his uses as the 24th or 25th guy on a playoff team, but those sorts are freely available talents, and most organizations have a player or two in the upper minors who can play multiple positions and run the bases. The best you can hope for in an EY trade is a PTBNL or cash considerations.
 
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