What about Rocco Baldelli?

[BigbadB]

Maybe there's some reason he's able to keep his BABIP so high, but I don't know what it would be.

 

Maybe his speed? He does have tremendous speed and possibly beats out a high percentage of ground balls?

[TruffleShuffle]

Maybe there's some reason he's able to keep his BABIP so high, but I don't know what it would be.

 

Sometimes, it's not luck

[Danny82]

Apparently they were talking with the Braves about a Baldelli for Chuck James swap. If that is the case I am sure they would ask for Hill therefore making the chances of Baldelli coming 0%.

 

Hill has a TON more value than James.

[Hosak8]

I'd give up Murton for Baldelli right now, no question. In 2006, Baldelli's OPS was considerably better than Murton's, and there is no question that Baldelli brings more speed, and plays a position of need. Baldelli is also a better defender.

 

His 2006 splits show that he hits righties and lefties equally well, and that he performed best during the day and on grass. Hmmm.... where could he find a team that plays alot of day games on grass?

 

I'd do it without blinking. If Baldelli has truly learned a little more plate discipline, he'd the better player.

[cheapseats]

Maybe there's some reason he's able to keep his BABIP so high, but I don't know what it would be.

 

Maybe his speed? He does have tremendous speed and possibly beats out a high percentage of ground balls?

 

No doubt the speed helps, but not even Juan Pierre (speed never slumps) has sustained such a difference between LD% and BABIP. In fact, Pierre might put up slightly better numbers next year because he's underperformed his LD% in the past two years.

 

I don't think Baldelli is a guaranteed bust - his #1 comp in PECOTA is Vernon Wells - but his peripherals don't look so good to me.

[Danny82]

Maybe there's some reason he's able to keep his BABIP so high, but I don't know what it would be.

 

Sometimes, it's not luck

Exactly.

 

BABIP is far from a statistic that one can draw concrete inferences from.

[cheapseats]

Maybe there's some reason he's able to keep his BABIP so high, but I don't know what it would be.

 

Sometimes, it's not luck

 

But Ichiro only had one year (2004) in which his BABIP significantly outperformed his LD%. Baldelli's done it his whole career. I just don't see how he can sustain it.

[TheDude]

I like Baldelli. I'd rather have Carl Crawford and move him to CF, but it would take more than the Cubs have to get him. Edited December 7, 2006 by TheDude

[cheapseats]

Maybe there's some reason he's able to keep his BABIP so high, but I don't know what it would be.

 

Sometimes, it's not luck

Exactly.

 

BABIP is far from a statistic that one can draw concrete inferences from.

 

By itself, it's not very useful. But with other batted ball data, it is very, very useful for predicting future performance.

[BigbadB]

I'd give up Murton for Baldelli right now, no question. In 2006, Baldelli's OPS was considerably better than Murton's, and there is no question that Baldelli brings more speed, and plays a position of need. Baldelli is also a better defender.

 

His 2006 splits show that he hits righties and lefties equally well, and that he performed best during the day and on grass. Hmmm.... where could he find a team that plays alot of day games on grass?

 

I'd do it without blinking. If Baldelli has truly learned a little more plate discipline, he'd the better player.

 

While I agree with what you're saying, it most certainly won't be a Murton/Baldelli deal. Lots of pitching, no doubt.

[RynoRules]

What happened to Jonny Gomes, he's the one I'd want from Tampa's OF if I had the choice.

 

he fell apart last year

 

He had a busted knee, IIRC.

[TruffleShuffle]

What happened to Jonny Gomes, he's the one I'd want from Tampa's OF if I had the choice.

 

he fell apart last year

 

He had a busted knee, IIRC.

 

boy, now his shoulder, elbow AND knee were hurt last year. No wonder he was so bad! :lol:

[YearofDaCubs]

What happened to Jonny Gomes, he's the one I'd want from Tampa's OF if I had the choice.

 

he fell apart last year

 

He had a busted knee, IIRC.

 

boy, now his shoulder, elbow AND knee were hurt last year. No wonder he was so bad! :lol:

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061018&content_id=1716524&vkey=news_tb&fext=.jsp&c_id=tb

[Hosak8]

I'd give up Murton for Baldelli right now, no question. In 2006, Baldelli's OPS was considerably better than Murton's, and there is no question that Baldelli brings more speed, and plays a position of need. Baldelli is also a better defender.

 

His 2006 splits show that he hits righties and lefties equally well, and that he performed best during the day and on grass. Hmmm.... where could he find a team that plays alot of day games on grass?

 

I'd do it without blinking. If Baldelli has truly learned a little more plate discipline, he'd the better player.

 

While I agree with what you're saying, it most certainly won't be a Murton/Baldelli deal. Lots of pitching, no doubt.

 

Oh, I agree. I was just saying that if I had my druthers, I'd take Baldelli over Murton any day.

[cheapseats]

Gomes needed shoulder surgery early in the season but tried to play through it.

 

He also carries nitro pills with him because he once had a heart attack.

[UK1679666180]

You know, besides the age, I went and looked at Baldelli's stats. They look almost identical to Matt Murton's. I like Murton, so I'd like Baldelli, but shouldn't we be shooting higher for one of those two spots? And since we already have Murton, and he's cheap, I think the preference is clear.

 

I still like the idea of pursuing a Ryan Church/Wily Mo Pena platoon if that were at all possible, and use Jock with someone like Ohman and Mateo to go get a Westbrook or Jennings.

 

A bit off-topic, but since we're talking Tampa....is there any hope at this point for BJ Upton as a SS, or have they pretty much concluded that he needs to be in the OF?

 

I think they've given up on Upton at SS. They traded for Ben Zobrist who they really like at SS.

 

With that said, I'd love to have BJ Upton at short.

 

Zobrist will likely end up being a utility player or traded. Reid Brignac is in the top 3 among minor league SS (Wood and Tulowitzki).

[Ding Dong Johnson]

You know, besides the age, I went and looked at Baldelli's stats. They look almost identical to Matt Murton's. I like Murton, so I'd like Baldelli, but shouldn't we be shooting higher for one of those two spots? And since we already have Murton, and he's cheap, I think the preference is clear.

 

I still like the idea of pursuing a Ryan Church/Wily Mo Pena platoon if that were at all possible, and use Jock with someone like Ohman and Mateo to go get a Westbrook or Jennings.

 

A bit off-topic, but since we're talking Tampa....is there any hope at this point for BJ Upton as a SS, or have they pretty much concluded that he needs to be in the OF?

 

I think they've given up on Upton at SS. They traded for Ben Zobrist who they really like at SS.

 

With that said, I'd love to have BJ Upton at short.

 

Zobrist will likely end up being a utility player or traded. Reid Brignac is in the top 3 among minor league SS (Wood and Tulowitzki).

 

I'll take a utility guy that gets on base as much as Zobrist. I'm pretty sure he got on base 6 times one game, which is amazing considering he only had 4 plate appearances.

 

For those too lazy to look it up, his career minor league line is 324/434/453/887

[UK1679666180]

You know, besides the age, I went and looked at Baldelli's stats. They look almost identical to Matt Murton's. I like Murton, so I'd like Baldelli, but shouldn't we be shooting higher for one of those two spots? And since we already have Murton, and he's cheap, I think the preference is clear.

 

I still like the idea of pursuing a Ryan Church/Wily Mo Pena platoon if that were at all possible, and use Jock with someone like Ohman and Mateo to go get a Westbrook or Jennings.

 

A bit off-topic, but since we're talking Tampa....is there any hope at this point for BJ Upton as a SS, or have they pretty much concluded that he needs to be in the OF?

 

I think they've given up on Upton at SS. They traded for Ben Zobrist who they really like at SS.

 

With that said, I'd love to have BJ Upton at short.

 

Zobrist will likely end up being a utility player or traded. Reid Brignac is in the top 3 among minor league SS (Wood and Tulowitzki).

 

I'll take a utility guy that gets on base as much as Zobrist. I'm pretty sure he got on base 6 times one game, which is amazing considering he only had 4 plate appearances.

 

For those too lazy to look it up, his career minor league line is 324/434/453/887

 

If he was on the Cubs, he would likely be considered the long-term answer for SS. Of course, there's a big difference between TB and the Cubs as far as their farm systems.

[Mephistopheles]

Hitters are much more likely to be able to sustain their babip.

 

Rocco's minor league BABIP for his career was .338. Rocco's major league BABIP for his career is .333. His .338 BABIP this season is probably not to far above his ability. The big deal with him was his increased power. Still can't walk though.

[Abe Frohman]

The Florida Marlins are also working on Baldelli.

[RammyFanny]

The Florida Marlins are also working on Baldelli.

Don't doubt you, but source?

[cheapseats]

Hitters are much more likely to be able to sustain their babip.

 

Rocco's minor league BABIP for his career was .338. Rocco's major league BABIP for his career is .333. His .338 BABIP this season is probably not to far above his ability. The big deal with him was his increased power. Still can't walk though.

 

Yep, hitters are more likely to sustain BABIP, but that's almost always connected to their abilities to hit line drives. As someone else pointed out, Ichiro's BABIP is usually quite high, but it's because he hits a lot of line drives and beats out infield hits.

 

Minor league BABIP is generally higher - partly because of poorer defense at that level.

 

But all that said, maybe Baldelli has some very rare or unique ability to influence batted balls. As someone else has already said, he's fast enough to get some infield hits, but that wouldn't account for the extreme discrepancy.

 

Anyway, even if his batting average (and OBP) comes back to earth - and I really think it will - he'd still be a useful player. I just don't think he'll be worth what Tampa's asking.

 

And we already have Pie.

[cheapseats]

The Florida Marlins are also working on Baldelli.

Don't doubt you, but source?

 

I haven't heard a report that says Florida is interested, but it's widely known that they're looking for a young CF. They feel like they already have everything else they need in their system.

[Abe Frohman]

The Florida Marlins are also working on Baldelli.

Don't doubt you, but source?

 

I have a friend who is being discussed in the trade. A Florida pitching prospect.

[cheapseats]

The Florida Marlins are also working on Baldelli.

Don't doubt you, but source?

 

I have a friend who is being discussed in the trade. A Florida pitching prospect.

 

That narrows it down to about 50 players :lol: