Info on Kyler Burke (aquired in Barrett trade)

[CubinNY]

i wonder if this is another 'trust tim wilken' moment.

The more I look at it the more I think this is a Jim "I like tools" Hendry moment.

 

Last year in the Arizona Fall League he played in 45 games, k'd 56 times and put up thses numbers: .209/313/.294/.607

 

Not too different from this year and in Arizona!. I hope the Cubs send him back to Boise. Maybe he just needs a good hitting instructor.

Edited June 20, 2007 by CubinNY

[moorecg]

I still say if the kid is 19 and one year removed from the draft it doesn't hurt to give him a chance...there is a reason he got drafted so high, and some kids take some time to adjust to being away from home...who knows...he's not worth getting upset about and has a chance to be pretty good.

 

He's clearly over his head...the Padres were rushing him. I'd like to see how he'd do at short-season.

 

That's kinda my point...give him a chance at the right level and see what he can do...if he sucks..eh..so be it...but throwing him in over his head and saying "see...he can't do it"...well, I don't think that's fair.

[jersey cubs fan]

i wonder if this is another 'trust tim wilken' moment.

The more I look at it the more I think this is a Jim "I like tools" Hendry moment.

 

Last year in the Arizona Fall League he played in 45 games, k'd 56 times and put up thses numbers: .209/313/.294/.607

 

Not too different from this year and in Arizona!. I hope the Cubs send him back to Boise. Maybe he just needs a good hitting instructor.

 

That was the Arizona Rookie League. You'd hope an 18 year old coming out of high school wouldn't be over his head there.

[TruffleShuffle]

This is not a big deal. People are getting pissed off at the Cubs for trading for Burke, but I think he had next to nothing to do with the deal. The Cubs wanted to dump Barrett and in return, get a guy who can at least not kill them while playing every day this year. Burke is just a throw-in, a high-ceiling guy who has a lot of flaws right now.

[jersey cubs fan]

This is not a big deal. People are getting pissed off at the Cubs for trading for Burke, but I think he had next to nothing to do with the deal. The Cubs wanted to dump Barrett and in return, get a guy who can at least not kill them while playing every day this year. Burke is just a throw-in, a high-ceiling guy who has a lot of flaws right now.

 

Are they? I don't think Burke talk has been the focus. He's largely inconsequential.

[Sarcastic]

This is not a big deal. People are getting pissed off at the Cubs for trading for Burke, but I think he had next to nothing to do with the deal. The Cubs wanted to dump Barrett and in return, get a guy who can at least not kill them while playing every day this year. Burke is just a throw-in, a high-ceiling guy who has a lot of flaws right now.

 

I'm mostly pissed off because they traded a catcher that could hit, an extreme rarity, for a back up catcher and a weak rookie ball prospect.

[Danny82]

This is not a big deal. People are getting pissed off at the Cubs for trading for Burke, but I think he had next to nothing to do with the deal. The Cubs wanted to dump Barrett and in return, get a guy who can at least not kill them while playing every day this year. Burke is just a throw-in, a high-ceiling guy who has a lot of flaws right now.

 

I'm mostly pissed off because they traded a catcher that could hit, an extreme rarity, for a back up catcher and a weak rookie ball prospect.

Barrett wasn't hitting that well this year. I know it is a very small sample size compared with what he has done the past couple of years, but when you couple his offensive performance this year with his defensive woes and baserunning brainfarts, Michael has hurt the team more than he has helped it so far.

 

Personally, I'm indifferent to the trade.

[Sarcastic]

This is not a big deal. People are getting pissed off at the Cubs for trading for Burke, but I think he had next to nothing to do with the deal. The Cubs wanted to dump Barrett and in return, get a guy who can at least not kill them while playing every day this year. Burke is just a throw-in, a high-ceiling guy who has a lot of flaws right now.

 

I'm mostly pissed off because they traded a catcher that could hit, an extreme rarity, for a back up catcher and a weak rookie ball prospect.

Barrett wasn't hitting that well this year. I know it is a very small sample size compared with what he has done the past couple of years, but when you couple his offensive performance this year with his defensive woes and baserunning brainfarts, Michael has hurt the team more than he has helped it so far.

 

I'm indifferent to trading him.

 

Are you indifferent to replacing him with a backup catcher who will almost definitely hurt the team more by being unable to hit? If we could have gotten a decent return for him, I wouldn't shed a tear over the guy. He is in the last year of his contract, after all, and might not have resigned. But to trade him for this garbage is unacceptable.

[CubinNY]

 

I'm indifferent to trading him.

 

I don't know if I would call myself indifferent, but I'm not really upset. I wish they would have drafted Weiters if they were going to deal Barrett. That's my gripe.

 

Truffle, I'm just trying to look at Burke and see what the Cubs got. Frankly, I don't see the ceiling being all that high. He is young though. I'm definately not worked up about it.

[CubColtPacer]

This is not a big deal. People are getting pissed off at the Cubs for trading for Burke, but I think he had next to nothing to do with the deal. The Cubs wanted to dump Barrett and in return, get a guy who can at least not kill them while playing every day this year. Burke is just a throw-in, a high-ceiling guy who has a lot of flaws right now.

 

I'm mostly pissed off because they traded a catcher that could hit, an extreme rarity, for a back up catcher and a weak rookie ball prospect.

Barrett wasn't hitting that well this year. I know it is a very small sample size compared with what he has done the past couple of years, but when you couple his offensive performance this year with his defensive woes and baserunning brainfarts, Michael has hurt the team more than he has helped it so far.

 

I'm indifferent to trading him.

 

Are you indifferent to replacing him with a backup catcher who will almost definitely hurt the team more by being unable to hit? If we could have gotten a decent return for him, I wouldn't shed a tear over the guy. He is in the last year of his contract, after all, and might not have resigned. But to trade him for this garbage is unacceptable.

 

Bowen's not necessarily terrible-he's just a huge question mark. He was a very good prospect who appeared to flame out and then has become a late developing catcher (which is not uncommon at all for a catcher). He could hit decently at this point-he hasn't had regular at-bats in 2 years, so it's hard to say that if he can replicate his part time production of the last year and a half over a full-time job. He is 26 though, so it's not unreasonable for him to be able to do that. He has the patience and the power potential, so he has the ability to succeed. It's just a risk.

[Guest]

 

I'm indifferent to trading him.

 

I don't know if I would call myself indifferent, but I'm not really upset. I wish they would have drafted Weiters if they were going to deal Barrett. That's my gripe.

 

Truffle, I'm just trying to look at Burke and see what the Cubs got. Frankly, I don't see the ceiling being all that high. He is young though. I'm definately not worked up about it.

 

How isn't his ceiling high?

 

He's unlikely to come close to it but he has a high ceiling.

[weis21]

my gut feeling is this is just to make room to soto personally. I think they are ready to give him a shot and lou's patience(along with my own to some degree)had finally ran up with michael. He just seemed to never learn from his mistakes. I wish him well, but we werent going to resign him anyway, lets see how soto/bowen do.

[UK1679666180]

 

I'm indifferent to trading him.

 

I don't know if I would call myself indifferent, but I'm not really upset. I wish they would have drafted Weiters if they were going to deal Barrett. That's my gripe.

 

Truffle, I'm just trying to look at Burke and see what the Cubs got. Frankly, I don't see the ceiling being all that high. He is young though. I'm definately not worked up about it.

 

I'd have a huge problem if they drafted Weiters based on what they would w/Barrett, apples and oranges as far as drafting a player based on what is done on the 25 man roster.

 

Burke probably has a very high ceiling, that of a very good ML regluar/All-star, he wouldn't be drafted in the top 40 if he didn't. At this point, questions have to arise if he could translate those tools into production which he hasn't and the further along he goes, the less likely that'll be.

[CubinNY]

 

I'm indifferent to trading him.

 

I don't know if I would call myself indifferent, but I'm not really upset. I wish they would have drafted Weiters if they were going to deal Barrett. That's my gripe.

 

Truffle, I'm just trying to look at Burke and see what the Cubs got. Frankly, I don't see the ceiling being all that high. He is young though. I'm definately not worked up about it.

 

How isn't his ceiling high?

 

He's unlikely to come close to it but he has a high ceiling.

 

Well, first I should say I don't exactly know what a ceiling is except for one that actually sits under my roof and over my head. I don't buy into draft slot, subjective analysis, and "dunking" ability. I go by numbers. The numbers say he is a terrible professioanl ball player at every level he's been. To me that means his ceiling is low.

 

A player's ceiling and $2.02 will get him a Venti cup of coffee at a Memphis Starbucks.

[Sarcastic]

This is not a big deal. People are getting pissed off at the Cubs for trading for Burke, but I think he had next to nothing to do with the deal. The Cubs wanted to dump Barrett and in return, get a guy who can at least not kill them while playing every day this year. Burke is just a throw-in, a high-ceiling guy who has a lot of flaws right now.

 

I'm mostly pissed off because they traded a catcher that could hit, an extreme rarity, for a back up catcher and a weak rookie ball prospect.

Barrett wasn't hitting that well this year. I know it is a very small sample size compared with what he has done the past couple of years, but when you couple his offensive performance this year with his defensive woes and baserunning brainfarts, Michael has hurt the team more than he has helped it so far.

 

I'm indifferent to trading him.

 

Are you indifferent to replacing him with a backup catcher who will almost definitely hurt the team more by being unable to hit? If we could have gotten a decent return for him, I wouldn't shed a tear over the guy. He is in the last year of his contract, after all, and might not have resigned. But to trade him for this garbage is unacceptable.

 

Bowen's not necessarily terrible-he's just a huge question mark. He was a very good prospect who appeared to flame out and then has become a late developing catcher (which is not uncommon at all for a catcher). He could hit decently at this point-he hasn't had regular at-bats in 2 years, so it's hard to say that if he can replicate his part time production of the last year and a half over a full-time job. He is 26 though, so it's not unreasonable for him to be able to do that. He has the patience and the power potential, so he has the ability to succeed. It's just a risk.

 

It was stated earlier, either in this thread or the one in transactions, that Bowen has a .385 BABIP. His only good season in the majors has been in a very small sample size, less that 90 ABs this year. I'd say the chances of him turning into a good hitting catcher are similar to the chances that Theriot's Sept. callup numbers last year were more representative of his abilities than his years of mediocre minor league play.

[SouthSideRyan]

Hendry loves picking up these high draft pick flame outs. None of them ever seem to work though.

[TruffleShuffle]

my gut feeling is this is just to make room to soto personally.

 

I want to believe this, but the Cubs have never shown much to make me think that Soto is really in their plans for the future. Signing Blanco to a two-year deal when it seemed Soto was major league ready would suggest otherwise.

[Outshined_One]

I'm intrigued with Burke, but I'm not excited about him. There's some reason for hope with him and there's plenty of reason to believe he might never amount to anything in this system. Here are a few things worth noting:

 

Positives

 

-I dig that .094 IsoD. I'm not overly thrilled with the Cubs' minor league system when it comes to the coaches' ability to teach guys to take a walk since they seem to equate plate discipline with being able to make contact with a pitch anywhere from the nose to the toes...and actively encouraging guys to do so. Burke at least doesn't seem to have a problem with taking a pitch...which makes me wonder what his Ks looking versus Ks swinging splits look like.

 

-5 tool guy. WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

 

-His home/away splits are absolutely bizarre. Check it:

 

Entire Season	AVG	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	OPS
Home Games	.171	33	111	13	19	2	1	1	12	11	36	3	1	.250	.234	.484
Away Games	.255	29	102	11	26	5	0	0	9	15	37	0	0	.361	.304	.665

 

I have no idea what kind of an effect Fort Wayne has on a player in terms of dimensions, but that kind of split is rather eye-opening. However, considering his BABIP at home is .250, that tells me he's been unusually unlucky at home this season (more on this in a moment).

 

-Apparently power was one of his better tools coming out of HS, but he hasn't been able to translate that into professional ball yet. Granted, guys like Ryan Harvey and Brian Dopirak have shown us that power doesn't mean anything if you can't use it in-game, but it's nice to know that Burke might have that tool come around.

 

-He's got a good arm, so I'd imagine he could end up being at least an above average defensive RF with his speed.

 

-19 is young for Low A. If he has to repeat, he'd still be on the right track as far as age development goes.

 

Negatives

 

-I hate using strikeouts as a metric for measuring minor leaguers, but in some cases, it's justified. It can be a red flag for a guy who has trouble making consistent contact at the plate, which could completely submarine his career as he progresses through the minors. Pitchers are Low A usually don't have good breaking balls and changeups. What will happen to him as he advances if he strikes out at a rate like this already? Guys definitely learn how to cut down their Ks as they move along, for certain, but right now, color me skeptical.

 

-His BABIP is roughly .321 overall and around .400 on the road. In other words, that .215 batting average actually should be lower! That's...that's just not good.

 

-His LD% is about 12%. For a guy who supposedly has good power, that's pretty bad. Considering he grounds out about 45% of the time, I have to wonder if some idiot coach in the Padres organization told him that he should beat the ball into the ground and use his speed to his advantage. His swing might also need some readjustments. Or it could be that he has no power.

 

-2 HRs in 376 ABs. Wow.

 

Maybe the mountain air in Boise will do him some good. But for now, I'm not very excited about him.

[CubinNY]

 

I'd have a huge problem if they drafted Weiters based on what they would w/Barrett, apples and oranges as far as drafting a player based on what is done on the 25 man roster.

I'm no draft expert, but I don't understand that at all. It seems to me that a team would want to go with BPA AND need. To me that was clearly Weiters. Now if the Cubs have concerns that he won't stick at catcher, I could see drafting someone else.

 

I just seems that a team would want to at least think about the mid term future of their ball club when drafting.

[TruffleShuffle]

A player's ceiling and $2.02 will get him a Venti cup of coffee at a Memphis Starbucks.

 

Not really. Harvey, when drafted, had a star ceiling but as we've seen, a big bust potential too. A guy like Theriot or Murton has a lower ceiling, but a better chance of becoming a big league ballplayer. My beef with the Cubs is that when they've gone for high-ceiling players, they go after a Harvey or Dopirak who swing at everything and have long swings. They don't get the proper coaching and voila, there's another wasted draft pick.

[moorecg]

By the way.

 

Kyler? Seriously?

 

I just wanted to say that this really is the best question to ask about the guy...

 

What...Mom wanted Kyle, Dad wanted Tyler? I hate new made up names....

[Brian]

By the way.

 

Kyler? Seriously?

 

I just wanted to say that this really is the best question to ask about the guy...

 

What...Mom wanted Kyle, Dad wanted Tyler? I hate new made up names....

 

Kyler wasn't made up by his parents, there was a Kyler in my high school.

[Sarcastic]

By the way.

 

Kyler? Seriously?

 

I just wanted to say that this really is the best question to ask about the guy...

 

What...Mom wanted Kyle, Dad wanted Tyler? I hate new made up names....

 

How about naming the kid Tyle?

[UK1679666180]

 

I'd have a huge problem if they drafted Weiters based on what they would w/Barrett, apples and oranges as far as drafting a player based on what is done on the 25 man roster.

I'm no draft expert, but I don't understand that at all. It seems to me that a team would want to go with BPA AND need. To me that was clearly Weiters. Now if the Cubs have concerns that he won't stick at catcher, I could see drafting someone else.

 

I just seems that a team would want to at least think about the mid term future of their ball club when drafting.

 

It'd be great if they worked together, but if the Cubs feel that Vitters is the BPA, the player they liked the most from the start, followed the most during his HS season, etc. should they pass that to the side b/c of a need on the 25 man roster? Btw, when Vitters gets to the majors the Cubs might be looking to trade Ramirez.

 

You're playing the "what if" as far as trying to project what the roster will look 2-3 years down the road. Who's to say that Soto won't an everyday C and Ramirez is playing more like a 1B at 3B b/c of a career of leg injuries who can't stay healthy?

 

Their biggest need is getting the best talent at any position.

[TruffleShuffle]

Btw, when Vitters flames out in Tennessee the Cubs might be looking to trade Ramirez anyway, since he's spent two years on the DL and his contract will have become an albatross.

 

fixed for appropriate pessimism.