Vitters has tendonitis!

[Skyballer]

2015: Vitters, .900 OPS with 45 Homers.

 

Cubs fans: I knew he would be a bust, he needs to hit 46 Homeruns with a .901 OPS

[imb]

2015: Vitters, .900 OPS with 45 Homers.

 

Cubs fans: I knew he would be a bust, he needs to hit 46 Homeruns with a .901 OPS

 

if he hit 45 home runs, he better top a .900 ops

[Guest]

2015: Vitters, .900 OPS with 45 Homers.

 

Cubs fans: I knew he would be a bust, he needs to hit 46 Homeruns with a .901 OPS

 

if he hit 45 home runs, he better top a .900 ops

 

Negative isoD.

[imb]

2015: Vitters, .900 OPS with 45 Homers.

 

Cubs fans: I knew he would be a bust, he needs to hit 46 Homeruns with a .901 OPS

 

if he hit 45 home runs, he better top a .900 ops

 

Negative isoD.

 

AKA the Ivan Rodriguez

[SweetZombieJesus]

What is with the irrational hate and pessimism about this guy?

 

Supposedly power potential type guy with questionable contact skills and hasn't hit at any level at all. He looks like a poor man's Ryan Harvey

[Transmogrified Tiger]

What is with the irrational hate and pessimism about this guy?

 

Supposedly power potential type guy with questionable contact skills and hasn't hit at any level at all. He looks like a poor man's Ryan Harvey

 

I don't see how you can say he has questionable contact skills when he has 65 professional at bats, the vast majority of those coming after he had a multiple month layoff where he did very little baseball related activity(since he didn't want to hurt himself before he signed). The same goes for "hasn't hit at any level at all", he's barely had any chance to show what he can do. Plus, it's not like he's a senior draftee that has time working against him, he doesn't even turn 19 until the end of the minor league season.

[Outshined_One]

What is with the irrational hate and pessimism about this guy?

 

Supposedly power potential type guy with questionable contact skills and hasn't hit at any level at all. He looks like a poor man's Ryan Harvey

 

Coming into his draft, Harvey's power potential was freakish. It was easy to imagine him hitting 40+ HRs at his peak. He had a long swing coming out and his ability to draw walks and overall plate discipline had lingering questions. He was also supposed to be a five tool guy.

 

Coming into his draft, Vitters' power potential was lower (likely a 30 HR guy at his peak). Vitters also had very good plate discipline, a terrific right handed swing, and a good ability to make contact. Vitters' defense and speed were not at Harvey's level.

 

Comparing the two like that is a bit of a head-scratcher, especially considering Vitters' age and lack of experience. Injuries have held the guy back. We don't have very much to go on statistically speaking. Frankly, I think there maybe are about 3 or 4 people total on this board who have seen Vitters in person and can give us a good picture of what he is capable of. With such a small sample size, that's the best we can ask at this point.

 

It's one thing to dislike Vitters because you wanted Porcello or Wieters in the draft. That's understandable. It's another thing altogether to hate the guy because of what he's done since being drafted. That's just ludicrous.

[jersey cubs fan]

What is with the irrational hate and pessimism about this guy?

 

Supposedly power potential type guy with questionable contact skills and hasn't hit at any level at all. He looks like a poor man's Ryan Harvey

 

Coming into his draft, Harvey's power potential was freakish. It was easy to imagine him hitting 40+ HRs at his peak. He had a long swing coming out and his ability to draw walks and overall plate discipline had lingering questions. He was also supposed to be a five tool guy.

 

Coming into his draft, Vitters' power potential was lower (likely a 30 HR guy at his peak). Vitters also had very good plate discipline, a terrific right handed swing, and a good ability to make contact. Vitters' defense and speed were not at Harvey's level.

 

Comparing the two like that is a bit of a head-scratcher, especially considering Vitters' age and lack of experience. Injuries have held the guy back. We don't have very much to go on statistically speaking. Frankly, I think there maybe are about 3 or 4 people total on this board who have seen Vitters in person and can give us a good picture of what he is capable of. With such a small sample size, that's the best we can ask at this point.

 

It's one thing to dislike Vitters because you wanted Porcello or Wieters in the draft. That's understandable. It's another thing altogether to hate the guy because of what he's done since being drafted. That's just ludicrous.

 

There were doubts before the draft and a year later there's been nothing resembling good news on him, what's so ludicrous?

[Outshined_One]

There were doubts before the draft and a year later there's been nothing resembling good news on him, what's so ludicrous?

 

Doubts?

 

Vitters was a top 5 pick, the other probable top 5 guys (counting Porcello) all had question marks too. There's no perfect prospect coming out of the draft.

 

Everyone had doubts! Yet, when I check out other sites, I don't see anything close to resembling the same overreaction for other underperforming prospects from that draft.

 

It's been less than a year. It's ludicrous to label this guy a bust. It's ludicrous to rip on the guy non-stop without giving him a chance. People here need to take a step back and stop going nuts over this guy.

[jersey cubs fan]

There were doubts before the draft and a year later there's been nothing resembling good news on him, what's so ludicrous?

 

Doubts?

 

Vitters was a top 5 pick, the other probable top 5 guys (counting Porcello) all had question marks too. There's no perfect prospect coming out of the draft.

 

Everyone had doubts! Yet, when I check out other sites, I don't see anything close to resembling the same overreaction for other underperforming prospects from that draft.

 

It's been less than a year. It's ludicrous to label this guy a bust. It's ludicrous to rip on the guy non-stop without giving him a chance. People here need to take a step back and stop going nuts over this guy.

 

It's ridiculous to claim people are ripping on him non-stop.

 

And yes, there were large doubts, including, I believe, a weak season before the draft. Top picks that high should not have such red flags as, "well, he wasn't any good this year but he was hurt/sick so it doesn't count". Or if that is the red flag, the rest of the portfolio better be outstanding.

[Outshined_One]

It's ridiculous to claim people are ripping on him non-stop.

 

And yes, there were large doubts, including, I believe, a weak season before the draft. Top picks that high should not have such red flags as, "well, he wasn't any good this year but he was hurt/sick so it doesn't count". Or if that is the red flag, the rest of the portfolio better be outstanding.

 

He had mono. I remember getting it in college. It's bad. My body felt like a lead weight.

 

Moreover, certain people here are ripping him non-stop. They happily contribute their two cents any time something bad happens to Vitters.

[sporrer17]

I love the people that rip on his "weak season" without acknowledging the fact that he was sick, he had mono. Most reports I've seen about the kid don't really question his contact skills. For the most part, the questions I've seen about him are all regarding whether or not he'll stay at 3b or have to move to 1b/LF.

 

I'd say we can wait until short season ball gets started and Vitters is at least a couple hundred ABs deep into his professional career before making any sort of judgment on his career. Like many others have pointed out, he's not 19 until after this season, give him a break.

[jaydee]

 

And yes, there were large doubts, including, I believe, a weak season before the draft. Top picks that high should not have such red flags as, "well, he wasn't any good this year but he was hurt/sick so it doesn't count". Or if that is the red flag, the rest of the portfolio better be outstanding.

 

I think its been said like 15 times in this thread alone that he was very sick that season (he had mono). That is why no one was concerned about his "weak" season. It is not like the Cubs reached on some huge project. The guy was a top prospect who was going top 5 anyway.

[CubinNY]

I love the people that rip on his "weak season" without acknowledging the fact that he was sick, he had mono.

It's not one season, it's his entire HS career (not weak, but not 1st round status either). He impressed in a couple of showcase game and the scouts went ga-ga.

 

The Cubs drafted him, then he held out for the big signing bonus and didn't play baseball for an entire summer. He comes back from the long lay off and all of the sudden his swing doesn't look so sweat. And now he's hurt.

 

I think we all want the Cubs prospects to be lights out good.

[sneakypower]

the biggest problem i have is that seemingly every other 1st round pick has gotten off to a terrific start.

 

knowing what we know now, would you rather have Vitters or

 

Wieters?

Porcello?

Parker?

Laporta?

Heyward?

[davearm2]

There were doubts before the draft and a year later there's been nothing resembling good news on him, what's so ludicrous?

 

Doubts?

 

Vitters was a top 5 pick, the other probable top 5 guys (counting Porcello) all had question marks too. There's no perfect prospect coming out of the draft.

 

Everyone had doubts! Yet, when I check out other sites, I don't see anything close to resembling the same overreaction for other underperforming prospects from that draft.

 

It's been less than a year. It's ludicrous to label this guy a bust. It's ludicrous to rip on the guy non-stop without giving him a chance. People here need to take a step back and stop going nuts over this guy.

Just speaking for myself here, my pessimism is rooted in decades worth of Cub high-round HS draftees failing... and more often than not failing miserably.

 

Simply looking at the history suggests that Vitters was something of a longshot from the day he was drafted.

 

So considering the background here, IMO it's easy to see why folks might be quick to jump ship. Now whether that's fair or not is another topic.

 

FWIW, I would've preferred Wieters to any of the HS guys, if only because the bust factor just seems so much smaller.

[imb]

He must still have mono

[imb]

HEY does samardzija have mono too

[imb]

i dont mean to imply anything

[jersey cubs fan]

 

And yes, there were large doubts, including, I believe, a weak season before the draft. Top picks that high should not have such red flags as, "well, he wasn't any good this year but he was hurt/sick so it doesn't count". Or if that is the red flag, the rest of the portfolio better be outstanding.

 

I think its been said like 15 times in this thread alone that he was very sick that season (he had mono). That is why no one was concerned about his "weak" season. It is not like the Cubs reached on some huge project. The guy was a top prospect who was going top 5 anyway.

 

That's the problem. He was a high school kid with very little track record yet his entire senior season was excused because he was sick. It's one thing to give 1st round money to a kid with such a red flag, but to take him in the top 5? High school hitters are hard enough to justify taking when they are healthy and productive. But when they come in off a bad season? From a business standpoint that's just a tremendous risk to take. You're drafting him and paying him based on what he did a year ago at 16. Stuff happens to young athletes and if a guy is so sick he basically misses his senior season, there's no telling what other physical changes that sickness may have been masking.

 

If I'm picking, and paying that high, you better be coming in with very little in the way of red flags.

[jersey cubs fan]

As for the "you can't blame the Cubs, he was consensus top 5" excuse:

 

Baseball consensus is, by and large, incredibly stupid. It's been shown over and over that conventional wisdom and all that nonsense is rooted in fallacies and tradition.

 

The Cubs took a very big gamble that to date has shown no signs of paying off. It is far too early to determine whether or not it will ever pay off. The story is far from over. As a Cubs fan there's little to do but hope and wait on the guy. But the story so far resembles so many stories that have been all to familar to Cubs fans.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Vitters had experience against top end competition, he was one of the best hitters at one of the showcases that had some of the best talent in the country. If memory serves it was wood bat too.

[TruffleShuffle]

2015: Vitters, .900 OPS with 45 Homers.

 

wow he is really tearing up the frontier league in your scenario.

[Guest]

It's not one season, it's his entire HS career (not weak, but not 1st round status either). He impressed in a couple of showcase game and the scouts went ga-ga.

 

He was considered a probable first rounder and one of the top prep hitters before the prep showcases between his jr and sr year. And there are more than a couple of showcase games (yes, I too have qualms with using the showcase all star games to judge prospects).

 

Vitters had experience against top end competition, he was one of the best hitters at one of the showcases that had some of the best talent in the country. If memory serves it was wood bat too.

 

Most showcases are with wood bats and he did well in quite a few of the summer ones (both after his soph year and jr year). His big ones were the 2006 AFLAC game, World Wood Bat, and the Cape Cod Classic (he was the MVP of that one).

 

The one you're thinking of is probably the AFLAC game where he hit a double off each of Michael Main, Madison Bumgarner and Rick Porcello and walked against Matt Harvey.

[Donzo1679666396]

Wondering if Vitters' recent success has answered any concerns for some of y'all?.... I know it's a small sample size, but it's all been a small sample size with him so far.

 

I'm certainly encouraged about him. He's anything but a "bust" at this time.