Fox DFA'd by the A's

[Post Count Padder]

A's designated C/OF Jake Fox for assignment.

Fox has been playing all over the field, but he is a pretty terrible defender wherever he goes, so his value is predicted on pounding the ball. Unfortunately, with a .214/.264/.327 line in 106 plate appearances, he was hitting like a punchless backup shortstop and not a lumbering slugger without a position. Oakland may be able to sneak Fox through waivers, as his .293 career on-base percentage in the majors isn't going to make many teams rush to place a claim.

[Sammy Sofa]

Gee, what a shocker.

 

I wonder if any of the people clamoring for Colvin as a full time player pay heed to things like this.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Gee, what a shocker.

 

I wonder if any of the people clamoring for Colvin as a full time player pay heed to things like this.

 

Different situation. Colvin was a 1st round pick who was off to a decent professional career before he was slowed down by a bad elbow and eventully TJS. Also, Colvin can play a solid defense.

 

Jake Fox, like Micah Hoffpauir before him was a guy who was always a decent hitter in the minors but nothing special who chose to blow up on AAA pitching for a year in his late 20's before he was called up and had some degree of success before big league pitchers figured him out. To be honest, I never saw Fox as a guy who would by a big time slugger, but at worst, I thought hed be able to put up Russell Branyan or Marcus Thames type numbers.

[Guest]

Tyler Colvinsworth is not a good defender, and Jake Fox was a 3rd round pick.

[Sammy Sofa]

Gee, what a shocker.

 

I wonder if any of the people clamoring for Colvin as a full time player pay heed to things like this.

 

Different situation. Colvin was a 1st round pick who was off to a decent professional career before he was slowed down by a bad elbow and eventully TJS. Also, Colvin can play a solid defense.

 

Jake Fox, like Micah Hoffpauir before him was a guy who was always a decent hitter in the minors but nothing special who chose to blow up on AAA pitching for a year in his late 20's before he was called up and had some degree of success before big league pitchers figured him out. To be honest, I never saw Fox as a guy who would by a big time slugger, but at worst, I thought hed be able to put up Russell Branyan or Marcus Thames type numbers.

 

Colvin is not solid defensively. He'd have to basically pull off full time what's done in a very limited sample size this season to justify himself defensively. I'm also not sure how you're concluding that Colvin was off to a "decent professional career" and yet just dismiss Fox's career minor league numbers like he was a zilch compared to Colvin.

[ScrubMD]

Gee, what a shocker.

 

I wonder if any of the people clamoring for Colvin as a full time player pay heed to things like this.

 

Pay heed to things like some players have long term success and some don't? I haven't been clamoring for Colvin to do anything, but what could playing him full time possibly hurt? You either find out if he's truly figured things out and will a productive major leaguer or he ends up falling apart and a crappy team becomes slightly crappier.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Gee, what a shocker.

 

I wonder if any of the people clamoring for Colvin as a full time player pay heed to things like this.

 

Different situation. Colvin was a 1st round pick who was off to a decent professional career before he was slowed down by a bad elbow and eventully TJS. Also, Colvin can play a solid defense.

 

Jake Fox, like Micah Hoffpauir before him was a guy who was always a decent hitter in the minors but nothing special who chose to blow up on AAA pitching for a year in his late 20's before he was called up and had some degree of success before big league pitchers figured him out. To be honest, I never saw Fox as a guy who would by a big time slugger, but at worst, I thought hed be able to put up Russell Branyan or Marcus Thames type numbers.

 

Colvin is not solid defensively. He'd have to basically pull off full time what's done in a very limited sample size this season to justify himself defensively. I'm also not sure how you're concluding that Colvin was off to a "decent professional career" and yet just dismiss Fox's career minor league numbers like he was a zilch compared to Colvin.

 

Regardelss, you cant really say that Fox was bad for Oakland, so Colvin will be bad. Sure,theres a chance that Colvins bad, but I think that the Cubs are in a position the next 2 years, hopefully not more where he can be given the chance to play as much as possible and if he proves himself, hopefully he can become a full time player and we can use the free agent money elsewhere. I dont follow Oakland Athletics baseball, so I dont know quite what happened with Fox there, be it the balpark, or they just threw him a lot of sliders and he wasnt able to adjust. At 24 or 25, I forget which, Colvin is young enough that if given a chance he may be able to grow as a player, something that Lou hasnt allowed too many rookies to due before. Fox got 1 cup of coffee in '07 I believe, and was awful and promptly sent down. This time around, he was 28 years old, and at that point, it isnt easy to make adjustments.

 

On the other side of the coin is Casey McGehee, a 10th round pick in the same draft as Jake Fox. His .296/.345/.429/.774 career minor league line is pretty unspectacular, but Milwaukee saw something in him and has made an everyday player out of him, a good one too. Yeah, I got pretty excited about Fox last year, and Hoffpauir the year before. They were old for "prospects", but they werent putting up solid .800-.900 OPS', they were putting up ridiculous numbers, and it wa hard not to be excited about them. Either way, playing for Lou Piniella is not a good environment for a rookie unless your one ofn those guys who can make an immeidate impact like Braun, Pujols, or Heyward.

Edited June 14, 2010 by Little Slide Rooter

[CubColtPacer]

Tyler Colvinsworth is not a good defender, and Jake Fox was a 3rd round pick.

 

I honestly think the jury is still out on whether Colvin is a good defender or not. The scouts seem to be mixed in the minors between some believing that he had good corner outfield defense and poor center field defense and others who believed he was only a LF. So far, in the very limited data we have in the majors Colvin seems to be leaning towards the former idea with his defense both with the eye test and UZR. I don't think it's a stretch to believe that he's a good defender at either corner outfield position. At the same time, that still has to be confirmed with more chances.

[Banedon]

A's designated C/OF Jake Fox for assignment.

Fox has been playing all over the field, but he is a pretty terrible defender wherever he goes, so his value is predicted on pounding the ball. Unfortunately, with a .214/.264/.327 line in 106 plate appearances, he was hitting like a punchless backup shortstop and not a lumbering slugger without a position. Oakland may be able to sneak Fox through waivers, as his .293 career on-base percentage in the majors isn't going to make many teams rush to place a claim.

 

Are they trying to say "predicated"?

[Tracer Bullet]

On the other side of the coin is Casey McGehee, a 10th round pick in the same draft as Jake Fox. His .296/.345/.429/.774 career minor league line is pretty unspectacular, but Milwaukee saw something in him and has made an everyday player out of him, a good one too. Yeah, I got pretty excited about Fox last year, and Hoffpauir the year before. They were old for "prospects", but they werent putting up solid .800-.900 OPS', they were putting up ridiculous numbers, and it wa hard not to be excited about them. Either way, playing for Lou Piniella is not a good environment for a rookie unless your one ofn those guys who can make an immeidate impact like Braun, Pujols, or Heyward.

 

How is McGehee on the other side of the same coin that Fox is on? McGehee had 1 good year for the Brewers and is now coming back down. Chances are much better that they'll both end up on the same side of the coin (the one with the rest of the crappy players that play a season or a couple seasons in the majors, but don't cut it long term).

 

Maybe he'll be the rare player that had a peak MiLB OPS of .776 but routinely puts up an .850 OPS in the majors. But so far, there's not nearly enough information to say that he is a good everyday player.

[Sammy Sofa]

Regardelss, you cant really say that Fox was bad for Oakland, so Colvin will be bad. Sure,theres a chance that Colvins bad, but I think that the Cubs are in a position the next 2 years, hopefully not more where he can be given the chance to play as much as possible and if he proves himself, hopefully he can become a full time player and we can use the free agent money elsewhere.

 

It would be tremendously unlikely if Colvin showed himself to be a full time player since he could basically only be a corner outfielder. You're talking like it's practically a remote possibility that he wouldn't pan out when it's actually the opposite. Again, he's not very good defensively, so to justify him playing full time in any of the OF spots he'd have have continue hitting out of his mind. The Cubs are much better served finally shelling out for an actual corner OF, whether through trade or FA, than continue on the path they're on. Not long shot like Colvin, not a converted bad IF like Soriano, and not an overpaid platoon player like Fukudome. If they dick around and waste time seeing if Colvin can be a fulltime corner OF it's just going to be more of the business of usual except cheaper. That's an improvement only from a financial standpoint, but the team still sucks.

[Guest]

 

I honestly think the jury is still out on whether Colvin is a good defender or not. The scouts seem to be mixed in the minors between some believing that he had good corner outfield defense and poor center field defense and others who believed he was only a LF. So far, in the very limited data we have in the majors Colvin seems to be leaning towards the former idea with his defense both with the eye test and UZR. I don't think it's a stretch to believe that he's a good defender at either corner outfield position. At the same time, that still has to be confirmed with more chances.

That's it. He's not good enough defensively to play CF full time and doesn't hit with enough power to play one of the corner spots.

 

From what I've seen in both the minors and with the Cubs his arm his strong and accurate and he's a decent route runner, but nothing spectacular. I'm not sure why so many people here are so down on him, I think he might be able to start on a team that gets power else where, but for most teams in the post steroid era he's likely to be a backup.

[Sammy Sofa]

 

I honestly think the jury is still out on whether Colvin is a good defender or not. The scouts seem to be mixed in the minors between some believing that he had good corner outfield defense and poor center field defense and others who believed he was only a LF. So far, in the very limited data we have in the majors Colvin seems to be leaning towards the former idea with his defense both with the eye test and UZR. I don't think it's a stretch to believe that he's a good defender at either corner outfield position. At the same time, that still has to be confirmed with more chances.

That's it. He's not good enough defensively to play CF full time and doesn't hit with enough power to play one of the corner spots.

 

From what I've seen in both the minors and with the Cubs his arm his strong and accurate and he's a decent route runner, but nothing spectacular. I'm not sure why so many people here are so down on him, I think he might be able to start on a team that gets power else where, but for most teams in the post steroid era he's likely to be a backup.

 

Personally, I'm not "down" on him altogether. A 4th OF can be very useful. I'm just down on the idea of him as a starter with the way this OF is constructed for now and likely will be for a while to come. If the Cubs had sure things who were younger in one or both of the other OF spots, OK, but that's not the case. As it stands right now, looking to make Colvin a starting position player wouldn't be likely to help this team except in regards to payroll.

[jersey cubs fan]

 

I honestly think the jury is still out on whether Colvin is a good defender or not. The scouts seem to be mixed in the minors between some believing that he had good corner outfield defense and poor center field defense and others who believed he was only a LF. So far, in the very limited data we have in the majors Colvin seems to be leaning towards the former idea with his defense both with the eye test and UZR. I don't think it's a stretch to believe that he's a good defender at either corner outfield position. At the same time, that still has to be confirmed with more chances.

That's it. He's not good enough defensively to play CF full time and doesn't hit with enough power to play one of the corner spots.

 

From what I've seen in both the minors and with the Cubs his arm his strong and accurate and he's a decent route runner, but nothing spectacular. I'm not sure why so many people here are so down on him, I think he might be able to start on a team that gets power else where, but for most teams in the post steroid era he's likely to be a backup.

 

Personally, I'm not "down" on him altogether. A 4th OF can be very useful. I'm just down on the idea of him as a starter with the way this OF is constructed for now and likely will be for a while to come. If the Cubs had sure things who were younger in one or both of the other OF spots, OK, but that's not the case. As it stands right now, looking to make Colvin a starting position player wouldn't be likely to help this team except in regards to payroll.

 

It's not only that lack of other OF, but the other corner infielders, and no "Chase Utley" type to provide replacement power at another position.

[Sammy Sofa]

 

I honestly think the jury is still out on whether Colvin is a good defender or not. The scouts seem to be mixed in the minors between some believing that he had good corner outfield defense and poor center field defense and others who believed he was only a LF. So far, in the very limited data we have in the majors Colvin seems to be leaning towards the former idea with his defense both with the eye test and UZR. I don't think it's a stretch to believe that he's a good defender at either corner outfield position. At the same time, that still has to be confirmed with more chances.

That's it. He's not good enough defensively to play CF full time and doesn't hit with enough power to play one of the corner spots.

 

From what I've seen in both the minors and with the Cubs his arm his strong and accurate and he's a decent route runner, but nothing spectacular. I'm not sure why so many people here are so down on him, I think he might be able to start on a team that gets power else where, but for most teams in the post steroid era he's likely to be a backup.

 

Personally, I'm not "down" on him altogether. A 4th OF can be very useful. I'm just down on the idea of him as a starter with the way this OF is constructed for now and likely will be for a while to come. If the Cubs had sure things who were younger in one or both of the other OF spots, OK, but that's not the case. As it stands right now, looking to make Colvin a starting position player wouldn't be likely to help this team except in regards to payroll.

 

It's not only that lack of other OF, but the other corner infielders, and no "Chase Utley" type to provide replacement power at another position.

 

Yes, exactly.

[CubColtPacer]

 

I honestly think the jury is still out on whether Colvin is a good defender or not. The scouts seem to be mixed in the minors between some believing that he had good corner outfield defense and poor center field defense and others who believed he was only a LF. So far, in the very limited data we have in the majors Colvin seems to be leaning towards the former idea with his defense both with the eye test and UZR. I don't think it's a stretch to believe that he's a good defender at either corner outfield position. At the same time, that still has to be confirmed with more chances.

That's it. He's not good enough defensively to play CF full time and doesn't hit with enough power to play one of the corner spots.

 

From what I've seen in both the minors and with the Cubs his arm his strong and accurate and he's a decent route runner, but nothing spectacular. I'm not sure why so many people here are so down on him, I think he might be able to start on a team that gets power else where, but for most teams in the post steroid era he's likely to be a backup.

 

See I think he has plenty of power potential. He has the 2nd and 3rd longest home runs for the Cubs this season and 4 of his 6 home runs have been over 400 feet, so he hasn't hit cheap ones so far. Anybody who hits that many line drives and fly balls who can hit the ball as far as he does should be able to hit for a decent amount of home runs. And the power numbers at Tennessee last year and the greater than average muscle he put on in the offseason would lead credence to his home run numbers being better than earlier in his career.

 

I'm personally concerned about that strikeout rate. It could be a sign that he's adjusting to the league but it could mean there are certain holes that can be exploited in his swing. Coming off the bench a decent amount might mean that he's faced more high strikeout pitchers as well.

 

Colvin's a strange guy. There isn't a single part of his game that hasn't been questioned at some point. Everybody has a different belief about him from poor defense to inability to make contact to poor walk rate to poor power. I don't have high hopes for him being an impact player but he is definitely got me curious about which weaknesses turn out to be more true than others. And he definitely could prove me wrong and put it all together.

[SweetZombieJesus]

Gee, what a shocker.

 

I wonder if any of the people clamoring for Colvin as a full time player pay heed to things like this.

 

Tyler Colvin is the 2004 Neifi Perez all over again. He's such a terrible player. Freaking Wilken doesn't know what he is doing.

[Sammy Sofa]

Yup, if someone doesn't think it's likely that Colvin would pan out as a starting OF then it must mean they're comparing him to Neifi.

[illiniguy]

Yup, if someone doesn't think it's likely that Colvin would pan out as a starting OF then it must mean they're comparing him to Neifi.

Tyler Colvin has never saved anybody. Advantage Neifi.

[Sammy Sofa]

Plus Neifi will always have that "you see this glove? It's made of gold" line. Edited June 15, 2010 by Sammy Sofa

[17 Seconds]

and neifi had that 10th inning grand slam against the cardinals that stuck in the foul pole

[Sammy Sofa]

and neifi had that 10th inning grand slam against the cardinals that stuck in the foul pole

 

Didn't Pujols make the final out that game by smashing a line drive right at Neifi?

[SweetZombieJesus]

Yup, if someone doesn't think it's likely that Colvin would pan out as a starting OF then it must mean they're comparing him to Neifi.

 

In this case it's true though. 2004 Neifi = had a +900 OPS in 100 AB, Colvin has a +900 OPS in about 100 ABs there for the comparison is good.

 

Colvin is terrible.

[apete6]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2010/06/orioles-interested-in-jake-fox.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

[EhDubya]

Some of you guys think that a player HAS to hit 35-40 HRs just because of the position he plays. Its a great idea, sure, but not many teams have a 40 HR 1B, 35 HR 3B, 35 HR LF, 35 HR RF, etc...

 

If Colvin hits 20+ and he's cheap... then I consider him useful as a starter for these Cubs.