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toonsterwu

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Everything posted by toonsterwu

  1. toonsterwu
    Watching clips of Marco Hernandez, and man, he sure has loads of bat speed, and plate coverage seems solid. Don't mind the lack of production - it's the K's that bother me, but I wonder if he's pressing a bit. But it isn't as if the K's suddenly spiked, so it is a troubling sign. Still, could simply be a bad month and adjusting, at least, I'm hoping. But man ... the bat speed there is quality. Not as fast as the clips of Baez that I've seen, but it's dang good.
  2. toonsterwu
    That's the indication of where he's been. chatt may be able to provide more specific numbers.
  3. toonsterwu
    This is why him being (arguably) the most complete SP prospect in the system is a problem. IMO, his upside isn't GREAT so much as his age/size/projectability/stuff/mechanics package is as strong and arguably stronger than anyone currently making an impact in the system. Not a bad prospect at all, but not someone you realistically see becoming a future elite. Again, for him that's great but for the Cubs there should be more than one type of guy like him. This is more tangential, but I still believe that Wells "upside"/"ultimate ceiling" (taking a phrase you used the other day) is a tick better than given credit for. Yes, a positive outcome, the most likely one, is that he becomes a mid-rotation innings eating arm. But the breaking ball has flashed good potential before, and if he can get that consistent, then he's got two above average to plus pitches to work with. A long way to go, but I feel like, the general populace somewhat undersells his ceiling. But very few guys reach their ceilings.
  4. toonsterwu
    No, that was Ceda. I believe it was the Michael Barrett trade.
  5. toonsterwu
    That sucks. In the early going this year looks like a good old fashioned injury bust. If he's really throwing the slop up there that's been reported, mid-80's heat, it might be time to simply shut him down or move him to the pen, or try something different. This FO doesn't have anything invested in him, other than being a leftover asset from another era. Heck, sending him to Peoria to piggyback isn't the worst thing.
  6. toonsterwu
    That is correct, however it will be Wells/Burke next time. They will rotate as starter. Hey, out of curiosity, if you know, and if you think it's fine to share (that is, if it's some private conversation, no need to let us know) a) Does Kyler realize how intrigued Cub-dom is with his potential? It isn't just here - seems like other sites are intrigued b) For lack of a better way to phrase it, how confident is Kyler that he can be a starter and move fast (relatively) as a starter, since everyone knows 6 years comes up. c) Does Kyler get a feel, in the early-going, of how higher up might feel about his long-term role/potential?
  7. toonsterwu
    WSR, I think there's very little chance of that happening anytime soon. Not impossible, and if it does happen, I think it'll be closer to mid-summer, but the Orioles, by most accounts, are still quite high on him. Problem is, the spots where he might be able to sub at either have guys hot (Andino), guys that need to get it going for the O's to move them (Reynolds), or a better utility option like Betemit eating up his time. But everything out of Baltimore suggests they plan to keep Flaherty for the entire year (or at least, until they can DL him with some mysterious ailment).
  8. toonsterwu
    To be honest, I'm not too worried about those numbers for Wells early. I'm more curious about whether or not he is executing the plan they are asking him, if he is aggressively throwing first-pitch strikes, how deep he is working, how his stuff is showing, if he is more efficient than last year. Now, the switch with Burke, if permanent, may make it harder to get a good read on some things with Wells, if Burke continues to go 6. But while the runs are troubling (although only 13 earned, granted, that isn't a good thing either), it's good to see that his sinker is showing well (increased GO/AO ratio in the early going, GB rate is higher in the early going). It's good to see that his K rate is slightly up and his BB rate is significantly down. It sounds like the breaking ball is better than last year (granted, SSS on every comment above, but the same goes for SSS on the negative stuff). I'm not trying to undersell "performance" numbers, as they matter, but all in all, I'm actually quite pleased with Wells in the early going.
  9. toonsterwu
    Flipped over to MiLB scoreboard and saw that ... Chattanooga put up a 5 spot on the Smokies in the 1st. Ugh not a good start for Rhee ... granted, Rhee wasn't helped, with errors by Bour and Ha, which led to two unearned out of the 5. Semi-interesting statistical note - Rebel Ridling is mashing righties (well, doing relatively well), but has struggled, in 9 AB's against lefties. Probably just a statistical blip from SSS, but anyone recall his splits from years past? Sure miss Sackmann's site.
  10. toonsterwu
    I don't hate the kid, although it may feel that way at times, and really, have always he would succeed due to some personal bias (although the personal bias isn't as strong for him as say, Pin-Chieh Chen), but Hak-ju Lee is still struggling. BABIP certainly looks like it could be a factor in all this, as his discipline is still solid, but it's close to 200 AB's in AA now (over the last 2 years) where he simply hasn't hacked it. His glove, by most accounts, has steadied, so the glove could still get him into the bigs, but I still think this kid was over-hyped. People seem surprised (elsewhere) that he's struggling. I said this last year, but when everyone was crowing about his new-found power in A+, the statistics indicated that he had a very hot April to carry those numbers, before settling down, power wise, and coming back to normal. That said, even when I saw him in Peoria, I never liked the bat that much. Always thought he was similar to Che-Hsuan Lin, and while I had hopes for Lin once, they are following relatively similar offensive paths up the minors. Just watch, though, he'll go on some sort of insane tear after this and make me eat my words. And if he does, I'll quietly cheer him on. He's an interesting guy to follow, because on various sites, you'll find Cubs fans lamenting the loss of Lee, as if he was the one that got away.
  11. toonsterwu
    That's what I am hoping is the thinking, but keep in mind, in years past, the piggybacks would rotate their order occasionally, so this may have been scheduled anyways. We'll have to wait and see if Burke is given a longer rope over the course of a few games.
  12. toonsterwu
    Mildly interesting that they flipped Burke/Wells around. Probably doesn't mean all that much, but does catch the eye. Looks like Concepcion is taking Cruz's spot.
  13. toonsterwu
    Never been as good as his reputation. For the right price, maybe I'd listen, as he's not this bad, but he's really just another mid-end of the rotation arm.
  14. toonsterwu
    Not that this is news, but I'm not sure if it's been mentioned. If it has, apologies. Anyhow, in the AskBa, a Padres fan asks about their pick, and the relevant portion, for us, http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/ask-ba/2012/2613291.html Notes Correa and Cecchini as potential 7th overall picks based on talent. But this is simply Callis' take.
  15. toonsterwu
    Hey, it's a miracle. Good things are happening. Not only does Marco Hernandez get a hit ... so does Taiwan Easterling AND Matt Szczur! Amazing. (sad thing is ... it does seem pretty remarkable considering the poor starts all three guys are off to offensively). Sure seems like 2nd time through the lineup, opponents get a significantly better read on Rosario. Any reports on how Cates looked tonight? I do like the 8:2 GO/FO.
  16. toonsterwu
    Raisin, that sounded so much like me, hell I went back and double-checked my own history when I saw that. But, not me.
  17. toonsterwu
    Don't know about 3 levels higher. He's 21. High A is about age appropriate, and there's a chance, if he has his control issues under wrap, that he could see Daytona later this year. To be honest, I do wonder if they might contemplate skipping him straight to Daytona.
  18. toonsterwu
    Odd, someone from Maryland asked a question about Branden Kline with basically similar verbiage to how I phrased it. Anyhow, If he's there in the 2nd, it's probably a worthy gamble, obviously, depending on the board.
  19. toonsterwu
    I'm impressed Batista's getting K's this year. While I've always liked him, his lack of K's last year was a bit troubling for a guy who doesn't exactly have top tier velo (unless I'm mistaken, he's around 92-94, plenty good, but not top tier). __
  20. toonsterwu
    Joe Kelly, hard throwing sinkerballer. You wouldn't love him ... a bit undersized, although decent athlete, IIRC. I've actually never been gung-ho about Casey Kelly (even when we were rumored to have interest in him), but that's enough non-Cubs talk in this thread.
  21. toonsterwu
    Thanks. Never understood why Kelly never got more attention as a SP prospect. He could be a dynamite pen arm, but with a plus sinker, and two decent secondary pitches (well, change-up may be a tick below average, but I have nothing on this year), that's a decent SP prospect in his own right. And with that, I'll stop talking about Cardinals prospects. Good to hear Brett is squaring him up, though. Tough guy to really square up with the combination of plus velo and very good movement on the fastball.
  22. toonsterwu
    Hey Named, I'm curious if you have any takes on the Redbirds starter, Joe Kelly. Liked him a fair amount out of college, and IIRC, had a nice sinker.
  23. toonsterwu
    I'd be curious about your thoughts on Jay Jackson's secondary pitches, particularly his breaking ball. Not sure where you are sitting, so I guess, whether or not you think the Redbirds were making good contact/seeing it well is what I'm curious about. Btw, enjoy the game. Weather is brutal on the east coast right now.
  24. toonsterwu
    This is a total side note, but much as I am biased for UVA, and much as I like his ceiling, I'd be very wary of drafting Branden Kline in the sandwich round (if he makes it there). As a former Theo pick, certainly possible they go after him, and he fits the mold of an athletic pitcher with some projection. The ceiling's great - if you buy that he might add a tick or two (certainly plausible), he certainly has showcased a plus breaking ball and shows a lot of potential with the changeup. That said, the fastball flattens out too much at times, the breaking ball is inconsistent and he seems to lose his feel for it at times, and the change is still in development. The command erodes when he loses the breaking ball. In the 2nd/3rd round, would jump on him, but as a sandwich pick, debatable. Talent is great, though.
  25. toonsterwu
    Really wonder why they can't figure out how to address this. Anyhow, figured something was up with Searle getting another start. Depending on how long he's out, mildly wonder if they kick him to the pen when he gets back.
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