Thrilho

Works for forums, but in person that's just his name. That would be like if you gave Patrick Kane the nickname "Cain."

I prefer teammates to create nicknames over #twitternation. Plus, he's got a four syllable name. I think we'll be glad to have a two syllable version available once he becomes dinner table conversation.

Mendy flies out to track near the 400 foot sign in center in his second AB. Didn't see the double, but Gametrack says it was up against the wall in right (315).

Javy doing some back seat managing?

Here's another one:

Speaking of depth, TIL Skulina has been pitching with left knee tendinitis, which affects how hard he can land and the velocity with which he can throw. He's been at 88-90 this year, compared to sitting 92-93 and hitting 95-96 last year, according to this article. http://couriernews.suntimes.com/2014/07/01/minor-league-baseball-cougars-feel-incredible-hulking-tyler-skulina-mound/ It'll be interesting to see what he looks like when the knee heals up. He's been pretty good so far.

This was the hardest I've laughed all day. Bravo.

Why not go back a month earlier since 5/17? .299/.356/.565 with 11 HR and it covers about two-thirds of his season - 208 PAs. He had a pretty vicious slump for the first half of June, so I figured I'd stick with his current tear. Edit: Actual, more than anything it's this: 5/17-6/14......4.7 BB%...32.7 K% 6/14-7/6......13.4 BB%...25.0 K% If the FO is giving any thought to trading him the best thing he can do to stay is improve his approach.

We all know the best way to get Soler to Chicago viewtopic.php?f=3&t=61925&start=850 It's just too bad Soler is the only one with no service time issues or we could get the MLB lineup filled in no time.

Javy since 6/15 (3 days pre-Bryant, 10 days pre-Manny). Through three ABs. .302/.380/.558 13.0 BB% 25.0 K% 5 HR .394 wOBA 135 wRC+ It would be nice if the trade sparks a true Javy binge. BB:K ratio since the trade is currently at 2:0. Edit: This is 100 of his 329 PAs.

who needs pornhub when you got this? The camera guy couldn't find the ball on the Bryant HR, but it had to have left the stadium. There was one guy in the bleachers near where it would have bounced back and he was just standing there looking up. That is such an easy swing to generate that much power.

Seems like it could come down to the question of whether the Cubs prefer more range or more field pct out of their short stop. I'd be interested to hear from someone who has seen Russell play more whether they think his range will increase. Of active players, there are 25 with a range factor over 4.00 (Castro at #8 WITH 4.32). Jeter did make a pretty good career out of 3.80-4.00 range and .975+ fielding. But with Castro, and I'm sure a lot of other players, his range decreased as he aged and got to the bigs. Russell has consistently been at 4.00. Does his range increase as he ages and potentially puts on more weight, or do you just count on his fielding to be that good?

1. Baez 2. Baez-Russell-Castro 3b-SS-2b There, that seems easy enough. I said Baez at 2B in my post, but I can easily see him at third. You could probably let him bulk up more if he's a middle of the lineup guy vs Russell, who may be better off keeping his speed and hitting at the top of the order.

1. Baez 2. Baez-Russell-Castro 3b-SS-2b There, that seems easy enough. I think it would be Baez to Miami too. I'd think they would want to get some big raw power to sell to the fans. A deal starting with Baez and Soler makes the most sense to me.

So all I've been able to think about over the past two days is: 1. Who goes if the Cubs make a deal for Stanton 2. If they all stay, where do they play? If they all stay, the biggest question is who plays short. I'm not great with advanced defensive metrics, so I stuck with fielding percentage and range factor: Baez Fielding% RF 2012 .950 4.31 2013 .932 4.88 2014 .965 4.05 Total .941 4.46 Russell 2012 .951 4.06 2013 .966 3.97 2014 .968 4.07 Total .962 3.94 Castro - Minors 2007 .943 4.71 2008 .955 5.10 2009 .937 4.86 2010 .953 3.92 Total .944 4.73 Castro - Majors 2010 .950 4.20 2011 .961 4.51 2012 .964 4.51 2013 .967 4.11 2014 .970 4.19 Total .962 4.33 ...or if you'd prefer a simpler table, here are the careers: Player Fielding RF Baez .941 4.46 Russell .962 3.94 Castro Minors .944 4.73 Castro Majors .962 4.33 Some things I see: Castro had the highest minor league RF by a wide margin (4.73) but it dropped to around 4.20 his rookie year. It bumped up to 4.51 for two years, but has settled in at 4.20. His fielding percentage has been on a steady upward march from .950 to .970. Russell overall the steadiest fielder of the three, but has consistently been around 4.00 range. For reference, since they've been compared a lot, Barry Larkin had a career .955 fielding% and 4.45 RF in the minors, and didn't have a range factor under 4.40 until he was 31. Baez had huge range (4.88) last year, but that was coupled with a .932 fielding percentage. This year, he's pretty much matched Russell's career totals at .965 / 4.06. All three guys are 6'0" 190-195. All three could probably pack on more weight if you put them at third. Castro had to get bigger over the offseason just to get to his current size, while you're uncertain how big Russell and Baez will get. (Speculation time) Castro still has 4.20 range at 24 at his current size, and has steadily improved his fielding percentage. If I had to guess I'd guess he stays at short. If Russell continues his current career arc, with the steady fielding percentage and moderate range, I'd guess he's at third. Baez showed the 4.88 range last year, and hasn't gotten quite the scouting marks for level-headedness and consistency that Russell has gotten, so I'd probably have him at second using the range and making the shorter throw. I think you could benefit from the increased power of either Russell or Baez bulking up for third. You might get the most bang for your buck out of Javy, though. I also think that, just based on those numbers, you could sell Baez as a short stop to the Marlins. Any way you cut it though, if you start all three of these guys along with Rizzo, Bosio is going to be a happy man.

Also, since I'm having fun with small sample sizes, his 8 walks and 8 ks in 57 AA PAs is nice to see, considering his 24% strikeout percentage last year.

So Russell was 1-2 with a double and 3 walks in his last game. Should we just have 2015 lineup cards pre-printed with his name in the leadoff spot?

"...it is an insanely, ludicrously enviable group of young players, and don’t forget that Anthony Rizzo and Starlin Castro are only 24 and playing like stars in the big leagues." This is my favorite description yet of the Cubs' embarrassment of riches.

One other reason for the high Schwarber ranking: I like his swing. It's very short and seems to jive with a future plus hit tool.

1. Bryant 2. Baez 3. Schwarber 4. Soler 5. Alcantara 6. Almora 7. Edwards 8. Tseng 9. Johnson 10. Rivero Schwarber ahead of Soler because Schwarber showed that same good approach in college, but has shown more in game power. Soler was in the FSL, but the home runs Schwarber has hit so far and many that he hit in college would go out of any park. The two other huge factors for Schwarber are his low college K rate and left handedness. Also, jury is out on Soler's injury profile. Defense is definitely Soler, but I'd guess Schwarber shaves at least 20 lbs in the offseason. Baez #2 because it was only last year he did this same thing he's doing now and came back to destroy the league, along with steadily improving his K and walk rates. 37 HRs at 20 years old. He's super young and he's a short stop in most other organizations. Big on Alcantara and wish I could rate him higher. He showed last year that he's got the eye to walk, and once you've shown it over the course of a year I have confidence it can come back. After his 2 tonight he's got 4 in his last 5 games. K rate is the main reason he's this low, but that has trended down the whole year and he's at 14% in his last 10. I'm rooting for him as the future CF. Edwards over Tseng because Edwards has been dominant, and he still hasn't had a major injury. He's just set back, so needs time to build back up. Tseng is still 19 with plenty of TINSTAAP and hasn't torn up a league like Edwards did. Almora ahead of both still because he's not a pitcher. He's suuuuucked, but is a very young top notch CF with contact ability and showed power last year, and is hitting in the FSL. He's way behind Alcantara though.

I'd guess that the only reason he's playing catcher now is that's where he's most comfortable. Part of the reason you move him to left is so he can focus on hitting rather than learning the position, so this is sort of the same thing. Let him play what he knows for now so he can focus on hitting.

Oh, also Almora went 2-5 with 2 singles in his first game in the #2 hole.

Hannemann starting June out hot. 4 doubles in his last 3 games and hasn't struck out yet in 17 June PAs. For as bad as his season has been, he's still sporting an 8.8% walk rate. Also, Skulina had a decent night. 6 IP 2 H 3 R 2 ER 5 K. The hits were a single and a double. His last 4 starts: 23.1 IP 7 H 1.55 ERA 12 BB 18 K Obviously the walks are up, but he's really holding the hits down. Together with Zas's non-disastrous start yesterday, and the AZPhil saying some in the organization who believe Frazier has "the nastiest stuff in the system" it's been a decent week for the 2013 class. #findingreasonstotrusttheo http://www.thecubreporter.com/comment/222101 (link to Frazier thing)

Regarding the idea of moving Schwarber to third, I'd think they'd just want him to learn to hit and get to the bigs fast. He could be in the lineup by sometime in 2016 if they're aggressive, and hopefully by that time they'll have a reason to be.

Wish I would have said that. :) Yeah, could have just said +1. But the word lately has been more about the Cubs seeing if Bryant can stick at third, so I've been thinking more about lineup possibilities there. I think this pick really sets the "if they all work out" lineup. The linchpin seems to be if Bryant can stick at third.