Farmers Only: Reminding you that blazing speed on the basepaths is only useful if you can get on base

by BK on Jul 1, 2011 8:01 AM EDT in Farmers only

Louisville lost to Gwinnett 3-1. Chad Reineke got the start and pitched 5 innings, giving up 3 runs (2 earned). Tom Cochran stood in and pitched admirably in relief, going 3 shutout innings. Yonder Alonso and Dave Sappelt had 2 hits each. Up next: Travis Wood takes the mound against Gwinnett at 7:05.
Carolina lost 7-5 despite 13 hits on offense. Tim Gustafson got the start and gave up 4 runs in 4 innings, and the bullpen pitched well until the 8th when Chris Mobley gave up 3 runs. Up next: Kyle McCulloch takes on Tennesse at 7:15.
Bakersfield lost 4-3 to Stockton. J.C. Sulbaran got the start, and went 3 2/3 innings of 4-run ball, and the bullpen stepped up and pitched 4 1/3 shutout innings of relief. Ryan LaMarre and Chris Richburg hit back-to-back homers in the 7th, but that was about all the offense the Blaze could muster up. Up next: Tim Crabbe takes on Inland Empire at 10:45.
Dayton lost 6-5 to Bowling Green. Kyle Lotzkar got the start and went 7 innings, giving up 3 runs (2 earned) with 7 strikeouts. Tucker Barnhart homered for the Dragons, and Donald Lutz and Frank Pfister had 2 hits each. Billy Hamilton was 0-for-5, and is now 0 for his last 15, with no walks in that span (and only 2 in his last 10 games). He's OPSing .600 right now, with an OPS of .285. Basically, he's having a very Taveras season in low-A. Now sure, most of the other guys in Dayton aren't hitting either, but that makes Paul Janish look like Mickey Mantle. I'm not advising anyone to jump ship and call him a bust and stuff, but obviously someone needs to take this kid aside and work with him to get him to make a bit of contact. He was on a bit of a hot streak a little bit ago, but we need to see more consistency out of him before we start dubbing him the shortstop of the future. Up next: Bowling Green at 7.
Billings beat Helena 8-7. Wes Mugarian got the start and wasn't good, giving up 6 runs in 4 1/3 innings. On the bright side, 7 of the 13 outs he recorded were strikeouts, but he also walked 5 to go along with it. Nick O'Shea and Adam Muenster both homered for the Mustangs, and Dayne Read and Kyle Waldrop drove in 2 runs each. Up next: 3rd round pick Tony Cingrani makes his pro debut against Helena at 9:05.
The AZL Reds lost to the AZL Mariners 8-5. Justice French started and went 4 1/3 innings, giving up 3 runs with 6 strikeouts and no walks. On offense, Brennan May and Julio Morillo had 2 hits each, and Wagner Gomez hit his 2nd homer of the year. Up next: AZL Indians at 10.

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soooo

How long do they plan to stick with the Hamilton switch-hitting project? Anybody got his lefty/righty splits?

No problem, fuckweasel! - jch24

by Kevin Mitchell is Batman on Jul 1, 2011 8:24 AM EDT via mobile reply actions

The plan is probably to stick with it through the end of the season

No use in giving up on it too quickly.

by Charlie Scrabbles on Jul 1, 2011 8:47 AM EDT up reply actions

I say just leave him alone for now. He was seen as a big project coming out of the draft, his struggles do not surprise me. If he keeps hitting like this for two or three years in a row I’ll be concerned but right now I’m not.

by pack_fan on Jul 1, 2011 1:09 PM EDT up reply actions

Just looking at the ML's stats ...

It looks generally like a lot of hitters are suffering at Low A. The pitching numbers are pretty good overall.

I’d guess the switch hitting experiment is pretty much a failure but the Dragons don’t seem to be doing that badly otherwise, compared to their crappy start.

The 55 steals is still amazing. DeShields is apparently a great baserunning coach.

The latest on our Thief:

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=SS&sid=l118&t=p_pbp&pid=571740

Strikeouts don't hurt the team.

by johnu1 on Jul 1, 2011 10:16 AM EDT up reply actions

This kid is gonna steal 100 if he gets on base enough.

He’s been on base 99 times with 55 steals. That ratio is crazy. 56%

When Rickey stole 130 he got on base 259 times. 50%.

A dope trailer is no place for a kitty.

by GlennBraggsSwingAndMissBrokenBat on Jul 1, 2011 11:58 AM EDT up reply actions

So now you're on my side, KMIB?

by kcgard2 on Jul 2, 2011 10:51 AM EDT up reply actions

Is He a Wizard?

He’s OPSing .600 right now, with an OPS of .285.

by BigStein on Jul 1, 2011 8:29 AM EDT reply actions

grrr OBP

"Aroldis Chapman is a seven course meal followed by four hours of sex on the table with a nymphomaniac model heiress who owns her own brewery." - jch24

by BK on Jul 2, 2011 12:58 PM EDT up reply actions

In those 5 ABs, he struck out once.

If Stubbs cuts down on his strikeouts, he’s gonna OPS .600.

"People don't kill people. Burning oreo packages kill people."

by crolfer on Jul 1, 2011 8:47 AM EDT reply actions

with an OPS of .285?!?

We need Brandon Larson to Play 3rd! Can't be worse than Rentawreck, right?!?

by BiggerRedMachines on Jul 1, 2011 8:48 AM EDT up reply actions

Very Juan Pierre-like

Fuck it, we'll do it live.

by DTFH91 on Jul 1, 2011 8:49 AM EDT up reply actions

Actually, that isn't even fair to Juan

He’s never OPS’s below .656 for a season.

Fuck it, we'll do it live.

by DTFH91 on Jul 1, 2011 8:51 AM EDT up reply actions

chone figgin's OPS

is .481

by BigStein on Jul 1, 2011 9:27 AM EDT up reply actions

*figgins

by BigStein on Jul 1, 2011 9:28 AM EDT up reply actions

Did I miss something?

What happened to Matt Maloney?

by JPGs on Jul 1, 2011 9:04 AM EDT reply actions

He's on the DL with a broken rib

Bart: "Dad, what's a Muppet?"
Homer: "Well, it's not quite a mop, not quite a puppet, but man... (laughs, then pauses) So, to answer you question, I don't know."

by ChiDa on Jul 1, 2011 9:06 AM EDT up reply actions

he's still with our AAAA Team

the Cincinnatisville Batreds

by BigStein on Jul 1, 2011 9:26 AM EDT up reply actions

Good

I was worried he was exposed to waivers and picked up by the Pirates or something.

by JPGs on Jul 1, 2011 9:30 AM EDT up reply actions

he's on the 60-day DL

Mostly because they needed the roster spot, I think, but it probably means we won’t be seeing him this year. At least not in the big leagues.

All Things Bubba: Because how can you not love a baseball player named Bubba?

by BubbaFan on Jul 1, 2011 10:05 AM EDT up reply actions

but you can see him in your Louisville-area yoga studios!

"You said 'walks' twice."
"I like walks."

by Cy Schourek on Jul 1, 2011 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeh, we might need to push the ETA on Hamilton back to 2015 or so.

"I bet that sex Bengals fan is really pissed now." -DT3428

by sexsalad on Jul 1, 2011 11:26 AM EDT reply actions

I said this before the season started

and wasn’t popular for it, but I stand by it: at that level, it’s a big question whether they ever make it to the show at all. No matter how enthused the scouts are.

All Things Bubba: Because how can you not love a baseball player named Bubba?

by BubbaFan on Jul 1, 2011 12:20 PM EDT up reply actions

seems to me that with his speed

some AL team could take him. they don’t do the double-switches or pinch hitting, so seems to me that having a pinch runner at the end of a close game could actually win you a few games (a la Dave Roberts).

that said, if that’s all he brings to the table, that will be a tough sell of a roster spot.

"To me, boxing is like a ballet, except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other." - Jack Handey

by JJ on Jul 1, 2011 12:41 PM EDT up reply actions

If he hits at all

he has a future. I think that’s where all the prospect-love comes from. The speed and the defensive ability are already in the bank (though I’m of a mind to think he’s more suited for CF than the mIF), and those are not going to fluctuate or fade away quickly. If he can hit the ball at all, which he did last year in Billings, he’ll be Major Leaguer.

by Charlie Scrabbles on Jul 1, 2011 12:49 PM EDT up reply actions

But doesn't he have a lot of problems with defense?

He definitely has the athleticism to be great there, but I’ve heard negative reviews about his hands and his arm. He sounds really prone to errors.

"I bet that sex Bengals fan is really pissed now." -DT3428

by sexsalad on Jul 1, 2011 1:07 PM EDT up reply actions

a lot of talented defensive players have high error totals in the minors starting out

His arm though is a concern. I am wondering if he is more of a 2B than a SS.

by pack_fan on Jul 1, 2011 1:13 PM EDT up reply actions

I thought his arm was fine

though I could be wrong.

by Charlie Scrabbles on Jul 1, 2011 1:16 PM EDT up reply actions

His arm is supposedly fringy according to some scouting reports

that just what I heard though, I could easily be wrong.

by pack_fan on Jul 1, 2011 1:18 PM EDT up reply actions

This may depend on if Hamilton is convinced he can master switch hitting

I would guess that his swing is so botched right now that he’s just hoping he legs one out.
Maybe he’s being told to not let that bother him.

My question is whether his glove is good enough to keep chasing it for another 4 seasons. There’s a lot of ballplayers to be scouted, signed, traded, drafted between now and the next two presidential elections.

Strikeouts don't hurt the team.

by johnu1 on Jul 1, 2011 12:54 PM EDT up reply actions

You're right.

Especially with someone like him whose allure lies mostly in his raw athleticism, there’s no guarantee at all that he’ll ever actually make it. The good thing here, though, is that the Reds aren’t really dependent on him for the future; that is, with all of the prospects already ready for the majors and guys locked down long-term that they already have, someone like Billy Hamilton becomes more of a luxury.

That said, we can still project when we think he’ll reach the majors. That doesn’t mean he WILL make it, but it’s when we would expect him to make it if his development goes as planned.

But with the way he’s been hitting, it may take a little longer than we expected. People were saying 2013 or 2014, but that’s probably a long shot.

"I bet that sex Bengals fan is really pissed now." -DT3428

by sexsalad on Jul 1, 2011 1:03 PM EDT up reply actions

would you make this kind of deal

It’s July, so it’s trade talk time, right?

The deal: acquiring the A’s Andrew Bailey for Yonder Alonso?

In Bailey, you would get this team’s future closer, so we wouldn’t have to worry about Masset’s tendencies to have a month of meltdowns. Bailey has had injury problems, so it may not be a straight up trade, but when he’s pitching, the guy’s career WHIP is 0.89. Yes, we lose Alonso, we in reality, with his struggles in LF, we wouldn’t use him until Votto prices himself out of Cincinnati in a few years. We could also trade Arredondo for a mid-level prospect, obviously not of Alonso’s caliber.

That Reds bullpen, with Cordero, Masset, Bailey, Ondrusek, Bray, Chapman, and LeCure would be amazing!

"To me, boxing is like a ballet, except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other." - Jack Handey

by JJ on Jul 1, 2011 12:06 PM EDT reply actions

Bullpen is our least pressing need

Bailey’s good, but he’s an injury risk and we need to use Yonder for a much greater need. SP, SS, LF.

A dope trailer is no place for a kitty.

by GlennBraggsSwingAndMissBrokenBat on Jul 1, 2011 12:13 PM EDT up reply actions

agreed that the bullpen is a less pressing need

SS – can come from within – plus, there won’t be any significantly better options available via trade
LF – are there really any LF that are significantly better than what we have out there (which is above league average for LF)
SP – are there really any SP that are available that are significantly better than the back end of the rotation?

what we need is another top talent. We are already pretty deep in good-not-great players. Many of the names thrown around for SP or LF just seem like lateral moves for this club. Bullpen may not be the position of most need, but it would be a good upgrade for this year and for the future.

"To me, boxing is like a ballet, except there's no music, no choreography, and the dancers hit each other." - Jack Handey

by JJ on Jul 1, 2011 12:39 PM EDT up reply actions

How much is Bailey going to cost after this year, though?

He should be arbitration eligible this off-season, and I would imagine he will get paid. don’t know how that would figure in.

I do think there are more than a few SP who could be an upgrade over Volquez, but the big question is going to be salary. I’m not sure how willing the team is to add significant payroll, especially long-term salary.

Or even if I just like such as judged a fish contest that would get me outta the house and in some air.

by RoastBeefKazenzakis on Jul 1, 2011 12:48 PM EDT up reply actions

I think you could do a lateral move on one condition ...

… a change of scenery will sometimes propel a guy to “lead the team” for a few weeks. Lots of reasons, I suppose, including a will to succeed and maybe just a better brand of clubhouse coffee.

But I don’t think making a lateral move at the end of June is where you want that instant momentum. Mostly, that would be more good fortune than plan. I suppose we could lure Adam Dunn back for a few weeks in September.

Strikeouts don't hurt the team.

by johnu1 on Jul 1, 2011 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions