Mariners baby, hot stove edition

It was interesting to watch the wheels fall off after his great first half and the see him pick himself of the mat and believe in his stuff.
Kirby sailed on through like a pixie, Gilbert can help him this year with what he learned about the darkside, and meanwhile the ace is
going to have a great year and make a real difference. That is my take.

We gave up a lot when we did not resign the heart of the batting order, we will see if Teoscar can be that guy, I'm not sure that he can.
That is my question. I'm not sure they made a mistake in not resigning Haniger, building is a process and it is clearly happening, is my
conclusion.

The other thing I wonder about is that forever, until a few years ago, it was customary to put your best hitter at least at the 2 spot and
most usually at the three spot even if he could run. Now its clearly the vogue to give up 25 - 35 RBI's and rally igniting big time hits by
posting the guy in the leadoff position and i really wonder about that. Thoughts? @Fishpo31 @chuck
 
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@TheRoarOfTheCrowd I don't think he is giving up that many rbi by leading off. I've always liked my best hitter at #3 but the Ms don't have really high on base guys to put in front of him anyways. They don't have a good leadoff guy...except Julio.

If they had someone banging out 200+ hits and stealing bases then I'd put him leadoff but probably only move Julio to #2.

Speaking of that they're trying to forcefully change the game back to a more traditional style with these rule changes. Base hits are going to increase as are stolen bases. Only 2 pickoffs allowed and the pitch clock (with guys on) are going to be nightmares for pitchers IMO. Controlling the run game will be hard, and rattled pitchers leave more balls over the heart of the plate. I'm really curious about how it's going to change things and how fast it happens.
 
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It will take time to discover the impact of the changes, and how each club can exploit it. At the same time, line-ups have been established for launch-angle, and that isn't going away, at least right now.

Julio is a legit lead-off right now, and unless they have a legit lead-off guy to put in front of him, I think he is there for 3-4 more years, moving to 2-3 hole for 5-6 years, and when he matures into his man-strength, hits 3-4-5 the rest of the way. The thinking that putting you best hitter in the 3 hole, without (or with questionable) protection, has gummed up a lot of lineups historically.

My concern is for the potential increase in the running game. The more Julio runs, the greater chance he gets hurt. He could have had 40 bags last year, and they shut him down in the middle of the year, for this exact reason.

ANNND, be prepared to see a shit-load of pitch-outs...
 
Castillo being the ace really takes the pressure off of Gilbert and most particularly Robby Ray, it will be interesting to see how Ray responds to being a 3 or a 4, will obviously make it easier to have big year. Is this the year Hancock joins the party?
 
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Ray is the 2 for me, keeping Gilbert / Kirby down further, for another year. We have seen for years that pushing young guys at the top of the roto can have disastrous consequences. Hancock is there for insurance, bring him up for a taste (a la Gilbert, Kirby), low-leverage situations. We see the jumps these guys have made in a short period, and it's by design.

The Ace is expected to win and go 7+, and that is pressure...Castillo and Ray are perfect for this, and they have track record. Ray has shown he is willing to adjust...the guy won a Cy in 21, and I imagine he was treaded around lightly when he came over (AKA: don't fuck with it if it isn't broke). I can't imagine that he hasn't been working on stuff all winter.

My Gilbert / Kirby take reminds of a convo I had with my dad, about Adrian Beltre: He was great with the Dodgers (hitting down in the order), M's get him and put him in the 3 hole, and it's not good, comparatively. He goes to Boston, hitting behind Papi and Manny, and he's a dude again. Goes to Texas, and he is who he is, a 3-hole hitting HOF'er....He wasn't ready to do it in Seattle, nor did he have the protection. It's the same with pitchers...the Ace, the 3 hole hitter, all have added pressure. Both these guys will be ready in 2-3 years, when Castillo and Ray are gone.

WATBS, anything can happen, and probably will...
 
In the same vein as your convo about Beltre, we now have that situation with our lineup ~ no proven 3 hitter. Will be interesting to see how that evolves.

I have the lineup as

Wong
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Raleigh
Crawford
LaStella

Or the same lineup with Wong at 9... something like that.
 
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In the same vein as your convo about Beltre, we now have that situation with our lineup ~ no proven 3 hitter. Will be interesting to see how that evolves.

I have the lineup as

Wong
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Raleigh
Crawford
LaStella

Or the same lineup with Wong at 9... something like that.
Click to expand...
My effort:

RH Starter:
Rodriguez
Wong
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Raleigh
LaStella DH
Kelenick
Crawford

LH Starter:
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Murphy
Haggerty DH
Moore 2B
Crawford

*I want to see if Evan White (Who?) can hit, stay healthy, abundance, or adios...
 
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In the same vein as your convo about Beltre, we now have that situation with our lineup ~ no proven 3 hitter. Will be interesting to see how that evolves.

I have the lineup as

Wong
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Raleigh
Crawford
LaStella

Or the same lineup with Wong at 9... something like that.
Click to expand...
Pollock vs lefties, Kelenic vs righties
 
JMO ~ sure, they are going to give Kelenic a chance but after looking at the stats showing his high 40's, low 50's strike out AAA numbers for any other kind of pitch[/b] except fastballs when they sent him down last year to work on exactly that ~ I do not hold out hope that he will make it through more than May before we see Pollock full time, or we cue up the trade for the guy in Pittsburg we all want for left field.

This article provides the eye opening details of Kelenic's struggle...https://www.lookoutlanding.com/2022/6/29/23188055/a-deep-dive-on-jarred-kelenic-s-aaa-pitch-data

I mean, everyone has holes to fill and I get that. To my knowledge, we really don't have candidate in the system (do we?), and we also don't have a DH at this point to write home about.
 
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Back in the day, they would send Kelenic to the Mexican winter league to work on hitting breaking stuff. The pitchers down there sling anything and everything, except plus-fastballs...I went down there to look at a couple of hitters, and in 2 weeks the best FB's I saw topped at 88, and all of them were aimed at the hitter's chin...
 
In the same vein as your convo about Beltre, we now have that situation with our lineup ~ no proven 3 hitter. Will be interesting to see how that evolves.

I have the lineup as

Wong
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Raleigh
Crawford
LaStella

Or the same lineup with Wong at 9... something like that.
Click to expand...
My effort:

RH Starter:
Rodriguez
Wong
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Raleigh
LaStella DH
Kelenick
Crawford

LH Starter:
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Murphy
Haggerty DH
Moore 2B
Crawford

*I want to see if Evan White (Who?) can hit, stay healthy, abundance, or adios...
Click to expand...

That lineup vs lefties doesn't look great at a cursory glance but anyone who knows the Ms well should be excited. Murphy, Haggerty and Moore are pretty good lefty killers, not to mention you have Pollack and his .600 slugging% in there. Health provided I think those games will be a blast to watch.
 
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In the same vein as your convo about Beltre, we now have that situation with our lineup ~ no proven 3 hitter. Will be interesting to see how that evolves.

I have the lineup as

Wong
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Raleigh
Crawford
LaStella

Or the same lineup with Wong at 9... something like that.
Click to expand...
My effort:

RH Starter:
Rodriguez
Wong
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Raleigh
LaStella DH
Kelenick
Crawford

LH Starter:
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Murphy
Haggerty DH
Moore 2B
Crawford

*I want to see if Evan White (Who?) can hit, stay healthy, abundance, or adios...
Click to expand...

I’m hearing that Evan White is John Olerud just waiting to get healthy. Kidding of course, but that is how the narrative began years ago ~ is there ANY value to the guy besides his glove? I’ve never seen his splits, is he another guy that can’t defend the zone and chases garbage? can’t hit anything but fastballs? AAAA hitter that can hit everything until he faces major league pitching?
 
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In the same vein as your convo about Beltre, we now have that situation with our lineup ~ no proven 3 hitter. Will be interesting to see how that evolves.

I have the lineup as

Wong
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Raleigh
Crawford
LaStella

Or the same lineup with Wong at 9... something like that.
Click to expand...
My effort:

RH Starter:
Rodriguez
Wong
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Raleigh
LaStella DH
Kelenick
Crawford

LH Starter:
Rodriguez
France
Hernandez
Suarez
Pollock
Murphy
Haggerty DH
Moore 2B
Crawford

*I want to see if Evan White (Who?) can hit, stay healthy, abundance, or adios...
Click to expand...

I’m hearing that Evan White is John Olerud just waiting to get healthy. Kidding of course, but that is how the narrative began years ago ~ is there ANY value to the guy besides his glove? I’ve never seen his splits, is he another guy that can’t defend the zone and chases garbage? can’t hit anything but fastballs? AAAA hitter that can hit everything until he faces major league pitching?
Click to expand...

I've only seen a few clips of him hitting home runs as my MLB hiatus only ended in 2021. He looks like he could be a real threat in a derby. He crushes it. I guess that's his value besides his glove. He's also athletic with decent speed. Nothing like Olerud lol.

They're paying him anyways so they might as well keep him around and give him as many looks as they can.
 
Yes, might as well keep White around and see if he can bounce back from the injuries. It's not like he has been awful because he's into hookers and blow.
 
So the no longer current review is gold glove defense, previously highly athletic guy, hit .179 in 1/3 MLB season for the 2020 covid period season, strikes out at 45-50% level vs offspeed pitches in limited time at the major league level, has spent very little time in the minors because it was previously believed that his SEC level college experience prepared him to move quickly to the majors. 2023 salary 400k, 2024 700k in the last of his 6 year 2.4 million dollar deal. A total blank slate as he comes back from hip surgery and will have a fresh start undoubtedly at AA / AAA. He is now 24-25, has played very little baseball since coming out of college.
 
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So the no longer current review is gold glove defense, previously highly athletic guy, hit .179 in 1/3 MLB season for the 2020 covid period season, strikes out at 45-50% level vs offspeed pitches in limited time at the major league level, has spent very little time in the minors because it was previously believed that his SEC level college experience prepared him to move quickly to the majors. 2023 salary 400k, 2024 700k in the last of his 6 year 2.4 million dollar deal. A total blank slate as he comes back from hip surgery and will have a fresh start undoubtedly at AA / AAA. He is now 24-25, has played very little baseball since coming out of college.
Click to expand...

Six years, $24 million.
8u0n6vzb52wj.png
 
LOL... had all the numbers right with the exception of 1 digit, a minor difference, wrong on his age too.. yow
 
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LOL... had all the numbers right with the exception of 1 digit, a minor difference, wrong on his age too.. yow
Click to expand...

Yep. He isn't going away until after 2025, and is due a not insignificant amount of cash ($18 mil) between now and then. They have to keep trying to wring some value out of him or just light that money on fire.
 
This is a the big year for him, hopefully he can find a stroke in AA and build on that, assuming he is indeed healthy. He will be starting at the beginning.
 
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