After an amazing 5-walks-against-5-different-pitchers game the other day (http://www.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l119&t=g_log&gid=2010_10_25_...), The Talented Mr. Ackley follows up with 2 more walks the next day, giving him 9 walks in his last 3 games (vs. 2 K in the same stretch). For the fall season, 11 BB vs. 6 K, on base 18 times in 7 games (32 PA). He has 7 H, 3 of which are XBH (2 dbl, 1 HR).
Leads the league in OBP and 3rd in OPS: .333/.563/.571/1.134 . At the plate, he's almost just toying with the minor leaguer pitchers at this point.
He has 1 error in the field and seems to be making all the plays.
Where do folks put the odds on Ackley at 2b on Opening Day 2011?
Meanwhile . . .
A semi-encouraging outing for Maikel Cleto, who has struggled. Cleto went 3.0 IP with 0 R, 1 H and 4 K. But 4 BB. No radar gun data from this outing, but in his first outing his FB was consistently 96+, peaking at 99, and curveball 81. So there's a lot of potential there if they can figure out what to do with it. The AFL is his first shot above A-ball, where he struggled at High Desert, so this is all work-in-progress stuff.
Josh Fields may be finally finding some consistency as a pro after his holdout and then a forearm injury set him back. In the AFL his line is:
4 G, 4.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
Recall that Z could have tossed Fields back and gotten a compensatory draft pick, but he decided to sign him. So, he's effectively a Z-crew first-round pick as well as a Bavasi pick.
Another pitching story is scrap-heap pickup Jarrett Grube, who washed out of the Rockies system, ended up in an indy league, and was signed by the Ms in June. It's safe to assume that Grube is nothing special (as a 28-yr-old in AA, he was solid, but why wouldn't he be?). Anyway, in Venezuela, he's Cy Young, with 18.1 IP in 3 starts, a 0.98 ERA, 14 K and 0 walks. I don't expect anything to come of it, but you never know.
Back on the hitting side, perhaps a mild surprise is Nate Tenbrink, the former Kansas State Wildcat who played mostly 3b on his way up the ladder, but now seems to be viewed as a OF (as opposed to Alex Liddi, who is playing 3b every day in Venezuela). Tenbrink has a .308/.341/.462 line with 2 BB and 3 K in 10 G. His eye at his two regular-season stops: 22 BB:33 K in High Desert and 38 BB:54 K in West Tenn.
Tenbrink is actually the same age as Michael Saunders, and also LH, for whatever that's worth, but obviously a year or more behind him on the development curve. Though Tenbrink strikes out a fair amount less than Saunders, he would not have near the defensive value.
Do you think Ackley has one of those chips in his brain like Steve Austin. I would love to see some video with Ackley at the plate and that DADADADADADADADADA playing in the background and seeing the ball come in to the plate in slow motion. On another note, I would love to see Grady in Seatle.
Thanks Spec for the update. Pretty good 9th from Lueke today. He gave up a single with 2 K's hitting 94-95 on fastball. Some change ups a little high in the zone but very effective.
For the "older" prospects, wasn't Edgar 27 when he played his first full seaon in Seattle? Yes, two batting titles in AAA wasn't it? But like any sport, sometimes the skills and mental don't max out as early.
Oh! How I would love to see Ackley batting 2nd and playing 2nd base on opening day. Alas....I suppose Z will insist he stay in Tacoma for 22 games or so. I also imagine that Figgins will still be an M next year (curse the luck) and that means Ackley will be batting ninth (although a guy who is going to hit 35 doubles could be a very nice #3 hitter). The M's really don't have to go too far to find a guy to hold down 2nd until Ackley is up. Either Tug Hulett (if they still have him after his year in Tacoma) or Josh Wilson would do fine. I have always liked Hulett. He can hit a bit, walk a lot, and field all the IF positions. A guy like that is valuable. I'm not sure I don't start looking at what Guti can bring in trade, as well...or Saunders. This team has holes, finding an adequate LF may be a heck of a lot easier than finding a reliable starter or a bonking DH (assuming Branyan isn't back).
Figgins and Saunders as a package? What would that bring?
That's cumulative across five different teams (2 TX MiLB, 2 Sea MiLB, 1 AFL). Since being traded, he gave up 0 walks in West Tenn (14 K in 7.0 IP), then 5 walks in Tacoma (18 K in 17. 1 IP), then 0 walks in Arizona (7 K in 6.0 IP).
In a related item, Stone has some comments about how the Lee family seems to love Dallas: ? http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/thehotstoneleague/2013264343_marin...
Not baiting or debating but not having been able to watch them: Gentlemen, two years down the road, who would you rather have on your roster, Saunders or Tenbrink? Hard to compare thus far I know but curious if anyone had any thoughts.
Tip your bartender! One pitch save for Wilhelmsen today. Looked like inside pitch jammed Vitters a bit and ground out to Lawson at SS.
This is not a guy who needs a lot of work on his mechanics, obviously.
Josh Lueke could land with a big splash in 2011. For somebody. Hopefully us.
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Hope that Lueke doesn't become another example of the vast disconnect between the MSM and the average American. The average M's fan -- even the internet M's fan, who is further left -- judges Lueke to have been judged and penalized, and would like to see what he'd do with a second chance at life.
If the press wages a campaign against him, it will be another illustration of its non-center set of priorities, in my humble opinion.
What are you thinking there, Jeff? Bullish on Tenbrink, sounds like?
Jeff, I have only seen Sanders in a few swings on ESPN. Never seen Tenbrink. I thought Sanders looked pretty good a few years ago but, this season at least, one must wonder a bit. I hope he has a great camp. Tenbrink looks a solid reserve. Bats left and seemingly makes good contact. But only speaking out of blind box scores of ignorance.
I just do this for diversion in lieu of playing roto baseball. Based on the things that I've learned to look for, here's my view:
Saunders excelled at advanced-A High Desert at age 20, got the call to AA, and held his own at the end of that season. Tenbrink didn't reach HD until age 23, after pretty pedestrian age-21 and age-22 seasons. Saunders thrived again at AA at age 21, and got a call to Tacoma that year. Then at age 22 he put up a .922 OPS in AAA. Tenbrink crushed High Desert at 23, but cooled off some at AA (.808 OPS), then went to the AFL, where he has solid numbers (.758 OPS).
Advantage Saunders: showed the ability to excel in the minors despite aggressive promotion; advanced quickly despite being "baseball young" -- as a multi-sport guy from a northern climate; athleticism contributes to plus outfield defense.
Advantage Tenbrink: strikes out less; has ability to play corner infield spots, although not great at 3b; may have an approach that translates to the majors better than Saunders.
Based on what Saunders has shown, he has a better chance to develop into a major-league contributor than Tenbrink. He's also the type likely to have "growing pains" -- which is exactly what we've seen. It is quite possible that he'll never overcome them, even though he had some very good stretches in the minors.
Tenbrink has a tougher time, becuase his defense has no particular premium, and he does not have "standout" power. He is more athletic and versatile on defense than someone like Carp, however, so he may have a better shot at a bench role if he keeps showing some offensive potential. The "slow and steady" approach may eventually win out over Saunders' "fits and starts" development. A guy who comes to mind is Greg Dobbs, a corner guy without great power but a decent eye who ended up with a little bit of an MLB career as a bench/platoon/part-timer and has a World Series ring.
The "area of the rectangle" (that is the combination of the potential and the likelihood of reaching it) may end up being roughly comparable for the two of them, but Saunders is clearly ahead at the moment.
Anyway ...
The LH hitter who has shown good eye and substantial doubles-hitting pop and ability to play middle infield, and potentially all around the diamond, may be the hitter of this group to get most excited about: Kyle Seager.
Amateur reader here! But thank you for your very professional style comments. Good way to refresh my mind during lunch. I was thinking of a young Dobbs. Not an All-Star but what fun to have been with the Phillies these last years. I hope that Saunders and Tenbrink and others can make the outfield very crowded.
I agree with you about Seager. I look forward to his 2nd year. It would be nice to have a bit of a jam in the infield for a change rather than wondering who we can bring in for a stop gap.
Grube was better than decent this year in AA. I don't know if he's a prospect, but I wouldn't count him out - and it's obvious the Ms aren't or they wouldn't have him down there working. Grube was on the team that had its coach die from getting hit in the neck with a batted ball in 2007. He wasn't on the mound that day, but basically from the time it happened until he was released by the Rockies, he was a different pitcher who got hit all over the field. I don't know if the two are related.
Grube also was never given a real chance to start before, always working from the pen. He was very good from there too until the tragedy (aside from a bit of a hits issue). As a starter, he was great in AA for us and is carrying it on now.
He always had great control and good strikeouts. Hits were always his concern. He just wouldn't quite get after hitters enough and never knew when to go off the plate instead of staying on it. It blew up on him at the end of his Rockies minor league career, but as a guy who can start or relieve, he's another good shot at a Jason Vargas, albeit RH.
I'd take another one.
~G
I expect him to be named "most boring at-bat" sometime in 2012. His box score is gonna be full of walk-single-walk-K-groundout lines...and his OPS+ is gonna be something like 110, 115 while hitting nothing but singles.
I look at his minor-league line and see a guy messing around with his swing and his timing and still managing to be one of the top 2B in either of the leagues he played in.
Ackley's gonna tinker for a lot of his career, I think, but he's ALWAYS gonna walk. When he gets his swing the way he likes it and his control of the zone to be appreciated by the refs, look out.
His rookie year may be tilted more toward Ks than walks as umps break him in, but he'll get their zones down, take his lumps and then we'll have fun. :)
Even if the at-bats are "boring."
~G
Thanks G-Money Man. I live in Colorado and knew that Grube was a castaway from the Rockies. I didn't know the connection to Coolbaugh and his tragic death. That was the coach hit by the line drive in his neck. A very sad day here and, honestly, it has caused me to pay closer attention coaching 1st and 3rd. Whether that effected his WHIP or not, I can't see how anyone literally watching his popular coach die in front of you could not be marked. Every pitcher is vulnerable. I hope the best for him and would love for something sad to become a bit of good.
I think he will get his share on line drives. But in the bordom time now, Ichiro loves patience behind him doesn't he?
It's interesting that Boggsie, in the minors, ran .400-ish OBP's but rather weak SLG's.
Boggs wasn't phenomenally fast-tracked; he got to the majors at 24 and I don't at all remember him being hyped. He repeated both AA and AAA (!) and the second time he played AAA, he finally jelled as a dominating #2-3 hole hitter.
Point is, Boggs SLG'ed .370 in the minors, but .470 in the majors despite 6 homers a year. Boggs' (Fenway-aided) batting lines are a nice bar for Ackley to shoot for.
.320/.400/.460 could be a yearly routine for ACK !, and in Safeco at 2B he'd be a franchise player.
Key question for coaching purposes would be to find out when along that track Boggs started eating the fried chicken?
I thought he had 14 recipes for chicken, one for each city ......
Ackley must have barbequed up his chicken this weekend Jeff because he led off wtih a home run today over the center field fence. Amazing, this was off of Greg Reynolds, the Rockies disaster #2 pick from Stanford when everyone was busy thumbing their noses at Lincecum. He was the proto-type that scouts drooled over being 6'7". Opps! Great articles on Ackley and crew. And hope your week starts off great!
That starts me thinking about the 20 dings for Ackley.
Can Jose Lopez hit a ball over the CF fence? Can Adrian Beltre? Well, maybe... can Kotchman?
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Funny stuff about Reynolds. Even funnier: the same folks will not have learned a thing about 6'7" vs 5'9" cliches the next time around. Not one thing.
I think the real question is when did Boggs start drinking his 75 to 100 Miller Lites in a night that Jeff Nelson talks about every now and then?
Folks not changing or learning as they should. I have a feeling you deal with a bit of that every day. Lincecum's size will be okay until suddenly another giant like Randy Johnson bursts on the scene and then every Wilt Chamberlain is the next Cy Young. I was just opening the mail. I get as many refi junk in the mail as before the housing crisis. Short memories.
By the way, I saw the last inning of the Fall game yesterday where Lueke had the last two innings. The last batter, 2 men on I believe, was K'd on 3 change ups. I love it when a power pitcher has them lunging with good soft stuff.
Fried Chicken and beer. I guess why those were all Lite??
Opps, lots of words again!
Ackely starts of his game on Election Day 2 for 2 with average up to .382. Merks, Boggs would skip the chicken and have a toast to that?
The sheer calories are mind-boggling. Boggs musta put some serious work in during the day...
I'll settle for .372 translated...
Since I am sick of the election (for the last several months), I was checking out Ackley on the web. Tonight he was 3 for 3 (singles - two drives to center and grounder to first). Then he pulled one over right field fence to get his average to .417. I know, I know...but fun to see some baseball skills at work.
LOL...Too true, even with the Lite. Boggs laid them out as reward for total bases?
i just can say that this is new for me, so thanks...
cheers,
sally