Add new comment

Man, looks like Marder is going to be racking up the FF miles! :)
Thank you, Spec. I'm pleased that Pizzano is in Jackson, He'll hit. Deej will start there too, I would bet.
Remind me where you have Kivlehan in your prospect list, Spec? Is he the Everett/High Desert Kivlehan or the Clinton Kivlehan? In essence, does he ISO .200 or .100 down the line? His High Desert #'s are all desert -aided (which is why I like our real bat prospects to skip that stop, or at least a full season there. Kivlehan's half-season bump from Clinton is less a problem), but he bashed like that in Everett (albeit, as a 22 yr. old). If he's that kind of bomber, we have some interesting RH mashers (Deej, Kivlehan, Blash) about to arrive in Safeco. Kivlehan is interesting because he hasn't shown much split difference. He has hit RHP, too.
It's bats like those guys (and the guy below), just about here, that may make Franklin expendable. Once he was no longer our SS (and Taylor looks pretty good there, too) and we made the decision to not sell high on Seager, then Franklin may well be more valuable to us in what he can bring us in return. He could get 50-70 starts in Seattle if he played 3B, too. However he's never played there (although he certainly has the glove and arm). We should know what his role will be by tomorrow. It's hard to see him in the Zobrist role, simply because (barring injury) there aren't that many starts at any one position for him. Last year Zobrist was essentially the everyday 2B with 117 starts there. He had 26 in the OF and 11 at SS. Without injury there aren't 117 starts at any position for Franklin. In '12, Zobrist has 34 starts at 2B, 53 in the OF and 33 at SS. Can he get 33 starts at THREE different positions? Can he get 20 at 3? If we can find 60+ starts for him, then we should hold onto him minus a Don Corleone-type of offer. That's a big number, however.
Changing player-subjects, remember Johnny Grubb, Spec? From back in the '70's-'80's? Lefty, not great power, walked and didn't K. .290-.360-.420+? That's where I see Pizzano going. He just whacks the ball too hard, too regularly to not hit his way into the majors in a relative hurry. Guys like that learn to take advantage of the great eye and stalk pitches. They wear out the gaps. Steve Braun, Jose Cruz, Terry Puhl.: You remember them!. Those guys make their money against RHP and aren't dead terrible against lefties. Those guys have real value.
Basically those are the guys we hope that Ackley becomes. I believe that we've got another one coming in Pizzano. I know you're not quite all the way out on that limb with me Spec, but the guy hits.