Step by step promotion is a nice thing.....but, hey man, Kobe Bryant (who I hate...but is the best player on the planet) didn't need a whole bunch of Div. I ball to be an NBA HOF'er. And less you say, "But that's different. Basketball is a weird beast and Kobe is a HOF'er" then I would offer that John Olerud didn't have too many MILB PA's in his career....12 to be exact...and those were in 2005, when he was 36!
Ackley is 22, he isn't an 18 year old kid. He has 4 years of NCAA ball, probably something like 240 games. He's ready for a MLB stint. The bigger question is who goes out the door? Tui is really the 6-position utility guy everyteam needs to have...and if you ship him out you just have to replace his with another Tui, Woodward perhaps.
Kotch is one of a handful of most inept full-time non-MIF bats in the league this year. Chavez at Oakland and Burrell at TB are both in his (bottom of the) class this year. Both are DH's (or D non-H's). Punto is a quasi-3B guy in Minnesota...but really plays all the IF positions, Garret Atkins in Balt is a 1B in Kotch's (remedial) class with the bat. Throw in a couple of 2b/SS tyes and one or two CF's and C's and you have the offensive dregs of the AL. But do you dump Kotch right now? In 30-40 games perhaps..but probably dumping him right now is such a WAY bold move (and admission of WAY bad error) that I don't think he goes. (By the way..Kotchman did save a couple of runs, or maybe three, a couple of nights ago with his glove...See I'm not bashing him).
Saunders? Do you Tacoma-ize him? He looks lost at the plate right now....and I hate his stroke..but I'm not sure sending him back down isn't kind of an admission that he's a AAAA type of guy.
Langerhans. He may be the guy to let go. The best option, probably. But, even then, when you play Ackley nearly full-time in LF and at 1B (I think he's back to a non-2B future for a while. Lopez is cheap and a gold-glover and Figgy is around to stay, too) then you sit Saunders and Kotchman nearly full-time...so you may as well demote or waive, as the case may be.
I would like Ackley up ASAP. but for the next 30 games....just pencil him into the Tacoma lineup every night. 10 games in LF, 10 games at 2B, and 10 games at 1B.
I might be all for, btw, releasing both Kotchman AND Langerhans and replacing them with Ackley and Carp. Will have to think about that.
I wouldn't mind seeing Mike Wilson get a call-up at some point. He will strike out every third time up...but he walks .100 AND he will hit a bunch of taters. He may be Adam Dunn-ish or Adam Dunn-lite (no pun intended---Dunn is having a hell of a year, BTW). Peguero, in WTENN has the same kind of skill set, it looks like. Feast or famine guys....but 30 doses of Dr. Longball every year have some value. And in Wilson, he only needs to hit in the .250 range, if he can continue walking .100-ish, to be a valuable #6 type hitter. Sweeney, btw, blocks him...because he's a LF/DH kind of guy, like Bradley.
Pineda...he needs to be in Tacoma for two starts...then in Seattle. Pronto. End of next week. Over the last two years he has K'ed 115 guys...and only walked 20! He pounds the strike zond AND misses bats. Sheeeesh. That's MLB ready!
And,BTW, Steve Hensley in WTENN actually has a lower WHIP this year. He's allowed only 37 hits in 54 innings! 153 K's and 49 walks over the last two year. Tacoma-ize him, too...pretty dang soon.
I love Ackley. L-O-V-E! Safeco calls. But Chaney-ize him for a bit...not for seasoning, but to figure out who gets dumped to make it happen. When he comes up....he plays everyday.
And I might be talking to a particular JR. about being a special projects/bench coach for the next 4 months. Hey..pay him a million to be a mentor. Who would be better. BTW...he played in 129 games after high school----only 17 at AA and none at AAA before he was up. Seems like it didn't hurt him too much.
Talent trumps all. Ackley, and Pineda, have it. The future for them is today...or sometime in the next 30. make it happen Jack.
moe
Add new comment
1