PTI on His Badness
Ping. If he pulls off Morrow and a salary dump for Young and then signs Bobby Abreu…I think we have a chance to win the West in 09 and we’re set up beautifully for a a healthy future.
Pong. Justin was also psyched about Young-Ichiro-Abreu. For Dr. D this is in the "far too good to be true" category ... if and when the Mariners hinted about Ichiro moving over, then I'd allow myself to go beatific. :- ) ... Taro, IceX, is Ichiro playing CF for Team Japan?
Where would Young-Ichiro-Abreu rank among ML outfields? In terms of cold, hard math, you'd probably have three 6-ish RC/27's -- not epic but certainly championship-caliber.
In terms of on-field baseball, you'd have one HOF'er, one semi-HOF'er, and a kid who right now is looking quite possibly HOF-ish.
You'd have a #1 hitter, a #3 hitter and a #4 hitter, two left and one right, and all three could run. It's got a 90's Angels kind of heft and balance.
One thing's for sure: the Mariners would go from having one leadoff hitter, and a lineup full of #7 hitters, to immediately having a 100% legit 3-hole hitter (Abreu) and an exciting young #4-hole pretender to match with their leadoff guy.
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Ping. He has a 40% out of zone swinging rate — significantly higher than either Yuniesky or Adrian!?! Unless he changes his approach, I think his upside would be Alfonso Soriano or Garrett Anderson.
Pong. Also known as striking out a lot. :- ) Let's not let the fangraphs level of detail take away our sense of proportion: Young doesn't control the strike zone. How much does that matter at 21, 22?
Again check his comp Albert Belle http://www.baseball-reference.com/b/belleal01.shtml who at age 23 had a depressing 99/25 eye ratio and even went 128/52 in his bustout 1992 year at age 25.
I could name you fifty hard-hitting cleanup guys who got abused with strikeouts when in their early 20's. But Delmon Young has the Adam Jones-ish brainy attitude at the plate. He will blossom as Belle did.
Plate patience is a wonderful thing. But it is not the only route to the Hall. Lots of guys hack their way onto the All-Star team. Talent can trump strategy.
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Ping. I’d probably trade Clement and Wlad for him, maybe not Morrow even with the injury concerns…
Pong. The latest seems to be Washburn and Clement for Young, which I would consider a balanced trade. You're essentially asking for $5M to give up the lefty catcher Clement for Delmon Young. Yes, I do think that highly of Clement.
Would Dr. D give up Clement for Delmon Young, considering the park we have in town? That's a tough one. Ask me tomorrow and I'll probably have changed my mind.
Look, Delmon Young was absolutely the #1 pick in his draft, out of high school, and that's the kind of talent he is. If the Mariners acquire him, they're seeking a near-ARod, -Junior level of commodity. They wouldn't be acquiring him to provide a "pretty decent young hitter." The idea is to roll the dice on getting an Albert Belle MVP cleanup hitter.
Either Clement or Morrow would be more painful than a Jason Statham thigh stab, but His Badness is that kind of talent.
BABVA,
Dr D