Gamigeredia
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James told the following colorful story at BJOL, which is $3 per month for the subscriber stuff and free for a lot of stuff. Immediately the guy who came to mind was Ben Gamel:
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Not that Gamel is going to be a star, but I'll be pretty surprised if he doesn't get 2,500 at bats in the big leagues. The Schilling/Zobrist story ... you gotta love the way that Gamel takes on pitchers' pitches. Not just his success against tough pitches, but the fact that he still looks like he's thoroughly enjoying the game while he's seeing tough pitches.
And let's remember: Gamel seems like he is 30 years old, on every possible level, but he is only 25 years old with less than a full MLB season behind him. True, he's had a very slow 2nd half, but you notice the Mariners' private intel has not soured them in the least.
He could develop in several possible directions. Just before Friday night's game, they were marvelling that in batting practice Gamel had decided to hit several balls off the Hit It Here Cafe. Right on cue, Gamel hit an early 3-run shot into the right field seats to win a 4-3 game. The pitch was offspeed, Gamel fooled badly on it, but he kept his hands back and squared the ball with a one-hand swing. Cano style. The type of swing in the photo above.
I'm partial to this kind of late-adjustment Ichiro backhand that covers a pitch. Speaks to very good ball tracking.
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Mitch Haniger finally looks like he's getting his timing back. He sinks his weight dangerously as the ball comes in, peers at the pitch studiously, and then WHIPSNAPPPPS that bat late and drives the ball to right field.
It's been a longggg, injury-ruined year for him. But the last 10 days he has LOOKED like himself again. Going into Saturday, he was 15-for-33 with three doubles and two homers. Love the kid.
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Guillermo Heredia has an average-solid rating defensively by John Dewan and UZR. The Mariners swear that he's super-elite. What does the Mainframe say? Heredia's glove looks roughly above average in center field visually.
Then again, if you are a legitimate CF in Safeco and you can hit 90 with good plate recog, what's that worth on the free agent market?
BABVA,
Dr D