Friday, June 3, 2011

Roy Halladay SP - Tim Lincecum SP

Roy Halladay was the 17th player selected in the 1995 MLB Draft, taken by the Toronto Blue Jays. Halladay first appeared in the majors in September of 1998. In his second MLB start on September 27th versus the Detroit Tigers, Roy took a No-Hitter into the ninth inning broken up by a Bobby Higginson home run. Halladay's career was mostly down over the next few years. He sported an unwieldly 10.64 ERA in 2000 and the following year went back to Class A ball in Dunedin to try and rework his delivery. When "Doc" returned he was a new and effective pitcher. Starting in 2002 Halladay has appeared in 7 All-Star games. He has led both the A.L. and N.L. in wins and has won Cy Young Awards in both leagues. Roy has won 20 games three different years. On May 29, 2010 Halladay twirled a perfect game versus the Florida Marlins. On October 6th 2010 Roy pitched only the second no hitter in Post Season play shutting down the Cincinnati Reds.




Tim Lincecum was drafted twice but didn't sign a MLB contract opting to attend the U. of Washington. In 2006 Lincecum was chosen 10th overall in the draft by the San Francisco Giants. Tim made his MLB debut on May 6, 2007 and from that point he was up to stay. Making 24 starts in 2007 Lincecum won 7 and lost 5, averaging over a strikeout per inning. Then in 2008 Lincecum really asserted his talent. 33 starts, 18 wins with 265 K's. He was picked for the National League All-Star team and was named the 2008 N.L. Cy Young winner. He followed that up in 2009 with 15 wins, 267 K's another All-Star berth and his second Cy Young award. 2010 saw Tim win 16 games but his statistics were down slightly in other categories. He appeared to not have his good stuff on several occasions and had to pitch his way through the game rather than rely on his superior ability. This should really serve him well in future seasons.


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Matt Cain SP - Justin Verlander SP

Matt Cain was selected out of Houston H.S., Germantown Tennessee in the 1st round (25th pick) of the 2002 MLB Draft by the San Francisco Giants. He debuted on August 29, 2005 versus Colorado. Matt would go on to start 7 games that season allowiing just 24 hits in 46 innings. Cain began the 2006 season in the Giants starting rotation and won 13 games leading all N.L. Rookie pitchers. Of all pitchers in the Giants rotation Cain has probably had the least support, thus his career record of 57-62. Cain is consistent pitching over 200 innings for the last four seasons and averaging less than 1 hit per inning. In 2009 Matt was named to the N.L. All-Star team amassing a 14-8 record. In '10 Cain finished sixth in the N.L. in BB+H/IP. Yet he again was barely over .500 for the weak hitting San Francisco team going 13-11. Even the Post Season was no respite. Despite starting 3 games and allowing just 13 hits in 21 innings Cain's record was just 1 win and 0 losses.

Justin Verlander out of Old Dominion was the second overall pick in the 2004 MLB Draft. Taken by the Detroit Tigers his first MLB start was on July 4, 2005. Justin would have only 1 other start for the Tigers that season but moved into the starting rotation permanently in 2006. During his first full season Justin won 17 games and was voted the A.L. Rookie of the Year. In 2007 Verlander made his first All-Star game and finished with 18 wins. On June 12, 2007 Justin pitched a No-Hitter versus Milwaukee fanning 12 batters. After struggling to an 11-17 record in '08 Verlander reestablished himself in 2009. That season he won 19 games for Detroit and led the A.L. in innings with 240 and K's with 269 and was named to his second All-Star team. Justin showed that '09 was no fluke by winning 18 games in 2010 and pitched 224 innings allowing less than 1 hit per inning.






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Ubaldo Jimenez SP - Jeremy Hellickson SP

Ubaldo Jimenez was signed as an amateur Free Agent at the age of 17 by the Colorado Rockies in 2001. His MLB debut occurred on September 26, 2006 as a reliever. He made his first start versus the Chicago Cubs on October 1 but received no decision. In 2007 Ubaldo pitched half the season with the Rockies starting 15 games and finishing with a 4-4 record. In 2008 Jimenez was in the starting rotation the entire year managing a 12-12 record. In 2009 Jimenez began to mature as a pitcher, improving his statistics across the board. He won 15 games, pitched 218 innings and K'd 198 batters. Ubaldo really appeared to make a jump in 2010 going 19-8, finishing third in the N.L. Cy Young voting. Jimenez was chosen for the N.L. All-Star team and was the starting pitcher. His career highlight came on April 17, 2010 when he pitched the first No-Hitter in Colorado Rockie history. Pitching in Atlanta against the Braves Jimenez was able to to hit 100 on the radar gun on a couple of occasions and in a curious development ended up the last few innings pitching exclusively from the streth to aid his control!



Jeremy Hellickson hasn't done too much at the Major League level in his young career. He was drafted by Tampa Bay in the 4th round of the 2005 MLB Draft. On August 2, 2010 Hellickson made his first major league start against the Minnesota Twins. In that game Jeremy went 7 innings, allowed 3 hits and 2 walks while fanning 6 and got his first MLB win. Eight days later he was recalled to start a game against the Detroit Tigers. That night he went 7 innings, allowed 3 hits and fanned 7 while not allowing a walk to up his record to 2-0. A week later he faced the Orioles and gave up 3 hits in six innings improving to 3-0. These are the highlights to this point as Hellickson tries to become a permanent fixture in the Rays starting rotation.

Hellickson MLB link

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Carlos Zambrano SP - Joakim Soria Closer

Carlos Zambrano is a true "Wild Card" heading into the season. Signed by the Cubs as a Free Agent in 1997, Zambrano appeared in his first MLB game on August 20, 2001 at the tender age of 20. In 2002 "Z" bounced between starting games and relief. In 2003 he was a mainstay in the rotation starting 32 games winning 13. Carlos was named a N.L. All-Star in '04, '06 & '08. Known as a good hitting pitcher, Zambrano earned Silver Slugger Awards in 2006, 2008 and 2009 and has 21 career homers. On Sept. 14, 2008 "Z" threw a No-Hitter versus the Houston Astros. Uniquely the game was played at a neutral site Miller Park in Milwaukee due to Hurricane Ike. 2010 was a struggle for the big RHP but he did finish the year on an 8-0 run with a 1.41 ERA over that span.




Joakim Soria is a classic "could have been a ____" At the age of 16 the Dodgers signed him as a Free Agent. Released by L.A. in 2005 he was signed by the S.D. Padres. Unprotected by the Padres the K.C. Royals nabbed him in the 2006 Rule 5 Draft. Pitching for the Royals in 2007 eventually won the job as their closer and saved 17 games. Joakim opened 2008 with 13 consecutive saves and was chosen to the A.L. All-Star team. Soria finished '08 with 42 saves. In 2009 Joakim saved 30 games in 33 opportunities. In 2010 Soria saved a career high 43 games and received his second All-Star selection. Joakim has a good mixture of pitches and despite not overpowering hitters with a fastball, he still has averaged 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings over his major league career.

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Saturday, May 14, 2011

Geovany Soto C - Miguel Olivo C

To quote Casey Stengel "The catching position is very important because without it the ball just rolls to the backstop". Geovany Soto was taken in the 11th round of the 2001 MLB Amatuer Draft. 4 years later Soto made his debut for the Cubs on Sept. 23, 2005. Not really being a Blue Chip prospect for the Cubs, Soto spent another two seasons in the minors with a few late season AB's in Chicago. After lighting up the minors in 2007, Geovany was called up and just continued his torrid hitting in the bigs. Soto earned the starting catcher nod in 2008 and proceeded to make the N.L. All-Star team and win the N.L. Rookie of the Year Award. 2009 was a down year for Soto as his conditioning was brought into question. 2010 Geovany reported in great shape and went on to a fine season with a career high OPS of .890 to go along with his 17 home runs.






Miguel Olivo was originally signed as a Free Agent by the Oakland A's in 1996. In 2000 Olivo was traded to the White Sox and his first MLB appearance was on September 15, 2002. Miguel was the White Sox primary Catcher in 2003 but in 2004 he was dealt to the Seattle Mariners. In 2005 Seattle traded Olivo to San Diego. In 2006 Olivo signed as a Free Agent with the Florida Marlins and for two seasons he was their starting Catcher. K.C. signed Miguel as a Free Agent and for 2008 and 2009 Olivo platooned as a backstop for the Royals. In 2010 the Colorado Rockies signed Olivo as a Free Agent and he appeared in 112 games for the Rockies. Miguel has a strong arm and in 2010 Olivo was second in the N.L. in Caught Stealing % throwing out 42 percent of the attempted steals. Olivo also has caught 2 no-hitters, Anibal Sanchez on September 6, 2006 and Ubaldo Jimenez on April 17, 2010.


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Nelson Cruz OF - Colby Rasmus OF

Nelson Cruz was signed by the N.Y. Mets as an Amateur Free Agent in 1998. He bounced around from the Mets to Oakland to Milwaukee before making his first MLB appearance for the Brewers at the end of the 2005 season. During the 2006 season Cruz was acquired by the Texas Rangers and he ended up appearing in 41 games and hitting 6 homers. For the Rangers in '07 managed just 9 HR's in 96 games. In 2008 Cruz didn't make the team out of Spring Training and was waived. No team took a chance on him, so he signed with Oklahoma City. Cruz dominated the AAA level hitting .342 with 37 HR's and was called up to the Rangers in August of that year. In 2009 Nelson was selected to the A.L. All-Star team finishing the year with 33 HR's & 20 steals in 128 games. In 2010 Cruz again was plagued by injuries but finished with 22 HR's & 17 steals in 108 games. Nelson appeared in 16 Post-Season games and added another 6 homers and 11 RBI's.


Here's a little trivia, Colby played in the 1999 Little League World Series! More good things would follow this young left handed hitting outfielder. Rasmus was drafted by the St.Louis Cardinals with the 28th pick in the 2005 Free Agent Draft. Colby moved steadily through the Cardinals minor league system and made the major league opening day roster in 2009. Rasmus' first season was more solid than spectacular. He finished 8th in the N.L. Rookie of the Year voting. There were highlights like his 4 hit game June 19 versus K.C. and a walk-off homer on July 1 to beat the Giants 2-1. Expectations were high for 2010 and Rasmus improved in all the offensive categories. His HR's went from 16 to 23, his batting average rose from .251 to .276 and he even added 12 steals. However by September there were rumblings that Rasmus and Manager Tony LaRussa weren't on the same page. There is great ability here and hopefully Colby will continue to develop.

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Jayson Werth OF - Matt Kemp OF

Jayson Werth was a first round draft pick in th 1997 MLB Draft, taken by the Baltimore Orioles. In 2000 Werth was dealt to the Toronto Blue Jays. In 2002 Jayson broke in to the majors appearing in 15 games for Toronto. In 2003, Werth managed only 51 At Bats for the Blue Jays and the next spring was dealt to the Dodgers. In '04 & '05 Werth appeared in a platoon situation and suffered a wrist injury which caused him to miss the 2006 season. In 2007 Jayson signed with the Phillies and was again a platoon outfielder in that season. Finally in 2008 he was given an opportunity for regular At-Bats and his career took off. In 2009 Werth had a career high 36 homers while stealing 20 bases. In 2010 Jayson Werth launched a career high 75 extra base hits. In the outfield Jayson is solid with a terrific arm well suited for Right Field. After the 2010 season, Jayson signed as a free agent with Washington.


Matt Kemp was drafted in the sixth round of the 2003 MLB Draft and signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. After progressing through the Dodger minor league system, Matt made his debut on May 28, 2006 getting 1 hit in 4 Ab's. Kemp suffered an injury in 2007 limiting him to just 292 at bats. In that limited time Matt hit .342 with 10 homers and 10 steals. Finally gaining a full time job in 2008 Kemp batted .290 with 18 homers and 35 stolen bases. In 2009 Matt batted .297, driving in 101 runs while slugging 26 homers and stealing 34 bases. In addition to his performance on offense Kemp was awarded a 2009 Gold Glove for his work in Centerfield. 2010 was an all around down year for Matt as his statistics fell in nearly every category. His home run total rose to 28 but everywhere else his statistics went down. He appeared tentative on the bases where he stole only 19 bases in 34 attempts. Also his play in the field suffered as he at times looked lethargic chasing after fly balls. Kemp is certainly talented enough and young enough to be able to right the direction of his career in 2011.



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Friday, May 6, 2011

Shin-Soo Choo OF - Andrew McCutchen OF

Shin-Soo Choo first appeared in the 2000 World Junior Baseball Championship for South Korea. He was the MVP and voted Best Pitcher! He would eventually sign with the Seattle Mariners as a five-tool prospect. Shin-Soo made his Mariners debut in 2005 appearing in just 10 games. After just 4 games in 2006 Choo was traded to the Cleveland Indians. In 2007 just when it appeared that career was on the rise, Choo had Tommy John surgery on his elbow. Finally in May of 2008 Shin-Soo was called up for good and took his place in the Indian outfield. Over 94 games Choo hit for a .309 average. He followed that up in 2009 by hitting an even .300 in 156 games and repeated that .300 average in 2010. As well as having a dynamic arm in the field Shin-Soo has been a 20-20 man for the last two years in homers and steals.


Andrew McCutchen had signed a letter to attend the University of Florida but when he was drafted 11th overall in the 2005 Major League Draft he chose to sign with the Pittsburgh Pirates. In June 2009 the Pirates traded Nate McLouth, opening the Centerfield job for McCutchen. He singled in his first at bat against Mets pitcher Mike Pelfrey. On June 17th Andrew launched his first MLB homer against Francisco Liriano but that was just a precurser to his career day in August. On August 1 facing the Washington Nationals McCutchen went 4 for 5 with 3 HR's and 6 RBI's. Each homer came off a different pitcher! Andrew finished the year with 12 homers and 22 steals. In 2010 his first full year in the Majors, McCutchen homered 16 times to go along with 33 steals. At 23 years old Andrew is still maturing but has already demonstrated very good defensive skills along with his speed. At the plate McCutchen has been consistent with a .286 average and .365 OBP in both of his first two years.


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Evan Longoria 3b - Troy Tulowitzki SS

Evan Longoria was the third selection in the first round in the 2006 MLB Draft for Tampa Bay out of Long Beach State. On April 12, 2008 he made his major league debut getting his first hit and first RBI. Longoria made his first A.L. All-Star team that same year and contributed a game tying double. Evan has gone on to make the All-Star team his first three years in the majors. He finished his 2008 season by being named the A.L. Rookie of the Year. In 2009 he won the American League Silver Slugger award for Third Base and has earned Gold Glove awards in both 2009 and 2010. A mainstay in the middle of the MLB Rays order, Longoria has driven in over 100 runs in his last two seasons. He provides a nice balance of power plus defense and even contributes on the base paths adding 15 steals in 2010. Evan is no stranger to coming through in the clutch. In the Rays first ever playoff game Longoria homered in his first two at bats setting the tone for the Rays defeat of the White Sox.

Troy Tulowitzki was the seventh selection in the 2005 MLB Draft for the Colorado Rockies. Like Longoria, Tulowitzki was drafted after attending Long Beach State. Troy was a late season call up in 2006 for the Rockies, hitting his first major league home run off of Woody Williams on September 4, 2006. In 2007 Tulowitzki became the Rockies full time Shortstop. Over 155 games Troy hit 24 homers to go with 99 runs batted in. On April 29, 2007 Tulowitzki turned the 13th unassisted triple play in major league history against the Atlanta Braves. An unassisted triple play might be a fluke but there is no fluke in regards to "Tulo's" fielding prowess. In 2010 Troy earned the Gold Glove Award for National League Shortstops and capped the season by adding a Silver Slugger award. Very similar to Longoria, Tulowitzki is a combination of power, defense as well as a speed threat.








































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Mark Teixeira 1b - Brandon Phillips 2b

Switch-hitting First Baseman Mark Teixeira was the fifth overall selection in the 2001 MLB Draft, chosen by the Texas Rangers. He played just one season in the minors and debuted with the Rangers in 2003. In his first full season in the majors Teixeira blasted 26 homers while playing the outfield, third base and first base. In 2004, Mark jumped his season home run total to 38 and was named the A.L. Silver Slugger at First Base. In 2005 "Tex" had an award sweep, winning another Silver Slugger, his first Gold Glove and was an A.L. All-Star selection. Also in 2005 Teixeira became just the third switch-hitter in MLB history to homer 20 or more times in each of his first three seasons. In 2007 Mark was traded to the Atlanta Braves and in 2008 was traded to the Angels. He joined the Yankees as a free agent in 2009 and led the A.L. in home runs with 39 and RBI's with 122. Teixeira currently has 4 Gold Glove Awards to go along with 3 Silver Slugger trophies.


Brandon Phillips was a Montreal Expo draft choice in 1999. A highly regarded Expo prospect Phillips was involved in a major trade to the Cleveland Indians. Phillips along with Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee and Lee Stevens were sent to Cleveland in exchange for Bartolo Colon and Tim Drew! Brandon never could gain a full-time job for the Indians and the Reds dealt for him at the start of the 2006 season. Phillips has been the Reds ever day second baseman since that trade. Noted as a fine glove man, Brandon has won two Gold Glove awards ('08, '10) and has a career fielding percentage of .987 at Second Base. At the plate Phillips is a mixed bag. He can supply power with a career high of 30 homers in 2007 and a high of 98 RBI's in 2009. Brandon also has speed with a career high of 32 steals in 2007 and also has scored over 100 runs two times. Phillips is not your typical contact hitting second baseman as he is normally up there swinging and his .332 OBP in 2010 is his career high in that category.


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Wednesday, April 6, 2011

What Could Have Been...

I can't complain too much, I've been provided some very nice players via the Tampa Bay Rays MLB pipeline. That doesn't stop me from contemplating how good I could have had it. The then Devil Rays made Josh Hamilton their first pick of the Amateur Draft in 1999. He was considered "The Natural" come to life. Like Robert Redford's Roy Hobbs character Hamilton then got sidetracked on his way to the major leagues. An unfortunate car accident led to an injury rehabilitation stint and during his time away from baseball Josh fell into the wrong company and developed a serious drug affliction. In 2004 Hamilton was suspended from baseball for drug violations. From 2004 to 2005 Josh didn't play baseball at all. He began his drug rehab and was working with a local Tampa Bay area baseball school and in June 2006 was allowed to work out again with Tampa's minor league players. In the 2006 Rule 5 Draft, the Rays did not protect Hamilton and he was drafted by the Cubs who then dealt Josh to Cincinnati. He stayed with the Reds in '07 but battled injuries (another constant companion) and was productive despite only playing in 90 games. The Texas Rangers liked what they saw and traded Edinson Volquez to acquire Hamilton prior to the '08 season. In 2008 Hamilton hit 32 HR's and led the American League with 130 RBI's. In 2009 Hamilton was sidelined for a large portion of the season with injuries to his rib cage and an abdominal strain limiting him to 89 games. In 2010 Hamilton led the American League in hitting with a .359 average and again slugged 32 HR's winning the American League MVP award. We will see if Hamilton can break his one on - one off pattern and put back to back good seasons together in 2011.


In 2008 Tampa Bay had the first pick in the Amateur Draft. There were several good prospects for the Rays to consider but it seemed to come down to a choice between High School Shortstop phenom Tim Beckham and collegiate standout Catcher Buster Posey from Florida State University. Rays brass decided that the way for the club to go was to draft Beckham. Ugh! Buster Posey was drafted by the San Francisco Giants and quickly ascended to the Major Leagues, getting a brief call up at the tail end of the 2009 season. In 2010 the Giants decided to have Posey split time with veteran backstop Bengie Molina. Posey helped the Giants ditch that plan by proving that he was more than capable of handling the job on a full time basis. Buster would go on to appear in 108 games for San Francisco batting .305 with 18 HR's. He exhibited skills on both sides of the ball as his defense was lauded and his strong arm helped deter base stealer's versus Giants pitchers. Posey capped the season by hitting .300 in the 2010 World Series for the Champion Giants.


How good could my Primetime Franchise Baseball Rays look with Hamilton patrolling the Outfield and Posey backstopping my pitching staff? I should mention that the Rays management hasn't given up on Beckham blossoming into what they first saw, but it has been a slow developmental process for the young man. An additional note must be added. Here are some other names that went in the first round after Tampa Bay chose Beckham:

Pedro Alvarez, Eric Hosmer, Brian Matusz, Posey, Justin Smoak, Brett Wallace, Brett Lawrie, Ike Davis, Andrew Cashner, Ryan Perry, Daniel Schlereth and Conor Gillespie. All have either appeared in the Majors or are still highly rated prospects. Just goes to show you that not only us Amateur GM's make mistakes come draft day!
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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Rays RH Setup Arms

Jon Rauch Baseball Reference link
























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Rays LH Setup Arms

Javier Lopez Baseball Reference link

























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Rays Reserve Outfielders


J.D. Drew Baseball Reference link




























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Rays Reserve Infielders

Danny Worth Baseball Reference link































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Rays Backup Catchers


Schneider Baseball Reference link






















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Monday, March 21, 2011

Justin Duchscherer SP - Jesse Litsch SP (The Bruise Brothers)

Justin Duchscherer has been consistent in two areas over his Major League career. One, he has been effective on the mound whether as a relief pitcher or as a starter. Two, he's not on the mound often enough. Drafted by the Boston Red Sox he was traded while in the minors to Texas. The Rangers called him for 5 games in the 2001 season and they were not impressed with the results. The Rangers shipped him off the Oakland and the A's liked what they saw. Justin started three games late in the season but from '04 - '07 "Duke" worked strictly as a reliever, making the A.L. All Star team in 2005. In 2008 Duchscherer was a starter again and was named to the A.L. All Star squad for the second time. Again injuries derailed him as Justin missed the 2009 and most of the 2010 seasons while rehabbing. In the off season he signed with the Orioles and is competing for a job in the starting rotation.


The other partner in the "Bruise Brothers" is local favorite Jesse Litsch. How ironic that Jesse's first Major League job was as a Batboy for the Rays! Not blessed with a triple digit fastball Litsch was not considered a Blue Chip prospect when he was drafted by Toronto in the 24th rd. in 2004. Litsch relies more on pitch location and movement and has no fear in taking the ball in a clutch situation. On May 25, 2007 Litsch was called up to fill in for an injured Roy Halladay and started against the Yankees. He went 8 2/3 innings allowing 4 hits, two walks and 1 run and won the game. Jesse stuck in the starting rotation through the rest of the 2007 season. Litsch started 28 games in 2008 but in 2009 he underwent "Tommy John" surgery. Litsch came back and started 9 games in 2010 for the Blue Jays. Now nearly two full years back from surgery Litsch should be physically back and ready to go.
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Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Colby Lewis SP - Hisanori Takahashi P

The story of Colby Lewis, well it could be a made for T.V. movie. A "can't miss" first round draft pick for the Texas Rangers speeds through their Minor League system and makes the opening day roster in 2002. Sent back to the minors for more seasoning he returns and spends the '03 season in the Rangers rotation. He sported a 10-9 win/loss total but he wasn't pitching very well. Lewis has rotator cuff surgery and then bounces around from Detroit-Washington-Oakland-K.C. and then he's out of MLB. Determined to continue playing baseball Lewis goes to Japan and in 2008-2009 is one of the league's dominating pitchers. The Rangers come calling in 2010 and he finishes 7th in the A.L. in strikeouts, 9th in the A.L. in WHIP and finishes the year with two playoff wins and a World Series victory. Colby Lewis is one great story!

It's fitting that Hisanori Takahashi should be linked on the same page with Colby Lewis. Like Lewis Takahashi pitched in the Japanese professional league in 2009 before appearing in MLB in 2010. Hisanori is an old school left hander who relies on mixing up his pitches to keep the hitters off balance. He pitched his entire career in the Nippon league with the Yomiuiri Giants and signed as a Free Agent in 2010 with the New York Mets. With the Mets Takahashi was Mr. Everything. He began the year in the Mets bullpen, then on May 21 he made his first Major League start....against the New York Yankees going 6 innings and not allowing a run. Later in the year the Mets needed a closer so Takahashi filled that role for them finishing with 8 saves on the year. Hisanori had a release clause when he signed with the Mets and in the off season Takahashi signed with the L.A. Angels.
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Monday, January 10, 2011

Future Impact

This is another example of a MLB trade and how it can alter the future of a PTFBL team. The MLB Tampa Bay Rays dealt starting pitcher Matt Garza to the Chicago Cubs as part of an 8 player trade. Along with Garza the Rays shipped one-time prospect Fernando Perez OF and minor league pitcher Zach Rosscup to Chicago. In return the Rays received outfielder Sam Fuld and four minor leaguer prospects: Chris Archer SP, Hak-Ju Lee SS, Robinson Chirinos C andBrandon Guyer OF. A look at the players coming Tampa Bay's way:

Chris Archer is 22 years old and progressed from (A) to (AA) finishing the year with a 15-3 record and an ERA of 2.34. He was the Cubs Minor League Pitcher of the Year and according to Baeball America he had the best slider in the organization along with a plus fastball and was rated as the Cubs #1 prospect.

Hak-Ju Lee is 20 years old and in Class (A) ball in 2010 he hit .282 with 32 stolen bases. Scouts rate him as a plus-plus runner and project him as a leadoff hitter. He is considered an above average Shortstop defensively. Baseball America had listed him as the Cubs #4 prospect and also had projected him as their future Shortstop, moving Starlin Castro to Second Base.

Brandon Guyer turns 25 years old this month. He was named Cubs Minor League Player of the Year. Playing in (AA) in 2010, Guyer hit .344 with 13 Homers and 30 Steals in 33 attempts. Guyer has plus speed, right-handed power and the skill to play all three defensive outfield positions. Baseball America rated Brandon as the Cubs best defensive outfielder and their 10 overall best prospect.

Robinson Chirinos split 2010 between (AA) & (AAA) and he hit .326 with 18 homers and a combined OB+Slg% of .999. Robinson is a former infielder who converted to Catcher and was named the Best Defensive Catcher in the Cubs organization. He threw out 30% of attempted stolen bases and is considered major league ready behind the plate. Chirinos is a good contact hitter, with a good eye and gap power.

Sam Fuld is 29 and has played parts of three years in the majors with the Cubs. He is considered a utility outfielder with above average defensive skills in Centerfield.

What does this all mean to the PTFBL Rays? Let's break it down starting with Chris Archer and keep in mind this is leaning towards the best case scenario unfolding. Remember Jeremy Hellickson? With the trade of Garza, Hellickson just got a huge boost in value for the 2010 season. If we project a bit farther down the road the Rays rotation could shape up like this:
#1 David Price
#2 Jeremy Hellickson
#3 Matt Moore
#4 Wade Davis
#5 Chris Archer
This gives Tampa Bay two more potential trade chips in James Shields and Jeff Niemann.

Hak-Ju Lee is interesting. He could become the future at Shortstop as Reid Brignac has been a liability versus LH pitching. Or, Lee could become the Second Baseman as Sean Rodgriguez has struggled against RH pitching. Another possibility is that Rodriguez and Brignac become a platoon at 2b.

Brandon Chirinos probably makes the most immediate impact. Although John Jaso provided a nice year in 2010 he only hit 5 home runs and the Rays considered his defense as improving but still sub standard. If things work out well Chirinos and Jaso could platoon behind the plate in 2011 and one of them could establish himself as the future for the position.

Brandon Guyer could be given a legitimate shot to win the Right Field job in 2011. He will need to show well in Spring Training but the opening is there. With his athleticism, speed and defense he is precisely the type of player that the Rays organization likes. The Rays outfield will be an open competition in 2011. Although Upton has manned CF for the past 4 years, his production is going down while his whiffs are going up and his job is not totally secure. In RF you have Zobrist but he will also play some 2b & 1b and is coming off a down year with the bat. Also in the mix is Matt Joyce if he can remain healthy. In LF Carl Crawford's absence opens another opportunity. Desmond Jennings will get a big chance to step in but if he struggles the job could then go to Guyer or Joyce. If Upton doesn't turn it around he could be moved as he approaches Free Agency and Sam Fuld could be a stop gap in CF or Jennings could slide over to that spot.

To recap, by losing Garza (who I didn't own) the PTFBL Rays gained 4 future pieces who might possibly slot into prominent positions for the future. Nice work for not having to do anything.
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Sunday, January 9, 2011

Rays Off-Season Moves - part 2

The Rays continued to mold the team for the 2010 PTFBL season by completing two trades. The Rays acquired slugging outfielder Nelson Cruz but he didn't come without a cost. The price for Cruz was Gold Glove Center fielder Franklin Gutierrez, young pitching prospect Daniel Schlereth plus a first and third round draft pick. Nelson Cruz has appeared in 1 All-Star game but staying healthy for a full season is his biggest challenge. To date the 128 games Cruz appeared in for the 2009 season is his career high. He's productive when healthy and he enjoyed his first post season last year for the Texas Rangers. Cruz helped lead Texas past the Rays and Yankees but the San Francisco pitching staff finally found a way to slow him down in the World Series. Cruz possesses some great tools: powerful bat, speed, good glove and a strong arm in the outfield. A bit of a late bloomer, the PTFBL Rays are betting (or at least hoping) that Nelson has a great season ahead.

Tampa Bay added another outfielder to the roster with the addition of veteran J.D. Drew. Since he left Florida State in 1998 J.D. has had a solid career although maybe not the spectacular one that had been predicted for him. Drew still remains productive as he enters the elder stages of his baseball life. J.D. should still be counted on to produce 20 homers, show a good eye at the plate and continue to provide a good OB%. In the field Drew is sure handed with an accurate throwing arm and is still a very serviceable outfielder. The acquisition of Drew makes sense for a Rays team that continues to pursue their first pennant.

The Rays made one final move before the draft and it was a big one. In a large three team trade involving Adam Dunn, Desmond Jennings and Joel Pineiro the Rays brought young outfielder Colby Rasmus to Tampa Bay. Rasmus has totaled 39 home runs in his first two years in the majors. While that number is an average season for Dunn, Colby brings additional things to the table. Yes he's similar to Adam Dunn in reaching triple digits in strikeouts but there is no denying that Rasmus is a young and talented outfielder with the potential for big things. Coming off a 2010 campaign that saw him smack 23 home runs and steal 12 bases, Colby looks to continue building on an already strong foundation. Rasmus is solid defensively and he will be tested in 2011 having to patrol between Matt Holiday and Lance Berkman in the St. Louis Cardinals outfield. Colby is not an elite player at this point in his young career but with continued improvement an All-Star birth could await him in his future.
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