(see above)
Ok, I stand corrected. Was talking about hitting, but I get it.
We’ve been spoiled the last few years by everyday outfielders that can play multiple positions competently (at worst), hit their own weight (at worst), and weren’t outrageously expensive. Looks like those days may be coming to an end.
I think that is where Springer’s value really lies: it’s not just his bat, but the fact that on any given day you can put him anywhere in the OF and not really worry. Same with Reddick, even given his offensive decline. All things considered I’d probably take Reddick over most of the players on that FA/trade list above.
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O.M.G. I did not remember that was Ozuna.
Looking just at Straw’s MLB production (small sample size), he’s had one hellacious reverse platoon split, with slightly above-average numbers against RHP and truly dismal numbers against LHP. This initially made me think Straw could be serviceable as the RHP-hitting half of a CF platoon.
| AVG | OBP | SLG | wRC+ | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs. | Career (MLB-135 AB) | .281 | .366 | .370 | 108 |
| RHP | 2020 (MLB-52 AB) | .308 | .357 | .385 | 111 |
| ------ | ----------------------------- | ------ | ------ | ------ | ------ |
| vs. | Career (MLB-64 AB) | .172 | .243 | .219 | 29 |
| LHP | 2020 (MLB-30 AB) | .033 | .033 | .033 | -93 |
Over his career, though, Straw has had a standard platoon split. Here are Straw’s splits for 2018 and 2019 across all levels (including MLB).
| 2018 | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|
| vs. RHP (391 AB) | .279 | .373 | .340 |
| vs. LHP (134 AB) | .328 | .405 | .410 |
| ------------------ | ------ | ------ | ------ |
| 2019 | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| vs. RHP (281 AB) | .292 | .360 | .345 |
| vs. LHP (104 AB) | .346 | .412 | .471 |
If Straw can manage to bring his major league performance against LHP up to par with his performance against RHP (i.e., not even recovering the standard platoon advantage), that would be an every day bat, albeit with a lot less power than we grew accustomed to seeing from Springer. I would not be surprised if management keeps giving him plenty of AB to figure it out.
[And yes, this post was mostly about me trying to figure out tables in the new platform].
Regardless of the tables, he has not impressed me at the Major League level. Jim and others who’ve seen him a lot more at AAA say he’s better than he’s been. It’s a relatively small sample size I’ve seen, so who knows. If he can get on base at a .400 clip regularly, he’ll do just fine.
He hasn’t impressed me either–I’d written him off as a 4th OF–but the numbers suggest there’s some untapped potential there. I’d rather have a proven major leaguer in CF than betting on Straw to make the right adjustments, but I’m not optimistic that we’ll get that this offseason.
I do not consider his being a solid MLB 4th OF as “writing him off.” That is what I think he can be.
Absolutely that’s not writing him off. Jake Marisnick was one of the best 4th outfielders you could have, and he added a ton of value while he was here. Not that Straw has to reach Jake levels, but he shows how valuable a guy like that can be.
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Assuming George is gone, my wish for the OF would be
Brantley
Straw
Tucker
Diaz
PTBNL (Alvarez here and there)
Obviously Brantley is a major fingers crossed wish. A fan can dream. And he’d have to get spelled frequently.
Can Toro play OF?
I understand the lure of money, I guess, although no one has ever tempted me with it; I do not understand, however, how someone can spend his entire professional life in one organization, experience tremendous success in that organization, become an admired pillar of the City in which he plays, receive a lucrative offer of millions to stay in his organization, but then leave because another organization’s offer is higher.
I’ll never get this. Never.
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I think it’s because they are very competitive and salaries are public.
I literally love Brent Strom:
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Thanks for posting this
Special guy
Teams that offer more money are often (but admittedly not always) in a better position to compete. If George goes elsewhere because he wants more rings and thinks the window in Houston is closing, I won’t fault him for that.
If he goes elsewhere it’s because someone offered him more money and I won’t fault him for that.
Also, the Astros did try to fuck him over before his call up. I thought that might be less important now that Luhnow’s been relegated to begging for mercy from some semi-literate local tv bimbo, but maybe he still holds a grudge. I won’t fault him for that, either.
I totally get what you are saying, Still sometimes successful people feel an urge to try their skill in a different market. Maybe one closer to their hometown.
I can never fault a young man who’d rather be a multimillionaire in a city besides Houston.