Albert Cartwright is one of my favorite prospects in Baseball and he is one of the best prospects in a much improved Houston Astros farm system. The speedy and versatile 5 tool player did a great job with this interview and I hope you enjoy it.
Me: Talk to me about the transition from Lancaster to Corpus Christi and what adjustments you had to make.
Albert: Lancaster was a good league with alot of good pitchers but i thought when i got to Corpus the pitcher had a better plan and didnt stray away from it until you made the adjust
Me: Describe what you think is the biggest part of your game and how you can improve upon it.
Albert: biggest part of my game is my speed so i try to work it into my game the best that i can meaning; taking the extra base, bunting ,tagging up when necessary anyway i can make the defense uncomfortable that's how i try to play this game of baseball
Me: You set the Cal League record for most triples in a game. Whats a record you'd like to break at the Major League level?
Albert: setting a cali league record is a big accomplishment that i cherish dearly and my biggest concern is to help a team win at the major league level but if any record stands out at me is the stolen base record
Me: What are some of the highlights of the '10 season for you?
Albert: two highlights that stand out to me from 2010 is the game i set the record for most triples and the game i hit my first career walk off base hit.
i can remember coming to the plate my third at bat thinking if im going to get anything to hit and after i hit another tripple hearing the cheers from the crowd and my biggest accomplishment of 2010 is hitting a walk off to win the game bottom of the 9th at home. walking to the plate telling myself just get a good pitch over the plate and sure enough i got a curveball down the middle
Me: What are some things you're doing this off-season and how can that prepare you for Spring Training and the upcoming season?
Albert: preparing my self mental and physically to endure the the long brutal season ahead of me. pushing yourself in the gym and putting time on the field and in the batting cages. putting in time gets me ready for the season
Me: You were drafted in the 36th round and are now one of the Astros better prospects. Describe the journey it's been all the way from Polk College to where you are now and did you have to turn many heads after getting drafted much later than most?
Albert: getting drafted in later rounds is definitely harder . you dont get the chance or opportunities a early round pick would get so it puts more pressure on you to perform but i would say once you go out and do what you got to do on and off the field your chance will come where you can show your talent now once you get ya chance to show what you can do you have to run with it and i think with the opportunities i got i turn a few heads. polk community college baseball program led by former head coach Joe Arnold and assissant coach Brian Kraft got me prepare and help shape my overall game to take it to the next level and by listen to the Houston Astros coaching staff and putting everything together help mold my game to what it is now.
Me: Who are some of your biggest idols and do you ever seek help from current Astros?
Albert: My biggest idols i would say is my mother Patricia Cartwright and my father Albert Cartwright. I learned early in my life just by watching them go out and handle there business waking up early in the morning before the sunrise in the morning just to provide for me and my brother Cyril and sister Amanda. my parents did what it takes just to make sure that we had anything they didn't had as a child and i commend them for that. past two season i had the the opportunity to have the same manager Tom Lawless who i look up to and who helps me out with my overall game from hitting to defense
Me: Toughest pitcher you've faced in college and in the minors?
Albert: toughest pitcher i faced in my short career i would say is Matt Latos when i was as at Polk and he was at Broward community college
Me: When going through the draft process, which team were you hoping would draft you, and was the signing process somewhat hard or lengthy?
Albert: during the draft process it was more of a wait to see who will take me more than i hope a certain team. the signing process was a bit lengthy but nothing to bad i was leaning more on going back to school and signing in 07 so after a week or two after being selected by the Astros i had a conversation with my dad Albert Cartwright and after that i decided ill sign with the Houston Astros
Me: Talk to me about your teammate, J.D. Martinez
Albert: J.D is a good friend of mine with a good work ethic and talent. the times he spend studying pitching and hitting in the cage is amazing to be on a team with him and to workout with him in off season is a privilege just to be able to learn and to know what he is thinking at times although he is still you young and has alot more baseball to play and much more to learn he is an amazing talent
Thursday, December 23, 2010
A Royals fan from NY
First and foremost, as most of you can imagine, right about now is the perfect time to be a fan of the Kansas City Royals. The picturesque Royal blue and gold logo is starting to look much more blue and plenty golder. Obviously, so is the future of the Kansas City Royals.
Being someone who can't locally celebrate the debuts of Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, and Wil Myers (unless they are in debuting in NY), it's just amazing to feel the fact that we are finally going to be relevant among those who only have bad things to say about the Royals who have obviously not been an exciting Major League team over the past 20 years. Now, can any of you think about 5 other Baseball topics that are more exciting than the Royals future?
In my opinion, the big trade of Yuniesky Betancourt over the weekend (joking, we will miss you Zack) added to the future. I'm not going to say that the 4 newest Royals youngsters are better than the Royals top 5, because they are not, but we're looking at 4 tremendously exciting young players who will certainly have an impact on the potential winning teams of the future Royals. Not only that, but we got 4 great guys.
Again, as Greg pointed out on his radio show earlier, in which he did a great job doing, me being in NY I could obviously choose to like the Yankees who exemplify winning (not in the prettiest of ways) or even the Washington Nationals who showed some promise by signing a big time free agent this off-season. I could even like the Braves, Phillies, Red Sox, Tigers, or Mets; 5 teams with exciting players and are much more "local" than my favorite team of them all, the Kansas City Royals. And for that exact reason; It's the love and hope of what will eventually come to be winning Baseball and much more than that at the very least.
Of course I get made fun and viewed strangely when stating my opinion on my favorite team, but to encourage and promise everyone that the Royals are and will be relevant is something I love to do! I was in school today, and my science class was watching Chicken Run. So while they were focused on that, I was putting together my Royals top 40 prospect list. When I came to 40, I said to myself: "wait a second, that can't be right? I left off so many prospects. So then I expanded it to a top 50 and after that, I still forgot Elisaul Pimentel and other exciting young Royals who may definitely have a major impact on the Kansas City Royals future.
And even with the top 10 prospects. You hear everyone saying "oh well the Royals 2011 season is for not they aren't going to do anything." Well theres a chance the season doesn't finish with the Royals over .500, but how great and exciting will it be to see the debuts of Mike Moustakas, Tim Collins, Danny Duffy, and possibly Eric Hosmer! It's going to be amazing and I certainly can not wait!
Being someone who can't locally celebrate the debuts of Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, and Wil Myers (unless they are in debuting in NY), it's just amazing to feel the fact that we are finally going to be relevant among those who only have bad things to say about the Royals who have obviously not been an exciting Major League team over the past 20 years. Now, can any of you think about 5 other Baseball topics that are more exciting than the Royals future?
In my opinion, the big trade of Yuniesky Betancourt over the weekend (joking, we will miss you Zack) added to the future. I'm not going to say that the 4 newest Royals youngsters are better than the Royals top 5, because they are not, but we're looking at 4 tremendously exciting young players who will certainly have an impact on the potential winning teams of the future Royals. Not only that, but we got 4 great guys.
Again, as Greg pointed out on his radio show earlier, in which he did a great job doing, me being in NY I could obviously choose to like the Yankees who exemplify winning (not in the prettiest of ways) or even the Washington Nationals who showed some promise by signing a big time free agent this off-season. I could even like the Braves, Phillies, Red Sox, Tigers, or Mets; 5 teams with exciting players and are much more "local" than my favorite team of them all, the Kansas City Royals. And for that exact reason; It's the love and hope of what will eventually come to be winning Baseball and much more than that at the very least.
Of course I get made fun and viewed strangely when stating my opinion on my favorite team, but to encourage and promise everyone that the Royals are and will be relevant is something I love to do! I was in school today, and my science class was watching Chicken Run. So while they were focused on that, I was putting together my Royals top 40 prospect list. When I came to 40, I said to myself: "wait a second, that can't be right? I left off so many prospects. So then I expanded it to a top 50 and after that, I still forgot Elisaul Pimentel and other exciting young Royals who may definitely have a major impact on the Kansas City Royals future.
And even with the top 10 prospects. You hear everyone saying "oh well the Royals 2011 season is for not they aren't going to do anything." Well theres a chance the season doesn't finish with the Royals over .500, but how great and exciting will it be to see the debuts of Mike Moustakas, Tim Collins, Danny Duffy, and possibly Eric Hosmer! It's going to be amazing and I certainly can not wait!
Should the A's try to lock up Josh Willingham?
Billy Beane has done his best to add power to an A's lineup that was nearly worst in the American League each of the past three seasons. And today, he not only acquired a power hitter in Josh Willingham, but an on-base machine as well. As we've witnessed nearly every off-season when it comes to the A's, it's been a huge struggle attracting big name free agents to the Bay Area, or at least one side of the Bay Area. And as Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post tweeted today, a contract extension may very well be possible. Thus, my question is, can the A's lock up Josh Wilingham after acquiring him in the same off-season a la Dan Uggla? If so, what will it cost the A's?
Willingham has made nearly $10MM in his Major League career. The most he was paid in a season was obviously in '10, $4.6MM. The career .265 hitter has a .378 on base percentage over the past two seasons, his two years on the Washington Nationals and although his UZR is -10.0 over the last two seasons, he can boast about a 5.2 WAR over his aforementioned cup of tea with the Nats.
There's one close to perfect comparison for Willingham. That would be Corey Hart.
Corey is perhaps the best comparable for Willingham. Both are very similar players and Hart is being paid $6.5MM in '11, $9MM in '12, and $10MM in '13. That's exactly what I would pay Josh Willingham over the next 3 years. Willingham gets on base more than Hart, but both have very similar power and are both equally not so spectacular defenders, as their respective UZR's over the past two years would suggest. Josh Willingham has hit .264 over the past two years while Hart has hit a very similar .262. With all of that said, Willingham has a higher runs created and weighted on base average during his Nationals stint, something that Billy Beane surely has in mind. Both strike out the same amount (JW 23% and CH 22.9%) and are equally slow, hence their lousy play in the outfield.
Here's a WAR Graph comparing the duo's cumulative WAR by age, courtesy of Fangraphs.
Furthermore, what will an extension for the A's newly acquired left fielder cost? He is three years older than Hart, but continues to outplay the Brewers slugger.
Personally, I think a 3 year deal worth $28MM would be fair. Being paid $6MM in '11, $9MM in '12, and $13MM in '13. Willingham has shown tremendous improvement since being traded from the Marlins along with Scott Olsen in exchange for Emilio Bonifacio and two minor leaguers. Even if an extension doesn't go through or get decided upon, the A's have a much improved lineup for the 2011 season headlined by new acquisitions David DeJesus and Hideki Matsui. Not to mention another year of experience for Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, Gio Gonzalez, and Dallas Braden to go along with a fantastic bullpen which is highlighted by Andrew Bailey, Craig Breslow, and Brad Ziegler. Continuing, I really like the A's chances in 2011 and most of my confidence in their chances to win the division come from the new acquisition and this entry's centric, Josh Willingham.
Willingham has made nearly $10MM in his Major League career. The most he was paid in a season was obviously in '10, $4.6MM. The career .265 hitter has a .378 on base percentage over the past two seasons, his two years on the Washington Nationals and although his UZR is -10.0 over the last two seasons, he can boast about a 5.2 WAR over his aforementioned cup of tea with the Nats.
There's one close to perfect comparison for Willingham. That would be Corey Hart.
Corey is perhaps the best comparable for Willingham. Both are very similar players and Hart is being paid $6.5MM in '11, $9MM in '12, and $10MM in '13. That's exactly what I would pay Josh Willingham over the next 3 years. Willingham gets on base more than Hart, but both have very similar power and are both equally not so spectacular defenders, as their respective UZR's over the past two years would suggest. Josh Willingham has hit .264 over the past two years while Hart has hit a very similar .262. With all of that said, Willingham has a higher runs created and weighted on base average during his Nationals stint, something that Billy Beane surely has in mind. Both strike out the same amount (JW 23% and CH 22.9%) and are equally slow, hence their lousy play in the outfield.
Here's a WAR Graph comparing the duo's cumulative WAR by age, courtesy of Fangraphs.
Furthermore, what will an extension for the A's newly acquired left fielder cost? He is three years older than Hart, but continues to outplay the Brewers slugger.
Personally, I think a 3 year deal worth $28MM would be fair. Being paid $6MM in '11, $9MM in '12, and $13MM in '13. Willingham has shown tremendous improvement since being traded from the Marlins along with Scott Olsen in exchange for Emilio Bonifacio and two minor leaguers. Even if an extension doesn't go through or get decided upon, the A's have a much improved lineup for the 2011 season headlined by new acquisitions David DeJesus and Hideki Matsui. Not to mention another year of experience for Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, Gio Gonzalez, and Dallas Braden to go along with a fantastic bullpen which is highlighted by Andrew Bailey, Craig Breslow, and Brad Ziegler. Continuing, I really like the A's chances in 2011 and most of my confidence in their chances to win the division come from the new acquisition and this entry's centric, Josh Willingham.
How can Rich Harden be Rich Harden again?
If anybody has heard yet, that Cliff Lee guy signed with the Phillies. The Rangers, who had hoped the ace left hander would stay in the Lone Star State, chose otherwise, leaving a big hole in the Texas rotation. So there has been plenty of talk about signing Rafael Soriano and pitching him in the 9th thus sending Neftali Feliz to the rotation. Like Rich Harden, who is the centric of this entry, Feliz has tremendous stuff. Would it really make sense to put a closer who was dominant through 70-80 innings in a rotation where he would pitch 200 innings and have all of the opposing hitters get used to his fastball and curve? Or does it make sense to keep him in the closer role where he can empty everything out in one inning?
Well Rich Harden is apparently in talks with his former team, the Swingin' A's on what would most likely be a one year deal with plenty of incentives. The real question is, will he be starting or relieving?
Personally, Rich Harden is one of my favorite pitchers. He can't stay healthy, but when he is healthy, he's sometimes unhitable. Other times, he doesn't miss bats and gets in to lots of trouble with opposing hitters. So like someone like Clay Hensley for example, does moving to the pen take pressure off of not only you, but your manager, and your teamates. I could see Harden succeeding in the 5th spot in the A's rotation, but there are definetly some pros about possibly setting up for Andrew Bailey. In fact, say the aformentioned Feliz pitched in the rotation this year and pitches quite well, can Harden join a teams rotation in '12 after expierence in the pen and pitch a decent 180 innings? I'm not sure, but the problem again for Harden has not been the fact that he can't pitch well, it's about staying healthy. In 2008, he was dominant. It would be great to see him get back to that form, but for now, I think a place like Oakland, even though things didn't end well, would be a fine fit for him unlike Colorado or any other team in the west. I thought a la Clay Hensley, the Marlins would be a great fit on a minor league deal and a chance to make the rotation, but it looks like he's close to a deal with the A's. Let's just hope that Rich Harden can be Rich Harden again.
Well Rich Harden is apparently in talks with his former team, the Swingin' A's on what would most likely be a one year deal with plenty of incentives. The real question is, will he be starting or relieving?
Personally, Rich Harden is one of my favorite pitchers. He can't stay healthy, but when he is healthy, he's sometimes unhitable. Other times, he doesn't miss bats and gets in to lots of trouble with opposing hitters. So like someone like Clay Hensley for example, does moving to the pen take pressure off of not only you, but your manager, and your teamates. I could see Harden succeeding in the 5th spot in the A's rotation, but there are definetly some pros about possibly setting up for Andrew Bailey. In fact, say the aformentioned Feliz pitched in the rotation this year and pitches quite well, can Harden join a teams rotation in '12 after expierence in the pen and pitch a decent 180 innings? I'm not sure, but the problem again for Harden has not been the fact that he can't pitch well, it's about staying healthy. In 2008, he was dominant. It would be great to see him get back to that form, but for now, I think a place like Oakland, even though things didn't end well, would be a fine fit for him unlike Colorado or any other team in the west. I thought a la Clay Hensley, the Marlins would be a great fit on a minor league deal and a chance to make the rotation, but it looks like he's close to a deal with the A's. Let's just hope that Rich Harden can be Rich Harden again.
20 Baseball Facts you didn't know
These are 20 facts that you didn't know. Trust me, you definetly didn't know. Not that these are in any order, but you can rank them for yourself. I think all are equally interesting. Enjoy!
Matt Kemp had a -0.24 UZR in 2010. Horrible season for Matt Kemp. I'm not going to say that Ned Colletti and the Dodgers management pressure didn't have anything to do with this, but if he didn't have that final week surge, he might be jealous of Melky Cabrera's season.
Alexi Casilla has had the last AB of the regular season 2 out of the last 3 seasons. Good news is the one of those was a walk off that got his team, the Twins, in to the postseason, but the other was a game ending fly out that got the White Sox in to the postseason.
Ray King holds the record for most consecutive games without issuing an intentional walk. One of my favorite pitchers of all time. Not that this stat is found in record books or in the Hall of Fame, but I thought you'd be interested in knowing this.
Joe Inglett threw a knuckle ball at 54 MPH this season, and recorded an out. According to Fangraphs, this is true, but he can thank his incredible pitching staff for making that possible.
Darren Oliver was the first American league pitcher to pitch to a National league batter not including the world series or All-Star game. Ironically, this game was a matchup between the Texas Rangers and the San Francisco Giants.
The 1990 Twins executed 2 triple plays in a game. If anybody was wondering, I don't think Bengie Molina was on the opposing team. Perhaps the turf at the Metrodome helped the Twins fielders out.
Johnny Burnett, in 1932, got 9 hits in a game. Cesar Izturis should take note. Even though this game was 18 innings, 9 hits is nearly impossible. I guess they didn't believe in intentional walks back then.
Zack Greinke in 2010 was 11th in WAR among qualified pitchers. His value is extremely high which is something people don't realize. He is in line to bring at least 2 superstar players back to KC plus two other extremely good young players.
The only time in history that two sets of siblings played in the same infield in the same game were the Larkin's and the Boone's in the mid 90's. On a side note, Al Leiter was once scheduled to face his brother on the Phillies, Marc, but a rainout thought differently.
The Texas Rangers selected both Anthony Ranaudo and Drew Pomeranz in the 2007 draft, both of whom obviously did not sign. Most of that draft for the Rangers was used to acquire Cliff Lee, Christian Guzman, and Bengie Molina. I do have a feeling though that signing Pomeranz and Ranuado would have been a tad smart.
Before every game, umpires must rub around 6 dozen balls to get rid of the shine off the balls. This is obviously so Ken Macha wont march out of the dugout and ask the umpires, who are apparently shoe polish experts, to determine if there is polish on the ball, which isn't as easy as it sounds.
Justin Upton, Ryan Zimmerman, Mark Reynolds B.J. Upton, and David Wright all played for the same high school team at the same time. That's like 8474683 home runs every game right?
The Cleveland Indians' 1999 draft produced only 3 players who have gone on to play Major League Baseball; Jeff Baker, Fernando Cabrera, and Ben Francisco. All of the others are what we call "duds" and this draft was widely considered the worst draft by a single team in MLB history.
B.J. Upton's real name is "Melvin Emmanuel Upton." This is just me, but M.E. Upton doesn't exactly have that ring to it.
Kila Ka'aihue has a brother in the A's organization, Kala Ka'aihue. Kala was a dominant minor league first baseman back in 2006 but everything went downhill from there.
When Charlie Kerfeld, whose uniform number was 37, learned that Jim Deshaies had signed for $110,000 in 1987. He asked for and received $110,037.37 plus 37 boxes of orange Jell-O.
A "shuuto", a Japanese gyroball type pitch, is a backward slider, which is horrible for the elbow but used prominently by japanese pitchers. Dice-K apparently throws one, as does Hisashi Iwakuma. Japanese pitchers though have 10 pitches in their arsenal though I wouldn't be surprised to see even more have a history of throwing one.
As part of his contract, Tim Beckham had to personalize every Baseball that he signs. On the other hand, Hanley Ramirez is not allowed to sweetspot any ball he signs.
Ryan Ludwick and Cody Ross are the only two players in Major League Baseball who bat right and throws left. You would expect there to be more, but I bet there are more left handed batters who throw right.
Kauffman Stadium has the second largest jumbo-tron in sports. Which venue has the largest? Well your going to have to figure it out yourself, I don't give answers away like that, but it rhymes with Schmallas Schmowboys Stadium.
-Dave Gershman
Matt Kemp had a -0.24 UZR in 2010. Horrible season for Matt Kemp. I'm not going to say that Ned Colletti and the Dodgers management pressure didn't have anything to do with this, but if he didn't have that final week surge, he might be jealous of Melky Cabrera's season.
Alexi Casilla has had the last AB of the regular season 2 out of the last 3 seasons. Good news is the one of those was a walk off that got his team, the Twins, in to the postseason, but the other was a game ending fly out that got the White Sox in to the postseason.
Ray King holds the record for most consecutive games without issuing an intentional walk. One of my favorite pitchers of all time. Not that this stat is found in record books or in the Hall of Fame, but I thought you'd be interested in knowing this.
Joe Inglett threw a knuckle ball at 54 MPH this season, and recorded an out. According to Fangraphs, this is true, but he can thank his incredible pitching staff for making that possible.
Darren Oliver was the first American league pitcher to pitch to a National league batter not including the world series or All-Star game. Ironically, this game was a matchup between the Texas Rangers and the San Francisco Giants.
The 1990 Twins executed 2 triple plays in a game. If anybody was wondering, I don't think Bengie Molina was on the opposing team. Perhaps the turf at the Metrodome helped the Twins fielders out.
Johnny Burnett, in 1932, got 9 hits in a game. Cesar Izturis should take note. Even though this game was 18 innings, 9 hits is nearly impossible. I guess they didn't believe in intentional walks back then.
Zack Greinke in 2010 was 11th in WAR among qualified pitchers. His value is extremely high which is something people don't realize. He is in line to bring at least 2 superstar players back to KC plus two other extremely good young players.
The only time in history that two sets of siblings played in the same infield in the same game were the Larkin's and the Boone's in the mid 90's. On a side note, Al Leiter was once scheduled to face his brother on the Phillies, Marc, but a rainout thought differently.
The Texas Rangers selected both Anthony Ranaudo and Drew Pomeranz in the 2007 draft, both of whom obviously did not sign. Most of that draft for the Rangers was used to acquire Cliff Lee, Christian Guzman, and Bengie Molina. I do have a feeling though that signing Pomeranz and Ranuado would have been a tad smart.
Before every game, umpires must rub around 6 dozen balls to get rid of the shine off the balls. This is obviously so Ken Macha wont march out of the dugout and ask the umpires, who are apparently shoe polish experts, to determine if there is polish on the ball, which isn't as easy as it sounds.
Justin Upton, Ryan Zimmerman, Mark Reynolds B.J. Upton, and David Wright all played for the same high school team at the same time. That's like 8474683 home runs every game right?
The Cleveland Indians' 1999 draft produced only 3 players who have gone on to play Major League Baseball; Jeff Baker, Fernando Cabrera, and Ben Francisco. All of the others are what we call "duds" and this draft was widely considered the worst draft by a single team in MLB history.
B.J. Upton's real name is "Melvin Emmanuel Upton." This is just me, but M.E. Upton doesn't exactly have that ring to it.
Kila Ka'aihue has a brother in the A's organization, Kala Ka'aihue. Kala was a dominant minor league first baseman back in 2006 but everything went downhill from there.
When Charlie Kerfeld, whose uniform number was 37, learned that Jim Deshaies had signed for $110,000 in 1987. He asked for and received $110,037.37 plus 37 boxes of orange Jell-O.
A "shuuto", a Japanese gyroball type pitch, is a backward slider, which is horrible for the elbow but used prominently by japanese pitchers. Dice-K apparently throws one, as does Hisashi Iwakuma. Japanese pitchers though have 10 pitches in their arsenal though I wouldn't be surprised to see even more have a history of throwing one.
As part of his contract, Tim Beckham had to personalize every Baseball that he signs. On the other hand, Hanley Ramirez is not allowed to sweetspot any ball he signs.
Ryan Ludwick and Cody Ross are the only two players in Major League Baseball who bat right and throws left. You would expect there to be more, but I bet there are more left handed batters who throw right.
Kauffman Stadium has the second largest jumbo-tron in sports. Which venue has the largest? Well your going to have to figure it out yourself, I don't give answers away like that, but it rhymes with Schmallas Schmowboys Stadium.
-Dave Gershman
What to do with the Marlins Bullpen
Lots of talk has been centered around the Marlins bullpen. Personally, I think Leo Nunez has to go.
Some ideas that came to mind involve the Marlins shopping him for a young CF or 3B prospect with less upside than most but ceiling of a solid regular.
I first thought of Ryan Kalish and Ben Revere. Both of whom have their value high enough.
Kalish could be available due to the fact that he is blocked. He profiles as a potential 15 HR, 25 SB, .290/.360 type of guy.
Revere will hit less home runs but hit for a higher average and steal more bases.
Both players are solid defensively. Leo Nunez on the other hand is undervalued due to his horrid back to back Septembers. Not only is he a potential closer, but he has proven that until the aforementioned evil month, he can come out back to back nights and either close the game out or set up the closer while sitting at 95 MPH.
He is also under team control for several more years despite getting a raise which could total out to be $4.5MM.
This is all just speculation but I'd be surprised if Nunez is with the Marlins come Spring Training.
However, I do expect them to pursue someone like Joe Beimel or Tim Byrdak. Both of whom are lefties who can mentor young southpaw, Michael Dunn, which is what the Marlins are hoping to get done, no pun intended.
Also keep in mind that Joe Beimel has been highly effective as a reliever in his career. Not once has he had a particularly bad season.
Let me know what you think!
Some ideas that came to mind involve the Marlins shopping him for a young CF or 3B prospect with less upside than most but ceiling of a solid regular.
I first thought of Ryan Kalish and Ben Revere. Both of whom have their value high enough.
Kalish could be available due to the fact that he is blocked. He profiles as a potential 15 HR, 25 SB, .290/.360 type of guy.
Revere will hit less home runs but hit for a higher average and steal more bases.
Both players are solid defensively. Leo Nunez on the other hand is undervalued due to his horrid back to back Septembers. Not only is he a potential closer, but he has proven that until the aforementioned evil month, he can come out back to back nights and either close the game out or set up the closer while sitting at 95 MPH.
He is also under team control for several more years despite getting a raise which could total out to be $4.5MM.
This is all just speculation but I'd be surprised if Nunez is with the Marlins come Spring Training.
However, I do expect them to pursue someone like Joe Beimel or Tim Byrdak. Both of whom are lefties who can mentor young southpaw, Michael Dunn, which is what the Marlins are hoping to get done, no pun intended.
Also keep in mind that Joe Beimel has been highly effective as a reliever in his career. Not once has he had a particularly bad season.
Let me know what you think!
Interview: Royals Prospect Darian Sandford
This is an interview with Darian Sandford, a prospect in the Kansas City Royals organization. Last year, Darian played outstanding in his first season in pro ball. He is also a really good guy, someone who gives back and cares about his fans. He did a great job with this interview, so I hope you like the interview with my buddy, Darian Sandford.
Me: Talk to me about what it was like starting off your pro career with a very, very well.
Darian: Starting my career off pretty well makes me feel more confident but i am still disapponted in how i played overall because i have a lot to improve in to get to where i really want to be.
Me: What was it like to get drafted by your home town team and were you hoping the Royals would draft you all along? Also, did you expect to get taken in the 47th round? or higher?
Darian: It feels good to get drafted by the team in my state even though i grew up in st.louis and watched the cardinals i still supported the royals because they are not that far away. I was very excited the royals drafted but still kinda of upset i went so late but that just motivates me because i have always been the underdog being a small guy and coming from a small school.
Me: Talk to me about some of the people who have helped you be where you're at right now.
Darian: I have had plenty of people help me out my parents have helped me the most because they supported me when i didnt have a job in the summers like my friends did in order to support my dream and also my college coaches who helped spread the word about my talents
Me: You were once telling me how watching video of yourself motivates you and improves your game. Have you seen any video of yourself from Surprise this past year?
Darian: I havent seen any game footage of myself yet but during instructs the hitting coaches vieo taped my swing and that helped me alot with studying to better my swing.
Me: Who are some of your favorite teamates at Park Ritter and are any of them currently in pro ball as well?
Darian: Some of my favorite teammates at Park were my teammates Mike and Gabe they arent currently in pro ball because they are still in college but they helped me when i wanted extra work those are my boys.
Me: In my opinion, your speed is the key to your success. What do you do that makes you such an awesome baserunner?
Darian: Besides being blessed by God with pretty good speed i try to learn pitchers tendencies and Rusty helped me alot in instructs because before i started learning pitchers and what are good counts to run on i jus took off the first pitch and let my speed get the bags but now putting my mind with my speed i think i can one day be the greatest baserunner in history. I want to be the most exciting and agressive baserunner in baseball for the fans to enjoy and look forward to coming to a ball game and watching me get on base
Me: You just got a really good job working with kids in KC, is the player-fan relationship something that means a lot to you and something that you will always have at a higher or the highest level?
Darian: I love kids and i believe that players should interact more with fans and the higher i go im going to try to be more out going with fans and go out in public and meet as many fans as possible because fans are your support and without the fans the game wouldnt be as awesome as it is today
Me: What do you think about Yordano Ventura?
Darian: Ventura will be a big leaguer soon to have the arm he has once he developes his other pitches he will be awesome im just glad he is on my team .
Me: What are your expectations for next season?
Darian: My expectations for next year are pretty simple if im in full season ball i want to hit over 300 have at least 100 bags and help win a championship
Me: Who's your favorite fan? (aside from me...joke)
Darian: All my fans are my favorite fans including you Dave LOl
Me: Talk to me about what it was like starting off your pro career with a very, very well.
Darian: Starting my career off pretty well makes me feel more confident but i am still disapponted in how i played overall because i have a lot to improve in to get to where i really want to be.
Me: What was it like to get drafted by your home town team and were you hoping the Royals would draft you all along? Also, did you expect to get taken in the 47th round? or higher?
Darian: It feels good to get drafted by the team in my state even though i grew up in st.louis and watched the cardinals i still supported the royals because they are not that far away. I was very excited the royals drafted but still kinda of upset i went so late but that just motivates me because i have always been the underdog being a small guy and coming from a small school.
Me: Talk to me about some of the people who have helped you be where you're at right now.
Darian: I have had plenty of people help me out my parents have helped me the most because they supported me when i didnt have a job in the summers like my friends did in order to support my dream and also my college coaches who helped spread the word about my talents
Me: You were once telling me how watching video of yourself motivates you and improves your game. Have you seen any video of yourself from Surprise this past year?
Darian: I havent seen any game footage of myself yet but during instructs the hitting coaches vieo taped my swing and that helped me alot with studying to better my swing.
Me: Who are some of your favorite teamates at Park Ritter and are any of them currently in pro ball as well?
Darian: Some of my favorite teammates at Park were my teammates Mike and Gabe they arent currently in pro ball because they are still in college but they helped me when i wanted extra work those are my boys.
Me: In my opinion, your speed is the key to your success. What do you do that makes you such an awesome baserunner?
Darian: Besides being blessed by God with pretty good speed i try to learn pitchers tendencies and Rusty helped me alot in instructs because before i started learning pitchers and what are good counts to run on i jus took off the first pitch and let my speed get the bags but now putting my mind with my speed i think i can one day be the greatest baserunner in history. I want to be the most exciting and agressive baserunner in baseball for the fans to enjoy and look forward to coming to a ball game and watching me get on base
Me: You just got a really good job working with kids in KC, is the player-fan relationship something that means a lot to you and something that you will always have at a higher or the highest level?
Darian: I love kids and i believe that players should interact more with fans and the higher i go im going to try to be more out going with fans and go out in public and meet as many fans as possible because fans are your support and without the fans the game wouldnt be as awesome as it is today
Me: What do you think about Yordano Ventura?
Darian: Ventura will be a big leaguer soon to have the arm he has once he developes his other pitches he will be awesome im just glad he is on my team .
Me: What are your expectations for next season?
Darian: My expectations for next year are pretty simple if im in full season ball i want to hit over 300 have at least 100 bags and help win a championship
Me: Who's your favorite fan? (aside from me...joke)
Darian: All my fans are my favorite fans including you Dave LOl
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