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Originally posted by Friarfan
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I'm downright giddy to start this year. Quick position by position synopsis:
1B - Hosmer - turrible contract but he is definitely a leader and the kids seem to gravitate to him (watch him at the top of the steps greeting Franmil Reyes and others after they homered or, hell, even hit a ball hard). Hoping he can provide a little more pop, otherwise, we could have kept Yonder Alonso to provide all the doubles we need. Otherwise, can't badmouth him too much. He is what he is and we knew that when we signed him. Myers and Pirela can step in once a month or so to spell him.
2B - Kinsler- Urias - Kinsler has looked great this spring and they want him in the lineup to provide a veteran presence. Urias will move over to short and has looked great this spring as well after having his season end prematurely last year. No word on if Tatis will make the club out of the gate and once he does, Urias will move over and split time with Kinsler.
3B - Manny...Machado! - Hated the guy during the playoffs last year and love the guy now. Hey, we are a fickle flock. He's said and done all of the right things since he's been in camp and he's ingratiated himself with the team just fine. He and Tatis have bonded and that left side of the infield will be unbelievable for the next 10 years (hopefully). I see no reason to believe why he won't replicate his standard seasonal output.
SS - Urias - Tatis - As noted above, not sure yet if Tatis is on the roster yet. Could go either way. He's slumped a little in spring and he's still only 20 friggin years old! A physical specimen. Seems mature (although I could do without that bat-flipping bullstein. Get off my lawn!!). Urias makes a nice fill in until Tatis is ready but he definitely is more of a natural 2nd baseman.
UT - Seems like Jose Pirela is hanging around and is an Andy Green favorite. Can fill in almost anywhere on the field. Has hammered the ball this spring but the dude didn't go yard last year until after the all-star break. Ty France has had an unexpectedly good spring and Greg Garcia is a "meh" type but can plug in almost anywhere.
Overall - hey look, a collection of gold golvers on the infield to start the year (Machado, Hosmer and Kinsler). Not bad
OF - Myers, Reyes, Margot, Renfroe, Cordero - Your guess is as good as mine as to how this shakes out.
Myers - The only guarantee here is that Myers will get the bulk of the playing time between all of the positions.
Renfroe - He had a not so good spring and doesn't seem to have the favor of Andy Green. My gut (which is ample) feeling is that Renfroe is playing in another uniform by years's end.
Margot - The club REALLY wants Margot to live up to his potential. But I think we have enough sample size with him at this point to know who he is.
The Franimal - Reyes is a beast. And a very likable guy. He takes direction well: after a hot start then the MLB pitchers figuring him out last year, he went down to work on some things (strike zone command) he came back and was arguably their best offensive player in the second half. He will challenge Judge and Stanton for longest homer of the year. I'm pulling for the guy.
Cordero - Might have the most raw talent of the bunch but very undisciplined. Could start the year in El Paso and get moved up if they make a move to unload an OFer for a starting pitcher.
Overall - The Jankowski broker wrist makes things the tiniest bit clearer - although he's more of a role player. Lots of potential in this bunch.
Catcher -Dare I say another "bright spot"?
Mejia hits the ball very hard every time he is up. He'll emerge as your "every day" starter. And by "every day" I mean 3-4 times per week. With Hedges seemingly finding some consistency at the bat, you can' count him out. Hedges is the best defensive catcher in baseball. Period. His pitchers love him. That's hard to overlook. Mejia has a very above average arm but is behind Hedges in all other aspects behind the plate.
Starting Pitching - here's where things may take a nose dive. Lots of potential here, but no proven major leaguers...
Eric Laurer - Gets the opening day nod as he had a fantastic spring. Not much more of a back of the rotation guy, IMO. He's your prototypical "Crafty Lefty".
Joey "Fuego" Lucchesi - Love this kid's grit and makeup. Deceptive delivery. Barring injury, he'll be the most reliable starter this year.
Chris Paddack - Being talked about like he's the second coming of Andy Benes here in San Diego (Hey, we don't have a lot to brag about here). Post TJ phenom in AA last year and has lived up to the hype this spring (see Paddack thread)
Matt Strahm - Has showed signs of dominance and gives the Pads a very left-handed rotation. The Pads really need for him to succeed and bridge the gap between this year and the future (all of the aces waiting in the minors -
Starter #5 - Your guess is as good as mine. With Jacob Nix out for a bit while they decide if his strained UCL is Dr/ Andrews bound or not. Brett Kennedy may get first crack (yawn) and with Cal Quantrill and Logan Allen shitting the bed this spring and headed for El Paso, Robbie Erlin may get some spot starts.
Garrett Richards and Dinelson Lamet will start rehabbing from having TJ last year and may not see Petco at all this year. The youngsters: Gore, Morejon, Patino, Baez, Espinoza) are all still at least a year away.
Bullpen: Always a strength in SD. Probably because they are needed so much. This year's group is loaded. Yates will get the first call to duty for saves and I expect him to keep that role all year. Trey Wingeter's stuff is filthy. I'll go out on a limb and say he's next in line for saves and is the future closer. Stammen and Maton are solid and Stock has some nastiness as well. Loup, Warren, Mitchell (eek) and Erlin wil be the long guys and Diaz and Reyes will eat some innings.
Overall, the future looks very bright here and it's time to reap the rewards of the last few years of overhauling.
1B - Hosmer - turrible contract but he is definitely a leader and the kids seem to gravitate to him (watch him at the top of the steps greeting Franmil Reyes and others after they homered or, hell, even hit a ball hard). Hoping he can provide a little more pop, otherwise, we could have kept Yonder Alonso to provide all the doubles we need. Otherwise, can't badmouth him too much. He is what he is and we knew that when we signed him. Myers and Pirela can step in once a month or so to spell him.
2B - Kinsler- Urias - Kinsler has looked great this spring and they want him in the lineup to provide a veteran presence. Urias will move over to short and has looked great this spring as well after having his season end prematurely last year. No word on if Tatis will make the club out of the gate and once he does, Urias will move over and split time with Kinsler.
3B - Manny...Machado! - Hated the guy during the playoffs last year and love the guy now. Hey, we are a fickle flock. He's said and done all of the right things since he's been in camp and he's ingratiated himself with the team just fine. He and Tatis have bonded and that left side of the infield will be unbelievable for the next 10 years (hopefully). I see no reason to believe why he won't replicate his standard seasonal output.
SS - Urias - Tatis - As noted above, not sure yet if Tatis is on the roster yet. Could go either way. He's slumped a little in spring and he's still only 20 friggin years old! A physical specimen. Seems mature (although I could do without that bat-flipping bullstein. Get off my lawn!!). Urias makes a nice fill in until Tatis is ready but he definitely is more of a natural 2nd baseman.
UT - Seems like Jose Pirela is hanging around and is an Andy Green favorite. Can fill in almost anywhere on the field. Has hammered the ball this spring but the dude didn't go yard last year until after the all-star break. Ty France has had an unexpectedly good spring and Greg Garcia is a "meh" type but can plug in almost anywhere.
Overall - hey look, a collection of gold golvers on the infield to start the year (Machado, Hosmer and Kinsler). Not bad
OF - Myers, Reyes, Margot, Renfroe, Cordero - Your guess is as good as mine as to how this shakes out.
Myers - The only guarantee here is that Myers will get the bulk of the playing time between all of the positions.
Renfroe - He had a not so good spring and doesn't seem to have the favor of Andy Green. My gut (which is ample) feeling is that Renfroe is playing in another uniform by years's end.
Margot - The club REALLY wants Margot to live up to his potential. But I think we have enough sample size with him at this point to know who he is.
The Franimal - Reyes is a beast. And a very likable guy. He takes direction well: after a hot start then the MLB pitchers figuring him out last year, he went down to work on some things (strike zone command) he came back and was arguably their best offensive player in the second half. He will challenge Judge and Stanton for longest homer of the year. I'm pulling for the guy.
Cordero - Might have the most raw talent of the bunch but very undisciplined. Could start the year in El Paso and get moved up if they make a move to unload an OFer for a starting pitcher.
Overall - The Jankowski broker wrist makes things the tiniest bit clearer - although he's more of a role player. Lots of potential in this bunch.
Catcher -Dare I say another "bright spot"?
Mejia hits the ball very hard every time he is up. He'll emerge as your "every day" starter. And by "every day" I mean 3-4 times per week. With Hedges seemingly finding some consistency at the bat, you can' count him out. Hedges is the best defensive catcher in baseball. Period. His pitchers love him. That's hard to overlook. Mejia has a very above average arm but is behind Hedges in all other aspects behind the plate.
Starting Pitching - here's where things may take a nose dive. Lots of potential here, but no proven major leaguers...
Eric Laurer - Gets the opening day nod as he had a fantastic spring. Not much more of a back of the rotation guy, IMO. He's your prototypical "Crafty Lefty".
Joey "Fuego" Lucchesi - Love this kid's grit and makeup. Deceptive delivery. Barring injury, he'll be the most reliable starter this year.
Chris Paddack - Being talked about like he's the second coming of Andy Benes here in San Diego (Hey, we don't have a lot to brag about here). Post TJ phenom in AA last year and has lived up to the hype this spring (see Paddack thread)
Matt Strahm - Has showed signs of dominance and gives the Pads a very left-handed rotation. The Pads really need for him to succeed and bridge the gap between this year and the future (all of the aces waiting in the minors -
Starter #5 - Your guess is as good as mine. With Jacob Nix out for a bit while they decide if his strained UCL is Dr/ Andrews bound or not. Brett Kennedy may get first crack (yawn) and with Cal Quantrill and Logan Allen shitting the bed this spring and headed for El Paso, Robbie Erlin may get some spot starts.
Garrett Richards and Dinelson Lamet will start rehabbing from having TJ last year and may not see Petco at all this year. The youngsters: Gore, Morejon, Patino, Baez, Espinoza) are all still at least a year away.
Bullpen: Always a strength in SD. Probably because they are needed so much. This year's group is loaded. Yates will get the first call to duty for saves and I expect him to keep that role all year. Trey Wingeter's stuff is filthy. I'll go out on a limb and say he's next in line for saves and is the future closer. Stammen and Maton are solid and Stock has some nastiness as well. Loup, Warren, Mitchell (eek) and Erlin wil be the long guys and Diaz and Reyes will eat some innings.
Overall, the future looks very bright here and it's time to reap the rewards of the last few years of overhauling.
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