Overreact to Spring Training Games Here!

[madducks]

I am imagining these were both fastballs right down the middle. Still impressive that he hit them but I'm imagining JV just getting his work in throwing pipe shots out there.

Yeah, i remember Greg Maddux used to get lit up every spring because he never wanted to let future opponents see his best stuff. Even late in the season he would pitch the same way against potential post-season opponents for the same reason.

[TranaGreg]

Yeah, i remember Greg Maddux used to get lit up every spring because he never wanted to let future opponents see his best stuff. Even late in the season he would pitch the same way against potential post-season opponents for the same reason.

I remember a quote by an Oriole pitcher - Mussina? - after getting rocked in mid-spring training, saying something to the effect of so what, it was my curveball day, everyone knew what was coming mid-way thru the 1st.

[joncarlos]

Yuli Gurriel at 2B today with Altuve still on the mend. Good to know that move is in the Astros' arsenal, if nothing else. Aledymis Diaz is at 3B and Bregman at SS.

[fuhrdog]

I am imagining these were both fastballs right down the middle. Still impressive that he hit them but I'm imagining JV just getting his work in throwing pipe shots out there.

This is the overreact to spring training games no?

[cavebird]

Which player has the following last nine spring training plate appearances: 1 BB, 3 1B, 2 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 0 outs?

[Ken]

Which player has the following last nine spring training plate appearances: 1 BB, 3 1B, 2 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 0 outs?

Guessing Acuna?

[cavebird]

That would be correct! And not against minor leaguers, either. It was against Kingham (1B, HR), Brault (BB), Mikolas (2B, HR, 1B), Corbin (2B, 3B), and Doolittle (1B).

[Gregg]

that would be correct! And not against minor leaguers, either. It was against kingham (1b, hr), brault (bb), mikolas (2b, hr, 1b), corbin (2b, 3b), and doolittle (1b).

acuna matata!!

[madducks]

I can't help but chuckle every time i read the words "Scott Boras Free Agent Camp".

[KnuckleBalls]

I'm renaming my dog Acuna

[onejayhawk]

I had a smoking crater of a season in 2017. It was almost worth it because I was in rebuild mode by June and acquired Acuna off his AA hype.

In September I noted that Acuna was one of my definite keepers and our resident Braves fan had a pout.

J

[cavebird]

I had a smoking crater of a season in 2017. It was almost worth it because I was in rebuild mode by June and acquired Acuna off his AA hype.

In September I noted that Acuna was one of my definite keepers and our resident Braves fan had a pout.

J

I will note that I drafted Acuna in 2017 before the season when he went nuts. I'd love to claim credit, but it was Sickels who held the candle for him that got me to draft him.

[Sour Masher]

I will note that I drafted Acuna in 2017 before the season when he went nuts. I'd love to claim credit, but it was Sickels who held the candle for him that got me to draft him.

Yeah, it is a bummer Sickels is behind a paywall now. I really miss the community if fans and amateur scouts in those forums. Anyone know of any other freely accessible forums with that level of prospect knowledge and engagement?

[southcoast]

Watched Doolittle pitch today 3/16. He threw 5 pitches at 92 and all the rest of his pitches in 2/3rds of an inning were mostly high 80's. [85,/ 92,89.90.92./89.84.89/92.89.89.92./91.82.89.92.89.91./mound visit 79.79.88.77.77/87] One of his 92 mph pitches was a long fly ball double off the wall by Edman and his last pitch was an 87 mph that left the yard quickly for a 3 run bomb by Andrew Knizner. Same radar gun clocked Trevor R throwing a couple of 101s and a 102 FB. Trevor had some trouble controlling his breaking ball (plus it wasn't breaking that much) but his FB was electric. (97,94,99,96,99,96/,86,88,86,101,86,99 in dirt ball 4/ 99,89,98,96,86,89,/97,96 perfect spot w/ tailing action,102 pure gas, great spot and unhittable for K3 swg). The last three pitches were strikes to Nolan Gorman - poor kid didn't have a chance...

[mjl]

Something I always forget about: if you look at spring training stats on bbref, they have a stat called "OppQual" which tells you how good the players facing a given hitter/pitcher have been. It's an average of 10 for a major leaguer, 8 for a AAA, 7 for AA, 5 for high-A, 4 for A, and 3 for low-A/rookie. I find it useful when looking at something like the strikeout leaders so far to notice that, for example, Shane Bieber is having a really nice spring training so far (0.64 ERA, 0.357 WHIP, 10.9 K/9) but he's faced weaker than average hitters - his average hitter quality of 7.3 is closer to AA than most pitchers whose average is AAA or better. Similarly, Touki Toussaint has had a couple of nice appearances after getting blown up early, but his average hitter quality is 6.5. (For what it's worth, the three highest OppQual starters with good numbers through their first 5-9 innings are Jose Quintana, Jason Hammel, and Drew Smyly, so don't get the idea that a small sample size means anything anyway.)

Notes from the hitter side:
Willy Adames has done approximately nothing, including striking out 10 times in 34 PA, and he's hitting against 6.3 OppQual pitchers. Ugh. Cedric Mullins has also been really bad hitting against 6.6.
Garrett Hampson and Ryan McMahon have both hit very well so far, and it looks like an even-ish battle (not counting Hampson's minor injury), but Hampson's been hitting against 6.5 pitchers and McMahon 7.4.
The three hitters who've done the best against the best opposition? Jose Abreu, Jay Bruce, and Adam Eaton.