Anthony Rizzo watch -- the 2012 version

[TS Garp]

Through 4/13:

.400/.432/.829, 5 hr's, 13 rbi in 35 ab's

How long before we see him in the majors again?

[TS Garp]

LaHair is definitely holding his own with the big league squad. Can Rizzo slot in somewhere else besides 1B?

Not really. I wonder if the Cubs will try to sell high on LaHair if there's any market for him.

[Moonlight J]

Loves hitting in the PCL

Report was on him last year it led to bad habits that then were exposed in the bigs

[GwynnInTheHall]

Loves hitting in the PCL

Report was on him last year it led to bad habits that then were exposed in the bigs

Exactamundo.

[Porcello]

LaHair is definitely holding his own with the big league squad. Can Rizzo slot in somewhere else besides 1B?

LaHair could play OF, not well but the Cubs aren't playing for this year anyway. DeJesus is a better RF than CF but he is capable there and the Cubs want to move the current guy in center...and the guy in right for that matter. If they want Rizzo's bat in the lineup they'll find a spot.

[Big Tymer]

Loves hitting in the PCL

Report was on him last year it led to bad habits that then were exposed in the bigs

Not all ballparks in the PCL are created equal and the 3 HRs earlier in the week came at Iowa which as I understand it is relatively neutral to LHs. Not sure how RR plays where the 2 came yesterday but long story short he hit pretty well in ST also. Personally I'd prefer to see him continue to rake at AAA for a couple more months but he wouldn't be the first guy who was much better in his second shot.

[onejayhawk]

Not all ballparks in the PCL are created equal and the 3 HRs earlier in the week came at Iowa which as I understand it is relatively neutral to LHs. Not sure how RR plays where the 2 came yesterday but long story short he hit pretty well in ST also. Personally I'd prefer to see him continue to rake at AAA for a couple more months but he wouldn't be the first guy who was much better in his second shot.

Correct. The old American Association ballparks in the plains and mid-west play like KC, St L, Cinc, you get the picture. The high altitude parks in the original PCL are another story. They play like Denver and Arizona.

If you want a calculator, try this

http://mlsplits.drivelinebaseball.com/mlsplits/mlecalc

35 HR in 500 AB against AAA pitching in Iowa translates to 26 HR in 518 AB in Wrigley against MLB pitching. The extremes of ballpark adjustments is about 3-4 total HR. The rest is the difference between AAA pitching and MLB pitching.

BTW, 2 HR game brings him to 5 for the season. His OPS is 1.261.

J

[TS Garp]

4/25 Update:

.373/420/.693, 7 hr's, 19 rbi in 75 ab's

In the meantime, from Rotoworld on April 20th:

Cubs president Theo Epstein indicated that Anthony Rizzo and Brett Jackson will not be promoted from Triple-A anytime soon.
‘‘Those guys are continuing their development at Triple-A, and things that they’re working on, they need to continue to improve,’’ Epstein said. ‘‘We’re also not giving up on guys after a homestand and a road trip. Guys are trying to get into the rhythm of a season and show what they can do." Rizzo is off to a torrid start, batting .393/.433/.786 with seven homers, while Jackson is hitting .254/.362/.508 with two homers and two steals. Both players will get their chance eventually, but they'll have to be patient.

[Gregg]

LaHair is definitely holding his own with the big league squad. Can Rizzo slot in somewhere else besides 1B?

LaHair with another HR today. In the last 11 games the Cubs have hit 3 hrs. all by LaHair.

[TS Garp]

3 home runs in the last 2 games.

5/10 Update:

.356/.420/.661, 10 hr's, 33 rbi in 118 ab's. 12 bb's/26 k's.

[Ryno84MVP]

3 home runs in the last 2 games.

5/10 Update:

.356/.420/.661, 10 hr's, 33 rbi in 118 ab's. 12 bb's/26 k's.

My prediction has always been that he'd be up by Memorial Day, but that also included LaHair struggling. At this point, the Cubs probably need to step-up their efforts to trade Alfonso Soriano and open up left field for LaHair.

[onejayhawk]

3 home runs in the last 2 games.

5/10 Update:

.356/.420/.661, 10 hr's, 33 rbi in 118 ab's. 12 bb's/26 k's.

Current Major League Equivalent .294/.346/.516, 7 HR, 24 RBI

This is a midwest park that plays rather like Busch Stadium, not some hitters haven in the California mountains.

Soriano might find himself on the bench. His OPS is south of .600.

J

[TS Garp]

Still has issues against left-handers but making a little progress:

vs LHP: .257/.297/.429, 2 hr's in 35 ab's
vs RHP: .398/.468/.759, 8 hr's in 83 ab's

[onejayhawk]

Still has issues against left-handers but making a little progress:

vs LHP: .257/.297/.429, 2 hr's in 35 ab's
vs RHP: .398/.468/.759, 8 hr's in 83 ab's

That's what they can do with Soriano. Oh wait, he's not hitting lefties either.

From RotoArcade,
And I'll remind you that there's no reason to worry about Bryan LaHair's role when Rizzo joins the Cubs, because he can move to a corner outfield spot easily enough (and Alfonso Soriano can go wherever he likes, as long as he's not in the lineup. Seriously. Go away. Shoo).

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/fantasy-roto-arcade/hey-stop-us-ve-heard-one-anthony-rizzo-170111265.html;_ylt=AkRxfKVPcuNgJGL_w5dDWLy5bZ8u

J

[NL Only]

Hope he's up soon. I did see this though:


It’s a good bet they'll keep Rizzo down until later this summer to avoid him threatening Super Two status after the 2014 season. He has 68 days of service time under his belt and would be on track for post-2014 arbitration eligibility by gaining another 66 days this year plus full seasons in 2013 and 2014.