Yeah...I know fans have been less than pleased with Whitley (rightfully so), but he’s not done by any means. This is an unfortunately timed injury since everyone was excited to see what he could bring to the table, but he’s still just 23, and TJS is more common than ever. Don’t some pitchers actually gain strength/velocity after the procedure? It will surely be make of break for him sooner rather than later...and his antics were getting tiresome, but he likely has more value to HOU at this point than that which we could get by trading him. Maybe he can still have a solid career, who knows? Obviously not as likely as it looked a few years ago, but you never know.
The most frustrating part about Whitley to me, is that he was absolutely DOMINANT in the early stages of the minors. His first AA start was historic. He was unanimously tabbed as a top prospect after his meteoric rise through the minors. Appel struggled a lot and it became clear pretty quickly that he wouldn’t live up to the hype. I don’t know if Forrest became over confident, arrogant, stubborn.... or all of the above. There were rumors that he refused to listen to Astros pitching coaches. I don’t really know what happened. But this has become a huge letdown because his ceiling was so very high
Once a prospect displays the ceiling Whitley did, they will be given opportunities at least until they are out of options. The TJS undoubtedly reduces Whitley’s value, but he will have 3 years after he heals to make his mark. 2 years ago I was looking for a Kershaw/Verlander/Scherzer type of career from Whitley. Now I’m thinking something like Dylan Bundy would be a good outcome.
Best case scenario is he works his ass off in rehab, he humbles himself BIG time, and commits to listening and taking advice from people who have a track record of helping guys have MAJOR league success. The talent will still be there. Ultimately, it will be up to Whitley to get where he and so many others expect him to be. There still is time.
I hate to be a downer, but I think Whitley is probably done. I know, he's young, he can recover, it's just that he has so many things to recover from at this point with surgery, possible attitude and maturity issues, non-productivity, etc. Maybe this can be his "rock bottom" moment and he can come back from it, but at some point there needs to be some good news associated with this guy because it seems like there never really is.
has there been any update on Framber over the last couple days? Last I heard he was getting a second opinion regarding the necessity of surgery
Kaplan's current opening day roster.... Catchers- Maldonado, Castro Infielders Gurriel, Altuve, Correa, Bregman, Diaz, Toro Outfielders Brantley, Tucker, Straw, McCormick, Alvarez Rotation Greinke, McCullers, Urqudiy, Javier, Garcia ( Odorizzi will need more time to get ready) Relievers Pressly, Paredes, Smith, Baez, Taylor, Raley, Stanek, Scrubb So no Souza and no Cishek because of luxury tax concerns. Also, Scrubb over Abreu for the last spot in the bullpen.
Given how the Astros have made it a habit of being ultra vague on medical conditions/treatments... you probably won’t hear much till after he’s already had the surgery.
What’re we to expect from McCormick if he does in fact make the squad? Obviously a back-up role but what’s a good comp for him?
Hard to find one. He has a broad set of average tools but nothing that stands out. He can take walks and doesn’t strike out a ton, but isn’t an on base machine. He has enough pop to keep pitchers honest but is very unlikely to ever hit 20+ HR in a season. He has decent speed but isn’t a threat to steal bases. He can handle CF but is far from a defensive specialist. In terms of value I would put his ceiling as something like what Reddick was the last 4 seasons, with less power but slightly more defensive value. A fringy regular league average bat who can have a good season with some BABIP luck. I think he’ll be fine as a 4th OF but not more than a placeholder. I consider him to have a much lower ceiling than Souza and his presence on the roster puts a lot of pressure on Straw to stay healthy and be good enough to play everyday, because if McCormick has to play a lot, there’s gonna be a hole in the lineup.
A slightly worse bat, but healthy Aledmys Diaz that plays corner OF and can fake center as a backup. (That's the hope anyway)
I think his arm injuries the last couple of years is because his elbow was breaking down. TJ surgery was inevitable. Hopefully he will comeback healthy and be humbled by all of the work he's going to have to do to make it back.
The main issue for me is that I was hoping to get the good Whitley in the rotation this year. Our window could potentially close after this season and it would have been nice to finally get what we drafted him for.
