How much of an upgrade is Benintendi over Chas or Meyers? Seems minimal. I would prefer a stronger bat like Conforto.
It's getting harder to find room for both Yuli and Brantley, but I think Leon will likely be AAA depth for now. Altuve Pena Alvarez Bregman Tucker Abreu Chas ????? Maldonado Bench: Dubon Lee Hensley Leon Yainer If we sign any more bats, these are the pieces that will be replaced. Dubon is the only one without options, and we already paid him. He's not likely to be cut.
I didn't notice any real issues with velocity last year, compared to previous years. When he first came up, there were issues with him against top velocity though.
I hope they just get the gang back together now. Resign Brantley and Yuli to low AAV 1yr or 1yr+ option deals. Vs RH Altuve Pena Alvarez Bregman Tucker Abreu Brantley Leon/Meyers/McCormick Maldy Vs LH Altuve Pena Alvarez Bregman Tucker Abreu McCormick Leon/Meyers Maldy Yuli is on bench as infielder Hensley or Dubon is on bench so there is a SS. Lee is 2nd catcher. Leon or Meyers is CF- other in AAA. McCormick is b/u for all 3 OF. C) Maldy 75%, Lee 25% 1B) Abreu 80%, Yuli 20% 2B) Altuve 95%, Yuli 5% 3B) Bregman 95%, Yuli 5% SS) Pena 95%, Hensley or Dubon 5% LF) Alvarez 50%, McCormick 25%, Brantley 25% CF) Leon or Meyers 70%, McCormick 30% RF) Tucker 95%, McCormick 5% DH) Alvarez 45%, Brantley 40%, Abreu 15%
A lot of teams seem to think that they can fix Bellinger.... at least a half dozen or more that are pretty serious about it. He had the COVID year, then was injured when he came back..... unless he was benefitting from stealing signs, at his age and ability, he should be able to salvage his career at least some-what. I know people will roll their eyes with sign stealing, but it is the reason Yelich went from really good to all world and now has come back down to earth. Sign stealing doesn't benefit every player the same, it makes little difference for some players and a big difference for others.
It would be one thing if Bellinger was coming from the Rockies or something or some other laughing stock of an org, but you would think if he were fixable the Dodgers would have already figured it out. Who knows though.
White Sox fans are saying Abreu HRs only went down because the White Sox new hitting coach prioritized playing small-ball so the whole team's HRs went down as a result. He is a professional hitter like Brantley, but unlike Brantley seems capable of being a power hitter if needed.
That is interesting. His exit velocity, etc. were all excellent. There is some difference from season to season with Abreu, but last year was certainly his worst in the last handful of seasons. His production has varied independent to his issues with velocity it seems. I would like to know how much of that was struggles in the second half, because he was clearly tired down the stretch for the White Sox. I hope that don't make him play 150+ games like the White Sox did. He does better when he is rested.
I have heard several stories about him and what he did to improve his game. What I don't understand is why he stopped using if he got away with it before... I know that a former Astros player told me that he was one of the biggest offenders of getting stolen signs from centerfield.
I don't care if Bellinger is fixable, I want nothing to do with him. He ran his mouth WAY too much to ever be given the honor of wearing an Astros uniform.
MLB Network had an interesting stat. Versus the top 25 pitchers in OPS+ against Abreu was the best hitter in baseball last season. He hit .359
The Astros line up now, by measure of OPS+ 160 101 133 187 133 128 ___ (Left field) 110 69 The Astros should be able to get a left fielder with an OPS north of 110
