Maybe if one of them develops into a plus hitter I could see that, but I see both of them as of today to be around league average and thus dependent on flexing their fielding strengths in CF to accumulate value. It wouldn't be the end of the world to have either as a long term corner OF, but at the same time I would hope the Astros could do better especially with Tucker being the second best hitter on the team. Losing him and replacing him with an average bat would sting.
Leon is as talented as any player in the organization. His power/speed/arm/glove give him a very high floor. Think Jose Siri and his 1.6 WAR in 347 career PA despite a 33.7% K rate. K rate is the only major concern about Leon and his was 28.8% last year, improved from 30.6% in 2021. Siri had a 30.7% K rate in AAA in 2021. But to answer your question, yes he still has development. He may be a 24 year old but he has only 805 career PA in the minors. That's basically where you would expect a top prospect to be before anyone is even thinking of calling him up. His defecting from Cuba, having to wait to sign due to COVID and 2 ( non future concern type) injuries have stalled his development. He may be 24 but he is at the experience level of a 21 or 22 year old
I think trading extraneous players for quality prospects is something we are going to have to get good at. Drafting last every year in every round is a disadvantage that can be compensated for with a little effort. If you are trading ready now prospects for we are in no hurry prospects you have some leverage to get some good prospects.
Siri appears to be a fielding God in CF though. I know Leon's arm is heralded, but I doubt he's on Siri's level as a fielder. Also, he hasn't shown all that much power on the field. The greatest ISO Leon has carried was last year in AAA at .203 with his projected ISO in the .120-.150 range. Meyers' power is not all that heralded but he did put up a .255 ISO in AAA and has similar ISO projections as Leon moving forward. I think Leon is probably just a bust but hopefully he takes a big step forward this year when he gets healthy.
Leon was an average hitter without taking park effects into account. If park corrected, his AAA wRC+ would be about 115 which is still close to average, but probably enough above not to call him average. I don't think Leon needs to be an average MLB hitter for Dusty to prefer him over Chas. Strong arm and if they think he can hit a wRC+ of 85 should do it. I forgot about the sports hernia. That should be enough to keep him in AAA. Edit: I would not start Leon over Chas in CF. Though, I would not have started Dubon there over Chas. If Dubon was starting over Chas because of his arm, Leon might be a better version of a strong arm in CF.
I hope Brown's relationship with Baker is strong enough to avoid this kind of crap moving forward. Just let the best players play already.
I hope so, too, but different people value things differently. Click seemed to think Meyers was going to be better even though he was never back to what he was in 2021. Dusty seemed to prefer an arm in CF. I'm just glad those 2 came to an agreement that Chas was good enough to start almost all of the postseason games.
Agreed that Siri is amazing in the field. Nobody expects Leon to be that good but by all accounts he should be better than average. Let's not forget all the development that Leon has missed. He made a good improvement on K% last year and just needs reps in CF and at the plate. As I said, his development is more comparable to a 21-22 year old than a 24 year old. I am not expecting him to be an MVP candidate, but I hope this time next year he is in the discussion to project as an MLB average CF. Similar to Jeremy Pena this time last year but with slightly less plus defense expectation.
Their pitching is projected to be pretty weak this season. Some have them at being about average as far as run prevention this year.
Wow Maldonado really did lose the weight. That is also the longest string of words I have ever heard him say without "***" or "******* puta" or "suck my ****".
My gut feeling was that Lee would outwork Diaz and would get the call, especially with the Astros adding a healthy Brantley and Abreu. Lee is known as someone that actually likes to catch and Diaz just wants to rake and take some grounders at first. However, on the other hand, I know that Baker believes in Diaz' bat. He made a comment supposedly the first time he head Diaz make bat to ball and said that he had "it", and historically Brown has viewed offense from the catcher spot as more important than most. So who knows.... I agree with you on Chaz, I think that he still has more upside with the bat and he is fine in center field. Typically Baker hasn't liked his glove in center, but now he did it in a WS playoff run, and he could be viewed differently now. For his career, Chas has hit lefties like a Hall of Famer - OPS was like .950 last I checked. They should find a way to platoon him. This is probably the last chance for Jake, as the Astros have several guys that have a real chance to emerge and steal the starting centerfield job in 2024. If Brown emerges, then Urquidy or Garcia will be dealt by the deadline, probably for a catcher. I would add a few others.......... Garcia, how does he handle the adjustments with his delivery. He is an emotional guy. Biggest concern to me? How is the left side of the infield defense with the shift ban. Altuve is very crafty but has limited range and the same is true for Abreu. Both will make all the plays in front of them, but the infield defense I believe takes a step back. How much power will the Astros have in 2023? Abreu and Brantley saw their power shrink in 2022.
This.... and while the Astros have been excellent at player development, they did him no favors having him play SS.... they should have let him really concentrate on his swing mechanics..... as a fielder he top 25% of centerfielders in the big leagues just walking out of the sugarcane fields of Cuba.
It seems to me that given that most of our pitchers are young and will likely be hitting their career highs in innings, it makes a lot of sense to stick with a 6 man rotation the whole season unless needed due to injuries?
It would not surprise me at all if Leon has a massive breakout in the next 18 months. His path has been so windy that it is totally possible he has not been able to really develop at all. This recent injury was **** luck because I was hoping a full healthy spring training could unlock him.
