The real downgrade is whoever is the last man in the pen instead of Hader. That’s a huge difference. Not to mention leverage guys will inevitably be overworked.
I disagree. I think this team has 2 Tier 1 RP ( Hader, Abreu) 3 Tier 2 RP ( King, Okert, Sousa) and 6 or 7 Tier 3 RP The #6 and #7 guys in the bullpen will be comparable regardless because of the overall depth. Using the Tier 2 guys to replace Abreu hurts but the biggest difference will be the #5 guy who needs to pitch 6th/7th innings when the leverage guys need days off.
Sure, but that’s another #6/7 arm that is now in the pen because he’s hurt. When you look at the bullpens stats at the end of the season, the difference would quite literally be the numbers from that extra 6/7 versus the numbers Hader would give you.
Thats one-way to look at it But for the most part, the last guy in the bullpen will pitch in the same games regardless and I just don't see much difference in the bottom guy in MLB and best guy in AAA. Fortunately, the top 5 in the Astros 'pen are very solid which is why the guy moving from 6th to 5th due to injury is the wildcard. Of course I am very high on Blubaugh and Murray and if one or both of them step up it could be a non-issue.
I think a nice move the team could make , would be to bring in a veteran bat that isnt completely washed , but who is getting production from his mental edge .... so that he can pass some knowledge down the ladder. Looking back at 2017-19 etc .... i think you can probably say that having brantley and yuli improved Bregman, correa, springer et all's improvement We need more batters that make pitchers work and are smart at the plate . Can diaz please get struck by lightning and he discovers a proper approach at the plate ?
It is possible - they do want to be active in Japan, but the better he does - the less likely I think it is to happen. The cost of top end pitching in years and salary are very high. I will say this, he isn't the typical Japanese star that wants to go to LA or California. He has a history of being loyal and of being his own person.... but even then, it would take Crane insisting on retaining him. I really was hoping that two years without an opt out, but it is one -- grateful to have him, and he will be a lot of fun to watch though.
I would have liked two years as well But a lot of unknowns about our pitching will be known by years end. Don't walker and LJM come off the books after this year? That clears a bunch of cash. I might be wrong on Walker.
I was thinking about how they entered the year, not how they left it. They were able to withstand a lot of injuries (or guys not returning as expected) and still be competitive. Part of that was positional flexibility and part of it was guys stepping up. I don’t see them being able to withstand anything close to that this year. Maybe not the correct word, but that’s what I mean by depth. Adding Correa last year addressed a gap (Paredes). This year the infield is clogged (so I guess they have more depth there), 1B is a question (unless Walker has a big bounce back), and the outfield depth hasn’t been addressed.
This has been the same for the last 2 seasons. We need 2 young guys to become good players. Cam has the highest probability to be one of them. Cole could an MVP vote getter if he can learn how to hit the ball more often. Matthews could be similar and has a little bit bigger window because of his age.
I think there is a better than 50% chance that Cam Smith has an OPS between .750-800% this season and is a 4 WAR player. That would represent an improvement over last year, but it isn't an out of the ordinary jump for a player his age, with his experience level and considering he was around an 800 OPS at the break last year. As for Cole - I really am going to need to see the bat before I have any real confidence in him hitting well enough. I have no doubt about his glove, his speed, his ability to steal bases and his arm.... he is a physical marvel, but the contact issue is real and even in the minors he has long cold and then incredible hot streaks. He is likely a superstar if he hits 250, but question if he is even going to hit 200. He earned a shot based on last years performance, but we will need to wait and see. Dezenzo is not a sure thing - but he has shown some ability in the big leagues, and if he gets playing time, he may be able to flirt with an 800 OPS with some pop. Brice Matthews has loads of bat speed and is a high level athlete that can draw walks, crush mistakes up and in, and he can steal bases - but he also strikes out a lot. Sullivan will likely get a shot - and while there are strikes against him, he has so far overcome more than anyone thought he would. He can hit for power and steal bases as well... he could end up similar to Chas with just a little luck.
Ethan Frey looks like he has some real upside. The kid almost walks as often as he strikes out and has some serious power potential.
I hope you're wrong but its not inconceivable. This is the first year in quite a while where I am not sure what we have here, IF the young guys can produce this could be really, really good but I hate relying on younger unproven players, but it is what it is, and I am here for whatever happens, I am just ready for baseball, an entire summer of watching my team, let's roll baby
Every team including the dodgers need their young guys to contribute. That's just how baseball works. Our issue is that we really haven't had one break out since Pena and Brown when we used to have one break out every year.
In some ways it's a relief that we don't know how good they will/should be. High upside, mediocre downside. But I'm not gonna stress if the later, just enjoy the baseball and whatever we can get .
