Around Baseball 2025

[Brownie19]

https://www.mlb.com/news/how-d-backs-corbin-carroll-fixed-his-swing

Man - that's a good article.  It feels like the technology and our understanding of the baseball swing and why it will and won't work is growing at an incredible pace.  Hopefully catching up to the pitching information...

[Brownie19]

https://www.mlb.com/news/the-most-extreme-swings-in-mlb-in-2025

Another cool article.  Depressing to see Vlad has the lowest attack angle in baseball, which is why he can't lift the ball consistently.

[Orgfiller]

3 hours ago, Brownie19 said:

Is Jordan Walker fixable at this point?  Surely he needs a change of scenery?  

I was looking at the "swing speed" leaderboard on Baseball Savant and #2, #3 and #4 are Caminero, Walker and Adell and none of those guys are hitting well at all.  I wonder if there's any correlation.  #1 and #5 are Oneill Cruz and Schwarber, so obviously swinging hard can work, but I wonder if we'll learn that some batters produce better by swinging at 90% of their max to increase their control of the barrel.  

My research on this is clearly incomplete.

It's all in the plate discipline. Walker, Caminero and Adell all have big tools and big time power, but their selectivity, or lack thereof at the plate is a huge problem. Of course all of them also strike out a lot, so it's a hit tool issue to some extent. Hard to be a good hitter with brutal K/BB ratios, even extreme cases like Javy Baez can only keep it up for so long before becoming a pumpkin.

Cruz and Schwarber walk a bunch, you need the third aspect of "Three True Outcomes" to still have a chance at success. In Jordan Walker's case he doesn't even get to his power at all. It's like if Vladdy was the same hitter except he also whiffed a bunch and never took a walk; gross.

Right now Caminero looks like the safest bet because his strikeouts aren't egregious, he's only 21 with potential 80 grade power. Walker is quite young also, only 23, so there's definitely a chance to fix him. Adell isn't a total write off, but he probably is who he is at this point. Probably puts up a random 3+ WAR season with 30+ HR once or twice and then reverts to being a pumpkin.

[Laika]

3 hours ago, Brownie19 said:

Is Jordan Walker fixable at this point?  Surely he needs a change of scenery?  

I was looking at the "swing speed" leaderboard on Baseball Savant and #2, #3 and #4 are Caminero, Walker and Adell and none of those guys are hitting well at all.  I wonder if there's any correlation.  #1 and #5 are Oneill Cruz and Schwarber, so obviously swinging hard can work, but I wonder if we'll learn that some batters produce better by swinging at 90% of their max to increase their control of the barrel.  

My research on this is clearly incomplete.

if this is average bat speed, surely some component of it is that guys like Walker and Adell just have no idea what is coming so they just put their A swing on everything 

80 mph swing at a fastball to foul it off
80 mph swing at a curveball to miss it by two feet 

I don't think there is much hope for Walker or Adell at this point. They square up almost nothing. 

[Brownie19]

Appreciate the banter gentlemen.  I love this kind of stuff and still find it so fascinating how difficult it is to predict who will hit at the ML level and who will fall flat on their face (even if they've tore up the minors).

[jaysblue]

16 hours ago, Brownie19 said:

Is Jordan Walker fixable at this point?  Surely he needs a change of scenery?  

I was looking at the "swing speed" leaderboard on Baseball Savant and #2, #3 and #4 are Caminero, Walker and Adell and none of those guys are hitting well at all.  I wonder if there's any correlation.  #1 and #5 are Oneill Cruz and Schwarber, so obviously swinging hard can work, but I wonder if we'll learn that some batters produce better by swinging at 90% of their max to increase their control of the barrel.  

My research on this is clearly incomplete.

You get the sense he needs a change of scenery and maybe another team can help him unlock his potential. He might be able to realize his talent or might still be awful with a new organization. Surely some teams would gamble if they have a need in the OF and could pay 30-40 cents on the dollar. 

Cardinals haven't had luck with some of their top prospects recently. Dylan Carlson (traded for Shawn Armstrong) and Nolan Gorman both look like lost causes. 

You get the sense a team like Tampa, the Athletics or maybe Miami might roll the dice on Walker at some point. 

[mphenhef]

12 hours ago, Brownie19 said:

Appreciate the banter gentlemen.  I love this kind of stuff and still find it so fascinating how difficult it is to predict who will hit at the ML level and who will fall flat on their face (even if they've tore up the minors).

As the great Yogi Berra once said "Baseball is 90% mental, the other half is physical"

[Laika]

Baltimore v Boston is a weird series. I guess Baltimore is so far down the table at this point that we just cheer for them? 

[Spanky__99]

49 minutes ago, Laika said:

Baltimore v Boston is a weird series. I guess Baltimore is so far down the table at this point that we just cheer for them? 

Yes, I'm hoping they at least split, but would rather the O's take both games today.

[G-Snarls]

Tommy John surgery for Guardians Ben Lively 

[Spanky__99]

The O's stink, lol.

[Terminator]

28 minutes ago, Spanky99 said:

The O's stink, lol.

Dear god they lost 19-5??

Their run differential is now -99 on the season. For comparison, the White Sox are -57 and the Rockies are -159.

[BTS]

On 5/21/2025 at 3:25 PM, Orgfiller said:

Another aspect where the Orioles really fumbled it isn't even in that they didn't want to spend at all on their roster, but how they spent the money was a terrible use of resources. Sugano + Morton alone combine for a $28M commitment. Tyler O'Neill who lives on the IL is at $16.5M AAV. Andrew Kittredge is $10M, that's the same money that Aroldis Chapman got!

So not only did they not leverage their prospect capital and acquire SPs with pedigree, they spent it all on a bunch of old, injury prone, and in some cases (Sugano) unproven players without much upside. Just a gross misuse of resources all around.

They also picked up Seranthony Dominguez's 8M option and gave Gary Sanchez 8.5M. Last offseason, they brought the following guys in, for a combined 2025 tax hit of $76M:

Oneil

Morton

Sugano

Kittredge

Sanchez

Dominguez

Gibson

For their 81.5M, they have received -1.7 fWAR. That's NEGATIVE 1.7 fWAR. from the 76M they spent THIS PAST OFFSEASON. 

It might be the worst offseason in the history of baseball. 

[Masterbather]

2 hours ago, Terminator said:

Dear god they lost 19-5??

Their run differential is now -99 on the season. For comparison, the White Sox are -57 and the Rockies are -159.

It's honesty shocking. Even with their pitching injuries they should be better than this. Probably some bad luck on the hitting side too. Guys that should be performing, including in the bullpen, just aren't. There's no way they should be only better than the f***ing Rockies. 

I can see them having a very good second half of the season if they get some pitchers back, but they've dug themselves a crater.

I'll shed no tears for them though. If they manage to fumble this generation of talent their FO should be put in the Hall of Fame for such historic levels of assness.

[Spanky__99]

1 hour ago, BTS said:

They also picked up Seranthony Dominguez's 8M option and gave Gary Sanchez 8.5M. Last offseason, they brought the following guys in, for a combined 2025 tax hit of $76M:

Oneil

Morton

Sugano

Kittredge

Sanchez

Dominguez

Gibson

For their 81.5M, they have received -1.7 fWAR. That's NEGATIVE 1.7 fWAR. from the 76M they spent THIS PAST OFFSEASON. 

It might be the worst offseason in the history of baseball. 

Best run team in baseball according to sOmEpOsTeRs, lol

 

[hanton]

Acuna Jr goes deep in his first ab since coming off the IL

[jaysblue]

3 hours ago, Terminator said:

Dear god they lost 19-5??

Their run differential is now -99 on the season. For comparison, the White Sox are -57 and the Rockies are -159.

[jaysblue]

1 hour ago, Spanky99 said:

Best run team in baseball according to sOmEpOsTeRs, lol

 

Name names! 

[Spanky__99]

7 minutes ago, jaysblue said:

Name names! 

You, BigCecil, Olerud, Masterbather, glory, just to name a few... Fanboy.

[jaysblue]

5 minutes ago, Spanky99 said:

You, BigCecil, Olerud, Masterbather, glory, just to name a few.

lol.

I've always said that I love their young core. Never said it was the best ran team in baseball. 

I agree their FO is wasting prime years of Gunnar, Rutchman, Westburg, Cowser etc. Not a homer at all though. But think what you will. Go find some receipts. 

[Spanky__99]

1 hour ago, jaysblue said:

lol.

I've always said that I love their young core. Never said it was the best ran team in baseball. 

I agree their FO is wasting prime years of Gunnar, Rutchman, Westburg, Cowser etc. Not a homer at all though. But think what you will. Go find some receipts. 

K..... grow a spine gelatin boy.

 

[Masterbather]

1 hour ago, Spanky99 said:

You, BigCecil, Olerud, Masterbather, glory, just to name a few... Fanboy.

Just making up lies now I see. Maybe I should do the same to you and see how you like it.

They're drafting and development has been tremendous but their failure to augment their young talent has been atrocious.

I argued a couple of years ago when they made their big turnaround that they shouldn't waste great years assuming that there will be more to come, like the 2021 Jays, they should have made trades and added some big names to their roster at the deadline. Sometimes the first year of your window is the best opportunity you're going to get.

They're f***ing up with should not be f***upable.

[hanton]

Soto just got rung up on this lol

[hanton]

 

 

[Terminator]

Oh hell yes

Rockies get two cracks at a series win and you can bet your bottom dollar I will be in attendance heckling those motherf***ers making sure it happens 

[hanton]

Tanner Scott meltdown

[Terminator]

5 hours ago, Spanky99 said:

You, BigCecil, Olerud, Masterbather, glory, just to name a few... Fanboy.

Lmao those are definitely the main culprits

it’s best to line up for your tar and feathers boys! Just get it over with. 

But I’m not sure a single Orioles Fanboy will own up to it at 15-32!

 

[glory]

11 hours ago, Spanky99 said:

You, BigCecil, Olerud, Masterbather, glory, just to name a few... Fanboy.

Not sure how or when I became an Orioles fanboy or said they had the best front office. I've praised their player development in the past and prior to this winter they usually operated reasonably well despite salary constraints/cheapness, but that's hardly glazing their front office. Hell, I literally just praised Shatkins a page or two ago for spending on SP when Vlad/Bo came up rather than doing what the Orioles just did. 

[jaysblue]

Spanky, as much as I love him, likes to instigate s*** and create fake narratives. So far he hasn't produced any receipts. Its all just hot air. 

 

[jaysblue]

Eli White with a huge base running blunder in the bottom of the ninth yesterday lol. Even worse than Vlad levels!