BlueRocky

I have to admit I’ve only seen him a handful of times, had to go back and compare some notes to make sure info was up to date. Joey is a really interesting pitcher for sure. P2F summarized it up pretty well, I’ll just reiterate a few things. Joey Murray has been known to throw an “invisi-ball”, it’s a high spin rate (2400+ rpm) fastball with good movement paired with a deceptive delivery. The spin rate makes it just a tad harder for hitters to pick the laces and identify the pitch, but also it rises/elevates on occassion which generates whiffs. Hence it seems “invisible”. This is especially effective because Joey works extremely fast (Mark Buehrle-esque) and comes after hitters repeatedly. He also has an unique delivery, ultra-high leg lift (like Thornton) but an extreme forward stride while releasing the ball last moment. I think he even deliberately hides the ball behind him. It adds to the deception when paired with how fast he works and the spin rate, while also shortening the distance from mound to plate. He also throws from a high slot. It’s a bit difficult to explain. It’s worked well for him since college, and he has always been a high K rate guy. He’s a decent size at 6-2 but doesn’t throw high velo. His fastball generally sits 86-89 and touches 91. I have to emphasize he throws a lot of fastballs. But you’d be surprised he sits on a lot of 86-87s but the FB definitely plays up because of all the quirks in his delivery, I’m guessing the hitters feel the same pressure as a 92-93mph FB despite being high-80s. Pitchers with lower velo tend to have less margin for error, when you miss spots it basically becomes a BP fastball. Guys that can’t get away with elite type stuff generally have to learn how to pitch, by mixing pitches very well, studying hitters, and have plus polish in their command to remain effective. I hear his changeup has been much improved and has good velo separation, he’s polished it a lot in Lansing and commands it for strikes. The slider has good horizonal break and almost acts like a low-velo cutter. And he has a high rpm curveball which sits mid 70s. His goto secondary back in College and Vancouver was his slider, but now it’s more of a mix including the changeup and curve. If I had to loosely grade his pitches, his FB probably a 50 (45 velo, 60 command/movement), 55-60 slider, 55 curveball, 50 CU. (Might be a tad generous) The change of speeds, the quirky delivery, the FB spin rates, and multiple secondaries make him a very effective strikeout guy despite the low FB velo. It’s just too bad he’s right handed, scouts would probably be higher on him if he’s a southpaw. I wouldn’t exactly say Gaviglio, he’s more of a right-handed Buehrle. I honestly have no idea if his stuff will work in the MLB as a starter, probably why he dropped to 8th Rnd despite being very effective in college. He’s always induced a lot of K’s and never had much walk issues, which could mean BP as a plan B, maybe a long relief role. The improved CU also bodes well for his chances. We’ll see what happens in double-A.

I’m probably the wrong guy to answer this since I’m higher on LGJ than most. People think Jansen has a lot of room to bounce back because of several reasons.. His peripherals in the minors were outstanding, he was a legit top 100 prospect and had a strong bat with good OBP numbers. That hasn’t shown up whatsoever so he’s likely still adapting to MLB. Even if he’s not a star, his offensive numbers should be closer to average and defense has been solid. You don’t really give up on a guy like that after 3 months. If he wasn’t a catcher I would be more worried, but generally going from triple-A to everyday catcher is a huge jump so he gets some leash. They could’ve eased him in as backup catcher first instead of handing him the keys right away but... Russell Martin got traded and they decided otherwise. LGJ is likely to regress because his current numbers are just insane. 150 wRC+ is MVP level so I doubt he can keep this up. If he can hover around 120-130 wRC+ at LF this is already a home run signing for Ross Atkins. The main reason why guys are skeptical about LGJ is because his low walk rates and high strikeout rates. There’s only a handful of guys in baseball that can put up .900 OPS with those types of K/BB profiles. You can look at the article on the RadioScouts blog for examples. His ability to hit breaking balls right now is completely off the charts and probably not sustainable, regression is likely to happen but as long as some of this production isn’t a complete fluke he should be alright.

Interesting. So I guess you’re not extending Smoak? Not high on Tellez? What about the rotation?

Who would you sign in the offseason?

I think we got a steal with Philip Clarke at no. 9, hope he signs. He’s batting cleanup and catching for the college World Series Vanderbilt team. Also:

Second half will be interesting, both for the big club and farm system. A bunch of IL guys coming back including Borucki & Merryweather both possible rotation pieces next year. The hitting will get better. Vlad, Bichette, Biggio, Gurriel is a fine core moving forward. At least one of the holes in OF seem to be covered for now. There’s also a slew of catching prospects moving up if Jansen doesn’t work out. Rotation is a real question mark

Yeah no kidding, there’s at least one name at every level with intrigue. MLB: Danny Jansen AAA: Reese McGuire AA: Riley Adams A+: Alejandro Kirk A: Gabriel Moreno A-: Yorman Rodriguez Rk: Javier D’Orazio

https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/1789578/report-yankees-only-dealing-frazier-for-pitchers-controlled-beyond-2020 Ken Rosenthal is reliable. Also confirmed by another reporter on radio interviewed by Jeff Blair last week, don't remember if it was baseball central or another one. "Yankees plan to trade OF Clint Frazier ONLY for a starting pitcher with multiple years of control. They do not intend to give up 4 more years of Frazier for Rentals such as Madison Bumgarner, or even one-plus years they would get for Marcus Stroman or Trevor Bauer."

INF Estiven Machado OF Robert Robertis:

oh and for those that missed it:

more coming

The power is elite, I’m just not so sure about the hit tool. Defensively a bit iffy. There’s still time to fix things, but everyday 1B to replace Smoak next year I’m not quite convinced yet.

He certainly falls short compared to some of the great first baseman that’s put on a BJ uniform. Smoak, Encarnacion, Delgado, Olerud, McGriff?

Absolutely filthy. Orelvis Martinez with another double and walk. Jhon Solarte off to a good start in Bluefield. Gabriel Moreno continues to hit in Lansing. Otto Lopez back in action and doing things

Bo Bichette is just really fun to watch. I can’t wait till he gets up here.

Yeah I mean, those don’t even count towards his BABIP. What a disappointment

Hi guys, I came for Pineapple dingers

I don’t think they will lose a second straight year of 100 games. With Atkins & Shapiro contract ending 2020, they would want to build a case for an extension. I’m pretty sure Atkins would want to remain general manager. Bargain bin deals are nice, but they will eventually have to stop operating like Cleveland/Oakland. That isn’t going to work in the AL East. There’s a ton of payroll room to sign guys, we have close to 50-70M to spend (if they wanted to). The current pitching situation is abysmal and they can easily add a frontline starter. They have Vlad, Bichette, Biggio, and Gurriel on peanut contracts the next 3 years and can’t waste that window. If we enter a wildcard game against the Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, Cleveland, who’s our current answer to their best starter? Matt Shoemaker? Trent Thornton? Are we putting all our hopes on Nate Pearson during his rookie year?

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/why-were-not-ranking-the-top-july-2-prospects/ Why We're Not Ranking The Top July 2 Prospects

Yeah. Bichette is coming up soon.

Could’ve been worse I guess

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/trainers-mlb-teams-unhappy-with-current-international-signing-system/ This is a great and very lengthy article by Ben Badler. I encourage those with BA subscription to read it. I won’t post the entire article, it’s practically an essay long. Here are some tidbits:

Grab everyone from Vanderbilt.

They’ve been downplaying Marcus Stroman as a “rental” and ignoring the fact that he’s from NY and would have a good chance of resigning. I don’t doubt it’s all posturing, Cashman is known for his shenanigans. They obviously want Stroman, but they want Stroman+ for Frazier, we want Frazier+. I say look elsewhere. If we find better offers from other teams, then do it. And if NY ups their offer and blows away everyone else’s, only then would I consider trading to the Yankees. If this trade goes through, Stroman pitching against us in 2020-2024 is a possible outcome that doesn’t help our postseason chances whatsoever. That’s not a risk I’m comfortable with just merely Clint Frazier as the only return. If Atkins settle for scrap heaps, especially to NY, I would be very disappointed.

Borucki and Pardinho rehabbing in the GCL joining Merryweather and Maese