With Zack Greinke, Taijuan Walker, Robbie Ray, Shelby Miller and Patrick Corbin all but locked in to the Diamondbacks rotation, it seems likely that Archie Bradley starts 2017 in the bullpen.
Shelby Miller threw his four-seam fastball between 93-96 mph yesterday, topping out at 97 mph. Manager Torey Lovullo thinks the righty is “ready to do some special things this year,”
You know there isn’t a bunch to talk about when Jose Quintana is being talked about again, even though nothing is any different than it was a month ago. The White Sox are asking a ton, and no team has been willing to give up a ton to get him. It would make sense for the Sox to wait patiently until a contending team needs Quintana to make their dreams come true. Right before the trade deadline is my guess.
Hyun-Jin Ryu had another nice outing yesterday
Hyun-jin Ryu retired 12 of 13 batters faced in his 4 IP. 2 K, 4 ground outs. Dave Roberts said holding 87-89 mph in later innings was goal
— Eric Stephen (@truebluela) March 21, 2017
Ryu went 4 scoreless innings, allowing just 1 hit (WHIP now 0.67 for the spring), and Turner’s 3-for-3 with his second Cactus League HR
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) March 21, 2017
Max Scherzer will not miss any starts due to the stress fracture in his right ring finger, he is scheduled to start the Nats third game of the season.
You know there is absolutely no news when we feel the need to talk about the fact that the Reds want to trade Zack Cozart again. It is ridiculous…Here is what we know:
- Cozart is an excellent defender
- He has a little power, but not much, 25 HR in 722 plate appearances over the past two seasons.
- His AVG/OBP is mediocre at .254/.308
Do we really wonder why the Reds haven’t found a taker???
Bradley Zimmer could push the Indians to promote him in the summer should he take a step forward at Columbus, But it makes no sense to throw him into a platoon situation at the big league level right now and don’t forget that keeping prospects down in the minors for about a month gives the team an extra year of control.
DJ LeMahieu won a National League batting title last season, partially because two strikes didn’t bother him;
- He hit .276 in two-strike counts. Third to Martin Prado and Daniel Murphy
- .366 OBP with two strikes second only to Mike Trout
Jorge Soler is having a bad spring. What is new with this guy? Maybe if he got rid of that five pound gold chain around his neck…
After being signed to a nine year $30 million contract (plus a signing bonus of $6 million) in 2012, he has done everything but what he was paid to do. Hit home runs.
Scouting report: Soler is a big, physical presence which stood out a lot at the lower minors, as his 6-foot-4, 215-pound frame towered over players who were of a similar age. At the plate, Soler starts with a slightly open stance and his hands high around his ears. He has a simple load with minimal draw back and generates good hip rotation with his swing. There’s a lot of leverage present in the swing as he creates good power lean. It leads to loud contact and plus plus power.
Soler has been benched more than once for not hustling, including more than once just last year, and also rode the pine after he ran toward an opposing dugout with a bat.
Lesson learned: Just because a kid is over six feet tall with a ‘strong lower body’, looks like an athlete and has quick bat speed does in no way, shape or form mean that he is going to be successful in the majors.
Curtis Granderson hit two home runs batting cleanup yesterday. Manager Terry Collins said it is“possibly” the batting order he will use to start the season. Here is what it looked like:
- Jose Reyes
- Asdrubal Cabrera
- Yoenis Cespedes
- Neil Walker
- Jay Bruce
- Lucas Duda
- Travis d’Arnaud .
Because Jeurys Familia is likely to face a suspension before the season starts, the Mets might consider using Zack Wheeler in the bullpen to start the season.
Wheeler has made it very clear that he wants to be a starter. Very clear.
I feel that guys that go to the bullpen get stuck in the bullpen, and I don’t want to do that,Because either you are doing bad and you stay in the bullpen because you can’t be a starter, or you are doing really good and they can’t afford to move you out of the bullpen. So you are going to get stuck there, and that’s why I’m trying to let everybody know that I’m not a bullpen guy, I’m a starter.Zack Wheeler
Kolton Wong has hit .167 (six-for-36) this spring and all six of his hits have been singles. He’s been on base nine times total – and struck out eight. Of the Cardinals with at least 30 at-bats so far in Grapefruit League play, only Stephen Piscotty (five-for-35, 1.43) and Wilfredo Tovar (five-for-31, .161) have a lower average than Wong’s. Piscotty has been struggling as he finds his timing with a new swing that gives him more time than he’s had in the past and allows more time to recognize pitches.
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