October 19, 201412 yr He is young. He will continue to improve. I am all for signing or trading for a top quartile outfielder. Short of that, I would prefer the at bats go to Hicks, Rosario, Buxton or Sano (with Plouffe in LF) next year..
October 20, 201412 yr He is young. He will continue to improve. I am all for signing or trading for a top quartile outfielder. Short of that, I would prefer the at bats go to Hicks, Rosario, Buxton or Sano (with Plouffe in LF) next year.. I agree with these statements. Even if Hicks loses out in the LF battle this year, I see no reason to cut him. We have given up on too many guys too early.
October 20, 201412 yr Author I haven't tempered my criticisms of Hicks, but there is zero reason to let him go at this point. It appears that many are resigned to Hicks being no more than a stopgap and perhaps a platoon or fourth OF. That may be true. I think his struggles as a left handed hitter are more mental than physical. Any switch hitter with the tools he has is going to be given multiple chances to seize a regular role. I have consistently doubted Hicks' ability to hit at the major league level, but many have added this tool later in their development. Needless to say, this year is huge for Hicks. If he doesn't develop into a big league hitter this year, he may well bounce around from team to team as he will be out of options.
October 30, 201412 yr Hicks is down to a .237 average now. I can't find all his numbers, but I check most of his box scores and i would say he has twice as many walks as k's.
October 30, 201412 yr Hicks is down to a .237 average now. I can't find all his numbers, but I check most of his box scores and i would say he has twice as many walks as k's. http://mlb.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l135&t=p_pbp&pid=543305 Bad couple of days but OBP is still .733. Edited October 30, 201412 yr by JB_Iowa
October 30, 201412 yr http://mlb.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l135&t=p_pbp&pid=543305 Bad couple of days but OBP is still .733. You mean OPS.
October 30, 201412 yr You mean OPS. Yeah if it was OBP, they should have called him back up yesterday!
October 30, 201412 yr Author Does anyone have a good idea what the level of the Venezuelan Winter League is? I looked at a few box scores and didn't recognize many names, so I am guessing it wouldn't be AAA+ or better. I know that the major leaguers often wait until later in the season to play, but right now it doesn't look more advanced than the AFL, that is my guess.
October 31, 201412 yr Hick's floor is 4th OF but I think his ceiling is Starting Pitcher or Reliever with that 97 mph fast ball. When he was drafted many scout doubted his ability to hit up here, but no one doubted is ability to pitch.
October 31, 201412 yr He's hitting .237 in winter ball? Man, I hope he isn't option 1 in CF next year.
October 31, 201412 yr Down to .214 now - he did draw 2 more walks - maybe the pitching is just really erratic in the Venezuelan league? He's 2nd in the league in walks, but he's just not hitting the ball... The whole team he's playing on is batting .247 - nonetheless, just one extra base hit for Hicks in Winter Ball, a homer hit early on, is not encouraging.
October 31, 201412 yr he did draw 2 more walks - maybe the pitching is just really erratic in the Venezuelan league?... when facing him and that one other guy, apparently.
October 31, 201412 yr ... when facing him and that one other guy, apparently. I have kind of thought LF was going to come down to Rosario vs. Hicks. Rosario is facing better competition and hitting .397, 2 2B, 9 SB (3 CS), and an OPS of .834. Hicks is hitting .214. Point Rosario.
October 31, 201412 yr I wonder why we didn't claim Andy Dirks (Blue Jays picked him up). League average defense in LF, his numbers in 2013 were good. Give up nothing to do so. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/d/dirksan01.shtml Edited October 31, 201412 yr by tobi0040
October 31, 201412 yr Maybe the Twins didn't like the injury history? They've certainly seen him play as much or more than most of the other teams in the league. I'm guessing the Blue Jays will claim a bunch of guys, it seems to be their main source of player acquisition in the last year or so.
October 31, 201412 yr Author I like Rosario a lot, but this off-season stuff shouldn't be given too much credence. It is a great opportunity for Eddie to regain his top prospect status and so far he has really taken advantage. There is a gaping hole in the outfield, and Rosario could be the answer. I'd like him to finish strong in the AFL and then have a good (or better) Spring Training before I reserve a spot for him on the team.
Create an account or sign in to comment