July 7, 201610 yr Hard not to like a kid that has come as far as he has. I'm not only happy for him, but I enjoy watching him play as well.
July 7, 201610 yr big fan, really big fan. After seeing the whiff rates/BB rates of some of the young guys, his approach at the plate (24% k rate and 10% bb rate) has been a breath of fresh air. Edited July 7, 201610 yr by tobi0040
July 7, 201610 yr After seeing the whiff rates/BB rates of some of the young guys, his approach at the plate (24% k rate and 10% bb rate) has been a breath of fresh air.This and that he is well rounded. He has some power runs well, has a pretty good arm and will end up being a very good fielder with some experience.
July 7, 201610 yr Yeah, obviously, SSS and all but he seems to do a bit of everything. I'm a bit surprised that the metrics don't like him defensively but it's still SSS. Solid player.
July 7, 201610 yr Yeah, obviously, SSS and all but he seems to do a bit of everything. I'm a bit surprised that the metrics don't like him defensively but it's still SSS. Solid player.He's made a few mistakes in the field but nothing that won't go away with experience. The key is has all the tools necessary to be a very good fielder.
July 7, 201610 yr I think Kepler is one of those players who has a chance to become sneaky-good (kind of what I hope Gordon becomes in time). No single trait will wow the public but he'll be above average at every aspect of the game... Which makes for an elite player, even if people don't realize it when perusing a stat line. .280/.360/.440 line with good defense from a corner spot. That's an outstanding player but no single line is that impressive.
July 7, 201610 yr I think Kepler is one of those players who has a chance to become sneaky-good (kind of what I hope Gordon becomes in time). No single trait will wow the public but he'll be above average at every aspect of the game... Which makes for an elite player, even if people don't realize it when perusing a stat line. .280/.360/.440 line with good defense from a corner spot. That's an outstanding player but no single line is that impressive.Exactly. Hopefully Buxton and Rosario can join him as effective players on both sides of the ball and then we will be on to something.
July 7, 201610 yr And Kepler has faced a left handed pitcher in 37.5% of his PA. Compare that to the 25% that Joe Mauer has faced this year.
July 7, 201610 yr I think Kepler is one of those players who has a chance to become sneaky-good (kind of what I hope Gordon becomes in time). No single trait will wow the public but he'll be above average at every aspect of the game... Which makes for an elite player, even if people don't realize it when perusing a stat line. .280/.360/.440 line with good defense from a corner spot. That's an outstanding player but no single line is that impressive.That would be great, but I'm going to go a little more optimistic and hope for a .300/.400/.500 line from Kepler.
July 7, 201610 yr That would be great, but I'm going to go a little more optimistic and hope for a .300/.400/.500 line from Kepler.That'd be great but I think that's expecting too much from the kid. There are currently 28 MLB qualifying players with an OPS of .900 or better. And once you couple Kepler's defense with that OPS, he's one of the best players in baseball. Ryan Braun has a .912 OPS and is a butcher in the field. His WAR sits at 2.6... What would Kepler's WAR be with a .912 OPS? 3.0? 3.5? And now we're in the territory of Kepler being a 6-7 WAR player per season.
July 7, 201610 yr That'd be great but I think that's expecting too much from the kid. There are currently 28 MLB qualifying players with an OPS of .900 or better. And once you couple Kepler's defense with that OPS, he's one of the best players in baseball. Ryan Braun has a .912 OPS and is a butcher in the field. His WAR sits at 2.6... What would Kepler's WAR be with a .912 OPS? 3.0? 3.5? And now we're in the territory of Kepler being a 6-7 WAR player per season.Ok yeah a .900 OPS might be on the high side, but with his eye at the plate and his improving power, a mid-.800 OPS with a few seasons above .900 seems possible.
July 7, 201610 yr We need a nickname for the overhang that Kepler hits all his homeruns intoKepler's Laws.
July 7, 201610 yr Kepler's at 0.4 WAR through 42 games according to Fangraphs. Hopefully he can continue the momentum and be a 1-1.5 ish WAR guy at the end of this year. 2017 I'd hope for 2.5-3... Peak Kepler could be in the 6-7 range..
July 7, 201610 yr So far, Kepler has been great!! If the Twins do better in the second half of the season I have to believe Kepler will be a big part of that. I just hope he doesn't regress like Sano does this year. We need some young guys to contribute now and not fall off the following year (I expect Kepler to struggle some, just not for like half a year).
July 7, 201610 yr He definitely looks better than he did earlier which is awesome. He has taken some key walks on pitches he was striking out on in his previous stint. I think Buxton is starting to figure it out as well. Mad props to whoever signed this kid at age 16 in Germany.
July 7, 201610 yr Kepler is exactly the type of player this team needs too - great at working counts, good discipline, solid speed and power. He's basically your ideal 2/3 hitter. Now we just need that ideal #1 to progress and you have at least the most important spots in the lineup figured out.
July 7, 201610 yr Mad props to whoever signed this kid at age 16 in Germany. per wikipedia (including references): Andy Johnson, an international scout working for the Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball (MLB), first noticed Kepler when he played in a junior national tournament at the age of 14. He signed with the Twins in 2009 for US$800,000, the largest signing bonus given by an MLB franchise to a European-born player.
July 7, 201610 yr Kepler is exactly the type of player this team needs too - great at working counts, good discipline, solid speed and power. He's basically your ideal 2/3 hitter. Now we just need that ideal #1 to progress and you have at least the most important spots in the lineup figured out. And left handed
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