July 9, 201610 yr He needs work on angles off the wall. The misplay on the corner bounce in Texas late in the game on Friday 7/8 turned a double into a triple and a following fly ball into a go ahead sac fly, and that was the game.While that is true, Kepler made a real nice play earlier in the game to hold Odour to a single on a ball towards the corner. He has the speed and instincts to be a fine outfielder.
July 9, 201610 yr The right field hanging porch should be Das Überhang. And if his nickname doesn't eventually become Mr. Oktober, we've all done something wrong.
July 9, 201610 yr Sano is destined for 1st base. By the way, I don't like Kepler. I love Kepler.YOU TAKE THAT B...oh, never mind. We're cool.
July 10, 201610 yr to hold Odour to a singleIt is not necessary to cater to twinsnorth49 in every random thread.
July 11, 201610 yr We need a nickname for the overhang that Kepler hits all his homeruns intoHow about "FRANCE".
July 11, 201610 yr Yeah that overhang.Don't get me wrong I love that Kepler's off to a strong start but those are some cheap home runs. 2009 Mauer anyone?
July 11, 201610 yr Yeah that overhang.Don't get me wrong I love that Kepler's off to a strong start but those are some cheap home runs. 2009 Mauer anyone?Are they moving to a new park again next year? I'm not paying for it.
July 11, 201610 yr Are they moving to a new park again next year? I'm not paying for it.Don't be so sure about that.
July 11, 201610 yr Yeah that overhang.Don't get me wrong I love that Kepler's off to a strong start but those are some cheap home runs. 2009 Mauer anyone? According to ESPN's homerun tracker, only one of his homeruns this year could legitimately be called "cheap," and it was in Yankee Stadium http://www.hittrackeronline.com/detail.php?id=2016_3073&type=hitter
July 11, 201610 yr According to ESPN's homerun tracker, only one of his homeruns this year could legitimately be called "cheap," and it was in Yankee Stadium http://www.hittrackeronline.com/detail.php?id=2016_3073&type=hitterThat tool also says Mauer had ZERO lucky HRs in 2009.
July 11, 201610 yr Depends on if you consider lucky to be "wow that just barely cleared the wall", or "there's only a couple ballparks that would've been a HR in."
July 11, 201610 yr A ball hit into Kepler's Observatory, it turns out, would be a HR in lots of ballparks.
July 11, 201610 yr A ball hit into Kepler's Observatory, it turns out, would be a HR in lots of ballparks.I'm just trying to get a handle on his true power. I'm not implying his HRs were cheap because of which park they were hit in or how many rows up they landed. Obviously if it clears the fence, even by a little, it counts as a HR. Kepler is on a 30/HR year pace, do you think that's evident of his "true" HR power?
July 11, 201610 yr A ball hit into Kepler's Observatory, it turns out, would be a HR in lots of ballparks.And an ellipse with the Earth at one focus.
July 11, 201610 yr I'm just trying to get a handle on his true power. I'm not implying his HRs were cheap because of which park they were hit in or how many rows up they landed. Obviously if it clears the fence, even by a little, it counts as a HR. Kepler is on a 30/HR year pace, do you think that's evident of his "true" HR power?I don't think Morneau type numbers are beyond his reach, no.
July 11, 201610 yr I don't think Morneau type numbers are beyond his reach, no. That would be awesome if he could do that.
July 11, 201610 yr I'm just trying to get a handle on his true power. I'm not implying his HRs were cheap because of which park they were hit in or how many rows up they landed. Obviously if it clears the fence, even by a little, it counts as a HR. Kepler is on a 30/HR year pace, do you think that's evident of his "true" HR power?His HR/FB is 19%. For reference - the league average is 12.9%. His ISO this year with the Twins sits at .245 and steamer projects it at .145 (although Steamer isn't high on him to begin with). His highest ISO in the upper minors was .209 in AA last year - this year he had .173 in AAA. His power numbers are a bit elevated due to the HR/FB luck, but once he settles in, I could see him being a ~.175 ISO guy at the MLB level. So to answer your question, no, I don't think he will be an annual 30 home run hitter and it's not a reflection of his true power. I see him more as a ~20 home run guy with lots of doubles and a good OBP, certainly a fine player. Edited July 11, 201610 yr by King
July 11, 201610 yr Kepler: Most impressive mid season call-up since Kirby, imo. Edit: Forgot that Sano was a call-up, not on the opening roster last year. My bad.Twins have some impressive young players. I hope to be remarking on their success as they mature. We can hope! Edited July 11, 201610 yr by ScottN
July 11, 201610 yr We need a nickname for the overhang that Kepler hits all his homeruns intothe Berliner's wall
July 11, 201610 yr Kepler is not done growing IMHO. For now, he is mostly a gap hitter, but that could change.
July 11, 201610 yr Peak Morneau was a truly great player. It's sad to look back at 2006-2010 and think what could have been (exactly half way through 2010 he had a OPS+ of 187) I don't want to put that type of projection on a young kid, but I see no reason he can't be Morneau-lite in a couple years. 275/375/500, 25 HR With a kid that big and athletic, could he take it one step further once he gets more experience and fills out his frame.....? Yeah, maybe. Just think of all the progress he's made in the last 18 months. Do we view it as a positive or a negative that in 2014 he had an OPS of 726 in high-A? A negative Nelly would use that to project his future stats. a positive Paul would commend him for an unbelievable improvement over 1.5 seasons.
July 11, 201610 yr the Berliner's wall My vote is "mad max" not sure why other than his name starts with Max and I like the 1979 & 1981 flicks Mad Max & Mad Max 2. Edited July 11, 201610 yr by laloesch
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