Trying to think of how to build next years team..
If we are going to be excited about the likes of Springer and Singleton, coupled with Altuve, Dominguez, Castro, and Carter.. then we REALLY need to find a couple bats to get on base. Someone like Fontana would be a great start, but not sure if hes ready. To me though, you need to lose one of these guys as this is the main core that got you the strikeout record.
We have to start by cutting bait with Paredes, Crowe, Elmore, and Wallace. They are space takers at this point. I would strongly consider moving Carter as well. While he gave us power, he also struck out over 200 times. And his .770 OPS is not enough to make up for that. I think Dominguez with continued development can give you almost as much power with less strikeouts. You will lose some walks.. but we can make up for that somewhere else. Lastly, while Corporan wasnt bad, I think we are in capable hands with younger guys. Ship him off for cash.
So lets look at who we do have.. and we start with the ones we expect to be starting in order or importance.
1. C Jason Castro - Good average, decent walks but needs to improve. Will likely strike out less as he gets more comfortable against lefties. Still budding power stroke. Still high injury risk
2. 2B Jose Altuve. You know who he is now. The only thing you can hope for is less streakiness, better BB/SO ratio, and better awareness on the basepaths.
3. 3B Matt Dominguez. Like I said.. with continued improvement, you have an above average young 3B, with good power, and not awful SO numbers. Also plays excellent defense.
4. OF L.J. Hoes. While not a huge sample, he has shown flashes of patience coupled with speed and gap power. With continued development, you could be getting a guy just a hair shy of Altuves production.
5. OF/DH J.D. Martinez. Some of you might disagree, but this is a guy that has proven he can get it done in spurts. For some reason.. he goes in Mike Lamb like funks and they get the better of him. I think you will see a healthy, mature JD this next year. The power will be back, as will the good plate approach and patience. This past year will prove to be an injury riddled frustration of an anomaly. I like him in the DH role and spot starting in left.
6. 1B Jonathon Singleton. We all know the potential is there. Lets see what he does in spring. You know he can SO, but he can also walk. He can also send a ball to the same planets Carter did.. with likely less consistency in his rookie year. But I think this is your 1B who can also play OF and DH.
7. OF George Springer. Other than the high strikeouts.. if he can learn the ropes at a decent pace, there is nothing to not like about his future. This should be a no brainer.
8. SS Jonathon Villar. Unfortunately I think he gets at least half of the next year to show development. Nobody really expected him up this past year anyway. I'd like to see a couple more walks, deeper at bats, and more control. The MUST is defense. Have to improve there. I think the power and average will climb a little at that point. But overall, you are pretty much just getting a toolsy average player with speed.
9. FA OF/1B/DH. We need someone who can play everyday left, or at least switch off with JD. This is the spot that we have to find someone with a high OBP. Someone who can hit in the top 5 spots who strikes out less than 15% of the time.
Here is your likely bench..
1B/OF/DH Marc Krauss. I like Krauss as your power lefty bat off the bench, or DH against RHP he can for sure handle. I think the patience he showed in the minors will show up more and you will see a straight up average player who can be the perfect role player.
SS Marwin Gonzalez. We know hes not s starter. But he is decently productive and can fill in nicely if needed. Would be a great late inning sub for Villar early on for defense and bat.
OF Brandon Barnes. I think he earned another shot. But he has to get the OBP up if he wants to hold off Austin Wates and some of the other prospects.
C Max Stassi. Somehow we arent completed depleted at catcher in the minors. Stassi gets the first shot, followed by Caros Perez. We need consistency, good defense, and ability to start multiple games if Castro goes down.
I dont know how many position players we will carry.. but if we have another spot it would go to the winner of Grossman and Wates in spring. Both have the ability to get on base a lot.
While this team doesnt look much different on paper.. remember that this team.. healthy.. with continued development.. could easily put up more runs than last years. And I doubt out pitching is any worse. This is that starts the upward trend in wins.
The only other piece you could really improve at this point would outfield spots. Our infield is young and we want to give them time to put it together. Players like JD, Barnes, and Gonzalez have the most to lose in spring.
[This message has been edited by mazag08 (edited 10/2/2013 10:25p).]
