Nobody is trading for Maldonado

He can’t even make contact

As a backup defense-first catcher w/ his skills? For a team in the hunt that has an offense-first signal caller? Sure someone would trade for that. They did last year. We just wouldn't receive much of anything for that trade. Maybe some cash or a fringe lottery pick, based on Maldonado's performance thus far in 2019.

Didn't somebody trade for Butera?

There's a really good chance Starling doesn't hit at the MLB level, but there is a 100% Hamilton doesn't.

There’s also a really good chance you crush the progress he has made by promoting him too soon.

Let him have some success, then encounter some struggles, and then prove he can adjust and succeed again.

Starling (bats right) and Lopez (bats left) would replace Hamilton (switch hitter) and Duda (bats left). Works for me. Would like to see Soler and Schwindel both get hot before the trade deadline. Trade Soler, promote Schwindel.

Also, Elier Hernandez (RF) is swinging a hot bat in Omaha. avg = .359, ops = .929. Nice stats but don't know where he'd fit in the lineup unless they move someone else like Merrifield or Gordon.

Hamilton is not a good hitter by any measure, but there are varying degrees of this. If Bubba comes up and looks like Mondesi did at first and can't even hit .100... You're going to have a much different opinion. This team is not winning the pennant. There's no reason to rush a guy up after he finally had two hot weeks at the plate. Especially when they can't send him down if he struggles.

Nicky Lopez has 2 strikeouts in like 65 at bats. That's cool.

Maybe he can take on a part time job in Wilmington teaching the guys there not to strikeout 2 times a game.

FG proj top-10 picks, we are #2 FYI


https://blogs.fangraphs.com/mock-draft-1-0-the-top-ten/

As I've said before, no thanks. Our high school picks almost always fail to develop. Merrifield, Dozier, O'Hearn, and soon Lopez are all college hitters that eventually made it to the majors. It seems pretty clear to me by now that we are almost incapable of developing high schoolers into patient hitters who can get on base. Dating back to Hosmer and Moustakas the vast majority of the hitters taken straight out of high school either have failed to develop or have significant flaws in their game.

Witt is absolutely the upside play. His ceiling is higher than Vaughn’s because of his defensive value and speed.

His floor is much lower due to the fact he’s a HS guy and has questions about his hit tool.

It wouldn’t be the way I go but I wouldn’t be surprised if KC goes that way, and it’s not going to surprise anyone.

I’ve seen some recent scouts of Witt that seem to indicate he has addressed some of his contact issues by selling out less for pullside power. A more all-fields approach, if underway, would improve his hit tool quite a bit.

It’s like saying “No drafting LSU players” after striking out on Dorsey and Tyson Jackoff. I mean you *could* but every situation is diff. Would you really turn down HS bats Trout, Harper, Machado, Seager, Correa on and on. Hardly.



Meanwhile here he was in the HS derby at the ASG last year. Yes they used aluminum bats but Witt cranked 11 jacks out of an MLB park. On his first 12 swings


https://usatodayhss.com/2018/video-m...-jr-rece-hinds

Nice evening's work for Homer.

Well, Homer Bailey sucks again.