2014 Assume the Position: 2B

In Commentary And Analysis, Minor Leagues by myles13 Comments

2014 Assume the Position:

Catchers
First Base

2013 Assume the Position:

Second Base

      Last Year 2014 Career (MLB)
  Name Age (2014 season) AVG OBP SLG wOBA Oliver wOBA AVG OBP SLG wOBA
MLB Barney 28 .208 .266 .303 .252 .279 .246 .293 .336 .278
AAA Watkins 24 .243 .333 .379 .325 .281 .211 .268 .237 .233
AA Alcantara 22 .271 .352 .451 .365 .293        
A+ Darvill 22 .253 .324 .365 .321 .256        
  Saunders 24 .226 .316 .321 .304 .288        
  Bruno 23 .362 .436 .478 .424 .326        
A Amaya 21 .252 .329 .369 .326 .277        
  Zapenas 24 .255 .419 .319 .364 .265        
A- Lockhart 21 .290 .346 .331 .328 .244        
  Bote 21 .250 .337 .366 .341 .261        
Rk Blair 24 .226 .297 .283 .285 .274        
  Stevens 25 .257 .388 .329 .359 .279        

The MLB average wOBA for a second baseman last year was .305.

MLB

Darwin Barney took a large step in the wrong direction. He's now had 3 of 4 MLB seasons with an OBP south of .300, and 2013 in particular was putrid. He's still a defensive stalwart, but that's all; he's one of the 2 or 3 worst hitters in baseball and shouldn't start for even a team as bad as ours. Barney has the chops to play 2B and SS which makes him a valuable backup, but no team that gives Barney 500 PA can reasonably aspire to contend without serious firepower everywhere else.

AAA

Logan Watkins must have taken a dump on Dale Sveum's desk last year, because after he was called up he was used quite sparingly. Watkins underperformed with the stick in AAA last year but still took his walks. He's not so punchless that pitchers can attack him directly, but he's probably never going to hit more than 6-8 HR a year. I'd like to see him break ST as the starting 2B and give him some time to see what you have, but the reality is probably utility 2B/CF at this point. 

AA

Arismendy Alcantara was shunted to 2B to make way for the Baez Express, which tore through the Southern League like $20 of Taco Bell through my digestive system. It might be a better fit for him (though I maintain CF could work equally well) anyways. Alcantara had a bit of a breakthrough season in 2013, and he'll start this year in AAA purgatory while his service clock becomes more tenable. Alcantara isn't going to embarass the PCL (or any league), and thus won't force the issue, but Arismendy should be a solid if unspectacular major league regular for the foreseeable future. 

A+

Wes Darvill got a taste of the AFL as Baez' replacement, but I think that was more out of the necessity for an infielder than Darvill's skills. He profiles probably as an upper-minors mainstay, perhaps grabbing a cup of coffee or two during his career. He's not particularly muscular or athletic but he makes it work. Tim Saunders is too old for this shit, and also too old to hit under the league average in A+. Stephen Bruno came back from an injury to further embarass the league he was placed in. He'll need to move relatively quickly, but he's only had 2 professional years and he went crazy in both of them. It'll be very interesting to see what happens when he faces actual pitching (his A- BABIP was .431, his A+ BABIP .472); he's not particularly fast, so those BABIPs are the result of him just being too good for the level. I'd look for an aggressive promotion here to see what you really have; it's difficult to gauge until then. 

A

Gioskar Amaya had a 2013 he'd rather forget. I thought he'd take a Great Leap Forward; instead, he tripped on his bat and lost 77 points of wOBA and over 240 points of OPS. The walks went down (but not a ton), the strikeouts stayed the same, and the BABIP fell to a normal level; the real loss was his power (which is what made him intriguing to start with). Hopefully Amaya finds it in 2014, and last year becomes a distant memory. Bradz A Penas sure can take a walk, but he can't do much of anything else. Punchless bats like his are just calling to be exposed against mid-90s heat and pitches that break hard and late.

A-

Daniel Lockhart (who I ALWAYS want to call Gilderoy) has a bat even more feckless than Zapenas'. It is entirely without feck. It's hard to envision him as anything more than organizational fodder but I've been wrong before. David Bote was much more promising in his second season of professional ball. I'd like to see him grab the lion's share of the starts in A ball next season. 

Rk 

Zak Blair (20th round, 2013) and Trevor Stevens (UDFA) are both old and neither had enough PA to really say anything constructive about. 

I thought 2B was a beacon of hope last year, and I was wrong. DeVoss moved off the position. Torreyes was traded. Watkins underperformed. At least Alcantara moved to the position (and it's feasible Baez ends up here when it all shakes up), and if Bruno stays at 2B he's got at least a shot to be a prospect in the future. All told, 2B is about middle-of-the-road as far as talent is concerned, with a few intriguing guys at the bottom and a few intriguing guys at the top. It's hard to ask for more than that.

 

 

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Comments

  1. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    he’s one of the 2 or 3 worst hitters in baseball and shouldn’t start for even a team as bad as ours. Barney has the chops to play 2B and SS which makes him a valuable backup, but no team that gives Barney 500 PA can reasonably aspire to contend without serious firepower everywhere else.

    I do wonder if his defense is good enough for him to play every day at this point, but I’m not sure I agree with what you say here. His defense has been awesome enough that he could get away without hitting anything. What I wonder is whether we can expect that to continue.

    On this team though, I’d rather see someone else play every day if that someone is a younger player who might be on a Cubs team that contends. If it’s some 30 year old career minor leaguer I’d rather watch Barney’s defense.

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  6. Berselius, Cubs #12 prospect

    dmick89, Sweatpants Guru wrote:

    On this team though, I’d rather see someone else play every day if that someone is a younger player who might be on a Cubs team that contends. If it’s some 30 year old career minor leaguer I’d rather watch Barney’s defense.

    This. The same goes for Watkins over Barney, I see both of them as utility guys. Once Alcantara is ready, or obviously if they move Baez over, Barney should be heading to the bench.

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  7. Author
    Myles

    Berselius, Cubs #12 prospect wrote:

    dmick89, Sweatpants Guru wrote:
    On this team though, I’d rather see someone else play every day if that someone is a younger player who might be on a Cubs team that contends. If it’s some 30 year old career minor leaguer I’d rather watch Barney’s defense.

    This. The same goes for Watkins over Barney, I see both of them as utility guys. Once Alcantara is ready, or obviously if they move Baez over, Barney should be heading to the bench.

    I think there’s a nonzero, though small, chance that Watkins can be a league-average 2B. That chance is enough for me to rather see him than Barney, who is well-established as an atrocious hitter.

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  9. Author
    Myles

    You know, depending on what happens with Miguel Gonzalez (edit: was Guerrero, got them mixed up), I think the Phillies could be sneakily good this year.

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  11. Author
    Myles

    I think the Philies are probably a 77 or so win team, which gives them maybe a 1 in 4 chance to break .500. That said, they have some pieces with high-upside potential.

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