WHO'S HOT, WHO'S NOT: MID AUGUST EDITION - Tom Brennan
I know who's hot...I am. Off to somewhere tropical this week. So I will keep this edition short, so I can take in some R&R. I will focus on the:
OFFENSE - A LOT TO LIKE:
In AAA, I have been most impressed with Johnny Monell and Darrell Ceciliani. Monell has had lower at bats because of splitting time in the majors and with Plawecki and Decker, but .340/.405/.495 and only a K every 7.5 times up? He may not be a prospect, he may not fit in the team's plans, but he's done fine.
Darrell Ceciliani spent a long time as a back up OF for the Mets this year, but he is .339/.395/.565 with 12 of 15 steals in AAA. He'll make it somewhere.
Oh, I left out Dilson Herrera. The neophyte also found his stints in the majors in 2015 a bit Tough, but in AAA, he is .345/.391/.529. I think he is our starting 2B next year.
Brandon Nimmo does not belong on the list, as he's been mediocre, but three more weeks like his first 11 in AAA (.324) could have me singing a different tune.
In AA, Gavin Cecchini has shocked me by hitting .320 in over 400 at bats. His stock is RISING.
TJ Rivera, translated to English, means HIT, HIT, HIT. He is hitting .320 between AA and AAA this year, and is currently red hot.
IN High A, the twin terrors (Jeff McNeil and Dominic Smith) have had terrific years. Multiply Smith's last 81 games to give you 162 and you've got .331, 58 doubles, 10 triples, and 132 RBIs. I'll take that in a heartbeat. He's hitting .370 with runners in scoring position. WOW.
McNeil is hitting .313 in 100 games with 69 runs scored and 1t of 19 steals. Fine, fine year.
Let me add in Matt Oberste,hitting .286 with decent pop and 52 RBIs in 86 games.
In mid A, the two standouts are:
Luis Guillorme, consistently fine all year at .308. Only 10 doubles in his 120 hits, though. Add in Wuilmer Becerra, who steadily climbed up to .300, and now sits at .292 with good pop.
Lastly, Michael Katz has 41 RBIs in his injury-shortened 44 games, with pop. Needs to curtail the Ks, though (57).
In the NY PENN league, only Vince Siena has stood out offensively, sitting at .301.
In the Appalachian League, the triumvirate of Kacsmarski (.328), catcher Mazelka (.355/.454/.554) and 18 yr old SS Carpio (.314) have torn it up.
Finally, in the Gulf Coast League, All Sanchez continues to delight, with a .314 BA and .372 on base %. And Yeffrey De Aza is hitting .317 in 25 games as, yes, an 18 yr old SS.
NEXT TIME: WHICH PITCHERS ARE HOT?
I would be remiss not to add the Gnat's Pat Biondi, who is hitting around .300 with low pop but 28 steals in slightly over 80 games.
ReplyDeleteWhy they brought up the right handed K-machine with the lifetime .188 batting average instead of the lefty Monell is mind boggling. Even in the minors Recker was batting nearly 100 points below Monell at just .245.
ReplyDeleteI always love reading the who's hot who's not post......
ReplyDeleteAnd as long as u keep mentioning my boys smith and McNeill u will remain aces in my book.
Reese, I could not agree more on Monell over Recker. Perhaps they want to have Monell for the AAA playoffs, but I am baffled.
ReplyDeleteErnest, Smith is really giving McNeil a run for the batting title. It looks like a guy named Astudillo may win the title, though,but the sit at #2 and #4.
ReplyDeleteRecker is the superior defensive player. The receiver.
ReplyDeleteAnd, again, Las Vegas numbers are meaningless.
I know it is early but seems like their will be a lot of Kingsport everyday players making the jump to full season ball next year. Other than Siena, Thompson, Diehl and Brosher is there really an everyday player worth promoting from Brooklyn?
ReplyDeleteBuddy, possibly Michael Bernal. The rest of the hitters are not hitting.
ReplyDeleteRecker's here, let's see what he does.
ReplyDeleteWhat about Dash Winningham? He deserves a little ink here.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the write up and enjoy the vacation
Bob, Dash slid just enough recently to eke his way off the hot list.
ReplyDelete@ Bob Sugar. Dash Winningham is bashing again. He is on my hot list next time!
ReplyDelete