4/23/18

Mack's Apples – Peter Alonso, Arkansas Prospects, Minor League Disgrace, Mack’s Sensitive People, 21-pitch at-bat




Fangraphs   Top 18 Mets Prospects -

          7. Peter Alonso, 1B

          Drafted: 2nd Round, 2016 from Florida
          Age   22       Height           6’3      Weight          245     Bat/Throw   R/R

         Tool Grades (Present/Future)

Hit            Raw Power  Game Power           Run    Fielding        Throw
40/50           60/60             40/55                 30/30      40/40          50/50

Alonso’s combiantion of hit and power (his exit velos are crazy) give him everyday upside at first base. Right/right college first basemen don’t typically work out (this century’s list of guys who have done nothing but play first since day one on campus and done well in MLB is Paul Goldschmidt, Rhys Hoskins, Eric Karros, and that’s it), and scouts have concerns about Alonso’s defense and conditioning. He looks heavy again this spring. He slashed .280/.360/.520 in the FSL last year; if Alonso does that again at Double-A this season, he’ll have convinced a lot of people that the perceived negatives don’t matter and that he’s going to hit enough to be an everyday first baseman.



       
 The Razorbacks are maybe the most interesting team in the SEC and perhaps even in college baseball as a whole, going from unranked earlier in the season to a top-five national ranking. They’re getting a boost from injured pitchers returning to their staff like draft-eligible redshirt sophomore Isaiah Campbell, but the big name here is Blaine Knight, who Baseball America lists as their sixth-best college righthander and MLB.com has as the 46th-best prospect available. Long reliever Jake Reindl is also one of the better bullpen arms available. On the position player side, the most well-regarded name is probably junior Grant Koch, who had a strong summer for Team USA and projects to be one of the best college backstops available in the draft.


The Disgrace of Minor League Baseball –

         
  For years, MLB teams have played games with prospects’ service time, but the Bryant affair was a tipping point in terms of public acknowledgement, and yet nothing changed. Before this season, the Phillies only promoted Scott Kingery after he signed an extension that gives away his first three years of free agency, while Braves center fielder Ronald Acuña, the no. 2 prospect on the FanGraphs top 100 and someone who’d never met a professional league he hadn’t destroyed, did not break camp with the big league club. Now, after two weeks, Acuña’s still at Triple-A Gwinnett, working on some issue that might magically be fixed in the third week of June, when he’ll have stayed long enough in the minors to prevent him from earning another year of salary arbitration.


Baseball is for sensitive people   -

         
  Last night, Houston Astros pitcher Justin Verlander joined Club Snowflake, when he took exception to White Sox third baseman Tim Anderson broke up his no-hitter in the fifth inning (there should be an “unwritten rule about thinking no-hitters in the fifth inning are a big deal), celebrated and then stole second in a 5-to-0 game.


Giants' Belt has milestone 21-pitch at-bat –

        
   San Francisco’s Brandon Belt had a 21-pitch at-bat in an epic showdown with Los Angeles Angels rookie pitcher Jaime Barria in the first inning Sunday, the most pitches faced since records began being kept in 1988. The previous high was 20, when Houston’s Ricky Gutierrez struck out against Cleveland’s Bartolo Colon on June 26, 1998, according to Retrosheet.

Belt fouled off 11 straight pitches before flying out. Belt was greeted with high-fives when he returned to the dugout after his at-bat lasted 12 minutes, 52 seconds.

6 comments:

Tom Brennan said...

"if Alonso does that again at Double-A this season"? He won't - he'll do much better! He already is, and the warm up is underway.

I can't believe Belt's 21 pitch at bat did not come against Syndergaard. Every game, one or two guys seem to have really long ABs against him.

Verlander was no doubt comforted when he returned home.

Tom Brennan said...

While AJ Ramos walks people (I hear he walks little old ladies across the street, too), 22 year old Merandy Gonzalez, whom the Mets traded last summer to get Ramos, has already made his MLB debut - so far, 3 innings, only one run.

Reese Kaplan said...

Could the right handed Alonso be enticed into playing 3B? After all, if his trajectory continues he's not due here until 2020 when, coincidentally, the contract expires on Todd Frazier. Then you would have room for both Dom Smith and Peter Alonso on a future Mets team.

I know, I know...too much common sense.

Tom Brennan said...

Reese, what is going on with Dom Smith?

Last 10 games, 7 for 34, 2 RBIs, 12 walks (good), 15 Ks (terrible). Depressed?

I hear what you are saying about 3B, but I am starting to wonder if Alonso is our opening day 2019 first baseman.

I'd actually be more interested in Smith playing 3rd, if either of them were to switch - I think Smith might be the more agile of the two.

Remember earlier this spring, we wondered if Cecchini was bulked up this spring and we'd see more power? 7 doubles, NO homers so far in a huge hitters' league. That is not major league caliber stuff - my take is without more power, he seems nothing more than a fringe utility major leaguer at best.

Hobie said...

D.Smith is B/T L/L. So I think conversion to Zoroastrism is more likely than 3B.

Tom Brennan said...

Mack, perhaps, but they may want Kay or Peterson instead of Crismatt - then what?

I did read that Bruce said his foot has been feeling a lot better - I guess we'll see on Tuesday night.

Next up for Mets - red-hot Cards, winners of 8 of 10.