2018 Spring Training Thread

[sportscoach]

Age and declining production.

Davis overall has had a good spring though and he still has very good speed overall on the bases. My guess is he wants a RH OF on the bench that isn’t going to play everyday but can bring value against lefties and in the clubhouse. Davis fits what Francona is looking for in the last spot of the roster.

@CBBI Now if Brantley is healthy, I’d rather not have Naquin on the roster since he won’t get a ton of at bats and if Brantley is starting I actually have a hunch we are keeping Refsnyder on the roster for the bench spot until Guyer or Urshela is healthy. Gonzo and Refsnyder can both play in the OF.

We are supposed to know sometime today if Merritt made the roster or not, if not I hope we get something for him cause there is no way he will make it through waivers.

 

[CBBI]

Davis overall has had a good spring though and he still has very good speed overall on the bases. My guess is he wants a RH OF on the bench that isn’t going to play everyday but can bring value against lefties and in the clubhouse. Davis fits what Francona is looking for in the last spot of the roster.

@CBBI Now if Brantley is healthy, I’d rather not have Naquin on the roster since he won’t get a ton of at bats and if Brantley is starting I actually have a hunch we are keeping Refsnyder on the roster for the bench spot until Guyer or Urshela is healthy. Gonzo and Refsnyder can both play in the OF.

We are supposed to know sometime today if Merritt made the roster or not, if not I hope we get something for him cause there is no way he will make it through waivers.

I get what you're saying about Naquin, but at some point the team needs to come to the realization that he's no longer a prospect and they don't need to be concerned about playing him every day. The guy is about to turn 27 and has 627 career Triple A plate appearances.

If he's a 4th OF long term in the big leagues, that's ok! At least he's up and contributing to the big club. Sending him back to Columbus for the second year in a row in some effort to try and salvage him as a possible every day player seems like a waste of time at this point.

 

[sportscoach]

I get what you're saying about Naquin, but at some point the team needs to come to the realization that he's no longer a prospect and they don't need to be concerned about playing him every day. The guy is about to turn 27 and has 627 career Triple A plate appearances.

If he's a 4th OF long term in the big leagues, that's ok! At least he's up and contributing to the big club. Sending him back to Columbus for the second year in a row in some effort to try and salvage him as a possible every day player seems like a waste of time at this point.

Part of me says we need another RH bat on the bench at the end of the day as well. We will have 4 LH OFs at first and whoever makes the final OF spot will only likely be there until Guyer is healthy so may as well just get Naquin everyday at bats rather than just have him ride the bench for two weeks.

 

[macbdog]

Naquin is mediocre at everything. Davis at least gives you a premium basestealer and baserunner off the bench. They are just about equal defensively, although Davis doesn't have the brain farts that Naquin has. And if Brantley or Chisenhall gets hurt, Naquin will be the first recalled. Other than ageism, i dont get why people dont want to see Davis in his best role.

 

[sportscoach]

Urshela, Merritt and Salazar it seems like are for sure starting the season on the DL. I am not sure if Brantley or Guyer will get their reps in, but my guess is if they aren't ready to go they will keep Naquin (Brantley's spot) and Refsnyder (Guyer's spot) as the final two to break camp with. Gonzo will have the utility spot for now and Torres or Belisle for the last bullpen spot.

 

[Chris]

I know he wont have a 1328 ops in the regular season but Alonso has looked impressive this spring. I hope he can at least replace Santana’s production.

 

[AZ_]

Alonso’s fly ball ratio is built for the Cactus League.

Wouldn’t be surprised to see him start slow and then turn it on as the weather warms up.

The biggest thing for me is defense. If he can play better there then whatever he provides offensively will work for me.

 

[Urban]

View: https://twitter.com/MLBastian/status/977595188355874817

 

[Real Deal]

Brantley opens up season on DL ~ not ready for a full workload

 

[AZ_]

Glad they're going to take their time with Brant.

Just need him healthy.

 

[CBBI]

Opening Day lineup guess

SS Lindor
2B Kipnis
3B Ramirez
DH Encarnacion
1B Alonso
RF Chisenhall
C Gomes
CF Zimmer
LF Naquin

 

[AZ_]

In an ideal world, Alonso is able to take the clean-up spot from Edwin to give the lineup a bit better balance and put less pressure on EE.

 

[AZ_]

 

[ajz20]

Not been following attention. Can someone please summarize the major news that came from camp this year. How close is the young catcher from breaking through?

 

[Out of the Rafters at the Q]

Not been following attention. Can someone please summarize the major news that came from camp this year. How close is the young catcher from breaking through?

Nothing real major. Pretty much everything we expected.

Mejia isn't breaking through this year at catcher, with Gomes and Perez ahead of him. We've moved him to the OF to maybe give his bat a chance at the next level sooner. But honestly, the kid has a cannon for an arm behind the plate, and his value is maximized because he's a catcher.