Looking at my outfield list the other day, I realized that I definitely need a refresher course on who exactly is roaming the outfield in Spring Training, trying to secure a spot on the big-league club, so I thought I'd write a little bit of background about some of the players competing for the 2008 A's outfield positions.
From the 40-man roster:
Born: 12/29/1974. 6'2'' 210 lbs. Bats & Throws: Right
2007 Stats: 366 AB, .257 BA, 6 HR, 62 RBI, 12 SB
Formerly in the Oakland farm system, Brown has spent the past three seasons in Kansas City. Last year, he made 66 starts in left, 17 in right and seven as KC’s DH. In his career, he’s played center field 78 times.
Born: 11/18/1983 6'2'' 225 Bats: Left Throws: Right
2007 Stats: 285 ABs, ,288 BA, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 4 SB
After a blistering hot Spring Training last year, Buck forced the A's to call him up to start the season. Unfortunately, Buck battled injuries for a good portion of the year, and left many wondering what could have been. This year, he is back as an A’s outfield veteran, and hopes to be at 100% strength. You would assume that this is the one player who is assured of making the team as a starter.
Born: 07/15/1980 6'0''195 Bats & Throws: Right
No Major League Stats for 2007
The A's picked up Denorfia last year from the Reds while he was injured. He had 60 or so ABs with the Reds in 2005-2007, but I would think 'small sample size' applies to his .278 BA, .358 OBP. If he is indeed healthy, it will be interesting to see what he can do.
Born 4/14/1983 6'1'' 185 Bats: Left Throws: Right
No Major League Stats for 2007
Fiorentino did not get called up by the Reds last season, and the A's claimed him off waivers by taking Ruddy Lugo off the 40 man roster. He played a handful of games in the big leagues in 2006, but overall, it seems like his appeal has gone down in the last couple of years.
Born: 10/17/1985 6'1'' 200 Bats & Throws: Left
No Major League Stats
Acquired in the Haren trade, Gonzalez looks like the top prospect in the A's system right now. He hit .288 with 17 home runs last year, but is billed as the opposite of what the A's stand for; i.e. his walks/strikeout rate is certainly in need of improvement.
Born 04/09/1985 5'10'' 205 Bats & Throws: Right
No Major League Stats
Herrera missed all of 2006 with a torn elbow ligament, but returned last year (high-A, I believe) with a decent, but not great, season. There is minimal information available on his progress since, and I imagine we will learn more as the season gets underway.
Born: 09/17/1983 5'9'' 215 Bats & Throws: Left
No Major League Stats
Robnett spent most of last season in AA, hitting .267 with 18 HR, and 74 RBIs in 120 games before his promotion to Triple-A, where he played ten games.
Born 02/20/1985 6'4'' 215 Bats & Throws: Left
2007 Stats: 45 ABs, .200 BA, 1 HR, 5 RBI
Acquired from the White Sox in the Nick Swisher trade, Sweeney has had a couple of call-ups with the White Sox, but had very limited playing time to prove himself. In 105 games in Triple-A last year, Sweeney hit .270 with 10 HRs, 17 2Bs and 47 RBIs.
Who else do you think could make a Spring Training surge for a position? Who will start/platoon? And how will they do?
0 recs | 87 comments
Thanks for the info.....
there is another name on the 40 man that I know very little about, who is the pitcher Jeff Grey?
Dalesman - February 24, 2008
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14 / 481 + Cust - Stewart -Scoot (Gallego) < Hubbard + !
*
OBP / Ratto + Bonds @ we're out of polish sausages
________________________________________
wait another two innings
=
Steiny
And there you have it.
"baaaalk! baaaaaaalk!"
What's a balk again?
Dork - February 24, 2008
posted in the wrong thread
my bad!
Dork - February 24, 2008
This would have had meaning....
somewhere else?
alox - February 24, 2008
heater car smartly crease while under the hill.
although there were no piglets to be seen.
Seriously, WTF was that post about?
BWH - February 24, 2008
I think he was trying
(and failing miserably, I might add) to make fun of SABR-nerds.
PaulThomas - February 24, 2008
fans on LSD and slam poetry
would have no idea what that guy was trying to say.
BWH - February 24, 2008
Okay, so if you read every other word, it makes some
sense, at least for a while, before tailing off into the seats, to the left of the foul pole.
The Dogfather - February 24, 2008
Well Dork...
Some of us need to brush up on our sarcasm. Sarcasm as I see it is a moderately gentle tap on someone's shoulder to maybe point out an opposing point of view. Not a Hydrogen bomb designed to kill every living thing within sight.
IM4Oakgal - February 24, 2008
it sounds like you really know what sarcasm is
rebus - February 24, 2008
witty reply
with a little bit of pink feather boa thrown in to the laugh
hee
hee
waits for niko on pins and needles
tickle us
Dork - February 24, 2008
Speaking of Hydrogen bombs...
I guess I have to add them to the list of things that have turned out to be disappointments. Talk about things that have failed to live up to expectations. I spent my formative years fearing the firestorm from the sky that would effectively end life on the planet as we know it.
So I'm watching a documentary on the discovery channel about Bikini Atoll, the site where the U.S. tested hydrogen warheads. The concrete and steel footings from the tower that held the bomb are still intact....albeit under thirty feet of water. Fish are swimming around it with the usual amount of gills and fins, and people can actually walk around the island unprotected. They do recommend against eating the coconuts
I was expecting total desolation and a breeding ground for ten thousand years worth of freaks. It's a damn shame when even the H-bomb lets you down.
alox - February 24, 2008
total desolation and a breeding ground for ten thousand years worth of freaks
No, that's AN immediately after the Haren and Swisher trades.
monkeyball - February 25, 2008
Shannon Stewart signs with Toronto....
I wonder why the A's didn't attempt to re-sign Stewart before he signed a minor league
deal with the Blue Jays.
Seems to me he would have been a better option than Emil Brown
athleticsBB4life - February 24, 2008
one problem
is that Stewart is limited to LF. Brown at least can play all the OF positions.
I think the A's were hoping/expecting Stewart to sign a major league contract, thus ensuring an additional draft pick.
OaklandSi - February 24, 2008
Sigh.....
This means that we get no compensation pick right?
Coffee13eans - February 24, 2008
on the contrary
according to baseball musings. Oakland gets pick 39.
BWH - February 24, 2008
I thought
that for the A's to get a compensation pick for Stewart he would have to sign a major league contract not a minor.
Coffee13eans - February 24, 2008
so did i
until I read the blurb about it over at baseballmusings.com.
BWH - February 24, 2008
At Baseball Primer....
they have a small article mentioning stewart's minor league contract and keith law comments that the A's would only get the compensation pick if stewart makes the opening day roster.
Coffee13eans - February 24, 2008
If that's the case,
here's hoping for a reed Johnson injury.
BWH - February 24, 2008
One less guy in the log jam.
I wish Stewart well. He did a good job for us.
IM4Oakgal - February 24, 2008
I agree
Lets wait another two innings and bring in Steiny. After all, he never played in the outfiled, so he should have fresh knees now, and remember, he hit a homer in his first at bat, and while that has no relevance to this posting, it does add to the comedic silliness.
Bring Back Rickie!!!!
since72 - February 24, 2008
Umm...
you mean Rickey Henderson?
Shippee33 - February 24, 2008
Stewart
Hey -- does anyone know if we get a supplemental first round pick as compensation for Stewart? I only ask because he signed a minor league deal - so I wonder if he has to make the team for us to get the pick or if we get the shaft.
gorickeygo - February 24, 2008
I expect Sweeney
to surprise the A's and make the team although he does have an option remaining. He was the player the Chisox really didn't want to lose but BB insisted on getting him. Denofria is the biggest question mark, coming off an injury, always highly rated but in fact has done very little. It will be enjoyable watching it all work itself out, most interesting Spring in many years.
Laoren - February 24, 2008
Yeah, those 19th round picks
Always highly rated, all right.
PaulThomas - February 24, 2008
Sweeney was highly rated -- at least
for a while -- by the White Sox, not on the basis of when he was drafted, but by his early success in the minor leagues. Some have written that his early success at the age of 19 may have actually hurt him, in that the White Sox rushed him through the system a bit more than they should have.
OaklandSi - February 24, 2008
Why do you find it
necessary to be sarcastic? You know what I meant but guess you felt compelled to write something so that you would be noticed. You are correct of course, if you feel it is important to be exactly correct. Will you please delete "always" so that you can rest comfortably tonight.
Laoren - February 24, 2008
Welcome to Athletics Nation
Ohhh, what's wrong - baby need a bottle? Don't you realize sarcasm when you read it - every word, every paragraph, every post. What's wrong - did you want to talk sports with this dip and not create fodder for "snarky" retorts, have your own little private giggle to yourself and feel mighty so you can be right on the internet? Maybe you'll find a few others to meet with and share numbers with and theorems. I wish you a good time here. What's a 'ground rule' ?
Dork - February 24, 2008
Did you choose your sig
because of its anatomical reference? Just wondering.
alox - February 24, 2008
I read every other word
but your post doesn't make any sense.
Elvez - February 24, 2008
Why do I find it necessary to be sarcastic?
Because you're ripping on a guy who hasn't played a game, even an exhibition game, in an A's uniform yet. He's barely even gotten a chance at the major league level.
And because your post was, when you strip it down to the essentials, false. He hasn't always been highly rated. I venture to guess he wouldn't even have been drafted without having one of the best seasons ever by any college baseball player, given the school and conference he was in. He obtained his high rating with several extremely strong minor league seasons.
And because, as many others will no doubt relate if I don't, I'm kind of his anointed defender at AN.
PaulThomas - February 24, 2008
I said it in another thread,
I think the A's value Sweeney quite a bit. I don't think he was some random 'plus prospect' to get back.
In fact, I would say foresight value of the Swisher deal hinges upon Sweeney being perceived as a regular at some point in the future. By my crude calculations, he would have to project somewhere around 4 WAB to make the trade even.
As an aside, I've been thinking about this for a few weeks now after reading the recent THT articles on the Santana deal. Part 2 is here (which also has a link to part 1)
rebus - February 24, 2008
Rich Harden
Was drafted in the 17th round, and he was very highly rated until injuries started to derail his progress in 2005
Shippee33 - February 24, 2008
He was a draft-and-follow, though
Those operate (or rather, operated, since you can't do it anymore) under a different set of rules. The question with D&Fs isn't the round, it's the bonus money they got when the team got around to signing them.
PaulThomas - February 24, 2008
Non-roster invitees
Danny Putnam-- played some games for Oakland last year, but has been basically unimpressive since the team drafted him
Aaron Cunningham-- prospect acquired in the Haren deal was given a spring-training invite, but has only a month or so above Single-A
Todd Linden-- Once a top Giants prospect (homered 55 times in two seasons at AAA), but has failed to make an impression at the big-league level... although he also has never been given regular playing time at the big-league level, because the Giants kept blocking him with veterans. He seems like the top candidate to make the team from this group.
It certainly seems like we're looking at a Buck, Denorfia, Brown, Sweeney outfield group (with Cust as the 5th outfielder) but I think Linden could elbow Sweeney out of the way with a strong spring training. I can't see Carlos Gonzalez making the team at this point unless multiple players go down with injuries. As noted, he still needs to work on taking pitches.
PaulThomas - February 24, 2008
Probably
but I hope Brown is the one that gets shoved out of the way. I'd like to see Buck/Denorfia/Sweeney/Linden (or Gonzalez). I still don't get why Billy signed him, unless he's fungible, and Geren's comments about starting him in left don't support that theory.
jeepers - February 24, 2008
was Brown signed to a guaranteed MLB contract?
OaklandSi - February 24, 2008
Yes, he was.
1 year, $1.45M, with $1.5M in performance bonuses available.
jeepers - February 24, 2008
I think the real battle is between
Ryan Sweeney and Todd Linden.
Hopefully one of them hits well enough to securely place Emil Brown as 4th OF while Denorfia succeeds in center.
rebus - February 24, 2008
I think any discussion of the outfield
Should absolutely include Todd Linden, his AAA numbers are quite impressive even when adjusting for PCL factor.
I for one hope that he gets a chance, I'd love to see him have a great season, while allowing Sweeney some development at the minor league level (although his stagnation this past season is some cause for concern) and preserving the ever-precious service time for his prime seasons.
LysanderSpooner - February 24, 2008
lysander huh
one of my best friends played with him at sonoma last year
flipgatey3 - February 24, 2008
Actually the only year in which Linden's
AAA numbers are impressive, is 2005, and the really small sample in 2007.
In every other year, he has been around league average.
rfloh - February 24, 2008
Linden was not all that good in AAA
At 22, 2003, in AAA, 755 OPS in 120 PA, in the PCL, relative to a league average of 761.
At 23, 2003, in AAA, 747 OPS in 511 PA, in the PCL, relative to a league average of 747.
At 24, in AAA, 810 OPS in 552 PA, in the PCL, relative to a league average of 799.
At 25, his breakout year, in AAA, 1119 OPS in 415 PAs, relative to a league average of 792.
At 26, 834 OPS in 221 PA in AAA, relative to a league average of 757.
At 27, in only 57 PAs in AAA, 1016 OPS.
Except for that one year in 2005, he has been around an average offensive player. slightly above In AAA.
rfloh - February 24, 2008
I didn't say he was faboo...
the guy's clearly on a short leash performance-wise.
Still, compared to Cunningham and Putnam, he seems like by far the most likely guy to make the roster.
PaulThomas - February 25, 2008
Sorry, misread your post.
rfloh - February 25, 2008
one point about Buck last spring
As good as his spring was, it was injuries to presumed major league club outfielders (and others, such as DJ, that opened another spot and indicated that Swish might need to be available for 1B) that put him on the opening day 25-man roster. This was discussed quite a bit last spring. Otherwise Buck would have started out the season in Sacramento.
OaklandSi - February 24, 2008
Mike Sweeney!
for the outfield...maybe hes a diamond in the rough....or not
DyeLongJustice - February 24, 2008
Definitely one of the two.
Rocktopus - February 24, 2008
Huh
My prior post disappeared. I've been having issues with AN and my internet this morning.
Uh, anyway, I was going to say that I looked at the non-roster invitees, and only Todd Linden stood out to me as a guy with a chance to make the team. He hit 55 home runs in two seasons at AAA, but Giants prospect-hounds tell me that he has a hitch in his swing which has been exploited by major-league pitchers. He could win a job if he beats out Ryan Sweeney in spring training.
Get past the "former top prospect/disappointment" sheen and his resume actually doesn't look much different from Dana Eveland's, so this might not be a bad thing if he's fixed his swing over the offseason.
That being said, I still expect the team to break camp with Buck and Denorfia holding two OF jobs and Emil Brown and Ryan Sweeney in a pseudo-platoon arrangement in the third.
PaulThomas - February 24, 2008
It seems to me
that Linden had plenty of chances with the Giants to prove himself. I suspect he will perform about the same here.
IM4Oakgal - February 24, 2008
I see the possibility of a Cust/Brown platoon in LF
with a DJ/Mike platoon at DH and Ryan and Hannahan at AAA. Not a good defense of course, but the best chance to showcase DJ for a month while letting Ryan show his wrist is healed and Mike show his back is solid.
WaddellCanseco - February 24, 2008
I saw that Sal
gave Brown a positive review in The Hardball Times Season Preview. Maybe he can put his poor season behind him and go back to hitting.
IM4Oakgal - February 24, 2008
I actually didn't write the Brown comment.
salb918 - February 24, 2008
Sorry then.
Who did?
IM4Oakgal - February 24, 2008
Hmm...not sure.
I think Bradford Doolittle. Anyway, it was all a group effort.
salb918 - February 24, 2008
OK
Apologies again...I thought all of the A's comments were yours.
IM4Oakgal - February 24, 2008
I don't know
what I would have done without some sarcasm here. I might have gotten my feelings hurt. Thanks for contributing!
Dork - February 24, 2008
Sorry that I can't
say the same to you.
IM4Oakgal - February 24, 2008
awww
I follow your sarcasm.
Thanks for being friendly
:)
Dork - February 24, 2008
I see expungement in your future.
Ice Cream - February 24, 2008
Soon, I hope.
salb918 - February 24, 2008
Anybody else find "Dork"
reminiscent of Czech Micah? We're long overdue for a new spate of sock puppet trolling from that source.
FreeSeatUpgrade - February 24, 2008
Wasn't here then
but a quick search reveals the truth of your statement.
doctorK - February 24, 2008
"doctorK" - "cto" = ...
monkeyball - February 25, 2008
I'd like to admit to having a troll alter-ego
but I'd be lying.
doctorK - February 25, 2008
No need to be sorry.
Just giving credit where due...
salb918 - February 24, 2008
Why does everyone seem to be anti-Brown?
Well, not "everyone," but I keep reading posts like, "I hope Sweeney/Linden has a great spring and unseats Brown ..."
How come no one is writing, "I hope Brown kicks butt this spring and surprises everyone!"
I don't think it has anything to do with his ethnicity (at least I hope not,) but it sure seems like there aren't many AN'ers rooting for him.
Vacafan - February 24, 2008
It's because Beane hates
players over 26 years old. Apparently, so do we.
alox - February 24, 2008
At least
players over 26 years old that suck.
doctorK - February 24, 2008
Then maybe this spring
Crosby finally has a reason to worry....
alox - February 24, 2008
personally,
the main reasons are:
1. always seems to find a way to make a boneheaded play.
2. doesn't have Sweeney's track record or minor league contract.
3. is older than Linden and has a MLB contract.
rebus - February 24, 2008
oh,
plus, i'm not convinced he can spot centerfield if necessary. i think the last time he played there was 3 years ago... for the Pirates.
rebus - February 24, 2008
I see Brown as Jay Payton except crappy in CF.
So if he's your starting LF you've got a bad hitting but possibly good fielding LF.
WaddellCanseco - February 24, 2008
Simple answer:
If Denorfia, say, does great, the A's could have him for five years.
If Brown does great, he's still probably moving on next year, if not sooner. (Although it would boost his potential trade/free agent compensation value, which is good.)
I mean, I would certainly like to see him reprise his 2006 year-- I just don't think it's as important for the franchise's future as Denorfia or Gonzalez having good seasons.
PaulThomas - February 24, 2008
It's weird to me that I am older than 3 of them.
I don't have anything else new and different to say about this haha can't wait to see who makes it, though. Should be an interesting spring.
drmmerchk - February 24, 2008
you'll get used to being older
than the players...;-)
OaklandSi - February 24, 2008
Too true, dammit
doctorK - February 24, 2008
That's why golf is such a nice sport.
At this point, it's way too late for me to decide to go pro in baseball, but if I have another 30 years to decide whether I wanna take up golf.
Rocktopus - February 24, 2008
That's awesome.
I've been making a similar point to a golfing buddy of mine for a while now. Even though I mostly suck right now, I figure I'll be decades ahead of a lot of the other retired guys I'll be playing against in 30 years.
Elvez - February 24, 2008
but it's so weird!! I'm barely over the fact that when I watch a college football game, EVERYONE is younger than me haha
drmmerchk - February 24, 2008
I LOVE that you don't use the subject! We need to start that trend!
baseballgirl - February 25, 2008
no, we don't
monkeyball - February 25, 2008
I can't help it
It's there, begging me to type in the space.
67MARQUEZ - February 25, 2008
It's just easier! I hate coming up with subjects in emails too, actually... but after careful consideration I manage to deal with that. I will do my best to keep the trend going, but I might forget in the heat of a game thread and only put a subject. :)
drmmerchk - February 26, 2008
Interesting...
McFood - February 25, 2008
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