2019 Spring Training Starts

[fish16]

our lineup is gonna be just flat bad this year obviously but im really excited to see how this young sp depth fares this year. Sandy should be in the rotation all year and i think we should be able to see what we have in guys like richards, lopez, gallen, neidert, smith, etc. Our upper minors sp rotations are going to be deep and promising for the first time in a long time. no more rotations where like 5 of 6 guys are 25 year old non prospects.

[fauowls44]

Andre Fernandez

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Mattingly also said Curtis Granderson had a little soreness in a calf and has him running the bases today in that sim game. Wanted him to test it before putting him in an exhibition game. #Marlins @TheAthleticMIA

6:43 AM - 26 Feb 2019 from Jupiter, FL

Guess that answers my question.

[emkayseven]

our lineup is gonna be just flat bad this year obviously but im really excited to see how this young sp depth fares this year. Sandy should be in the rotation all year and i think we should be able to see what we have in guys like richards, lopez, gallen, neidert, smith, etc. Our upper minors sp rotations are going to be deep and promising for the first time in a long time. no more rotations where like 5 of 6 guys are 25 year old non prospects.

Whole team is gonna be bad. It's not about that. In no particular order the points of interest on the major league team are:

-Can Brinson be good?
-What does Alfaro's bat look like?
-Is Sandy a front line starter?
-Will Anderson repeat his 2018 success?
-How well can Grandy and Walker play to net us something at the deadine?

[fish16]

Whole team is gonna be bad. It's not about that. In no particular order the points of interest on the major league team are:

-Can Brinson be good?
-What does Alfaro's bat look like?
-Is Sandy a front line starter?
-Will Anderson repeat his 2018 success?
-How well can Grandy and Walker play to net us something at the deadine?

pretty much nailed it but id also add evaluation of sp's like lopez, richards, and even further development and a possible next step from urena. Its brinson, anderson, alfaro, and the pitchers

[lou]

Whole team is gonna be bad. It's not about that. In no particular order the points of interest on the major league team are:

-Can Brinson be good?
-What does Alfaro's bat look like?
-Is Sandy a front line starter?
-Will Anderson repeat his 2018 success?
-How well can Grandy and Walker play to net us something at the deadine?

Agree completely with Brinson, Alfaro, and Anderson, who ideally are three longterm position players and cumulatively are 7.5+ WAR

But, can Sandy be more than a 5th SP/Reliever (which is practically, a good thing. I'll take a "good 4" for sure)

And I'll say the same thing about Ca. Smith, Richards, Pablo, and Neidert, who should all be getting 10+ starts minimum

And maybe I have a soft spot here, but I think Riddle can be sneaky pretty good if he can hit right handers. His BABIP was terrible, he had a big RHP splits disparity, and his defense is great. He hits a .750 OPS vs RHP, he is basically an average MLB starter. That would be fantastic.

[Nick]

We need to solidify at least 3 rotation spots going forward this year. Hopefully between Alcantara, Ca. Smith, Richards, Pablo, Urena and Neidert we can do that. Alcantara showing some 2-3 potential would be nice. Him only developing into a 5th/reliever would be a disappointment. Brinson this year is make or break for him, Alfaro and Anderson's spots are more solidified, but need to show some improvement. That's about the extent of the intrigue for me with the major league team this year until guys like Diaz, Mesa and Harrison make it to the bigs.

[emkayseven]

Urena is trash and I'll be shocked if he's even a starter next season.

I didn't name the other guys because in my mind there's no doubt that Pablo/Richards/Caleb are back end guys and I don't see a huge ceiling (except maybe Richards who could go on a nice tear if he keeps fooling hitters).

[lou]

Urena is trash and I'll be shocked if he's even a starter next season.

I didn't name the other guys because in my mind there's no doubt that Pablo/Richards/Caleb are back end guys and I don't see a huge ceiling (except maybe Richards who could go on a nice tear if he keeps fooling hitters).

Urena took a big step forward last year and had a nice FIP. Not sure I can agree there.

Also, his first two times through the order splits are objectively good - http://www.espn.com/mlb/player/split...type/pitching3

They should let someone be an opener through first 4-5 batters in the lineup, and then let him rip for the next 18+ hitters. Never let him pitch against the top of the order a 3rd time.

[emkayseven]

I agree about using him with an opener, and I made that point on Twitter a few weeks back. Trash might have been harsh, but I don’t think he starts with this team next season. We have too many other arms and most of them are better than he is. He’s a back end 4.50 era type.

[tjfla]

Whole team is gonna be bad. It's not about that. In no particular order the points of interest on the major league team are:

-Can Brinson be good?
-What does Alfaro's bat look like?
-Is Sandy a front line starter?
-Will Anderson repeat his 2018 success?
-How well can Grandy and Walker play to net us something at the deadine?

Yep 2019 is about 3 things

#1 See who can stick on the ML Roster starting in 2020
#2 If guys arent gonna be on it get rid of them(Trade/DFA)for guys u like and hit draft hard for talent
#3 See if Trey Hillman is the guy for the job in 2020

[Nick]

I agree about using him with an opener, and I made that point on Twitter a few weeks back. Trash might have been harsh, but I don’t think he starts with this team next season. We have too many other arms and most of them are better than he is. He’s a back end 4.50 era type.

I mean in his two full seasons as a starter he's put up a 3.90 ERA. Even if he just remains at that level, that's a guy who is going to remain a starter for years to come even if he's nothing special.

[tjfla]

I agree about using him with an opener, and I made that point on Twitter a few weeks back. Trash might have been harsh, but I don’t think he starts with this team next season. We have too many other arms and most of them are better than he is. He’s a back end 4.50 era type.

The hope for Urena is he look amazing this year and they either have a #2 or some team likes what they seem and make an offer for him. They have tons of SP depth and most are better than him plus are gonna have a nice rotation in AA in 2020

Urena is just like Straily. They would love for a team to make an offer for him issue is ALOT of teams see Urena as a RP still

[emkayseven]

That 3.90 ERA is buoyed by a lot of outside factors. .249 BABIP in 2017, .272 in 2018. xFIP was 5.29 in 2017, 4.32 in 2018. Most projections have him around a 4.40 ERA this season.

[tjfla]

Dean had a good game yesterday and Riley Ferrell was impressive. Urena struggled with command a bit, but his stuff looked good.

Interesting that Granderson has yet to get in a game. They just posted today's lineup and he is not in this game either. Not sure if he's hurt or they are just letting him go at his own pace. Still think they need to sign 1 more OF though.

Don't forget just because guys don't get into a ST game doesn't mean they aren't playing. They have ST games,B Games,Simulated Games and starting in 2 weeks minor league games. Unless guys have major injuries most are "playing" in something

If u go to Roger Dean u can seem 3 or 4 "games" at once on backfields

[Todd]

Alcantara showing some 2-3 potential would be nice. Him only developing into a 5th/reliever would be a disappointment.

I don't think "disappointment" is the right word. With the amount of talent in the Cardinals system, Ozuna still having two years of control and coming off a near MVP caliber year, and the fact that Sierra is a poor defender who cant hit a lick and Caleb Smith might be a decent stopgap 5th starter, Alcantara almost has to become a bonafide ace if not top end #2 for that trade not to be horrifically bad. If he ends up at the back of the rotation or in the pen, it is arguably one of the worst trades the club has ever made.