2016 MLB thread. THE CUBS HAVE BROKEN THE CURSE! Chicago Cubs are your 2016 World Series champions
- Thread in 'Sports & Training' Thread starter Started by proshares,
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We've had mock ups of the future San Jose A's logo. Looks just like the current logo but it replaces 'Oakland' with 'San Jose.' To be honest I'm hoping for a mild change to our logo, but as it is now I'm okay with it.
I'm actually hoping the A's buy out the San Jose Giants and take their "SJ" hat and use it as an alternate hat. Looks nice
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Well, for how entertaining this HOF story has been lately it's probably going to be even better on the stage if and when these guys DO get in 
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Braves putting in moves Cant wait to see how this turns out
Cant wait to see how this turns out
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We have an all black outfield
The infield looks set for the next 2-3 years, pitching staff is legit as usual, now we have to make noise in the postseason.
The infield looks set for the next 2-3 years, pitching staff is legit as usual, now we have to make noise in the postseason.
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Mets aint winning **** for the next decade
Arizona didn't get enough for Upton.
Atlanta didn't specifically need Justin Upton to be playoff contenders again in 2013, but having him certainly helps, and since they got him for about fifty cents on the dollar, they should be over the moon about the deal they wrapped up today, which restores what they've lost with Michael Bourn's departure and sets them up well for the two years that follow as well.
[+] Enlarge
AP Photo/Chris O'Meara
The Upton brothers -- B.J. on the left, Justin on the right -- are booked for the same outfield.
Even playing hurt through much of the season, Upton's 2012 was still valuable, just nowhere close to his full potential when healthy and when his timing at the plate is right, as it was in 2011 when he was worth around six wins above replacement. Upton has some of the best bat speed and the strongest wrists in the game, generating hard contact and easy power, similar to Andrew McCutchen when he's squaring the ball up consistently; in 2012, Upton's timing was off for much of the year, and he was popping up a lot of pitches on the inner half that, the year before, he would have driven out to the left-center gap or out of the park. Much of this was likely tied to a thumb injury he suffered in the third game of the season but never addressed with time off. Hand injuries of any sort tend to sap power by reducing a hitter's ability to make hard contact, and that was a major issue for Upton all year.
Defensively, he's an outstanding right fielder who'll be just as good in left, assuming Atlanta leaves Jason Heyward -- himself a plus-plus glove in right -- in his current spot. Way too much has been made of Upton's home/road splits; talented players in extreme parks often produce extreme splits where neither half measures their true talent, with Matt Holliday a solid, recent example. Upton's ability to hit and hit for power has never been tied to the ballpark, but to his bat speed, his wrist acceleration, and his eye at the plate. If he's healthy in 2012 and gets some support from his new coaching staff, he should become a top 10 player in the league again, and at an average of just under $13 million a year for the next three seasons, he'll be a relative bargain for his new employers.
Atlanta also gets Chris Johnson as a throw-in who might split time at third base with Juan Francisco in what will probably be the team's weakest position unless they've got one more move up their sleeves, but the overall improvement is worth creating this small and perhaps temporary void in their lineup. They weren't going to be able to directly replace the retired Chipper Jones, especially not in a terrible offseason market for third base help, but the net result here is about as positive as Atlanta fans could have hoped for.
Did Arizona get enough?
The Diamondbacks' new strategy seems to be to trade any player that manager Kirk Gibson doesn't like, regardless of the reason. For the second time this offseason, they've made such a deal and taken less than full value in return for a player the whole industry knew the team wanted to move. At some point, they're going to have to stop blaming the players.
Arizona's return boils down to this: One year of Martin Prado, six years of a fifth starter in Randall Delgado, two fringy prospects, and one non-prospect. If that sounds like a good deal to you, I have some beachfront property in Phoenix to sell you.
Prado is a versatile player who'll probably be Arizona's full-time third baseman, solving a need for the club in 2013 but at an exorbitant cost, since he's a free agent after the 2013 season. He's an above-average defender at third who generates most of his offensive value with high contact rates; when he hits .300, which he's done three times in the last four seasons, he's potentially a three- to four-win player at third base. (His WAR figures overstate his value somewhat with inflated defensive figures in left field.) He doesn't walk much or have power, nor is that likely to change given his age -- he might creep up closer to 20 homers playing 90 games a year in Chase Field and Coors -- so this is a bet that he'll keep making contact and fill the void at third. That's enough to offset the loss of Upton's bat and glove for one season.
Dale Zanine/US Presswire
Randall Delgado's ceiling might be as a 4th or 5th starter.
Delgado is a fastball/changeup guy in search of an average breaking ball, without success so far, surviving by changing speeds and by keeping the two-seamer down enough to generate groundballs; if he were to bump up his control by a grade or two, he's got a chance to be league-average in some years, but the lack of an average curveball or slider will make it hard for him to miss enough bats. He reminds me in some ways of Pat Corbin, another changeup guy who's serviceable in the back of the rotation but who looked dynamite out of the pen in brief stints for Arizona in 2012. (You can be very good in a relief role with just two pitches.)
Nick Ahmed was the 9th-best prospect in Atlanta's system, a good defensive shortstop with a plus-plus arm but very little offensive upside; he loads his hands very deep, leading to a long swing, and doesn't have the plate discipline to allow him to compensate.
Zeke Spruill was 7th on my Atlanta rankings, with a low-90s fastball that has some tailing life, keeping the ball down but not enough to make him a true groundball guy; he's got an average slider in the 82-84 mph range and a hard changeup (almost split-like) in the 85-87 range that was very effective against left-handed hitters this year, giving him no platoon split at all in Class AA. He's very slight of build and tends to sling the ball a little from a low 3/4 slot, so I don't know how durable he is. Add in the fact that he doesn't miss a lot of bats with three average pitches and it doesn't bode well for him to be more than a back-end starter.
It's not a coincidence that both guys, like Didi Gregorius (acquired in the Trevor Bauer trade), played in the Arizona Fall League last year, where Arizona GM Kevin Towers could see them personally. The last player in the deal, Brandon Drury, is a non-prospect, with no performance behind him and no clear position. I wouldn't trade Upton's 2014 and 2015 seasons, at good prices, for these four young guys. But that is, in effect, what Arizona did.
[+] Enlarge
AP Photo/Chris O'Meara
The Upton brothers -- B.J. on the left, Justin on the right -- are booked for the same outfield.
Even playing hurt through much of the season, Upton's 2012 was still valuable, just nowhere close to his full potential when healthy and when his timing at the plate is right, as it was in 2011 when he was worth around six wins above replacement. Upton has some of the best bat speed and the strongest wrists in the game, generating hard contact and easy power, similar to Andrew McCutchen when he's squaring the ball up consistently; in 2012, Upton's timing was off for much of the year, and he was popping up a lot of pitches on the inner half that, the year before, he would have driven out to the left-center gap or out of the park. Much of this was likely tied to a thumb injury he suffered in the third game of the season but never addressed with time off. Hand injuries of any sort tend to sap power by reducing a hitter's ability to make hard contact, and that was a major issue for Upton all year.
Defensively, he's an outstanding right fielder who'll be just as good in left, assuming Atlanta leaves Jason Heyward -- himself a plus-plus glove in right -- in his current spot. Way too much has been made of Upton's home/road splits; talented players in extreme parks often produce extreme splits where neither half measures their true talent, with Matt Holliday a solid, recent example. Upton's ability to hit and hit for power has never been tied to the ballpark, but to his bat speed, his wrist acceleration, and his eye at the plate. If he's healthy in 2012 and gets some support from his new coaching staff, he should become a top 10 player in the league again, and at an average of just under $13 million a year for the next three seasons, he'll be a relative bargain for his new employers.
Atlanta also gets Chris Johnson as a throw-in who might split time at third base with Juan Francisco in what will probably be the team's weakest position unless they've got one more move up their sleeves, but the overall improvement is worth creating this small and perhaps temporary void in their lineup. They weren't going to be able to directly replace the retired Chipper Jones, especially not in a terrible offseason market for third base help, but the net result here is about as positive as Atlanta fans could have hoped for.
Did Arizona get enough?
The Diamondbacks' new strategy seems to be to trade any player that manager Kirk Gibson doesn't like, regardless of the reason. For the second time this offseason, they've made such a deal and taken less than full value in return for a player the whole industry knew the team wanted to move. At some point, they're going to have to stop blaming the players.
Arizona's return boils down to this: One year of Martin Prado, six years of a fifth starter in Randall Delgado, two fringy prospects, and one non-prospect. If that sounds like a good deal to you, I have some beachfront property in Phoenix to sell you.
Prado is a versatile player who'll probably be Arizona's full-time third baseman, solving a need for the club in 2013 but at an exorbitant cost, since he's a free agent after the 2013 season. He's an above-average defender at third who generates most of his offensive value with high contact rates; when he hits .300, which he's done three times in the last four seasons, he's potentially a three- to four-win player at third base. (His WAR figures overstate his value somewhat with inflated defensive figures in left field.) He doesn't walk much or have power, nor is that likely to change given his age -- he might creep up closer to 20 homers playing 90 games a year in Chase Field and Coors -- so this is a bet that he'll keep making contact and fill the void at third. That's enough to offset the loss of Upton's bat and glove for one season.
Dale Zanine/US Presswire
Randall Delgado's ceiling might be as a 4th or 5th starter.
Delgado is a fastball/changeup guy in search of an average breaking ball, without success so far, surviving by changing speeds and by keeping the two-seamer down enough to generate groundballs; if he were to bump up his control by a grade or two, he's got a chance to be league-average in some years, but the lack of an average curveball or slider will make it hard for him to miss enough bats. He reminds me in some ways of Pat Corbin, another changeup guy who's serviceable in the back of the rotation but who looked dynamite out of the pen in brief stints for Arizona in 2012. (You can be very good in a relief role with just two pitches.)
Nick Ahmed was the 9th-best prospect in Atlanta's system, a good defensive shortstop with a plus-plus arm but very little offensive upside; he loads his hands very deep, leading to a long swing, and doesn't have the plate discipline to allow him to compensate.
Zeke Spruill was 7th on my Atlanta rankings, with a low-90s fastball that has some tailing life, keeping the ball down but not enough to make him a true groundball guy; he's got an average slider in the 82-84 mph range and a hard changeup (almost split-like) in the 85-87 range that was very effective against left-handed hitters this year, giving him no platoon split at all in Class AA. He's very slight of build and tends to sling the ball a little from a low 3/4 slot, so I don't know how durable he is. Add in the fact that he doesn't miss a lot of bats with three average pitches and it doesn't bode well for him to be more than a back-end starter.
It's not a coincidence that both guys, like Didi Gregorius (acquired in the Trevor Bauer trade), played in the Arizona Fall League last year, where Arizona GM Kevin Towers could see them personally. The last player in the deal, Brandon Drury, is a non-prospect, with no performance behind him and no clear position. I wouldn't trade Upton's 2014 and 2015 seasons, at good prices, for these four young guys. But that is, in effect, what Arizona did.
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We've had mock ups of the future San Jose A's logo. Looks just like the current logo but it replaces 'Oakland' with 'San Jose.' To be honest I'm hoping for a mild change to our logo, but as it is now I'm okay with it.
I'm actually hoping the A's buy out the San Jose Giants and take their "SJ" hat and use it as an alternate hat. Looks nice
Its funny that you bring up the San Jose Giants.....because honestly that is the only thing that bothers me personally about the move to San Jose. I dont buy for a second that the A's would take the SF Giants corporate sponsors, and that will in turn hurt our team. What bothers me is that we will likely have to move our minor league team to another area.
San Jose Giants games are incredibly fun to go to. Been going to games since I was a little kid. They have an amazing barbeque, and of course its baseball. Not sure if they do this in other stadiums, but they pick one player on the opposing team and call him "the beer batter" for the game. If that batter strikes out, beer is two bucks for an inning. Little things that make the game more fun.
I am really going to miss the SJ Giants if Major League Baseball forces them to move.
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Am I the only one who thinks the Upton brothers in ATL might be an issue 
lightweight champion
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For ATL or the majors?
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Am I the only one who thinks the Upton brothers in ATL might be an issue
i got that feeling too but i'm excited to see how they play together.
Am I the only one who thinks the Upton brothers in ATL might be an issue
Well they both supposedly have a terrible work ethic so I could see that being true. I personally think it's not an issue.
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I can see them bringing out the best in each other
just a hunch
just a hunch
jumpmanfromdabay
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man i cant decide who has a better outfield
justin upton b.j. upton jason heyward
or
carl crawford matt kemp andre eithier
justin upton b.j. upton jason heyward
or
carl crawford matt kemp andre eithier
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man i cant decide who has a better outfield
justin upton b.j. upton jason heyward
or
carl crawford matt kemp andre eithier
I think the Dodgers outfield becomes questionable when you consider the history of injuries for all the players mentioned.
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man i cant decide who has a better outfield
justin upton b.j. upton jason heyward
or
carl crawford matt kemp andre eithier
Even though Matt Kemp is a superstar and hands down the best player of the 6, I'll take the Braves outfield. Crawford is going to miss half of 2013 (right?), and hasnt been Carl Crawford for a couple years. Andre Ethier is an overpaid platoon player.
A better question would be who has the better outfield, the Braves or the Angels. Scratch that. Thats not a better question. The Angels have the best outfield in the Major Leagues. Followed by the Braves.
man i cant decide who has a better outfield
justin upton b.j. upton jason heyward
or
carl crawford matt kemp andre eithier
That's not even a question
even if Kemp carries them.
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Braves outfield is :x
I'm excited to see them play this year. Think the brothers might feed off each other
I'm excited to see them play this year. Think the brothers might feed off each other
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Yeah, those damn injuries.
Dodger OF is also older, not necessarily a good thing. Kemp had an amazing 2011 and got off to a great start in 2012, then the wheels fell off, literally (Hammy). Ethier still cant hit a LHP to save his life, but has 25-30 HR pop with good gap power. Crawford, think they are projecting him to come back in May, but might be ready by opening day. Subpar 2011, injury wiped out 2012. We'll see if he regains his form.
Braves, not sold, not a huge fan of the Upton brothers simply because of their **** attitude,
. Justin can be great, but when that light switch is off, it's off. Heyward was a phenom, hitting 23, could still be what he was projected to become... basically what Trout and Harper are now. Never been a fan of BJ, good speed, 20-25 HR a year type pop. Heyward and BJ are both sub .275 hitters. That Braves lineup though, is nice, and young too. They know how to build 'em in the ATL.Two horse race, and I still think the Nats take it if their pitching doesn't implode. Don't see the Phillies, Mets or Marlins competing. Phils haven't aged well, Mets are broke and the Marlins got rid of everybody.
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Heyward still is a phenom. He bounced back great last year after major shoulder problems. Another leap is coming.
Mets actually have some talent. Not to compete for the title but to stay competitive in most games throughout the year. Same with the Phillies, I'd never count those 3 pitchers out.
Mets actually have some talent. Not to compete for the title but to stay competitive in most games throughout the year. Same with the Phillies, I'd never count those 3 pitchers out.
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that braves outfield is so nasty man i cant wait til the season start i will be in attendance
mr marcus
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Nats still taking the division
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Wait and see, he had a lot of hype coming in. He's only 23, so he's a young star. Phenom, nah, wouldn't call him that.
He'll continue to get better though.
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