Brewers acquire Nyjer Morgan -- Latest: Audio Fun, a must-listen, but the Nationals won't be amused

[PrinceEatMeat]

My question is why are we keeping Kotsay over Boggs?

 

Because apparently Melvin wants to use a roster spot on a second bench coach.

Good answer. I can't see any reason talent-wise, and I don't think anyone else can either. Now we might lose Boggs on waivers instead of keeping him over Kotsay. Especially with Morgan on the team now there is absolutely no reason for Kotsay to be on this roster. Morgan is better than him, and should play RF until Hart is back. I would rather have the switch-hitting bat of Boggs, than another left-handed bat in Kotsay. Boggs also plays the field way better, and would've allowed us to keep Cruz over Almonte, because we'd have him as a righty bat off the bench and could then worry more about defense.

[TooLiveBrew]

I wonder if there's some secret society of guys like Kendall & Kotsay. The 25-Man Cockroach Club?

[monty57]

It will be interesting to see who they start in RF until Hart returns. Prior to this trade, I figured Kotsay was a lock, but we'll see if they take better defense / higher OBP over slightly more power, and a better personality.

I sure hope that Roenicke takes nothing into account when making a lineup out due to personality.

 

:-) That was in reference to a post (I believe by endaround) noting that earlier this spring McGehee was gushing about what a great person and good locker room influence Kotsay is. It seems to be to be at least part of the reason why Kotsay was basically given a roster spot from the day he was signed, while younger, more talented players like Boggs and Dickerson have had to fight tooth-and-nail.

 

Other than personality/"good locker room influence"/"veteran presence" I don't see any reason why Kotsay or Reed are on the team over Boggs. The argument could've been made that we needed Reed as a backup CF, but with Morgan, that argument is shot. Boggs would give us a younger, cheaper player who hits better and plays better defense than Kotsay and also hits from both sides of the plate, which is important when most of our bench is LH.

 

That said, after the Brad Nelson/Chris Duffy experiment, I think Melvin genuinely believes that veterans are better off the bench than young, less experienced players.

[brettac1]

I don't get it, really. Is it a mission to try and have the worst offensive CF tandem in MLB?

 

I guess if Roenicke doesn't let Morgan run, it wouldn't be the worst 5th OF in MLB, but since he can't hit, either, what's the point?

The point is that a) aside from power, Morgan has been a solid offensive player, save last year, and b) he covers a heck of a lot of ground in the OF.

 

I always find it funny that so many people expect Melvin to be able to fill every spot on the roster with guys who can hit .300, smack 20 homers, and be Gold Glove defenders. Not every guy on the team, and even in the starting lineup, is going to be really good, and even the best ones usually have deficiencies in some areas.

 

Morgan is a pretty decent 4th OF.

I certainly don't expect him to fill the roster with those guys... I have probably been as pro-Melvin as anyone here, over his entire tenure. I just would have much rather had a power bat off the bench than a speed guy - especially when the guy runs into outs like it's going out of style.

[Oldcity]

This trade is fine, but I'm not sure why it needed to be preceded with a Dickerson trade? The outfield would look much better with Braun, Hart, Gomez, Dickerson, and Morgan. Mitre is still just a guy and there's no reason the Brewers needed him over Marco Estrada or anyone else.

[Weirdos19]

I think this addition does make the team better. You have to get on base to get thrown out. That may be the reason that he runs into more outs than Gomez.

 

And can we get rid of worrying about slugging percentage when we talk about players that can steal bases? A lot of those singles turn into doubles and doubles into triples.

 

And, Gomez starts in right when Hart is out of the lineup. He has the arm for it.

[brettac1]

I think this addition does make the team better. You have to get on base to get thrown out. That may be the reason that he runs into more outs than Gomez.

 

And can we get rid of worrying about slugging percentage when we talk about players that can steal bases? A lot of those singles turn into doubles and doubles into triples.

 

And, Gomez starts in right when Hart is out of the lineup. He has the arm for it.

I personally don't think that a guy that was 34/51 on SB's last season is all that good of a base stealer.

[Weirdos19]

But since his SB percentage is much higher versus RHP, and he isn't going to face lefties, that percentage should go up.

[brettac1]

Unless his speed is starting to slip, which I think is possible considering his lower BA/lower SB% last season.

[ELCABALLO45]

I think this addition does make the team better. You have to get on base to get thrown out. That may be the reason that he runs into more outs than Gomez.

 

And can we get rid of worrying about slugging percentage when we talk about players that can steal bases? A lot of those singles turn into doubles and doubles into triples.

 

And, Gomez starts in right when Hart is out of the lineup. He has the arm for it.

If Gomez is in the line up he better be in center.

[COBrewerfan]

I think this is a steal of a deal. Great 4th OF option. Guy had a down year last year but overall the guys gets on base and can steal bases. He just causes problems on the bases and does a good job in center. I don't see how some don't like this move. When compared to Reed, its not even close.

[BREWCREW5]

Not sure if it has been said before either, but Morgan always seemed to be a Brewer killer too. I love this trade.

[Mass Haas]

Morgan is in his final year of being pre-arby, another site listed him at $427,000 for 2011.

Morgan was added to a 40-man roster prior to the 2007 season, and options were used in 2007 and 2008, so should it come to that (unlikely), it appears he has an option remaining.

[brettac1]

Just to be clear, I'm not saying he's not better than Reed. He obviously is, but that doesn't make him good. The reserve OF situation isn't exactly pretty.

[LouisEly]

Ah, Nyjer Morgan. IIRC two seasons ago Fangraphs said he had more value than Ryan Braun, and I never looked at Fangraphs again. Yeah, defensive range and UZR is good but not quite as valuable as Fangraphs thinks it is. Let's hope that 2010 was an aberration and Morgan returns to his career average .360 OBP.

 

I had hopes that Dykstra would improve defensively and find a home somewhere on the diamond. Most guys who come out of high school aren't good defensively - it's a skill that has to be learned like hitting, and I thought he was still young enough where he could learn if he worked hard enough at it. I understand the need for a backup OF, but I am a little wary about giving up the guy who led the entire organization in OBP this past year, even if it was in low-A.

 

So of the three 2nd round picks in 2008, it looks like the net ML impact of those picks for the Brewers will be Nyjer Morgan. An example of how draft picks in baseball aren't as valuable as some think they are. Just because you got a Yo Gallardo one year in the 2nd round doesn't mean that's the norm; it's more the exception. If you want to take that a step further, the net impact of the six combined first and second round picks is Shawn Marcum, part of Zack Grienke (Cain and Jeffress were as much a part of the deal as Odorizzi), and Nyjer Morgan.

[bullox]

. An example of how draft picks in baseball aren't as valuable as some think they are...

the net impact of the six combined first and second round picks is Shawn Marcum, part of Zack Grienke (Cain and Jeffress were as much a part of the deal as Odorizzi), and Nyjer Morgan.

Two opening day starters (Greinke deal doesn't happen without Odorizzi) and another solid ML roster guy, and you're saying it's not a good thing? I'm confused.

[MNBrew]

monty57]....After the Brad Nelson/Chris Duffy experiment, I think Melvin genuinely believes that veterans are better off the bench than young, less experienced players.

I wrote about this issue several times over the winter. I've been somewhat intrigued all along by Dickerson &, though much less so, Boggs. But prior to the Kotsay signing, our IF/OF bench looked to be Counsell & a bunch of guys each w/ less than a year of MLB PAs (Dickerson, Boggs, & either Gamel or Cruz).

 

With the Duffy/Nelson experience too fresh in my mind, I was leery of a repeat of that nightmare. Now the bench has a lot more experience. Should any of these guys be completely terrible, there will be several intriguing & much younger options at Nashville ready to be brought up.

 

I still don't get all the Reed bashing. The guy was a very hot prospect w/ Seattle before injuries totally derailed his (potential) ascent. He was talked about as having far more promise than Dickerson or Boggs ever was. I'm not saying Reed would've been an All-Star or an offensive stud. But there's ability there that hopefully we see . . . . Of course, Hart's healthy soon & Reed's Brewers tenure could be rather short. But I still like having some quality depth w/ MLB experience waiting in AAA to go along with the Boggses, Schafers, & Gindls of the world (assuming Boggs makes it through waivers down to Nashville).

[RobDeer 45]

To date, has Morgan proved to be more valuable to a team winning games than Dickerson?

[JET15]

Morgan occasionally refers to himself as Tony Plush, which he states is his "Gentleman's name." - per wikipedia.

 

Welcome to Milwaukee, Tony.

I'd be worried if he referred to himself as "Tony Clifton", but I'm good with "Tony Plush" and the trade.

 

I like Lindy's preseason magazine's new ratings that they came out with this year, which are just old school scouting tool grades. Here's what they have on Morgan and Gomez, who they grade both as 2 stars out of 5 overall :

 

Morgan: 4+ Hitting, 2 Power, 8 Speed, 5 Fielding, 7 Range, 4 Arm

• Slap-and-dash leadoff hitter
• Likes the ball up and hits down on it to keep it out of the air
• Scuffles versus lefthanded pitching
• Draws too few walks
• Speedy CF with excellent lateral range
• Cuts off balls in the gaps to shorten his throws

Gomez: 4 Hitting, 4 Power, 6 Speed, 6 Fielding, 7 Range, 7 Arm

 

Scale

8 Outstanding

7 Very Good

6 Above Average

5 Average

4 Below Average

3 Well Below Average

2 Poor

[rousieboy]

Basically, and forgive me if this was stated on the previous five pages, this trade is Cutter Dykstra for SMitre as Morgan and Dickerson kinda wash each other out. I make that trade every time.

[Ennder]

Morgan's BB rate held steady, his LD% held steady, his GB% held steady and his AVG and BABIP dropped. There is no reason to think his stats last year mean more than the rest of his career. Around a .340 OBP should be the expectation. We have a major league starting quality CF as our 4th OF, this is not a bad thing. While he shouldn't really get starts in RF he is probably better than bad Corey Hart at least vs RHP so if bad Corey should show up this year he can fill in some there as well.

[gobrew23]

Gomez: 4 Hitting, 4 Power, 6 Speed, 6 Fielding, 7 Range, 7 Arm

 

Scale

8 Outstanding

7 Very Good

6 Above Average

5 Average

4 Below Average

3 Well Below Average

2 Poor

Ummm... Really? I think Gomez is much faster than "Above Average".

 

 

[PrinceEatMeat]

Gomez: 4 Hitting, 4 Power, 6 Speed, 6 Fielding, 7 Range, 7 Arm

 

Scale

8 Outstanding

7 Very Good

6 Above Average

5 Average

4 Below Average

3 Well Below Average

2 Poor

Ummm... Really? I think Gomez is much faster than "Above Average".

 

Yeah the rankings are very off here on him. He's probably a 9 or 10 speed. And an 8 fielding and 9 or 10 range.

[liveforoctober]

Gomez: 4 Hitting, 4 Power, 6 Speed, 6 Fielding, 7 Range, 7 Arm

 

Scale

8 Outstanding

7 Very Good

6 Above Average

5 Average

4 Below Average

3 Well Below Average

2 Poor

Ummm... Really? I think Gomez is much faster than "Above Average".

 

Yeah the rankings are very off here on him. He's probably a 9 or 10 speed. And an 8 fielding and 9 or 10 range.

I will say, on the poster's own created scale of 2-8 ... a 9 or a 10 is very impressive.

[JET15]

Ummm... Really? I think Gomez is much faster than "Above Average".

 

Yeah the rankings are very off here on him. He's probably a 9 or 10 speed. And an 8 fielding and 9 or 10 range.

I will say, on the poster's own created scale of 2-8 ... a 9 or a 10 is very impressive.

2-8 is the scale for Lindy's grades. There is nothing higher than 8 and nothing lower than 2. It's common scouting grading like this old Twins scouting report. And 2s and 8s are very rare in that magazine. I'd say even 3s and 7s are rare. So Morgan's grades vary as much as any I've seen for one player.