Brewers sign Mark Reynolds (Minor League Deal)

[brewmann04]

i think he gets another full year at 3A but will be the first man up.

[502 to Right]

Only Doug Melvin could fail to find someone who can put up an OPS+ of greater than 100 at the easiest position on the field to find decent hitting. This is just completely inept after the 2013 disaster at 1B.

[trwi7]

I'm still very confused why people think Hunter Morris has a future with the Brewers at 1B when he clearly doesn't according to the Brewers organization.

 

link?

 

There is no link. He tries to be an insider and fails horribly at it.

[MNBrew]

I still want Morris to be the long-term solution (at least for a while), but he's done nothing outside of a strong year in AA in 2012 to earn the job. But after that, he was disastrous in ST last year and followed that by being very ordinary in AAA. Short of earning the starting job in ST this year, Morris needs to show he can produce at least decently on an ongoing basis in AAA before being handed the big-league starting 1B job . . . unless, a la Sean Halton last year, injuries or others' total ineptitude bump him up to being the best available option.

[Eye Black]

Mark Reynolds might be the modern Brewers version of Rob Deer. Taking a look at their 162 game averages (based on career stats), it is striking how similar they are statistically as hitters. If you look at Deer's Baseball-Reference page, Reynolds comes up number one in similarity score. To be fair, Deer's numbers do take into account his age 30-32 seasons, but still some uncanny similarities between the two statistically.

 

Mark Reynolds - 162 Game Average

[pre]PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS

647 560 87 131 27 2 33 93 75 209 .233 .329 .464 .793[/pre]

Rob Deer - 162 Game Average

[pre]PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS

633 544 81 120 21 2 32 84 81 198 .220 .324 .442 .766[/pre]

A few other similarities:

• - Both led the league in SO's 4 times in their careers.
  - Both had their career high HR totals in their age 25 season.
  - Both have nearly identical career K% (SO/PA): 31% (Deer) & 32% (Reynolds)
  - Both have nearly identical HR per plate appearance rates: HR every 19.6 PA's (Deer) & HR every 19.5 PA's (Reynolds)

[Warning Track Power]

Mark Reynolds might be the modern Brewers version of Rob Deer.

Way to make Mark Reynolds my new favorite Brewer. Rob Deer was an awesome guy to a 7 year old Warning Track Power...

[Thurston Fluff]

Only Doug Melvin could fail to find someone who can put up an OPS+ of greater than 100 at the easiest position on the field to find decent hitting. This is just completely inept after the 2013 disaster at 1B.

 

Which person is out there that, A) Is worth the money he got paid B) wouldn't cost a draft pick or C) wouldn't cost us more in a trade than the player is worth? You don't just dial 1-800-1stbase and order one tailor made for your team.

[monty57]

I'm fine with this move. I realize that the Brewers don't have the capital to get a good option, so I was okay with seeing what Halton could do as the RH side of a platoon. However, Halton is not the type of prospect that you bend over backwards for, so I have no problem with him being bounced back to AAA.

 

I am a bit concerned about roster flexibility assuming we keep Francisco, Reynolds, Weeks and Gennett on the roster, but otherwise I'm fine with Reynolds getting the call as the nearly-everyday 1B. With his all-or-nothing swing, if he hits on "all" a few extra times, he will help the team and would probably get something in trade if we're in that position mid-season. If not, we didn't give up anything to get him, and he'll at least give the prospects more time to prove themselves at AAA. Hopefully, they prove that they're MLB players, and not that they're AAA fodder.

 

We have to realize as fans that we will have to accept less-than-stellar players in some positions. We gave up some future in an attempt to field a team with no holes a few years back, and now we're living in that future. Buying low on guys like Reynolds at least gives the potential for some upside. Just don't sign him to a three-year, eight figure extension if he hits a bunch of HR early :-)

[PrinceFielderx1]

I'm still very confused why people think Hunter Morris has a future with the Brewers at 1B when he clearly doesn't according to the Brewers organization.

 

link?

 

ALL of there actions prove this. They are putting everybody above Hunter Morris. He's dead last on the very long 1B list.

[davego]

I could see where know one player gets more than 300 at-bats at first again this year.

[CheezWizHed]

Mark Reynolds might be the modern Brewers version of Rob Deer.

Way to make Mark Reynolds my new favorite Brewer. Rob Deer was an awesome guy to a 7 year old Warning Track Power...

 

I second for a 12 YO CWH...

[MNBrew]

I'm still very confused why people think Hunter Morris has a future with the Brewers at 1B when he clearly doesn't according to the Brewers organization.

 

link?

 

ALL of there actions prove this. They are putting everybody above Hunter Morris. He's dead last on the very long 1B list.

Or they're buying him time. He was nothing special his 1st year in AAA, nor was he the two years of MiLB before his MVP/Gold Glove year in AA in 2012.

 

Not that he's another Corey Hart, but when Hart was coming up, he pretty much always struggled notably his 1st taste of the next level up. Then he'll kill it the next year, get promoted to the next level at the end of the year, and struggle. . . . And so on, all the way up to and including MLB.

 

So that Morris isn't being handed the 1B job now just says he has to earn it. Like Gennett, if Morris' play shows he deserves a shot, he'll get it. And the best thing is that if that happens, there's no significant commitment or permanent roster clutter ahead of him at 1B for 2015. Even now, none of the guys ahead of him on the depth chart are either easily expendable or have options remaining.

 

Ultimately I like that Morris is having to earn whatever he gets. And in the meantime, Melvin's already publicly expressed his second-thoughts-in-hindsight about not promoting Morris back in September. That shows the organization's not soured on him. And I think it's a good message to Morris that he still has to improve his game. At minimum he has to have gotten the message that he doesn't have any room in his game to be complacent.

[djoctagone]

if reynolds isn't on the 40-man roster within 48 hours after 24 march, he can elect free agency.

[PrinceFielderx1]

mnbrew,

 

Not likely at all.

[DoubleSwitch]

I don't see how Morris is being snubbed because he hasn't been given a job he doesn't deserve. The door is wide open for him. If he mashes the ball for a couple months he'll be starting in Milwaukee in no time. Just looking at Hunters numbers last year don't do justice to how poor they really were, because the PCL is such a hitter friendly environment.

 

http://www.fangraphs.com/minorleaders.aspx?pos=1b&stats=bat&lg=4&qual=y&type=1&season=2013&team=0&players=0&sort=18,d

 

By wOBA and wRC+ he was the second worst qualified first baseman in the entire league. Say what you will about Juan Francisco and Mark Reynolds, but they put up 96 wRC+ in the majors last year compared to Morris' 97 in AAA. He had no business competing for the first base job this spring. If the Brewers thought he was done in the organization they would have acquired a long term option like LoMo or Davis, instead Morris is being given encouraging words publicly and every chance to redeem himself with no one blocking his path who isn't expendable.

[JohnBriggs12]

If Reynolds is a monumental failure, Melvin will get a lot less criticism than if he had rolled the dice on Sean Halton or Hunter Morris. That's not to say Reynolds will do any better than those guys would, but as they say, that's baseball.

 

I've always liked Halton and would have liked to see him get a real chance to compete. But that clearly wasn't the case with either he or Morris.

 

By the way Corey Hart has fanned 14 times in 28 spring ABs, with no HR and a .107 BA. Melvin might have been correct to not make a big play to keep him.

[BrewCrewForever]

I feel like Reynolds is a lock at this point. Would be shocked if he isn't added to the 40 man very soon.

[jerichoholicninja]

If Reynolds is a monumental failure, Melvin will get a lot less criticism than if he had rolled the dice on Sean Halton or Hunter Morris.

 

If Melvin rolled the dice on Ike Davis and gave up Thornburg or another prospect of value and Ike failed, the board would be calling for Doug's head on a stake. Reynolds was the safest bet. He only cost very little money and didn't hurt the future of the franchise.

 

Halton is not and should not be considered a viable option for starting at first base. He's a 4A player at best.

 

Morris has done nothing to earn the spot. I think many people would have been upset if he was just handed the job.

[reillymcshane]

It just depresses me that Reynolds is our best option at 1B. The guy has hit .220, .221 and .221 over the last three years. And his slugging % has dropped each of the last three years, plus his walk rate was his worst since 2007 - his rookie year. The HRs will be great - but the lack of anything else - as well as bad defense - could make this pretty bad (not Yuni bad - but still bad).

 

Perhaps the move to Miller Park will help Reynolds rebound. I hope so. And if he stays at 1B, let's hope that mitigates some of the pain he causes with his glove.

 

Frighteningly, the options are worse. Francisco needs to move the AL to DH. I don't think anyone believes the guy is a long or short term option. He'll hit worse than Reynolds and play even worse defense.

 

Overbay had a .748 OPS last year - against right handers. That's not awful - but it's not good. And for all the talk of Lyle's superior defensive skills - I don't buy it. He's average at best. And at 37, it's not like he's getting better. And Overbay can't hit lefties anymore - he had a .516 OPS against them in 2013.

 

Last year (and this spring), Hunter Morris showed he wasn't ready for the bigs. He needs to step up in the minors now. And Halton is nothing more than filler. Perhaps he could stick as the 25th man on the team, backing up a legitimate left handed hitting 1B, pinch hitting, etc. But that's it.

 

The team is likely going to go with Reynolds and Overbay. The good part of that plan is that it gives Morris more time to see if he can re-establish himself as the potential starter. If Reynolds flops, we can use Overbay (and probably Halton) in a strict platoon. Not ideal, but it's a plan. Or the team can make a trade if needed if they are in the playoff race.

 

My preference would have been to skip this whole drama from the start. I would have gotten a guy like Daric Barton from the A's. 28 years old, some success (and failure). Accept he's just a 10-12 HR guy - but one who plays great defense and takes a boatload of walks. Sure he's a risk. But no more so than giving the job to Reynolds, Overbay and Francisco.

[djoctagone]

reynolds is starting in right field today. he has three innings of right field experience in the major leagues regular season.