2B/3B Options

[NievesNoNO]

I also would love Donaldson. He could really be a difference maker. His recent injury history will make him affordable for the Brewers. I'd even overpay a bit on maybe a two year deal. 2/ $36 mill?? I wasn't really on board with Shaw moving to 2B, but from what I saw I was wrong. He looked capable to me over there. If there's an injury, I think Hiura is close to being ready.

[JohnBriggs12]

MLBTR suggests Joe Panik may be a non-tender in SF. Panik's been notoriously up one year down the next hitter with limited power though some of that comes from playing in SF. Given his pattern, he's due for a rebound in 2019. What can't be argued is his ability to put the ball in play consistently. They suggest he's slipped defensively but he's only a couple years removed from a gold glove. He'd be a modest price if non-tendered and not a flashy choice but in a platoon at 2B with Perez, it would give them solid defense and cost effective bridge to Hiura.

[wallus]

Dietrich was DFA'ed today and we know Stearns was interested before.

[brewmann04]

cheap pickup

[long ball]

Add Wilmer Flores to the potential list.

 

He’s actually a pretty interesting name. He doesn’t strike out, he hits for a little power, slightly above league average hitter over several seasons now, should be relatively cheap, and had 700+ MLB innings at all 4 infield positions.

 

He didn’t play a ton of 2b last year though so I can’t say for certain he’s a viable stop gap option there or just a utility guy.

[Outlander]

Sure did, since they have Perez I don't know if he would make much sense but it kind of depends what they do with 2B. Could potentially start Flores at 2B.

[pacopete4]

Add Wilmer Flores to the potential list.

 

He’s actually a pretty interesting name. He doesn’t strike out, he hits for a little power, slightly above league average hitter over several seasons now, should be relatively cheap, and had 700+ MLB innings at all 4 infield positions.

 

He didn’t play a ton of 2b last year though so I can’t say for certain he’s a viable stop gap option there or just a utility guy.

 

Didn’t he cry when he was told he was traded to us?

[JohnBriggs12]

White Sox are non-tendering Matt Davidson. Has big power and high K rate but an interesting name.

[homer]

Add Wilmer Flores to the potential list.

 

He’s actually a pretty interesting name. He doesn’t strike out, he hits for a little power, slightly above league average hitter over several seasons now, should be relatively cheap, and had 700+ MLB innings at all 4 infield positions.

 

He didn’t play a ton of 2b last year though so I can’t say for certain he’s a viable stop gap option there or just a utility guy.

 

Didn’t he cry when he was told he was traded to us?

 

[LincolnDD]

Flores was barely capable at first base last year, so not really a guy you'd want at second at even a semi-regular basis. He should probably head to the AL if he wants to maximize his plate appearances next year; DH/PH/emergency fielder is his best role, especially with the arthritis issues in both knees.

[SRB]

LeMahieu everyday at 2B, with Shaw at 3B and Perez getting lots of LHP starts at 3B would be fantastic.

[pacopete4]

LeMahieu everyday at 2B, with Shaw at 3B and Perez getting lots of LHP starts at 3B would be fantastic.

 

Oh I disagree. We would have a very poor offense with this lineup, especially with Arcia at SS.

[long ball]

Flores was barely capable at first base last year, so not really a guy you'd want at second at even a semi-regular basis. He should probably head to the AL if he wants to maximize his plate appearances next year; DH/PH/emergency fielder is his best role, especially with the arthritis issues in both knees.

 

Ahh. I wasn’t aware of that. If they’re going to sign a guy who can’t move it may as well be Daniel Murphy.

 

Cross him off the list.

[PeaveyFury]

LeMahieu everyday at 2B, with Shaw at 3B and Perez getting lots of LHP starts at 3B would be fantastic.

 

Oh I disagree. We would have a very poor offense with this lineup, especially with Arcia at SS.

 

Agreed- LeMahieu is basically the polar opposite of Dietrich. Great defensively, but offensive numbers would be hit hard leaving Coors.

[wallus]

Looking at our current payroll, we really only have the room (likely) to add one decent money free agent. I would rather spend the money at catcher and sign someone like Dietrich for less.

[SRB]

Saying LeMahieu is bad at offense is simply not true. Where do you think we are going to get a better hitting 2B???

 

Plus he kills LHP so he complements a lineup with Shaw, even if an actual platoon is unrealistic.

[PeaveyFury]

He gets a massive boost from playing in Coors, SRB. Looking at his park factor-adjusted OPS+, he's below average offensively and has been every year of his career, save for 2016. Miller Park certainly isn't pitcher-friendly, but it's very likely his numbers will regress outside of Denver. Even his home/away splits show a 100(!) point difference in straight OPS, so that supports the above theory even more.

[packer822]

d.j had a couple stints on dl this past year otherwise had been rather healthy throughout his career.....he only batted 229 away from coors last year but the 3 yrs before that he batted 294...303 and 281 away from coors….and even with the sub par away from coors ba last year his last 3 yrs ave away from coors is 277.....I think his injuries plus free agency coming up made him get away from what he does best....hit the other way for singles and doubles....I would take him in a minute....btw...he brings a couple gold gloves with him....and when he was 12 yrs old......he helped lead the Wisconsin All Stars to a championship in cooperstown dreams park.....his grandma would love that he would be a brewer as she lives in wisconsin

[long ball]

For LeMahieu doubters this is a solid read. I’m not necessarily advocating for him, but it’s interesting. I went from a hard no on DJL to a maybe.

 

https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-hidden-upside-of-a-normal-free-agent/

[brewmann04]

i would take DJ here at 2nd

[PeaveyFury]

d.j had a couple stints on dl this past year otherwise had been rather healthy throughout his career.....he only batted 229 away from coors last year but the 3 yrs before that he batted 294...303 and 281 away from coors….and even with the sub par away from coors ba last year his last 3 yrs ave away from coors is 277.....

 

BA alone is a very dangerous way to evaluate a player.

 

Career home/away splits:

 

Home: .330/.387/.448 .835 OPS

Away: .264/.311/.362 .673 OPS

 

Away from Coors he's basically Hernan Perez with Gold-Glove defense (which obviously has value). But for a team looking for offense, especially with a major question mark in Arcia at short offensively, I'm not sure that's the BEST fit they can add. Would I take him at 2nd for the right price? You bet. But is another excellent defense/below average bat player what will address some of the offensive inconsistencies we saw last year? Probably not.

 

The article long ball linked to is interesting. I'm just not sure, though, how valid a comparison to Yelich is considering that many predicted a significant jump in Yelich's numbers due to the opposite of the Coors effect- getting out of the cavernous Marlins Park. If DJ couldn't use launch angle to hit more HR's in Coors, he's going to suddenly be able to outside of there? Plausible, I suppose, but it seems a bit of a stretch.

[brewmann04]

We do know that DS will do the proper work finding a second baseman.

[RollieTime]

LeMahieu has played strictly second base the past four seasons. Signing him to anything beyond a one year deal with Hiura waiting in the wings wouldn’t make much sense as he would lose a significant amount of playing time. Having a guy receive limited at bats, but getting approximately $10 million isn’t the best use of finances.

[Lathund]

If DJ plays a good 3B (He played all over the diamond in his first few seasons, but only 2B since) and the cost is reasonable then I like the idea. The article above is interesting, in that it's the kind of profile that could improve. The good bat control and ability to put the ball into play is also useful; a metric like tAV which includes situational hitting likes him better than OPS+ does. Still "only" league average, but with very good defense I'm fine with that. And also a fairly stable offensive offensive profile due to the low strikeout rate, and ability to move runners over which complements the existing hitters rather well. It's also not entirely fair to look straight at home/away splits for Rockies players, as you also have to factor in the Coors hangover effect. I haven't seen the data on how big it is, but I'm fairly sure the away splits for Rockies players would be a lot more similar to other teams if you were to look at only the 2nd series and onwards of road trips.

 

It's perhaps not the move I'd advocate for the most, but if you're ever going to sign a below-average hitter, this is the kind of guy you want. For someone to hold down the fort until Hiura (And be insurance in case of injuries or if he's less ready than we think) and, if he can still play a good 3B, spell Shaw vs lefties it's not a bad move. MLBTR predicts 2/18, Fangraphs 2/22. Or to put it another way: If the money is to be spent on 2B/3B, this is one of my favourite options. Interestingly enough Dietrich is perhaps the opposite of DJ, yet it's another move I like. But it may well be that a Dubon/Perez partnership and waiting for Hiura, and spending that money on pitching or catching might be a better option.

[splitterpfj]

LeMahieu has played strictly second base the past four seasons. Signing him to anything beyond a one year deal with Hiura waiting in the wings wouldn’t make much sense as he would lose a significant amount of playing time. Having a guy receive limited at bats, but getting approximately $10 million isn’t the best use of finances.

 

Unless, of course, you then deal Hiura to fill another need.