BP Unfiltered

Grapefruit League Journal: Tampa Bay Rays

The 2013 Rays must overcome the loss of their top home-run hitter and innings-pitched leader from the 2012 season.

After trading James Shields and losing B.J. Upton to free agency, the Rays find themselves in a nearly unique situation. Only 30 other teams, since the league's 1961 expansion, have lost both their home-run and innings-pitched leaders from the previous season. Of those 30, 17 saw their win total decrease the following year, but a few actually benefited from the purge. That list includes teams like the 2007 Marlins, who traded Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera from a 71-win team and then won 84 games in 2008, as well as the 2010 Diamondbacks and 2011 Athletics, who unloaded key contributors to poor rosters before righting their ships and capturing division titles.

More

Minor League Update

Spring Training Games: February 22-24

Spring Training Games Roundup: FEB 22-25

Baseball has finally arrived! And so has the much-anticipated Top 101 prospects list put together by Professor Parks and BP's minor league crew. With the opening of Spring Training, we get a mix of prospects from this list, less talented minor leaguers who still could have a big league future, and established veterans and superstars showing up in the same box score on a daily basis. I'll be keeping you updated on the performances of the more notable minor leaguers. By mid-March, many of the best prospects will be back in minor league camp getting much-needed at-bats. Some, however, have a legitimate shot at breaking camp with the big league club, a few will open some eyes before starting the season in the minors, and some could disappoint. Here's what's happened so far through the first four days worth of games ...

AL EAST
BAL

• Jonathan Schoop, 2B: 1-for-1, RBI. The 80th ranked prospect on the Top 101 and likely "2B of the Future" for the O's, Schoop had an RBI single in his lone at-bat on Saturday while the oft-injured Brian Roberts had a pair of doubles on Monday in his quest to not allow Schoop to become the "2B of the Present". 
• Dylan Bundy, SP: IP, 0 R, 2 H, BB, 2 K. Fourth on the Top 101 just behind top pitching prospect Gerrit Cole, Bundy debuted with a scoreless inning on Saturday despite allowing three base runners. 
• Kevin Gausman, SP: 1.2 IP, ER, H, 2 BB, 2 K. Coming in at #13 on the Top 101, the 22 year-old made his first ever Spring Training appearance on Sunday.
• Mike Wright, SP: 2 IP, 0 R, H, 0 BB, K. Not in the same class as Bundy or Gausman, but Wright looks like a future back-of-the-rotation starter or setup man. 

BOS

• Xander Bogaerts, SS/3B: 1-for-2, RBI. The 12th ranked prospect on the Top 101, the 20 year-old Bogaerts is getting some time at third base this spring as most scouts anticipate a move from shortstop in the future.
• Jose Iglesias, SS: 2-for-6, HR (1), 2 RBI: Just a little bit of offense from Iglesias and he's a valuable commodity as a gold-glove caliber shortstop in the big leagues, but he'll be in Triple-A regardless of how he plays this spring with the addition of Stephen Drew on a one-year deal.
• Jackie Bradley, Jr., OF: 3-for-6, 2B, RBI. The Sox are expected to give the majority of time in left field to Jonny Gomes, who is better-suited as half of a platoon that plays versus left-handed starters. If Bradley can open some eyes this spring, as he did during his three-hit game on Monday, he could be given the chance to become the other half of the left field platoon early in the season.
• Allen Webster, SP: 2 IP, ER, 2 H, BB, 4 K. Tagged for a run and two hits but struck out four while hitting 99 MPH on a radar gun, an impressive feat even if it may have been inaccurate by a notch or two.
• Steven Wright, SP.: 2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 BB, 3 K. The knuckle baller, who is being tutored by Tim Wakefield this spring, had an impressive debut. Don't be surprised to see him debut in Boston at some point in 2013.

NYY

• Zoilo Almonte, OF: 1-for-4, HR (1), 2 RBI. With Curtis Granderson out 10 weeks with a fractured forearm and limited options for the Yankees, Almonte becomes a wild card to win a roster spot. The switch-hitter, who posted an .808 OPS last season in Double-A, homered off Braves reliever Jordan Walden in his first spring game on Saturday.

TB

• Leslie Anderson, 1B/OF: 4-for-6, HR (1), 5 RBI. Now 30 years old and three minor league seasons removed from signing a four-year, $3.75M major league contract out of Cuba, Anderson has yet to establish himself as someone who can contribute in the big leagues. But when the manager takes the time to tweet about you, it's a pretty good sign. Here's what Joe Maddon tweeted on Sunday after Anderson had two singles and three runs batted in, "Leslie Anderson is a different player since I saw him. He unequivocally looks good ...".
• Wil Myers, OF: 1-for-4, 2B, RBI: The Rays will get to see Myers in their lineup often for the next five weeks before he very likely heads to Triple-A for the first few months of the season. According to this list compiled over at  MLBTradeRumors, the 22 year-old Myers will have his arbitration eligibility pushed back one year if he's called up after mid-June.
• Chris Archer, SP: IP, 0 R, 0 H, BB, K. One of a few long shot candidates for the #5 spot in the Rays' rotation, Archer was chosen as the #29 prospect on the Top 101 list and could force his way into the rotation with a strong camp. 
• Jake Odorizzi, SP: IP, 0 R, 0 H, BB, 0 K. His Rays' debut was a success, although he has an uphill battle for a big league job with Jeff Niemann the leading candidate for the last rotation spot.

BP Unfiltered

The Secret to Aaron Hill's Success?

Arizona's hitting coach dishes on everyone's favorite unpredictable second baseman.

In an interview last week with David Laurila, Diamondbacks hitting coach Don Baylor talked about Aaron Hill. Hill has, of course, revitalized his career since joining Arizona. Everyone wants to know how he did it. Here's what Baylor said:

More

R.J. Anderson

February 25, 2013 10:47 AM

1 Comment

BP Unfiltered

Grapefruit League Journal: Minnesota Twins

How does the Twins' current rebuilding effort compare to their previous one?

You’re familiar with most of the four-letter words that go by one letter: the S-Word, the F-word, the B-Word, and more. But you may not have heard of the R-word: Rebuilding.

More

BP Daily Podcast

Effectively Wild Episode 147: 2013 Season Preview Series: Cincinnati Reds

Ben and Sam preview the Reds' season with Jay Jaffe and Geoff Young, and Pete talks to Cincinnati CBS affiliate sports anchor/reporter Zach Wells (at 18:35).