More Anthony Reyes soap opera fodder.
Arizona Fall League
Brett Wallace‘s team scored 11 runs, but he didn’t have a hand in it. Now hitting .133, Wallace went 0-for-6 with a strikeout. I’m not too worried about him, but he’s 4-for-30 with 11 strikeouts so far. Saying nothing about his struggles at the plate, Wallace pinch-hit at Justin Fiske‘s AFL blog.
The Saguaros gave up a total of 18 runs, and a couple of Cardinal pitchers played a part in the blood bath. Tyler Norrick gave up three runs on four hits, including two homers, and struck out three in his one inning of work. For his inning, Justin Fiske allowed two runs on two hits and a walk with one K. Box.
Hawaii Winter Baseball
Arnoldi Cruz is killing it. He went 2-for-4 with a double. On the flip side, he did allow a couple of stolen bases.
Blake King was charged with the blown save. He allowed one runs over 1.1 on a hit, a walk and he struck out two.
Dominican Winter League
Amaury Cazana went 1-3 with 2 walks. [insert Amaury fact here] Box. Amaury’s Licey Tigers plated 21.
Venezuelan Winter League
Jose Martinez went 0-3 for Aragua. Jose is just 2-for-17 so far in the VWL.
Entries (RSS)
While I am not worried about Wallace I am a bit surprised that he isn’t doing very well at all. Better competition then he has ever faced before is probably all it is, but it does show that he isn’t read to jump straight up to MLB and needs the time in the minors. I really don’t understand the people that thought he would be ready in 09, maybe in Sept but even then I am not sold.
I’ve been watching the gameday live of Wallace’s at bats, and he has had great pitch selection. It just seems like he is hitting into tough luck.
I’m also not worried about Wallace. He touched upon the fact that it’s tough not getting regular playing time and basically being rotated in and out. . .it would be hard to find your rhythm when you only start every third day, or whatever it is. He’s also back in Arizona, so I’m sure he’s had a lot of demands on his time while there. He’s played a lot of baseball in the last year, so he’s probably not mentally geared up for these games either. When the lights come on for real in the Spring, I expect the Hit Man to be in full swing.
yeah, i’m not too worried about brett… i think, in the end, you hope that the league makes him better – and even if he struggles, it sounds like he’s improving his defense and (hopefully) learning to recognize a wider variety of pitches (even if he’s not blistering them yet).
I think Will Carrol diagnosed the Anthony Reyes situation perfectly in the comments section:
“…Reyes didn’t fit the Duncan style and at that point, should have been moved. Duncan’s been successful and it’s clear that he has both his own style and a type of pitcher he works best with. I think it’s better to work towards that AND to have an integrated approach in the minors. When someone doesn’t fit, you deal them for someone that does. I think of Duncan like I do Bobby Knight — both are “system” guys and get more out of less talent than others, but everyone doesn’t fit.”
I do wish however that he was moved sooner when his value was higher, as another commented pointed out.
Doe anyone have a good estimate of the level of competition for all of these winter leagues? I’d be particularly interested in the Hawaiian League as I have thought that Arnoldi Cruz’s season was pretty impressive considering he was learning a difficult new postion and was in a pitcher’s park in a pitcher’s league. Any info would be appreciated.
Easy
I was just thinking the exact same thing. Arni Cruz’s season doesn’t look that impressive in raw numbers but once you add in all the extinuating factors of playing in a pitchers park in a pitching league; learning a new position; and playing the most physically demanding postion on the field it was a pretty damn impressive season. Not Org Player of the year good or anything but you could make a case for the top 10. All he really needs to do to be a real valuable player is get his OBP up-if he can do that he is a 800 OPS catcher. He is a big sleeper for next season.