Jump on it. Jump on it.
Daniel Descalso is the man.
“I just try to do my same approach that I had down in Springfield and hopefully have that carry over up here,” Descalso said. “So far, I’ve been able to put good swings on the ball when I got good pitches to hit and they’ve been falling for me.”
And then there’s this gem that I hope is just baseless speculation:
Whether or not Descalso will be able to keep the amount of playing time he’s been getting could be another thing entirely.
Descalso has been the regular second baseman for the Redbirds since being called up and has been productive, but there are several effective middle infielders on the team. Casey Rowlett, Tyler Greene, and Donovan Solano have all seen significant action at second or short for the Redbirds this season.
Of those players, none of them should be stealing time from Descalso at 2nd. Greene should be playing shortstop. Rowlett should be used when other guys need the occasional offday and Solano should head back to Springfield. The Cardinals seem unable and/or unwilling to release marginal players in the upper levels of their system. Guys like Rowlett and Mark Shorey and Brian Barden are decent depth in isolation but when you carry 5 players like that, it starts to interfere with the playing time of the real prospects who need reps. There’s a balancing act to be made but I don’t feel like the Cardinals always do a good job of it.
If you recall, the Cardinals began the bearucratic process of acquiring the Memphis Redbirds before the economy went in the dump. The Redbirds are dealing with debt from the stadium that between the economy and the introduction of the NBA’s Grizzlies into the market have meant a huge hit to their cash flow. To that end, they’ve acquired new management to try and turn things around. Three Parts: One, Two, Three
David Kopp continues to work his way back from injuries and was limited to 60 pitches in last nights game. Also, Matt Baker doesn’t look good in pink.
Kevin Goldstein chatted including this question on Descalso:
cardsfan89 (St. Louis): What’s the ceiling on Daniel Descalso? Also, can you think of any other college bats that went from looking miserable to looking superb as Descalso has done? Its been quite the turn around.
Kevin Goldstein: He could be a solid starter, I don’t think he’s a future stud or anything. Bats going from looking miserable to superb actually happens quite a bit, but it’s always exciting. Look at Michael Taylor of the Phillies.
Descalso is going to be on of the more difficult players to rank come this offseason. He made little if any impression after his draft and now he’s put up very solid numbers in Springfield (a hitter’s park) but nothing that stands out. Good contact rates, a moderate walk rate but very good power. The question is whether that power is a facet of the league or of Descalso. He’s only hit 9 HR this season and projecting him for more than about 10 a year on average seems unreasonable. That said, he could still be a .280/.350/.400 type of player. With good defense and staying on the field for 150 games a season, that’s a 2-3 win player.
cardsfan89 (St. Louis): I’ve heard Daryl Jones comped to Denard Span. Does that seem close?Kevin Goldstein: Not crazy about it.
I don’t like that comp either. Despite having a slightly down season, expect Jones to remain at the top of prospect rankings for the Cardinals. Getting that right leg healthy is key so that he can utilize his speed and defense.
cardsfan89 (St. Louis): Have you heard anything about the Shelby Miller negotiations?Kevin Goldstein: THere haven’t really been any negotiations of substance, but don’t let that concern you, it was always a deadline deal the second they took him.
Nothing to see here folks. Nothing to be concerned about and nothing to read into.
jbuofm (peoria): Have you seen Brett Wallace enough to have an opinion if he will or can stay at third base?Kevin Goldstein: I haven’t seen him enough, but scouts I talk to certainly have, and they tend to lean towards no. I still think you could see him come up there. He doesn’t make embarrassing errors all day — he actually has soft hands and a decent arm, it’s just that he has the range of a lawn ornament. That’s the thing that could help him. If he boots a ball, people go crazy; if a ball gets by him that any other third baseman would get to, people don’t notice as much.
This is going to be an ongoing battle. People who may casually watch Wallace are going to see him make the plays he gets to and think he can handle the position. My prediction is that the defensive metrics are going to hate his range and you’ll have another disparity between an objective measure (that may include noise and bias) and subjective personal viewings.
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It’s true. Pink makes me look fat.
The more I think about it, the more I’m okay with packaging Wallace in a deal that can bring St. Louis an impact veteran. He might turn into Lance Berkman at the plate, but I’m more inclined to think he’s a .280/15/80 player in the majors whose best position is 1B. In other words, probably not a good fit in StL. I think he’ll have a Sean Casey-type career. . .not that there’s anything wrong with that. . .
I’ve known about the Global Spectrum take over for some time now…since I work at one of their other facilities here in the midwest. Now I can try to transfer down to Memphis! I’ll fill you all in with any juicy details if I find out more at work…
mtzxc … i’m from memphis originally and go back once a month or so to visit family, be careful what you wish for.
As long as Wallace hits at a solid rate and can make the routine plays I would love for him to play 3B. Pujols at 1st makes everybody’s defense a notch better and with him playing next to Ryan/Greene and potentially DJones behind him for years to come the left side of the defense is pretty good imo.
If Descalso begins to lose PT it will be very disappointing and I would like to see Solano move down to see if his power #s improve but then you have Solano/Kozma PT issues but I guess Solano can move to 2B?
I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Wallace played 3B much like Glaus ….ie meaning make the plays he should with good hands but not much outside the zone other than the rare nice play all 3B seem to make.
Even if he is only hitting 280 with 15/20hr and 80/90 rbi because of cost benefits it could still be again Glaus like or Glaus light if you will.
Solano to Springfield. Kopp to Palm Beach. Solano is playing 3B for Springfield tonight. Good to see this move so Descalso can play everyday.
I don’t mind trading Wallace at all. The power could come but right now it really looks like he’s a 15-20 HR hitter. But I’m not sure if we can realistically expect a .300 BA and 20 HR his rookie season. So maybe the first couple years he doesn’t do AS well offensively. Even those who think he’ll stick at third think he’ll need to move to first after a few years. So by the time he starts to flash more stick in the majors he’ll need to move to first?
The only reason I’m hesitant in trading Wallace is who plays third next year if we do trade him? The FA market isn’t THAT great. Glaus, DeRosa, Blalock, and Beltre are the top options. Beltre and Glaus have shoulder issues. Blalock hasn’t been playing much 3B anymore. This leaves DeRosa as the best option. With his wrist issues and with other teams vying for his services, how likely is it that we can retain him?
So really, the primary reason to NOT trade Wallace is that we wouldn’t have anyone to play 3B next year if we did trade him.
I’d love to get Beltre, if for no other reason than his glove.
Every so-so opinion I hear about Descalso reminds me of scouts and analysts downplaying Pedroia’s potential due to “low upside” a few years ago.
I’m not predicting an MVP award for Descalso, but a well-rounded offensive skillset is hard to find in the middle infield. And quite valuable. I think Descalso is easily the third-or fourth-best prospect in the system (including Miller).
Maybe Freese can play third next year or T.Greene or DeRosa.
Trading Wallace in a package for Roy Halladay is a total no-brainer good deal for the Cardianls. It’s just another way of using the farm to improve the big league club.
just saw this on mlb-
SI.com tweeted on Monday that the Mets turned down a package of Fernando Martinez, Bobby Parnell, Jon Niese and Ruben Tejada for Halladay.
what would a comparable package of Future Redbirds be ?
Keith Law debunked that rumor.
Brett Wallace=Lyle Overbay?
I see Descalso as Skip Schu, plus 12-15 more doubles & a couple more homers per year. And probably *much* better defense. That’s a really valuable player.
You’re absolutely right, Alex, that scouts didn’t think much of Pedroia; he was never in BA’s top 75. Neither was Kinsler. Or Chase Utley(!). Or Robinson Cano. Or Dan Uggla. Or Chuck Knoblauch, for that matter. Scouts do not like 2nd basemen, and they don’t like short guys, either–see McLouth, Victorino, et. al..
While it’s true that the Texas League is a hitter’s league, Descalso had one of the best iso. slg. of anyone there, and he was as good on the road as at home. I suppose that’s why his Peak Davenport Translation is so solid (about an .850 OPS). Looks good to me. ;)
Might it be wise to hang on to Wallace in the *horrible* event that Pujols can’t be signed to an extension? I’d have to think the FO would go all out to keep him, but in a worst-case scenario sort of thing, if Wallace projects to be better at 1B than 3B, and keeps hitting as he has, with the potential for more power… it might make the situation a bit more palatable.
Thanks so much for all of this helpful information! I hope these young guns can contribute to the club in the majors soon!