Uncustomed Heroes of 2021: Rangers

 

2021 was the year that the Texas Rangers pretty much expressly did business with teams I root for. Joely Rodriguez and Joey Gallo to the Yankees. Kyle Gibson and Ian Kennedy to the Phillies. Rougned Odor to NY as well. And what remained in Arlington was technically considered a baseball club. A lot of younger players coming up late to help, and also a lot of roster rejects like DJ Peters and Jason Martin getting playing time when they could.

For the umpteenth year in a row, former Dodgers prospect Willie Calhoun has absolutely refused to make an impact on the Rangers. He's a 26-year old DH with occasional outfield capabilities but negative fielding numbers. 75 injury-limited games and he hits .250 with 6 homers. I don't know what else the Rangers are expecting to happen with this guy.

2022 Prediction: The Rangers cut him at some point.

One of the few holdovers from the botched rotation plan was Kolby Allard, former Braves prospect. Due to lack of consistent rotation options, he only started 17 games, but continued his recent malaise, with a 5.41 ERA and 12 losses.

2022 Prediction: Eventually gets moved to the bullpen full time.

The Rangers' starting catcher this year was Jose Trevino, going back to their 2015-Chirinos era of just having a catcher that no one's heard of start. Trevino hit .239 with 30 RBIs in 89 games. Not much going on here offensively.

2022 Prediction: The Rangers will trade for/sign someone that makes Trevino a backup. And he does alright then.

Matt Harvey in Baltimore we've already discussed. Almost as much of a debacle was Mike Foltynewicz in Arlington. Like Harvey, he was a trusted innings-eater, starting 24 games. But...Folty went 2-12 with a 5.44 ERA and 97 Ks. He seems to have lost what made him so great in 2018, sadly. Not sure what else he has left to give the Rangers.

2022 Prediction: Japan?

Brock Holt spent the year with the Rangers as a utility backup, and had some great defensive numbers filling in at third. However, he pulled a -13 batting figure, and hit .209 in 76 games. Not a full win for the former Boston favorite.

2022 Prediction: Minor league deal somewhere, takes some bench reps. Nothing huge.

The primary third baseman for the last half of the season was rookie Yonny Hernandez, whose defensive numbers were an improvement despite only hitting .217 with 31 hits in 43 games. He seems like a nice young piece for the Rangers.

2022 Prediction: Mostly backup/utility work but will make a name for himself as the team grows its depth.

Near the end of the season, the Rangers brought up two arms that intrigued me. One was A.J. Alexy, who was scoreless in his first 2 starts and finished with a 3-1 record and 17 Ks in 5 games. Alexy seems consistent, trustworthy, and capable of big games.

2022 Prediction: Will begin the season in the rotation and will do decently.

The other one was Glenn Otto. While he was a lethal strikeout artist, with 28 in 6 games, and while he also went scoreless in his first appearance, the return for Joey Gallo still got clobbered this year, with 3 losses and a 9.26 ERA. While he and Alexy are kind of in tandem right now, he's still shown more flaws at the big league level.

2022 Prediction: Doesn't start the year in the rotation, or the majors, but makes it back and has some huge starts in July.

Tomorrow, we still have some big pieces of this year's Rays team. 

Uncustomed Heroes of 2019: Braves

 For the second straight year, the Atlanta Braves advanced in the standings with enough leeway to make the playoffs, only to be eliminated in the first round. This was a bit more heartbreaking, as this was a better team this year, with a lot more depth, despite the usual bullpen dysfunction.

Austin Riley was a smart call-up for the Braves, despite missing some time and lowering his average. Riley still had 49 RBIs in 81 games, and proved to be a nice late-lineup bat for the majority of the summer.
Why Him in 2019?: He was probably the best rookie on this team, and could be a perennial performer for Atlanta for a while.
2020 Prediction: A higher average for a fuller season, and a 25-homer year.

2019 was a down year for Mike Foltynewicz, especially compared to his monster, breakout 2018. Folty's ERA ballooned to 4.54, and he only had 105 strikeouts. His postseason numbers were a little more balanced, but he still started that notorious Game 5, which was a multi-run parade for St. Louis.
Why Him in 2019?: His downslope led to the rise of Dallas Keuchel, Max Fried and Mike Soroka.
2020 Prediction: Folty will be back to peak numbers, and Hamels' influence will help him immensely.

 After a modest start in Queens, Adeiny Hechavarria made his way to Atlanta late in the year, and upon arriving, he started tearing things up like it was Miami again. In 24 games, Hecha had a .328 average with 20 hits and 15 RBIs, and got some starts at short instead of Swanson in the playoffs.
Why Him in 2019?: Hecha was a valuable infield presence when #1 draft pick Dansby Swanson couldn't be.
2020 Prediction: Someone with some heft will sign him, and use him as a backup infielder...til the starter gets injured and he returns to dominance.

A surprising development was the rise of Matt Joyce as an outfield option, especially after Austin Riley's DL stint. You don't expect Joyce to be in the mix with Acuna and Markakis there, but until Billy Hamilton got there, he was a strong bench/starting bat. Joyce's .295 average was his highest EVER.
Why Him in 2019?: Because this was Joyce's biggest crack at a starting gig since Pittsburgh
2020 Prediction: He'll be a late-offseason signing, and he won't get nearly as much playing time as he did in 2019.

 Another young pitcher who struggled after a strong 2018, Sean Newcomb had a rocky start starting games before being moved to the bullpen, where he fared slightly better, posting a 3.04 ERA with 57 strikeouts in 51 relief appearances.
Why Him in 2019?: Proof that there are good relievers in Atlanta...they're just all failed starters.
2020 Prediction: Will start some games, possibly 5th in the rotation, and reclaim some of his goodwill before being moved back to the bullpen following a July acquisition.

 And then there's Adam Duvall, who's been very Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde in Atlanta. Last year he was awful, with a .132 average in 33 games. This year, in 41 games post-callup, Duvall did a lot better, with a .267 average, 10 home runs and 32 hits. Now to Cincinnati levels, but not bad.
Why Him in 2019?: Proved he could still hit for distance after last year.
2020 Prediction: Will get some starts, but will mostly be a sturdy, reliable bench bat for the Braves. And he might have one big postseason moment.

Now, onto more deadline acquisitions. Shane Greene was set to jump right into the ninth and solve Atlanta's closing pitching problem. That didn't happen. After a few blown saves and a VERY bloated ERA, Greene was passed over in favor of Mark Melancon. Still, Greene did fine in middle relief, ending the half with a 4 ERA.
Why Him in 2019?: Because every strong first half needs an epilogue, and if I didn't make one of his Braves tenure, I'd be pretending it didn't happen.
2020 Prediction: He gets the ninth back and ends 2020 with 25 saves.

 The most intriguing waiver deal for Atlanta was landing speedster Billy Hamilton from Kansas City, despite his middling numbers. Hamilton thankfully improved upon landing in ATL, ending the year with a .268 average, 11 hits, and 4 of his trademark stolen bases.
Why Him in 2019?: Billy got his first postseason steal ever with the Braves.
2020 Prediction: I wouldn't be surprised if KC re-signs him, or at least someone similarly out of the conversation. And he'll do reasonably well for them.

And yet the best story of the Braves' year might have been Francisco Cervelli. After missing some time for Pittsburgh  due to concussions, Frenchy swore he'd never catch again, and resigned himself to possibly ending his career. Then the Braves claimed him off waivers, and he caught fire for them instantly, with 3 RBIs in his first three games as a Brave, and with a .667 average in August.
Why Him in 2019?: Because he triumphed when he could have quit, and made it to the postseason.
2020 Prediction: Will probably be a backup somewhere. Possibly Seattle?

Coming Tomorrow- They just missed another postseason run, but the Brewers are far from out of it for 2020.

NLDS' Preview: The Games Truly Begin

These two are already getting things underway in Milwaukee, with a Brewers lead as I write this, thanks to Christian, but Colorado, Nolan Arenado, and Antonio Senzatela's pitching won't be counted out. Hoping for a smooth, enjoyable series between these two.

As for the other matchup...

Folty, a guy who was once deemed too wild to pitch for Houston, and Ryu, a guy who was barely cut from the Dodgers' roster prior to this season, will face off in LA. Either of these two could win, and both have gotten some nice momentum as of late, but only one will.

Hope to see some fantastic playoff baseball from these four teams.

A Matter of SunTrust

(Music Pun #6. And as an added bonus, I didn't even go for in-his-prime Billy Joel!)

So. First place Braves. And, like, WAY OUT IN FIRST Atlanta Braves. So at least that's contributing to the otherwise predictable nature of this season.

It's the kind of quirky, ragtag-type team that's enough to get the crowd on its side. They've got a nice platoon at catcher with Kurt Suzuki and Tyler Flowers both doing well. They have Charlie Culberson and his surprisingly great bench material waiting in the wings. They have a really nice bullpen, headed up by ace closer Arodys Vizcaino. And, in the momentary absence of staff ace Julio Teheran, they have Mike Foltynewicz and Sean Newcomb throwing like hell. And...Brandon McCarthy, Mike Soroka and Anibal Sanchez are ALSO throwing like hell. It's literally the whole rotation. It's glorious.

The best part of this team is the fact that they have a designated leader in Freddie Freeman, as well as the fact that he doesn't have to do all of the work. Sure, Freeman might get an MVP out of it, but Nick Markakis is hitting like it's 2007, Ozzie Albies is making them forget about Andrelton Simmons, Dansby Swanson has figured out how to hit at the major league level, and Ryan Flaherty has made up for the loss of a substantial starter at third.

And they're a few games ahead of the Nationals and Phillies, to the point where they could roll for a while, even if they're far from NL champions quite yet. They need to shore up the extra outfield spot now that Acuna's on the DL, and think about if they need to platoon Flaherty with a certain SS/3B free agent/trade target. They should be in position to take the division, but they shouldn't get too cocky.

Coming Tomorrow- His team's terrible and he's on the DL. And somehow it gets worse.

Well, at Least One Brave is Doing Something Right

I don't even know how to talk about the Braves at this point, because I'm not sure if they're supposed to be classified as 'good' or bad'. Yes, they're far behind the Nationals, and are in the three-team deadlock for second in the NL East, but they still have people like Freddie Freeman and Ender Inciarte, playing really well, and they have finally developed something nice in Mike Foltynewicz. So I have no idea how to talk about them.

I mean, Folty, R.A. Dickey and Julio Teheran are making up this modest little brigade at the top of the rotation, despite the fact that there really isn't a back half. And while Dansby Swanson and Adonis Garcia have underwhelmed again, and as Matt Kemp has landed on the DL, the surprisingly adept roster depth has been saving them, thanks to a nice rookie season from Johan Camargo, some amazing bench work from Kurt Suzuki, and the emerging rookie talent of Ozzie Albies, which will hopefully improve over time.

The main core of the lineup isn't a problem, still, though. Freeman and Inciarte, as well as Matt Adams, Nick Markakis, Brandon Phillips and Tyler Flowers, have all been sharp, bringing momentum to a team that never should have had it in the first place, despite not all being terribly young.

This is a team that might be able to do something great soon if they build off this season. It's unlikely that this 2017 is gonna lead to anything immediately, and it's also unlikely that a majority of the older additions will still be here when the eventual playoff run happens, but some pieces are in place, and the Braves need to stick with them.

Coming Tonight: In 2014, his team came from the depths of third to make the World Series. CAN...THEY...DO IT AGAIN?