Comparing 2011 and 2012 by position

[sychmd]

CF - 12 mccutch >> 11 mccutch
LF - 12 presley > 11 injured tabata and injured presley
RF - 12 tabata >> 11 jones/diaz/paul/rule 5 debacle

3B 12 alvarez >>> 11 alvarez et al
SS 12 Barmes/Navarro > 11 cedeno (both offense and defense)
2B 12 Walker >> 11 Walker
1B 12 Jones/Evans >> Overbay nightmare(*11 Lee/jones was good for 6 weeks

C 12 Barajas/McK/Morales > Doumit/Snyder/Mck/Jaram/Fryer/blahblahblah
offensively, power, and defense will be better.

SP 12 1.Bedard 2.Mcdonald 3.Karstens 4.Correia 5.Morton Lincoln, Locke, Owens >> 1.Correia 2. injured Mcdonald 3. Morton 4.Maholm 5. Ohlendorf
although karstens and mortons start and spurts were amazing.

RP 12 Hanrahan, meek, resop, grilli, mccutcheon, leroux, moskos, wilson >> the inexperienced group in 11 that got their feet wet and meek immediately injured putting strain on everyone down the line.

bench 12 mcclouth, evans/jones, navarro, mcckenry, harrison/hague(if he can play third again) >> injured 5th string catcher, paul, rule 5 guy, bowker, inexperienced d'arnaud, harrison, ciraco,

cant believe i see us as improved in all areas.
key is our main and young guys really showing that significant improvement as mccutch, walker, tabata all had down years (sophomore type regression) but could really breakout.
alvarez really makes it all a lot easier.

maybe with some steady players around, our "stars" wont press as much, can just play, and really shine, building on the great 100 game start last year.

how long till the crack of the bat, some fungoes, mitts poppin and sunshine?

 

[thedddd]

I am still not 100% convinced Alvarez, Tabata, Presley and 3/5th of the starting rotation will be better but from the signings the front office is hoping for it.

The one I like the most is Bedard he can be a top of the rotation starter for this team which hasn't been there in a LONG time. Just hope he stays healthy.

 

[Illinest]

I think you could easily turn around every single one of those greater thans.
Mcc could get injured
Tabata and presley could both suck.
Barmes and barajas derive their miniscule value on offense from homeruns that could easily be swallowed up by our large right field.
Etc...

 

[magnumo]

I'm with Illinest on this one.....

The only thing I can say at this point is that the signing of Bedard improved my outlook. How much better than Maholm will Bedard prove to be? Could be a lot..... could be worse (especially if he gets hurt).

I don't expect much from Barajas or Barmes. And s-o-o-o-o much depends on Alvarez and the health of our young outfielders. The Pirates COULD be better next year (if Bedard stays healthy and if several other "if's" work out)..... but 2012 also could be an outright disaster.

Note to Illinest: I'm assuming you meant "our large LEFT field."

 

[Illinest]

yeah that's what I meant.

As for me - I am encouraged by reports that we are still pursuing a starting pitcher. Specifically Wei-Yin Chen, the Taiwanese Lefty.
Wei-Yin Chen is 26, left-handed, played in the Japanese professional league last season. He's a true free agent therefore no posting fee. His fastball is usually 90-91 mph though he has gotten up to 95 in the past. He doesn't appear to walk many so I'm guessing he's a guy who's got good control and the ability to pitch. The guys who are paid to think about this sort of thing have predicted that he'll get 20 million over 4 years.

It's impossible to know if Chen will translate over and still have success but he seems superficially similar to Maholm based on the little bit of information that we have available.

If Neil signs Chen then I think he will have put us in a position where the starting rotation could be a strength again. I've said something like this before but I think one of the biggest variables is if Morton can figure out a way to get lefties out. Morton could perform like an ace or he could perform like a mid-rotation starter. I'd rather not discuss the worst possibility.

Bedard is a good pitcher when healthy. I know he's been injured a lot but what if he's just healthy? Not asking for him to add a pitch or improve his control or anything, just not be injured.

Well there's a top of the rotation starter.
Morton likewise has top of the rotation potential.
Then Karstens, I still don't know. The stats of a decent starter, the stuff of a bullpen pitcher.
Chen, McDonald. Both seem to be better than your typical #5.
That's five. Correia and Lincoln and Locke and etc. for the inevitable injury call-ups.


The Pirates could actually come away with a legitimate group of starting pitchers. The only defensive liability on the roster would be Alvarez too.

 

[Darkstone42]

I think this roster will certainly be good at preventing runs, especially if Chen signs and translates to MLB, as illinest has pointed out, and I think it's a given that 2012 Alvarez will be better than 2011 Alvarez, because it's hard to be as bad as 2011 Alvarez was. I'm not saying he'll set the world on fire, but he should at least not suck as bad.

I will say this, though. If Alvarez hits, the offense should be fine. If Tabata returns to being a .300 hitter and Presley proves to have not been a fluke, the offense could actually be pretty solid.

 

[element1286]

I don't see any downgrades from last year, except the catcher position. Although the upgrades have been minimal. Still looking like a 70-75 win team assuming the team is relatively healthy.

 

[Darkstone42]

Any interesting rumors floating around concerning first basemen and/or pitchers and/or any other positions really?

 

[thedddd]

Nothing new here. Outside they designated Hefner (who didn't seem to be a good pitcher anyway) to make room for one of the middle IF's they picked up.

Those moves where they pickup a guy then designate him made me always wonder if it is chess match. The reason is that spot could have been used to keep a better quality player, in this case someone like Lorin who was exposed to the Rule V.

 

[thedddd]

Brewers, Pirates Swap Veras For McGehee : MLB Rumors - MLBTradeRumors.com

Good 3B option if Alvarez flops again or a Right handed bat for 3B or even 1B. I hope he can get some of that 09 or 10 hitting going again.

 

[element1286]

Brewers, Pirates Swap Veras For McGehee : MLB Rumors - MLBTradeRumors.com

Good 3B option if Alvarez flops again or a Right handed bat for 3B or even 1B. I hope he can get some of that 09 or 10 hitting going again.

Big fan of this move.

 

[Illinest]

It's a move that is almost certain to be low impact, but if anyone is going to win that trade it'll be the Pirates.

I expect very little but it's the kind of moves that Neil should be making. I am thinking that the infield is almost done now.
Alvarez
Barmes
Walker
Jones
Barajas

Bench players-
Navarro, SS, 2B, 3B and OF
McGehee, 3B and 2B
McKenry, C
Mclouth, OF
There's room for one more. Either a corner OF or a 1B. Actually if we get someone like Morales then Jones would be a 1B/OF and it would be the best Bucco bench I've seen in a long time.
Little victories.

 

[Burgh Sports Rule]

Big fan of this move.

I Love this trade for the Bucs. Despite last yrs lost yr for him, I think Casey McGehee is a good ball player. Now, my hope is, that the Angels non - tender Kendrys Morales & that his ankle & leg have healed & that the Bucs can sign him.

Then, we could actually have the makings of a Real Baseball team!

All this, & still the Hammer chip to use in a trade should we chose to.

I hope we can get Morales now?

If not, a Good 1B in a trade.

Burgh.

 

[Darkstone42]

At the very least, McGehee can take the pressure off Alvarez against lefties. I like this deal.

 

[thedddd]

The Pirates Tendered everyone except Ciriaco and Jaramillo. No big surprise/or deal since those two were the odd players out with all the recent players coming in.

Jason Grilli did agree to a contract to avoid arbitration.

As for the McGehee move I like it also (Veras could have been non-tendered), if you look at his down year certain peripheral numbers didn't change so he might be a good player who might bounce back.

 

[magnumo]

What's not to like about trading a relief pitcher for a guy who COULD BE a regular? My guess is that you need to make a deal like that 90% of the time.

No doubt McGehee had a terrible season last year, but even if he does nothing more than light a fire under Pedro Alvarez, this probably is a good deal. Even McGehee's awful 2011 season was far superior to that of Alvarez.

But I'm reminded that McGehee was available because the Brewers signed Aramis Ramirez. Has it really been THAT long ago that the Pirates GAVE Ramirez to the Cubs?

 

[smokeyburgess]

I found an interesting article on McGehee in an old Brewers blog from 2009. According to the author, McGehee is a slick fielder who can play several positions. He might not hit for a high average but he might save a few games with his glove.

Casey McGehee: A Quad-A Player Succeeds Upon Finding an MLB Job | Bleacher Report

 

[element1286]

What's not to like about trading a relief pitcher for a guy who COULD BE a regular? My guess is that you need to make a deal like that 90% of the time.

No doubt McGehee had a terrible season last year, but even if he does nothing more than light a fire under Pedro Alvarez, this probably is a good deal. Even McGehee's awful 2011 season was far superior to that of Alvarez.

But I'm reminded that McGehee was available because the Brewers signed Aramis Ramirez. Has it really been THAT long ago that the Pirates GAVE Ramirez to the Cubs?

No kidding, doesn't seem that long ago, but it was 8 years.

 

[element1286]

I found an interesting article on McGehee in an old Brewers blog from 2009. According to the author, McGehee is a slick fielder who can play several positions. He might not hit for a high average but he might save a few games with his glove.

Casey McGehee: A Quad-A Player Succeeds Upon Finding an MLB Job | Bleacher Report

Everything I read said he is the opposite of a slick fielder.

 

[thecrow124]

Now NH should make Alvarez the centerpiece of a trade for Gio Gonzalez, or any of the other top pitchers that seem to be coming towards availability. Tampa has 6 legit starters, why can't we lure one of them away in a trade?

Let it be known that I can't stand Alvarez and have been calling for him to be traded since his whole draft fiasco, so I am probably the only person wanting this sort of deal.