Comments on: Reviewing the 2011 Rule 5 Roster Crunch

By: Tim Williams

Tim Williams — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 16:16:00 +0000

Hague is a right handed batter, and has reverse splits. It’s rare for that to happen, but it does happen. Usually it only happens with right handers struggling against left handers, rather than the other way around.

By: Lee Young

Lee Young — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:54:00 +0000

Tim…I asked this once before, but Hague is a RH batter. Is this really correct?
“Ultimately he could be a platoon player, with a .327 average and an .812 OPS against right handers, compared to a .229 average and a .614 OPS against left handers.”

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 00:10:00 +0000

Kind of disappointing seeing some of those names on the good talent and below part of your list. By disappointing, I mean guys that we were big on as part of trade returns or over-slot draft signings.

I guess the season is still young enough that some of them work themselves back into the must protect category. It would be more exciting if hard decisions had to be made about who to keep and who to package in a trade. Looks like we still have a bit of dead weight to jettison.

By: F Lang

F Lang — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 20:29:00 +0000

After trades and expiring contracts there are a lot of spots open for most of the rule 5 guys. After looking the roster and this article over I would say the situation is not as bad as I thought. Especially considering there is still 2+ months of baseball in the minors to work out who is worth keeping and who may not be. Regardless, there are gonna be 4-5 guys that possibly have a future left hanging out there. This is a shock to Pirates fans because we are not used to having players hanging out there that other teams might want. This situation is just the residue of having more talent than in the past. Plus we have had a lot of guys that show flashes and then either stuggle or get hurt, slowing down their progress while their rule 5 clock moves forward. I wouldn’t expect next year to be anything like this year with around 20 players reaching rule 5 eligibility this year. With all the high schoolers we added the last few years and the guys we do keep making it or not making it next season I am guessing it will be easier in 2012.

By: The Hammer

The Hammer — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 20:22:00 +0000

Nice piece. Fryer will definitely be protected.

By: F Lang

F Lang — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 20:06:00 +0000

I think you have to protect Cabrera. Especially with the Pirates catching situation the way it has been this year with injuries. Fryer is a tough call also because he has hit well and he can also play the OF. I could easily see him getting swiped. Then again, he could be in the majors soon also. Lattimore still has potential if he can get some patience at the plate. But I don’t think he would get picked anyways so he is a safe bet not to be protected. (Unless he catches fire all of a sudden which he is known to do.)

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 19:14:00 +0000

If Hague can hit around .270 – .280 in ML with good skills at first I would rather have him right now than Overbay who has a HR once or twice a month and doesn’t hit for avg. How many times this season has Overbay struck out when just making contact would have helped?

By: Tim Williams

Tim Williams — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:40:00 +0000

I believe Marte could play in the same outfield with Cutch and Tabata. I also think Marte is a better CF option than Cutch, and wouldn’t mind Cutch moving over to LF.

Thanks! I think I slept like 10 hours during those three days, and ate one meal.

By: HankS

HankS — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:29:00 +0000

If the Pirates sign Cutch for 5-6 yrs wouldnt that just block Marte?

Also Great Job on your Draft Coverage I dont know how you were keeping up with everything that was crazy!!

By: Tim Williams

Tim Williams — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:07:00 +0000

I wouldn’t be surprised if Marte remains in AA for the majority of the year, similar to Jose Tabata in 2009. Marte has already been rushed through the system. No need to move him to AAA, especially when he won’t arrive until June 2012 at the earliest.