Friday, March 11, 2005
Young Cub bats not all hits this spring
Slow day at work, so I've decided to take this opportunity to peruse the ST stats... Granted, the most ABs anyone has so far is 17 (Todd Walker), which isn't nearly enough to actually make any sort of determination on how well guys are faring this spring. But what the hell... Let's do it anyway! (Yes, I'm that bored right now.)
The 3 young guys who've gotten the most ABs thus far this spring are Dubois (13 AB), Kelton (12), and Greenberg (10). Now of those guys, Adam Greenberg was just optioned to the minor league camp, despite putting up some pretty successful numbers thus far, especially for a guy who has only played 1 game (4 ABs, with Iowa last year) above the AA level. In two previous springs, he had a total of 7 ABs, with no hits to show for it. This spring is quite different... He has 5 hits (one of which was a double), for a .500 BA (.600 SLG). I think sending him back to the minor league camp is a good move, if only because he's still very young and won't be making the big league squad. But it's good to see him having some success this spring.
Next up, I want to talk about Kelton... As many people know, Kelton has been a darling of the system for the last couple years, and I'm still waiting for him to blossom and contribute. He hasn't hit particularly well his last two seasons at Iowa, with his BA dropping to a troublesome .245 last season. Well, his spring seems to be continuing with the lack of hitting, with only 2 hits (1 double) so far. Will he break with the club? Highly doubtful, in my mind. Will he be called up at some point this year? Probably... And as of right now, I cringe to think of the day that happens. Because I don't trust handing a bat to this guy in a big league game at this point. He needs to prove me something.
And finally, Mr. Dubois, who will break ST with the club but who knows how much playing time Dusty'll give him. Personally, I'd like to throw Dubois out there as the starting LF and see what he can do. Don't get me wrong... I like Hollandsworth a lot, but I think he's extremely valuable as a fourth OF. Back to Dubois' stats this spring... He's definitely making the most of the spring, hitting .385 (.846 SLG) with a pair of homers and 11 TBs. Hopefully that can continue into the beginning of the season.
That's it for now... Hopefully back later with more.
The 3 young guys who've gotten the most ABs thus far this spring are Dubois (13 AB), Kelton (12), and Greenberg (10). Now of those guys, Adam Greenberg was just optioned to the minor league camp, despite putting up some pretty successful numbers thus far, especially for a guy who has only played 1 game (4 ABs, with Iowa last year) above the AA level. In two previous springs, he had a total of 7 ABs, with no hits to show for it. This spring is quite different... He has 5 hits (one of which was a double), for a .500 BA (.600 SLG). I think sending him back to the minor league camp is a good move, if only because he's still very young and won't be making the big league squad. But it's good to see him having some success this spring.
Next up, I want to talk about Kelton... As many people know, Kelton has been a darling of the system for the last couple years, and I'm still waiting for him to blossom and contribute. He hasn't hit particularly well his last two seasons at Iowa, with his BA dropping to a troublesome .245 last season. Well, his spring seems to be continuing with the lack of hitting, with only 2 hits (1 double) so far. Will he break with the club? Highly doubtful, in my mind. Will he be called up at some point this year? Probably... And as of right now, I cringe to think of the day that happens. Because I don't trust handing a bat to this guy in a big league game at this point. He needs to prove me something.
And finally, Mr. Dubois, who will break ST with the club but who knows how much playing time Dusty'll give him. Personally, I'd like to throw Dubois out there as the starting LF and see what he can do. Don't get me wrong... I like Hollandsworth a lot, but I think he's extremely valuable as a fourth OF. Back to Dubois' stats this spring... He's definitely making the most of the spring, hitting .385 (.846 SLG) with a pair of homers and 11 TBs. Hopefully that can continue into the beginning of the season.
That's it for now... Hopefully back later with more.
