ShreveFrog
Full Member
Or keep paying Joey million$ to wear a path out to the dugout.
2021 MLB Thread
- Thread starter ShreveFrog
- Start date
FBallFan123
Active Member
Here’s where MLB Pipeline ranks the new Rangers in their top 30 rankings:
7. Josh Smith
8. Ezequiel Duran
19,. Trevor Hauver
25. Glenn Otto
FBallFan123
Active Member
FBallFan123
Active Member
I don’t always like Fangraphs prospect content … but interesting they have Ezequiel Duran 3rd in the Rangers rankings with the same FV as Leiter and Jung (50).
I don’t necessarily put that much stock in their FV designations, but interesting to note.
Here's what they say about him:
TLDR
A little second baseman with shocking power for his size, Duran will need to prove he's more than just an aggressive, one-dimensional slugger as he moves up.
Full Report
Duran bounced back after his horrendous 2018 and hit for power (.256/.329/.496) in the 2019 Penn League as a 20-year-old. He looked comfortable in a handful of 2020 big league spring training at-bats before the pandemic, then picked up at-bats in the DR during the Fall. He's a stocky guy who only really fits at second base, and isn't very good there. As he continues to age he'll likely only be able to stay there with the aid of good defensive positioning, and even then Duran's hands need to improve. But boy, does he have power. His long, slow, aggressive leg kick helps him generate big pop, and he can move the bat head around the zone. The titanic hacks he takes create some swing-and-miss but this isn't a guy with a grooved swing, and there's impact bat-to-ball/power interplay going on here. This is a site that tends to avoid prospect comps unless they're flush to the prospect's profile, and Duran's is a dead ringer for Dan Uggla's. (DR Instructional League)
FBallFan123
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FBallFan123
Active Member
Just to add to that post … it’s been quoted so I won’t edit it…
But I would actually say that I don’t see it as a negative for the Rangers that they opted to pay the Yankees in order to get better prospects back.
Like if you’re going to rebuild … get the best prospect return you can.
Maybe no elite prospects came back … but with Jung, Leiter, a top pick next year and money to spend … Rangers should have some quality prospects.
Astros and Cubs had to go through a lot of bad seasons, too.
But I would actually say that I don’t see it as a negative for the Rangers that they opted to pay the Yankees in order to get better prospects back.
Like if you’re going to rebuild … get the best prospect return you can.
Maybe no elite prospects came back … but with Jung, Leiter, a top pick next year and money to spend … Rangers should have some quality prospects.
Astros and Cubs had to go through a lot of bad seasons, too.
Eight
Member
wait, the cubs WENT THROUGH a lot of bad seasons or are still going through
FBallFan123
Active Member
Cubs finished 5th in the NL Central 5 straight years (2010-2014).
Two years later (2016) they won the World Series.
And Epstein had the luxury of giving out bad contracts (like 8/$184 for Jason Heyward) and trading away part of the club’s future (like Gleyber Torres to rent Aroldis Chapman).
Point being the Cubs core could’ve held together longer if they made better decisions and took a longer view …. but they were in all-or-nothing mode.
(Astros were similarly as bad between 2009-2014.)
Last edited:
Eight
Member
they went through a great deal more than those 5 bad years, was raised in a household with a cub fan as a father
Creeperfrog
Active Member
This is the last year for the Astros IMO, and that is said as a fan. They did pick up 2 closers from Seattle and Miami. Kinda looks like they are really pushing for this year. Carlos will prob be a yank/sock after this year
FBallFan123
Active Member
Obviously, but I’m saying … they weren’t bad for a decade.
They made the playoffs in ‘07 and ‘08.
They were terrible for a 5 year stretch, during which they drafted guys like Baez, Almora, Bryant, Schwarber, and traded guys like Ryan Dempster for Kyle Hendricks and Jeff Samardzija for Addison Russell … all guys who were on that 2016 team.
FBallFan123
Active Member
close … or not…
FBallFan123
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FBallFan123
Active Member
FBallFan123
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Fangraphs writer with some additional commentary … (not all the prospects he mentioned ended up in the final package but the overall point he makes is valid) …
LVH
Active Member
Where are the Yankees getting all these prospects to make these moves?
I say the same about the Dodgers. How is their farm system not depleted by now.
FBallFan123
Active Member
FBallFan123
Active Member
Mental health….
