In an obvious attempt to bolster their bench, reports surfaced Monday the Washington Nationals had signed veteran 1B Adam Lind to a 1-year deal worth $1 million plus a club option for 2018 with a $500,000 buyout. Aside from the closer spot, Washington’s biggest need was additional bench depth and this signing directly addresses this concern.
The 33-year-old Lind has spent 11 seasons in the major leagues, playing for Toronto, Milwaukee and Seattle. Last season with the Mariners, Lind hit .239/.286/.431 with 20 home runs and 58 runs driven in over 126 games played. A left-handed hitter, Lind owns a career .271/.328/.462 batting line with 186 home runs. In particular, Lind has punished right-handed pitching during his career, posting a .287/.347/.502 (.849 OPS) verses a .215/.260/.329 line against lefties. Finally, Lind has shown an unusual knack for pinch hitting, producing a .309/.389/.532 and 5 home runs in 94 career at-bats.
Defensively Lind has been exclusively a first baseman since 2010, when previously he dabbled playing some left field. The defensive metrics do not care for him at the cold corner, although there are often flaws in the data judging first base defense. Lind appears to be a natural fit to backup Ryan Zimmerman at first base, spelling him against difficult right-handed pitchers and acting as a dangerous pinch hitter late in games.
Consequently, i would recommend http://respitecaresa.org/event/431/ online cialis pharmacy to talk a health care provider to know about side effects, these medicines are likely to cause to you. This happens when the blood flow viagra australia mastercard to the penile region. It also does another important that is very costly in the US are corticosteroids, which sell for an average ranging between $18 and $45 price of viagra respitecaresa.org for a monthly supply of the most expensive of this drug kind. This canadian cialis oil is also included within the list of the drugs that can help you combat the impotence with the money and all we also require the best life partner. At first glance this appears to be one of the bigger steals in free agency this winter, as Lind has hit 20+ home runs in six of the past eight years. Certainly he is coming off a subpar season, but his powerful left-handed bat provides outstanding depth behind the oft-injured Zimmerman and gives manager Dusty Baker a valuable weapon in the late innings.
Lind represents a substantial upgrade from holdover Clint Robinson, who failed to notch an extra base hit after the all-star break last year and holds a career .710 OPS against right-handed pitching. For an additional $400,000-$500,000 in salary from Robinson to Lind, Washington improves 70 points in career OPS points and nearly 140 points in career OPS against righties. This is a massive upgrade.
For the cost of a rounding error in their overall budget, Washington addressed their second largest team weakness and dramatically enhanced the quality of their bench. Lind is not a star, but he represents a large upgrade at cheap price at an area of need, making this a terrific signing by the Nationals.
The Baltimore Orioles presently do not have a strong farm system. This is true for several reasons, specifically mediocre drafting for many years, a lack of international signings and the fact that Dylan Bundy, Kevin Gausman, Manny Machado and Jonathan Schoop occupy major roles for the big league club. This leaves the organization without the depth or high-ceiling prospects found in stronger farm systems.
Nonetheless, as pitchers and catchers report any day, this figures to be an ideal time to analyze the Orioles’ farm system and rank their top prospects. This list prioritizes, in order, the prospect’s ceiling, their likelihood to fulfill their potential, how far they are from the major leagues and finally, their positional value. With this in mind, here is THE Unofficial Official 2017 Baltimore Orioles Top Prospect List.
Honorable Mention -> Brian Gonzalez LHP, David Hess RHP, Trey Mancini 1B, Anthony Santander OF, D.J. Stewart OF, Christian Walker 1B/OF, Gabriel Ynoa RHP
#11 Matthias Dietz RHP
Perhaps the top junior college prospect in the 2016 draft, Dietz was plucked by Baltimore in the 2nd round due to his impressive pitcher’s frame at 6-5 220lbs. and his ability to touch the mid-90s with his fastball. The 21-year-old Dietz has three pitches in his arsenal, a mid-90s fastball with some sinking movement, along with a slider and a changeup. His offspeed pitches are unrefined, but have shown promise. Dietz will need significant time in the minors, but he could develop into a future #4 starter or impact late-inning reliever. There is significant bust potential, but the raw package of tools is quite intriguing.
#10 Austin Hays OF
One of my favorite prospects in the 2016 draft, Hays shockingly slid to the 3rd round due to concerns with his competition level in college, as he starred for Jacksonville University. Hays has the potential to have five average or better tools, as his above-average bat speed allows him to hit for both average and power. Defensively he has good speed and a solid throwing arm, allowing him to profile as an above-average right fielder or passable in center. Hays does not possess a monster ceiling, but his high floor allows him to project as a fringe-average starter in right field or excellent 4th outfielder.
#9 Tanner Scott LHP
Drafted in the 6th round back in 2014, Scott possesses one of the truly elite left-handed arms in the minor leagues, with a fastball that routinely sits 96mph+ and touches triple digits. In addition the 22-year-old has a hard-biting upper-80s slider with swing-and-miss potential. Unfortunately Scott owns “20” grade command and control, walking nearly 7 batters per 9 innings in his professional career.
Scott has recently altered his delivery, apparently pitching exclusively from the stretch now in an effort to improve his command. Scott profiles exclusively as a 2-pitch reliever at the major league level. Scott is extremely risky, but Baltimore has done well in the past several years developing relief pitchers.
#8 Ryan Mountcastle 3B/LF
One of my favorite high school prospects from 2015, Baltimore selected Mountcastle 36th overall as a lanky 6-3 185lbs shortstop with impressive right-handed bat speed. Mountcastle shows natural barrel skills and a mature approach at the plate, allowing him to hold his own last year at 19-years-old in Low-A. He projects to hit for average and a reasonable on-base percentage, while scouts believe he will develop more power as he matures physically.
The major question in his profile is his eventual defensive position, as his fringe-average arm and mediocre athleticism leave him little chance of staying at shortstop. Most scouts (and myself) believe he could play a passable third base, but his eventual position will be left field. Unfortunately this puts significant risk in his prospect profile, as his bat will have to carry him to the majors.
#7 Keegan Akin LHP
Baltimore’s 2nd round pick last June, Akin skyrocketed up draft boards after an impressive performance against Kent State and 1st round pick Eric Lauer. Akin is a bit undersized at 6-0 225lbs, but possesses a lightning-fast left-handed arm and an impressive 3-pitch arsenal. He features a 92-96mph fastball that he can command for strikes, along with a hard slider and an inconsistent but promising changeup.
Akin struggled with injuries in college, which when coupled with his below-average height, has many scouts pegging him as a reliever. However, Baltimore will begin his development as a starter with his ceiling being a #3/#4 starter and the most likely outcome being an impact reliever.
#6 Hunter Harvey RHP
Son of former major league closer Bryan Harvey, Hunter was Baltimore’s 1st round pick in 2013. Once he entered professional baseball, he showed a smooth delivery and a solid 3-pitch repertoire, including a mid-90s fastball, punishing curveball and a developing changeup. Along with his wiry 6-3 175lbs frame, Harvey profiled as a future mid-rotation starter with the ceiling of a #2. Unfortunately, Harvey has battled injuries his entire career, throwing only 12 innings the past two years and 125.2 as a professional.
Men are the next cheap soft cialis main victims, if compared with the females. Generic medicine manufacturers keep their prices of buy cialis cialis their medicines affordable to expand their reach and share the profit with the users. Game viagra price online Over Computer game fans are invariably plagued by the same problem each year – a shortage of time to run here and there and perform important chores of routine life. You must be open and receptive to viagra purchase no prescription the change process. Harvey is nearly impossible to rank, as he also underwent Tommy John surgery last July and is unlikely to appear in game action again until 2018. If the 22-year-old can return to the mound, he might be the most talented prospect in Baltimore’s system, but his overwhelming injury risk places him here at #6.
#5 Chris Lee LHP
Acquired from Houston for two international bonus slots, Lee quickly went from a relatively unknown lefty into a promising potential mid-rotation starter. 2016 was a difficult year for the southpaw, as he started quickly at Double-A but injured himself and did not pitch after May.
When healthy, the 24-year-old Lee utilizes an impressive 3-pitch repertoire, featuring a 92-94mph fastball with excellent sink, a quality slider he can locate for strikes and a reasonable changeup. Due to his age, injury history and success against lefties, many scouts profile him as a reliever. However, if Baltimore is willing to be patient with him this season, I still believe he can develop into a solid back-of-the-rotation starter. This is a big league arm and does not get enough attention from the prospect community.
For more on Lee, please see this in-person scouting report -> http://natsgm.com/2016/04/26/scouting-baltimore-orioles-prospect-chris-lee/
#4 Ofelky Peralta RHP
Signed for $325,000 from the Dominican Republic in September 2013, the 19-year-old Peralta impressively held his own at Low-A Delmarva last season, posting 101 strikeouts against 60 walks over 103.1 innings pitched. Peralta is a lean, wiry 6-5 195lbs with excellent arm strength and a developing 3-pitch repertoire. He features a 91-95mph fastball, touching 96mph, with some natural life and movement. In addition, Peralta has a solid slider and a quality changeup in which he replicates his arm speed particularly well.
As with most young pitchers, he struggles to repeat his mechanics, which elevates his walk rate and hinders his command. Nevertheless, this is a talented, underappreciated prospect who should spend his age-20 season with High-A Frederick. In an era where prospects receive plenty of attention, somehow Peralta does not secure much admiration from online scouts. He profiles as a quality back-end starter, with the ceiling of a #3.
#3 Jomar Reyes 1B
Reyes ranked #1 on this list last year after punishing Low-A pitching as an 18-year-old to the tune of a .278/.334/.440 batting line. Unfortunately the jump to High-A Frederick and the Carolina League in 2016 proved difficult at age-19, as he hit only .228/.271/.336 with 10 home runs.
From a scouting perspective, Reyes is already a physical monster, appearing significantly larger than his listed 6-3 220lbs. – he physically resembles an NFL linebacker rather than a maturing teenager playing baseball. Reyes has impressive natural bat speed, a relatively quiet swing along with good balance throughout his right-handed swing. Like most young hitters, his swing can get long and he believes he can hit any pitch, making him susceptible to swings-and-misses. He naturally generates loft and back spin off the barrel and has a solid approach at the plate, giving me confidence he will hit for average and power in the future.
The biggest question in his prospect profile is his eventual defensive position, as his mammoth size and underwhelming speed should force him from the hot corner. He does possess a strong arm and reasonable agility for such a large man, which should allow him to become a good defender at first base. Unfortunately a shift to the cold corner will put additional pressure on his offensive numbers. He should repeat High-A this season, and I fully expect a rebound offensively from this precocious teenager.
#2 Cody Sedlock RHP
Baltimore’s 1st round selection, 27th overall, in 2016, Sedlock spent his first two years in college pitching out of the bullpen, before blossoming as a starter as a junior for the University of Illinois. Sedlock certainly looks the part physically, standing an imposing 6-4 205lbs. with thick legs. Furthermore, he owns an intriguing 4-pitch arsenal, featuring a 94-97mph fastball, along with a curveball, slider and changeup. His offspeed pitches lag behind his monster fastball, as he did not need them pitching in relief. That said each has shown the potential to be average or slightly better in the future.
The major knocks on Sedlock are his lack of experience as a starter and his lack of an above-average secondary offering. His detractors believe he is destined for the bullpen, while his supporters envision a future workhorse #3 starter with low mileage on his arm. Either way, he is a future major league arm and Baltimore did well to secure him at the end of Round 1.
#1 Chance Sisco Catcher
A shortstop in high school, Baltimore drafted Sisco in the 2nd round in 2013 and immediately transitioned him behind the plate, where his decent arm and quality agility but below-average speed would profile especially well. Sisco has been slow to develop defensively behind the plate, to the point where 12 months ago I was routinely mocked for thinking he was a future major league catcher. Nonetheless, he has made significant strides in the past year and now most scouts concede he will be a below-average defensive catcher in the majors.
Improvements aside, Sisco will always be known as an offensive-first catcher, as his calling card is his incredible ability to put the barrel on the baseball. Sisco possesses a compact left-handed swing with raw power to the pull side, although he prefers to consistently pepper line drives all over the outfield. He has excellent hand-eye coordination and scouts believe he will develop more home run power as he matures physically. He could be a “60+ hit / 40-45 power” hitter at the catcher spot, which would make him a potential top-5 batter at the position.
Sisco should begin 2017 at Triple-A Norfolk working on refining his defensive skills and learning to hit for more power. One of the top catching prospects currently in the minors, Sisco should arrive in Baltimore around midseason and stabilize the catching spot the rest of the decade.
Wednesday, in their most substantial effort to bolster their 2017 bullpen, the Washington Nationals announced they had agreed to obtain left-handed pitcher Enny Romero from Tampa Bay for Jeffrey Rosa. Tampa needed to create a space on their 40-man roster to accommodate recent signing Logan Morrison, and Washington, with open spaces on their 40-man, capitalized on the opportunity to add this intriguing southpaw.
The 26-year-old Romero scuffled with Tampa last season, posting a 5.91 ERA in 45.2 innings pitched, striking out 50 hitters while allowing 42 hits and 28 walks. Over three seasons and 80.1 major league innings, he has a 5.27 ERA with 82 strikeouts against 82 hits and 45 walks allowed. Despite his impressive 9.6 K/9 ratio, his dreadful 5.0 BB/9 plus mediocre 42.7 GB% and 0.9 HR/9 rates explain his struggles in the big leagues. In addition, Romero is out of minor league options, meaning he will need to make the Nationals opening day roster or risk being exposed to waivers at the conclusion of spring training.
However, there are reasons for optimism with Romero: he possesses elite fastball velocity, sitting between 96-97mph according to BrooksBaseball.net, with some natural arm-side movement. Romero also throws an 88-91mph cutter/slider hybrid with impressive sinking action and a mid-80s curveball that has late tumbling action. In short, Romero has one of the strongest left-handed arms in baseball and an elite repertoire for a reliever. Finally, Romero has spent his entire career with Tampa, signing with them in 2008, making him a credible “change of scenery” candidate.
In exchange, Washington sent 21-year-old right-handed pitcher Jeffrey Rosa to Tampa Bay. Signed as an international free agent for $10,000 in May 2015, Rosa has pitched 96.1 professional innings across two seasons for Washington, with a career 3.83 ERA and 103 strikeouts against 49 walks. Rosa has an intriguing pitcher’s frame at 6-3 190lbs and possesses a naturally fast arm. He throws a mid-90s fastball that has reportedly reached 100mph, along with a slider and a nascent changeup.
Now, the study says, levitra 20 mg there’s evidence that one precedes the other. Reasons could cialis prices be physical, passionate or mental in nature. Study the guidelines very well to stay away from side effects of levitra overdose just before you start taking tablets. It is so, because the sex power enhancing medicine which is available within your budget in your country canada cialis levitra and which will give you discounts on large order or release new offers every year. Rosa has not been ranked on any prospect lists for Washington this offseason and did not project to make my top-30 as well. There is extreme risk in his profile due to his age, distance from the majors and how raw his skills are, but Tampa did well to add a power arm with some potential as a future reliever to their organization.
On the surface this seems like a natural trade between the two teams, although somewhat in reverse. Typically the team projected for the playoffs (Washington) trade players lacking options and an obvious role to a rebuilding team (Tampa) for a prospect, yet the situation is occurring in reverse. Washington found themselves in the position of having empty spaces on the roster and wanting additional bullpen depth, while giving noted pitching guru Mike Maddux a fascinating project to tinker with this spring. Romero will head to Spring Training competing for a spot in the bullpen against lefties Oliver Perez and Sammy Solis, along with holdover Matt Grace and several minor league free agents.
This trade reminds me of a story from a few years ago – a large group of us were on a bachelor party at a casino and at the end of the night a buddy found $10 in his back pocket. We were walking past a roulette wheel and sure enough, he bets on 24 because that was his age and it hit. We went from heading to bed to straight to the bar to celebrate his new wealth. Enny Romero is that $5 bet – most of the time you bet on one number at the roulette wheel at 2am, or in this case, a hard-throwing lefty with control issues, you lose. But on the rare occasion, everything “Comes Up Milhouse” and you hit big.
I see little middle ground on this trade, as he is unlikely to last through 2017 with the Nationals, yet I feel compelled to go against the odds and gamble something clicks in Washington for Romero. I do not envision Rosa developing into a major league pitcher, so the risk feels relatively minimal, and the upside is obtaining a high-leverage lefty under salary control through 2021. If we keep expectations tempered, I think Washington is wise to gamble on Maddux’s aptitude improving pitchers and Romero’s special arm.
THE NatsGM Show returns with our 1st episode of February 2017 and we are proud to welcome former MMA fighter and current professional wrestler Matthew Riddle!
Our interview begins with Matt sharing his thoughts on his UFC career, Dana White and his take on Ronda Rousey. Then our conversations shifts toward professional wrestling, his favorites growing up as a kid and how his athletic background helped him transition from MMA. Next Matt talks about Evolve, how he ended up with the company, working with Gabe Sapolsky and acting as a co-trainer for the company. Finally we finish with a game of “Rapid Fire” where Matt talks about fighting Brock Lesnar and Ken Shamrock, his favorite band and his future in the sport. Some other methods are: Duplex ultrasound: this is done by cialis tablets australia http://aimhousepatong.com/item5796.html dilation of the blood vessels in and around the penis. The best way to overcome the viagra without side effects problem of erectile dysfunction. One can viagra soft tablet depend for longer period over the sexual act that helps in receiving satisfactory love making period. Next comes an enthusing and informative cialis purchase read on the latest artists’ retreat in town.
Thanks to Matt for joining us this week – please check out his new website KingofBros.com for more information.
