NFL Rumors: Will Josh Cribbs Hold Out?
September 8, 2009Tressel Owes Fans More
September 8, 2009
With Grady Sizemore being shut down for the remainder of the season, the Tribe front office did something that many of us had been hoping for for quite some time by putting Michael Brantley in the lead-off spot.
With Sizemore capable of 30/30 numbers when healthy, having a true lead-off man to head up the future of this Indians lineup is a must. And with the trade of C.C. Sabathia last season, we finally received a potential heir at the top.
Albeit within a small sample, Brantley has done nothing to disappoint thus far. In his very young major league career, Brantley has gone 9-for-23 with four runs scored, two RBI and one stolen base. He was very instrumental in the 3-1 win over Minnesota this weekend, and will likely get several more at-bats today as the Tribe has a double-header against the Rangers.
Under no circumstances should anyone anticipate Brantley keeping up at this pace. After all, his Triple-A average left a lot to be desired. However, his minor league averages are .300/.387/.369 with an incredible BB:K ratio.
But as long as we have a guy who can get on base consistently, provide a speed threat when on and play well in left field, we have something more than we have had since the departure of Manny Ramirez. Cleveland fans always get nostalgic when the team struggles, thinking back to the days of the late 90s.
In Brantley, we may have a player who can be counted on every night to provide a spark at the top of the order, perhaps reminding fans of Kenny Lofton for the foreseeable future.
An added bonus, it hasn’t taken long to gain the respect of his head coach. In regard to the “green light” that he has been given on the base paths:
“I think he’s earned that,” said Wedge. “His feel for the game is something I trust.”
Oh, and Brantley just turned 22-years old.
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(AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
11 Comments
This kid looks like the real deal, everything megastiff Trevor Crowe is not. A natural athlete, ideal leadoff hitter. Everytime I suggested the kid should be called up right after the all-star break, I was critisized by such nonsense as “he needs more seasoning”. Move Grady to the third spot (finally), and leave this kid alone at the top-please.
The better Brantley and LaPorta play, the more frustrated I get with the crap that Shapiro got back for Lee. How did he get less for a player who wasn’t in his walk year?
Dead on Boom. If you want to get further frustrated, check out a start by JA Happ. If that doesn’t get you, check out the Philly enquirer where you’ll find that long ago Philly deemed Carrasco “distressed material” and Knapp “injury prone and damaged goods”.
Hey, Isis, how many times did you watch Brantley in AAA? I didn’t get to see him all that much (~10-12 times), but THE DUDE BATTED .260 IN AAA ALL SEASON LONG. I’ve said over and over and over and over again that his legs and glove are ML-ready, and that his eye seems to be developing, but that his average is not ML-ready. I’m happy that in his first 23 at-bats he’s hitting well, but for you to say that he “looks like the real deal” after those same at bats is no more fair than all of the times you’ve criticized ANY of our prospects for struggling (like, say, Crowe after his first 50 or so ABs, even though you REFUSE TO ADMIT that he played well before getting hurt in his second stint this year).
YOU’RE the guy who criticizes ANY prospect that was acquired in a deal this year–or that was even just playing in the system–whose numbers don’t meet your exacting specifications, so forgive me for saying that Brantley might need more seasoning when HE COULDN’T HIT ABOVE .260 for a full year in AAA.
Cherry-picker, table for 1.
So, while most fans blast Shapiro for getting “nothing” for Lee, did any of you consider that he likely had no leverage with Dolan and no leverage with the Phillies?
Trade deadline phone call:
LD: “So, Mark, how are things going with the Phillies and the Lee talks?”
MS: “Well, I think they know we want Laporta/Brantley-like prospects in return for him so we’ll see if they come to the table”
LD: “Ha ha ha, that’s funny. They’ll call your bluff soon enough.”
MS: “What bluff? I don’t have a bluff!”
LD: “Sure you do! You’ve told me we can’t compete next year and we’ve more or less told the world we can’t compete next year with our deals so far and the rumors of our impending deals. Plus baseball folks knows our attendance and our payroll and they can reasonably estimate that our P&L won’t look great this year or next year. We can’t AFFORD to keep Lee. They know you’re going to have to trade Lee, so get whatever you can for him. Hopefully they throw you a bone.”
MS: “Yes, but Cliff Lee is a….”
LD: “Thanks for your time, Mark. I know you’re very busy at the trading deadline.”
I’m confused. Are the caps in DP’s comment sarcasm font?
I’m not ready to give Brantley the keys to the city yet either…what DP said is absolutely right, there’s no denying that Brantley’s full year performance in AAA left a bit to be desired, which is understandable given his young age. I’m still not convinced that Brantley’s ready for extended exposure to ML pitching, but I have to admit I’m very happy to see him hitting well in the early going and hope that he finds a way to keep going.
As for Carrasco…can we cool the jets on him? Terrible first start aside, I’m sure that if you go back and look at old PD articles about Brandon Phillips that they would say the same thing when we shuttled his butt off to Cincy. His first start was a train-wreck, but he has a history of success in the minors and he pitched very well for Columbus after the trade. The book is still very much open on him, in my opinion.
Isis and Boomhauer — As I said before, I am still very, very skeptical about the Lee trade. It is certainly worth noting, however, that at this point last year we had absolutely nothing at the major league level to show for the Sabathia deal. We had Zach Jackson looking completely underwhelming in a few games, and LaPorta struggling in his limited time at Akron.
I’m not sure if the Lee trade will pay dividends. That it has not so far, however, is absolutely no proof that it will not over time. I would also point out that picking up “distressed material” isn’t always a bad idea. If Team A thinks that their prospect is a dud, and Team B has scouted this prospect and disagrees with their assessment, then it makes absolute sense for Team B to include him in the trade. You get more for your money when you’re buying up things that the other party doesn’t value as highly; you just need to make certain that you have good reason for your own assessment. For a good example of this idea in practice, look at how the Pirates got Jose Tabata from the Yankees for what now looks like virtually nothing.
Again, I question the Lee trade. This is certainly not because of Knapp or Carrasco, who are both the type of promising arms that I’d want in my system. Rather, both Donald and Marson look like AAAA fodder to me, and I’d have preferred that Shapiro try to land one of Philadelphia’s minor league outfielders, or heck, even more high-upside, high-risk pitching. Future utility infielders and backup catchers are fungible, and not the type of commodity that I’d include in such a trade.
One last point before I quit beating this dead horse — being that the Phillies didn’t part with JA Happ for Halladay, what makes anyone think that they were going to for Cliff Lee? I have a hard time believing that he was offered, and Shapiro said something along the lines of, “no, I don’t want a high-upside pitcher who is already succeeding in the majors, why don’t you just give me a bunch of scrubs in your minor league system instead?”
Teams hoard young starting pitching. The Yankees decided not to part with theirs to land Johan Santana. The Indians, awhile back, reportedly decided that Jared Wright would be more valuable to them then a year or two of Pedro Martinez (sad how that one worked out). Even when trading for superstars, teams almost never give away their most promising young starting pitchers. There’s a reason that Bucholz is still with the Red Sox, and Hughes is still with the Yankees, and Happ is still with the Phillies. I doubt that Happ was ever seriously on the table.
So again, I don’t really like the Lee trade that much, and neither do you guys. But this doesn’t mean that we agree. I find basing your assessment of the trade on one major league start and what a newspaper may have said to be incredibly myopic.
Agree with Scott.
Needs more clarity!
Also, Doracle wins for thought!
I like the idea of Grady not leading off. We should have just had David Dellucci or Ben Fransisco lead off and lean into everything that was even slightly inside.
This Brantley character could work out and that’d be a nice change of pace. Thank god its nearing time to stop all this discussion of Indians trades and turn to watching Ohio Dib III liberal arts college football. Go Fighting Scots!
Hmm… a decent finish to a crappy season, and a few young guys step up and play well.
Where have I seen this before…