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Post by cmax on Aug 2, 2023 6:29:40 GMT -5
Really like the Urias acquisition given the team control and low expense of a player in Blalock they were not likely to protect in the Rule 5 draft. If the Red Sox just added a 2-3 WAR 2B who hits 20 HR/year, then watch out for this lineup, and you don't need to look too hard to see that potential when he essentially did it the last two years at age 24 and 25. As a 21-22 year old he hit .315 with a .398 OBP and .998 OPS with 19 HR and 50 RBI in 73 games at AAA... And then there is his performance in the WBC this year as a 25 year old when he had two of the bigger clutch hits in the tournament - a game winning single with two outs vs Puerto Rico which Alex Cora most definitely saw and a three run homer with two outs of Roki Sasaki to break a scoreless tie in the semifinals. That home run went over Yoshida's head in left field and he will definitely remember that hit and respect Urias for it. Verdugo remembers it too and Duran undoubtedly put a Sombrero on his head soon after... This is a sneaky exciting trade. Not a sure thing, but adding a young dynamic gamer of a 2B with pop who has already proved in the MLB and on the WBC stage... I like it.
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Post by scottysmalls on Aug 2, 2023 8:45:20 GMT -5
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Post by umassgrad2005 on Aug 2, 2023 9:00:06 GMT -5
I'm not against bring him to AAA for a short stint then bring him up, but the guy has been on fire in AAA for a month. If he's not brought up quickly, then the deadline looks much different. Him and Story bashing could take the offense to crazy levels!
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Post by umassgrad2005 on Aug 2, 2023 9:01:42 GMT -5
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Aug 2, 2023 9:16:16 GMT -5
Almost. ERC still here though. Do you count Aaron Perry or starters only? I'll count Perry and other true HS pitchers. Wouldn't count Cutter Coffey or a similar dual prospect. Thanks for the quick response. Would be wild if the Sox didn't have a single HS pitcher in the system. I'm curious what's happening to that demo across the game in the 20-round, (essentially) hard draft cap era. I just counted quickly and got 40 HS pitchers who signed in this year's draft, so 1.3 per team. Factor in a 5-round 2020 draft be covid making it harder to scout those kids on 2020 and 2021, I bet the Red Sox aren't alone on this front. As for the Red Sox, it seems very clear that they're getting their "high school pitchers" on the IFA market at this point and focusing on college guys in the draft.
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Post by tjb21 on Aug 2, 2023 9:29:20 GMT -5
Interesting buy low player, with a nice pedigree. Always liked Blalock. This is seemingly good news that he'll be added to the Brewers 40-man this offseason. Keep working, kid!
Hope Urias gets fully healthy and makes the ML roster better at 2B. He's been a nice player.
Really like this swap of players, since Blalock likley would not have been protected by Boston.
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Post by rhswanzey on Aug 2, 2023 10:23:48 GMT -5
Urias/Valdez platoon is pretty tough since neither of them can play SS or the OF. You'd need your last bench spot to cover SS and CF and I don't know where we would possibly find a player that could pull that off. Urias played almost as much SS as 2B last year (he was their primary third baseman). He has over 1100 MLB innings at SS. He could probably handle a primary backup role behind (finally) a near everyday starter, no?
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Post by incandenza on Aug 2, 2023 11:10:07 GMT -5
Urias/Valdez platoon is pretty tough since neither of them can play SS or the OF. You'd need your last bench spot to cover SS and CF and I don't know where we would possibly find a player that could pull that off. Urias played almost as much SS as 2B last year (he was their primary third baseman). He has over 1100 MLB innings at SS. He could probably handle a primary backup role behind (finally) a near everyday starter, no? He's -15 OAA in those 1100 innings. For context, Kiké was -13 in 484 innings this year. Urias is so bad at SS that he's almost half as bad as Kiké!
Only -2 in 1275 innings at 3B, though, so he has some value in backing up Devers.
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Post by rhswanzey on Aug 2, 2023 11:19:41 GMT -5
Urias played almost as much SS as 2B last year (he was their primary third baseman). He has over 1100 MLB innings at SS. He could probably handle a primary backup role behind (finally) a near everyday starter, no? He's -15 OAA in those 1100 innings. For context, Kiké was -13 in 484 innings this year. Urias is so bad at SS that he's almost half as bad as Kiké!
Only -2 in 1275 innings at 3B, though, so he has some value in backing up Devers.
I think it’s less of a big deal when you’re asking for two or three starts at shortstop per month instead of two dozen. Granted, Story is probably going to be getting more breathers than that for the remainder of 2023.
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Post by redsoxrich on Aug 2, 2023 11:29:37 GMT -5
I watched him coming up with the Padres. He only played 2nd base for them. Tatis was the shortstop. I think Milwaukee used him at SS initially and then at 3rd base in subsequent years. I think 2nd base is by far his best position. I think having him play out of position for last 3 years may have contributed to some of his struggles.
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Post by alexcorahomevideo on Aug 2, 2023 11:45:06 GMT -5
Fangraphs seems to like the move for what its worth.
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Post by grandsalami on Aug 19, 2023 12:59:31 GMT -5
Well. Thats a name i have not heard in a while
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Post by iakovos11 on Aug 19, 2023 14:49:28 GMT -5
Those were consecutive plate appearances? I did not realize that.
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Post by jodyreidnichols on Aug 19, 2023 15:17:52 GMT -5
Those were consecutive plate appearances? I did not realize that. They said it was actually consecutive pitches.
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Post by ematz1423 on Aug 19, 2023 15:24:31 GMT -5
Those were consecutive plate appearances? I did not realize that. They said it was actually consecutive pitches. The legend of Luis urias grows!
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nomar
Veteran
Posts: 10,903
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Post by nomar on Aug 19, 2023 15:51:15 GMT -5
Bloom doesn’t miss on little moves. If he was with the Angels they’d probably have a ring by now with Trout and Ohtani
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Post by bettsonmookie on Aug 19, 2023 15:56:45 GMT -5
Urias returning to form would be so nice and borderline comical given the deadline press coverage
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Post by ematz1423 on Aug 19, 2023 16:02:48 GMT -5
Urias returning to form would be so nice and borderline comical given the deadline press coverage Urias is just 26 and had put up back to back +2fWAR seasons prior to being hurt all year. I think there's a fair chance his best baseball is still ahead of him. It was such a shrewd move by Bloom to grab him for just an interesting lotto ticket.
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Post by cmax on Aug 19, 2023 16:52:40 GMT -5
...especially for an interesting lotto ticket prospect who needed to be protected in this winter's rule 5 draft, and Blalock was unlikely to be protected by the Red Sox and he might have been poached by another team.
Shrewd move indeed.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Aug 19, 2023 22:09:45 GMT -5
Urias returning to form would be so nice and borderline comical given the deadline press coverage Urias is just 26 and had put up back to back +2fWAR seasons prior to being hurt all year. I think there's a fair chance his best baseball is still ahead of him. It was such a shrewd move by Bloom to grab him for just an interesting lotto ticket. The biggest mystery to me is why Urias was a consistent. 300 hitter in the minors but hasn't managed to reach .250. Somewhere there must be an ability to hit for a better average and if he could you add a guy who can take a walk and hit fir some power then you really got something. I wonder if they can unlock the hit tool being more consistent.
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Post by Oregon Norm on Aug 20, 2023 0:14:13 GMT -5
My own take is that if he walks quite a bit - and he does with a career ISOD of nearly .100 - an avg around .245 -.250 is fine. Shea Hillenbrand provides a useful counterpoint. His career .284 avg and 108 HRs were worth just 6.4 WAR by BR. That's over 3560 ABs. Urias has been worth 7 in a little over a third of those at-bats. Getting on base any way you can beats an empty BA. That's not to say he couldn't benefit from adjustments. But he's already provided some value.
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Post by bosoxnation on Aug 20, 2023 0:35:33 GMT -5
Was that Granny his first AB in a RS uni at Yankee stadium?
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Aug 20, 2023 0:37:57 GMT -5
My own take is that if he walks quite a bit - and he does with a career ISOD of nearly .100 - an avg around .245 -.250 is fine. Shea Hillenbrand provides a useful counterpoint. His career .284 avg and 108 HRs were worth just 6.4 WAR by BR. That's over 3560 ABs. Urias has been worth 7 in a little over a third of those at-bats. Getting on base any way you can beats an empty BA. That's not to say he couldn't benefit from adjustments. But he's already provided some value. The reason I bring up the batting average thing was because of his .300 minor league batting record. I thought when he came up he'd be a .280 hitter. Obviously at .240 if he takes his walks and hits homers he can contribute to the offense but what I'm wondering is what if he can be one a .280 hitter while keeping up the walk and power? If he didnt have the track record of .300 in the minors I wouldnt harp on it.
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cdj
Veteran
Posts: 14,195
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Post by cdj on Aug 20, 2023 1:11:45 GMT -5
Was that Granny his first AB in a RS uni at Yankee stadium? It sure was!
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Post by alexcorahomevideo on Aug 20, 2023 7:40:23 GMT -5
This guy loves hitting in the Bronx thats for sure
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