i mean i think hes kinda cooked too(more because of the defense aging curve at that position) but hes been doing stuff right at the plate. the approach isnt advanced but it kinda doesnt need to be

Kiermaier was the comp I had too. Whats in the way of Rafaela getting to that consistent higher offensive floor KK had is the strikeout/walk rate - Kevin's wasn't amazing but it was never in the high 20s iirc. He also walked near double digits multiple seasons. Rare CF playing the pos til 30+ asw

It's the White Sox but Houck and Buehler both did different stuff to what they were doing prior. Houck's lack of horizontal on the sweeper is annoying and it could be punished more in the future(his stuff as a whole didn't actually change much since TB start), but look at this(from CWS -> TX)

Small samples Duran, Abreu, Wong, all looking pretty interesting. Wong in particular is something to keep a track of. He's playing the next 2 games(could end up being a double header so not sure if that sticks), but if this defensive resurgence clicks...

Those 3 all have way better stuff than him whether it be due to extension, velo, or weird arm angle. Flaherty is unique in zero of these departments. The way the market reacted to him should also be very telling in my eyes. There’s a lot to like sure but idk - blogs.fangraphs.com/whats-the-ma...

08/12/2024

i think if he's raking at the deadline and we're still starting rafaela at center most of the time, you have to look. the health is annoying but the contract is friendly and the fundamental skills are just so tantalizing. i'll put up with the whiffs and obp floor if he's providing power and speed.

This just scares me a lot. I think this front office obviously took a lot of time and thought into this decision and didn’t just base it off “fenway” and “pulled fly balls” but there has to be a clear plan to get bat speed back and figure something out vs LHP. Though vs RHP their lineup is elite

this will never not scare me

340 ab sample but...if this somehow extrapolated across a season we're looking at one of the most complete hitters easy.. wonder how he adjusts to pulling at fenway, would anticipate it shouldn't be a big deal because rf in fenway is also hitter friendly?