re: FSBDL Championship: 8th Seed RDR wins Ship

What do you guys make of Michael Taylor? Dude's tearing it up this spring but looks like he's still a K machine and probably won't get regular AB's unless Werth/Revere go down.

Also, still looking for a decent SP if anyone wants to make a deal.

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@karabellespn
Watching Phillies vs their minor leaguers in Reading. Mark Appel just allowed 3 consecutive HRs. 16-3 in the 5th.

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This was a pretty uninspiring spring for my team. I was hoping to hang on to my prospects this year, but its looking like i may need to deal some of these dudes (and picks) for some starting pitching if I'm gonna make any noise.

Then you need to be educated.

Reddfig always overfaps to his team

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@karabellespn Watching Phillies vs their minor leaguers in Reading. Mark Appel just allowed 3 consecutive HRs. 16-3 in the 5th.

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Wow

I'll leave out Matz, since everyone knows how much of a stud he is.


Ryan McMahon, Colorado
-Natural position is 3B, but is obviously blocked by Arenado. Dude can straight up mash, and has done so at every level. Will end up either playing 1B or LF just so they can get his bat in the lineup. Could see him sometime next season.

Nick WIlliams, Philadelphia
-Flyball hitter in Citizen Bank Park will mean lots of homers for this bat speed stud. Phillies OF is quite weak, so I expect him to debut this year.

Ronald Guzman, Texas
-Rangers 1B of the future, as early as 2017, but probably 2018. Developing power that will probably translate to 20-25 per season in the bigs.

Kyle Tucker, Houston
-Lackluster debut, but I love his hit tool. Last year's 5th overall pick obviously won't be rushed in that currently loaded Astros organization, so his value isn't too great with such a long lead time.

Jermaine Palacios, Minnesota
-HIt an unreal.370/.398/.540 as a shortstop in Rookie ball last year. Probably projects as more of a 3B by the time he fills out. Under the radar guy who will need to prove that last year wasn't a fluke. Worth a shot, imo.


Jameson Taillon, Pittsburgh
-One of the most talented pitching prospects around, but injuries have held him back. I'd be surprised if he isn't in the Pirates rotation before the end of the year.

Hunter Harvey, Baltimore
-Another arm with loads of talent, but injury prone. I don't mind taking a shot with guys like this, because their ceiling is so high. Harvey is still probably 3 years away.

Jeff Hoffman, Colorado
-A forgotten man because he was shipped off to the hell that is Colorado. Dude has some nasty stuff though. Time will tell if he will be able to pitch through the stigma that is Coors Field.

Triston McKenzie, Cleveland
-I have a huge mancrush on this dude. I'll let fangraphs handle this breakdown:
Profile: Though McKenzie was impressive in his first 12 professional innings, the real excitement comes from how easy he makes things look on the mound, while also having as much physical projection as you could possibly imagine. He has better athleticism and body awareness than most guys his size and age, already showing advanced feel for his pitches and plenty of room to grow. McKenzie’s delivery and movements are exceptionally fluid and balanced, and the ball jumps out of his hand. The only slight qualm is how he gets closed off with his stride, though he still gets his hips through and maintains good sequencing through the rest of his motion. His fastball and curveball have the same arm speed and slot, and his changeup has reportedly shown a lot of progress since signing with the organization. His combination of command, feel, athleticism, and physical projection hint at tons of potential for his future pitch grades. Even if he doesn’t add much velocity to his low-90s fastball, he already shows four-seam and two-seam varieties with impressive potential on both. His straight fastball has deceptive life that will get swings and misses up in the zone, distinct from his two-seamer that has good run and sink, with a future as a ground ball and weak contact inducing offering. He has demonstrated enough command of his curve to throw it for strikes and bury it for strikeouts in the future. His changeup reportedly has flashed above-average as he has started to develop it, which I trust based on his overall skill set. (Dan Farnsworth)

The Quick Opinion: McKenzie has a projectable frame with great body control, feel for his promising offspeed pitches, good mechanics, and a clean arm, and he already throws hard enough to make his stuff work. This year should be his first step into full season ball, with the development of his changeup and filling out physically being the main factors to monitor.

He's still only 21 and had the best spring training of anyone in the Rangers organization. .500 avg, 1.326 OPS in 21 PAs with 11 RBI.

Weighted down by a tough 2014 where he played hurt. He bounced back last year quite well and obviously is still trending up this spring.

Hes still a couple of years away, like I said. He and Palacios are the ones I am gambling with. The rest of my farm guys are destined to be contributors when they get the call, IMO. Well, I don't know about Tucker. That was a ceiling I just couldn't pass up with the pick I got from you in the Montero deal. Time will tell I guess.