by James Cardis
Alright, let’s get the mundane out of the way. I’ve got a month left of school; the Columbia Tigers (my Midwest Suburban League team) kicked off the season with a loud 7 - 2 win over the former “best team in the conference” and “best pitcher in the league”; in just a little over a month I’ll be making a rather significant move into a larger, nicer apartment with my decidedly not-large, but very nice girlfriend; and I just started working a 9 to 5, so I no longer have to rely on the “projection” of being busy since I am actually, truly busy.
So, yes. All that aside, I come to you tonight with substance. Thoughtful, provocative, and nerdly baseball site The Hardball Times came out with a bit of a game, yesterday, called You Are the GM. I thought it would be a fun exercise for us, the writers, providers of wit and insight, to share with you, the readers, the purveyors of constructive criticism and jokes at our expense, to share our thoughts on the fictional prospects provided by THT writer Craig Burley. Feel free to post in the comments or cc: your responses to us (really, me, we don’t yet have a group email) at james@hotelamnesia.com.
Without further ado, my picks (for the Oakland A’s, not the loveable long-hairs of the South Side):
1. Edgardo “Espresso” Empujada
Stats: BB/K ratio is very impressive, as is the OPS. That he has a successful steal percentage at .905 means he knows when to go, despite his “average” speed. Switch hitting is a definite plus — I’d love to see his splits.
“Intangibles”: The fact that he continued playing college ball despite losing track of a draft-and-follow speaks volumes more about his desire to play than any of the others who have expressed their desires to the scouts. I’ll take “hard-nosed” and “gritty” to mean he is a competitive guy who wants to succeed, and will do all he can on minor league fields to get to the big league ball-club — just in time to replace Bobby Crosby when he goes on the market.
2. Aaron Armstrong
Stats: In this case, it’s the K/BB ratio that’s got me high on Armstrong. 140 K’s in 119 innings, with only 34 walks? That’s the sign of a consistent pitcher, one that’ll throw to the zone and give hitters a challenge. If he builds on those numbers and develops a change, he’d fit into any rotation; if the numbers level off or drop a little in minor league ball, or he doesn’t develop a third pitch, then he’d still be a great bullpen option.
“Intangibles”: Tall, hard-throwing right-handers are the A’s bread and butter — this guy is practically Rich Harden. If the scouting report is true, then work on Armstrong’s stride would be necessary and, likely, effective, though I’m not sure what kind of control issues he has with those numbers. I’ll buy the desire to play pro ball, but then I’ve also got to buy the “red ass” and hope he doesn’t turn into a ticking time-bomb; I’d like to see him after he gets rocked, just to be sure, but his age makes him less of a risk for “pulling a Greinke” or throwing hissy-fits on the mound a la Carlos Zambrano.
Bonus: The fictional Armstrong gets extra points for being exactly 366 days younger than me.