Going the Distance: Spring Training Notes 3/2/23

1. Grayson Rodriguez
   1. 2ip bb/k 21 pitches/12 strikes
   2. 7 swings 2 whiffs 29% whiff 33% CSW
   3. Full arsenal on display
   4. 98.9 max, sat 97.9
   5. Pitch Illustrator: changeups and sliders to RHB and 4sm and curve vs lhb
   6. 
   7. Vs LHB
   8. 
   9. Called Balls
   10. 
2. J. Westburg batting 4th. Has played 2B/3B/SS
   1. 1 HH ball top exit  velo 108 this ST
3. Terrin Vavra batting 5th playing 2B. Has batted 1/2/5/
   1. 3B/BB
   2. EV 103 420 foot triple
   3. 6-11 HR 
4. Baddoo 0-4 4k’s
5. Tork batted 2nd- has batted 5/6/7/2 1-11 4k’s
6. Nevin 2nd HR in as many days, this one off Joey Krehbiel
   1. 4-10 2hr 5rbi 1K 0 bb
7. The Meadows brothers stayed hot
   1. Parker Meadows 1-3 with hr- 423” blast
   2. 4-10 2 Hr but 4k no bb
8. Kriedler 2SB- 4 k’s this ST
9. Matt Boyd 2ip 1BB 4 k
   1. 37 pitches 11 swings 5 whiffs( 45%) z-ct 67%
   2. 10 sliders 4 swings 3 whiffs (75%) 6CS CSW 90%!
10. Kyle Tucker looks great- leading off when he plays, getting his reps before WBC
11. Backup catcher duel
    1. Korey Lee hit a HR 108 mph 406”
       1. 2xbh (2b/hr) out hitting Yanier Diaz 
12. Jordan Hicks continues to dazzle with velo and disappoint with control
    1. Touched 102.2 with sinker and sat 100.7
    2. 25 pitches 13 balls
    3. 12 swings 5 whiffs (42%whiff)
13. Mitch Keller 2ip 4h 3er 0bb 4k 2hr allowed
14. His 2hr allowed were left up in the zone. A sweeper to Volpe and a sinker to Ortega
15. Rafael Ortega 2-3 HR has started vs 2 rhp/1 lhp. Will the Yanks give him a shot?
16. Volpe 4-11 HR 2SB 1BB/2SO 
    1. Led off for the second time and batted 5th the other start
    2. Has played 2B/SS/2B
    3. 5 swings, 1 whiffs
    4. No chases out of the zone
    5. 
17. Roansy Contreras- 33 pitches 2ip 15 swings 4 whiffs (27%whiffs)
    1. Z-ct 90%
    2. 6 CS helped him to 30% CSW 
18. Nate Pearson 
    1. up 1.4 on 4sm- 101 max, sat 99.2 
       1. 10 swings 2 whiffs (20%) 57% o-swing
    2. Slider 4 swings 3 whiffs (75%whiff) CSW 50%
19. Rockies: Trejo at SS, Montes at 2B
20. Lance Lynn 3ip 51 pitches 6h 4er 1bb 3k 
    1. Cutter got 6 whiffs on 13 swings 45% whiff
21. Adam Wainwright: Again early velocity readings can be tricky. A veteran like Wainwright has a routine and an approach to getting ready to a season that I am sure is better than my routine to start my day. But just note the big dip in velo:
22. 
23. Corbin Burnes gave up 2 ER in 2 ⅓ IP with 1bb/2k. I watched it and he looked a little pissy about the pitch clock and had some pitchcom issues. He also has a new catcher. He had a stretch last year from post all-star break to the end of August where he was not  “first pitcher off the board in 2023” quality. 20.3 K-BB in a 13 start stretch. I do not see why he has become consensus #1 SP. I think he is a very good pitcher but not quite the “lock” we have grown accustomed to seeing/hearing on draft boards and rankings
24. I also do not know why traditional box scores sometimes do not have pitches thrown for strikes and balls. It does not seem that hard to count nor include.
25. We saw Mitch Garver behind the plate for a second game in spring. For NFBC players know that he is Utility only to start the season. Started 14 games by May 8th. Went on IL 5/10 and returned to DH-only duty before had surgery on 7/11
26. For the Padres we saw Seth Lugo and Adrian Morejon go 3 innings apiece. This after Nick Martinez throwing 4IP in his last start is starting to dispel some of the ability of these pitchers to give an kong outings to SD
27. Isan Diaz batted 3rd for the 2nd time this spring
28. Nico Hoerner is leading off to start the season- AS he should be.
29. Ryne Nelson had another tough start. 1 ⅔ ip 4h 3er 2bb/1k
    1. “Sometimes my plan doesn’t line up with how to attack these hitters,” Nelson said. “Like Freeman, I probably shouldn’t have thrown that changeup in the zone, but I’m just trying to fill up the zone with all my pitches right now.”
    2. OK?
30. Scott McGough entered the game in the 3rd inning. That’s the spot sometimes reserved for the “closer”-can be the 4th inning as well- teams will sometimes align it when the other team’s regular bats are still in the game.Note how I said sometimes.
31. Likewise for the Dodgers- Evan Phillips entered in the 4th before Alex Vesia. LAD has so many great arms. Speculate on ALL of them if you are playing mass entries this season
32. Jason Heryward and David Peralta are getting plenty of reps to get going for the season. Not a good sign to start the season for James Outman. 
33. The top of KC Royals lineup slugged hard against weak Angels pitching. They might be a bit better as a whole than some are projecting
34. Nationals- i think Lane Thomas will get the most looks at leadoff to start the season
35. Kenta Maeda threw 2ip 1bb/2k’s- i think the Twins will keep him ti 5 innings max this year on most starts but they can be good quality IP for your squad

INJURY NEWS

• MESA, Ariz. — The Cubs would be thrilled to see Seiya Suzuki in their Opening Day lineup on March 30 against the Brewers, but don’t expect the club to rush the outfielder back if he’s not 100 percent ready. “I think a lot of bad decisions are made around Opening Day,” Jed Hoyer, the Cubs’ president of baseball operations, said prior to Thursday’s 6-1 win over the Athletics. “It’s one day on the calendar, but people rush back for it and we want to make sure that we are patient. If he makes it back for that, that’s great, but that’s not what we care about. We just care about getting him totally healthy.”
  • I think this will help Morel get some more frequent looks early on in the season. Remember that early looks and production can lead to extended looks in the season. I would take a shot at his loud skills. At his cost in ADP you can always move on if it does not work out.
• Flaherty had his Grapefruit League debut pushed back to Sunday due to lower half discomfort, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. STAY AWAY
• Wong had to exit Thursday’s Grapefruit League game versus the Phillies with a left hamstring injury, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports. Red Sox manager Alex Cora said after the game of Wong’s injury that “it doesn’t look great right now but hopefully we get better news tomorrow morning.”
  • This stinks. I have a lot of Wong as a catcher 4 in draft and holds. The skills are loud. 
  • -13th best arm for Catcher
  • -pop time 1.92 vs Reese 1.97 (89th%)
  • -had very good splits v RHP in MILB
  • -Sept 2 on Wong 16 starts vs Reese 13
  • -9 of 22 starts v rhp
  • -if i project him for 350 PA’s he comes out to 10 HR/5Sb and that puts him ahead of Christian Vasquez
  • -hit a ton of GB in MLB, 86& z-ct
  • -11.8% BRL/BBE, 110.3 MAX EV 
  • -11.8% BLAST- means all barrels above 100 MPH
  • -88th% in Sprint Speed
  • -small sample but EV on FB os 100.3 (100th%)
• Bello’s (forearm) status and timetable are expected to become clearer next week, Red Sox manager Alex Cora told Ian Browne of MLB.com Thursday.
  • Buy the dip on him if he falls. A 377 ADP in the last 21 Draft Champions. At some point of the season we should have some impact form him. 
  • BUY Kutter Crawford in draft and holds. He showed some good spurts last year.
• Manager Bruce Bochy said Thursday that Leclerc (neck) will no longer play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports. Leclerc is dealing with some left neck tightness, so he and the Rangers have decided it’s best for him to skip the WBC. 
  • I still think he starts the season as closer. Might have a short leash but i think provides a decent gamble at pick 173 in NFBC DC (15 team no faab)  and 177 in NFBC OC (12 team/faab)
• Brendan Rodgers
  • Rodgers was determined to have suffered significant damage to the capsule in his left shoulder following an MRI on Wednesday and could be facing season-ending surgery, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.
  • They might start off with Alan Trejo. Keep your eye on Coco Montes. Chance Ryan McMahon moves back to 2B and Elehuris Montero gets another crack