Monday Pebble Report: All Eric Young, Jr. can do is hit grand slams

by Russ on Nov 3, 2008 8:33 AM MST in Pebble Report Comment 6 comments

All right, I'll admit that the headline is just a bit misleading; however, Eric Young, Jr. did hit his second home run of the Arizona Fall League season, and it was similar to his first homer, in that it was a grand slam. He went 3-for-4 in that game with a walk and two stolen bases.

Arizona Fall League:

Shane Lindsay made his first start this fall on October 30 and picked up his second win that day. He went four innings, allowed one run on four hits and two walks, and struck out six.
David Patton allowed four runs on five hits in two innings on Halloween.
Chaz Roe started the October 30 contest, and he wasn't pretty on the mound. He lasted only 1 2/3 innings, allowed five runs on five hits and four walks.
In the two games he played since he had back-to-back-to-back games with the homers, Michael McKenry went 0-for-6 with a run scored, an RBI, and two walks.
Chris Nelson went 3-for-4 with two RBI on October 29 and then hit a two-run homer on Halloween.

Hawaii Winter League:

Austin Chambliss allowed four runs on five hits in one inning on October 29. His next two outings (Oct. 31/Nov. 2) saw him pitch a scoreless inning in each.
Andy Graham hasn't pitched since October 24, but the other Graham, Connor, walked five batters in his October 28 start. He lasted only 1 2/3 innings.
Mike Mitchell has a three-game hitting streak, but Darin Holcomb and Lars Davis haven't done anything of note since the last update.

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So do the plusses in Arizona outweigh the negatives in Hawaii?

I would say yes because Lindsay, McKenry and EY2 are closer to the MLB and therefore the gains are more significant, but Connor Graham’s and Darin Holcomb’s lines in Honolulu don’t fill me with a lot of confidence in the next wave. It will be nice if in their various trades this winter that the Rockies pick up some advanced A level talent to plug this gap.

by Rox Girl on Nov 3, 2008 10:18 AM MST reply actions 0 recs

Prospects and AFL

First, belated thanks to David Ohno (and Roxhead) for responding in such detail to last week’s discussions regarding the prospect list. Since I was the one who asked him to open up his kimono, I’m a little teed off at myself for not acknowledging his efforts sooner. Sorry, but the day job got in the way. His posting was more than I expected and laid out pretty clearly not just the “who” but the “why” in his reasoning. That is what I liked the most. Whether one agrees with all of his points or not, we all now know what he thinks it takes to BE a prospect (in the positive sense), as opposed to NOT being one (a negative and altogether too easy opinion to have). Thanks again David.

I’ve never followed AFL results until this year. Aside from how the Rockies prospects are doing, I was wondering if someone could give the league-wide results some context. Looking at the scores over the past few weeks has made my head spin. I realize that pitchers might be working on certain new things and/or might be on pitch counts or whatever, but the everyday level of runs scored in this league is astounding. Is this normal? Consistent with past years? It seems like scoring in the double digits is the norm, not the exception. Lots of 12-10, 16-11 type games. One was 28-1. What’s going on? I assume all the pitchers had to come from AA like the position guys, so is there a simple explanation for all the offense? I’m kind of baffled.

by hobfan on Nov 3, 2008 12:27 PM MST reply actions 0 recs

The simple explanation is that's how the league plays

Because of the dry and somewhat elevated environment. It’s more extreme offensively than just about any minor league, I think the Pioneer is the only one that beats it for hitter favorability. You’ll usually see the same drop-off in pitching performance between AA and the PCL for the same reason. It’s a good reminder, though, that offensive performances always have to be taken with a grain of salt, so don’t expect EY2 to be this kind of player going forward. However, he might be in a better position than others as his speed oriented game doesn’t figure to be as heavily influenced by his playing environment. He won’t hit quite so many grand slams, but he shouldn’t have as much of a gap in his BABIP when he makes the next jump.

by Rox Girl on Nov 3, 2008 1:23 PM MST up reply actions 0 recs

Off-topic

Check ESPN’s Hot Stove Page.

Greg Reynolds as our #3 starter? Jeff Francis, Todd Helton, and Matt Holliday nowhere to be found? Is Francis hurt that badly? Is Holliday being traded a done deal?

by Tom (RFTN) on Nov 3, 2008 1:36 PM MST reply actions 0 recs

Projected

It DOES say projected so they are probably betting on Holliday being traded. They are probably getting on Helton not being healthy (or atleast not healthy to start the season).

That still doesn’t say anything about where Francis is or why Hirsh isn’t listed as a probable starter (especially if Reynolds made the list).

by MADness on Nov 3, 2008 4:40 PM MST up reply actions 0 recs

Also

not sure about Fowler. I don’t who is doing this research, but its not very good IMO. The Rox didn’t even let Dex play at the end of a failed season, so they obviously don’t think he’s ready. The few AB’s I saw confirm that as well. I think he will start in AAA, and may be in the lineup in June or July, who knows. I think the Rox will start w/ either Spilly or Smith, and the other may be in LF, if Holliday is dealt. This also has Holliday gone and Atkins still around, I could not imagine that being the case. I think either both will be gone, or at least Atkins for sure.

And the pitching, thats something else all together, that doesn’t make sense at all. I have not heard anything about a problem w/ Francis or him being dealt. And even if that were the case, unless Reynolds makes major strides he could not be a #3, at the very least DLR would be ahead of him.

by smokinRox on Nov 4, 2008 9:26 AM MST up reply actions 0 recs