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We Got Wood - 45.11 - Who Are These F#$%ing Guys

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 2020 8:49 am
by 7teen
Image As the first round of spring training games are in the books in Portland, fans are left scrambling to baseball websites trying to figure our who half of this newly constructed roster in Portland is. Thanks to a flurry of trades and off-season moves, there are new faces everywhere in Portland this year. Not counting the new prospects, here are who some of the new faces are and how they got here.

2B Arturo Barron - Signed via Free Agency, Barron is expected to be the regular starting 2B for the Lumberjacks this season. He spent most of his playing career in Phoenix but did make a brief appearance in Portland back in 2042 after being claimed off the waiver wire.

What can Fans Expect: Expect a solid defensive effort out of Barron while also striking out a ton at the dish. He'll probably connect on 20-25 homeruns which isn't a bad total for a middle infielder, but those will likely be overshadowed by his sub .200 batting average this year and his over 200 strikeouts.

1B Andrew Gallagher - One of the big pieces in the mega-Charlotte trade (more of those to be listed), Gallagher looks like he's best suited for a platoon role but the Portland organization wants to see the 23 year old potential star in the lineup daily. Expect Gallagher to flip between DH and 1B this season in a lineup that does expect a heavy platoon shift this season.

What can Fans Expect: Expect a solid, but potentially disappointing, season out of Gallagher as the slugger continues to grow and mature. He's only hit 15 and 11 homeruns his first two seasons in limited playing time. If given 150 starts in 2045, fans should expect his homerun total to surpass 20 this season.

SS Hector Vazquez - The replacement at SS for Robert Menzies. At 23, Vazquez saw 30 games at 88 at-bats for Charlotte last season. His stats show that he might have gotten 87 at-bats too many in 2044.

What can Fans Expect: They can expect NOT ROBERT MENZIES! Fans will watch a lot of what they saw last season when Menzies was hurt. A decent glove man at shortstop with little or no ability to hit big league pitching. But the combo of defense of Vazquez and Barron up the middle will at least be serviceable in the terms of helping the pitching staff out. Just don't expect the combo to do much at the plate to help the team win.

1B Alrbert Gaona - This guy is still in the league? I guess so. His claim to fame in Portland was helping their Double-A team to a title back in 2042. Around that time, he's continue to put up a positive WAR in the BBA, including a 1.0 and 1.3 WAR the last two seasons in a limited role.

What can Fans Expect: A popular face playing 1B against LHP. Gaona was brought in to boost ticket sales while also hopefully reproducing his numbers as a platooning 1B that starts against lefties. It's clearly a role he's taken to hear the last couple of years.

LF Marcos Gonzalez - Another piece of the Charlotte trade, Gonzalez has a negative overall career WAR. He's only seen part-time action over his career, but saw the most PT of his career last season with the Cougars where he hit .233/.268/.383 in 227 at-bats.

What can Fans Expect: Probably something similar to that. Gonzalez doesn't have any options so he'll have to stick around on the roster or potentially be lost by the organization. He'll battle with Faical Engeitado for playing time at the corner OF spot against LHP for most of the season. Expect nothing more than what Cougars fans saw from Marcos last season.

COF Bobby Horne - Another piece in the Charlotte trade, Horne has a little more promise than Gonzalez. Horne played everyday for the Cougars last season which saw him produce a 1.1 WAR. Since leaving the hitter friendly confines of San Fernando, Horne hasn't hit for as high an average but still produced 32 homeruns last season with the Bears and Cougars.

What can Fans Expect: With the team carrying up to as many as 7 outfielders right now, the initial plan was for Horne to start regulary as a platoon against LHP. If so, that would drastically decrease his value and limit his chances of hitting 32 homeruns again this season. Horne could be a possible trade asset if teams are interested in a cheap COF solution. If not, expect the Lumberjacks organization to try and figure out how to get Horne more ABs in a COF spot.

LF Anibal Gracia - Which then brings us to the Rule 5 pick up of Gracia. Horne probably wouldn't have seen more time in LF against all pitchers after the Kim trade had it not been for the Gracia pick up. The Lumberjacks front office is high on this kid that has seen only 6 big league at bats, all with Nasvhille back in 2042.

What can Fans Expect: Expect Gracia to get a lot of the LF playing time early in the season as the front office hopes to see his high power on display. If Gracia clicks this season, fans could witness 30 homeruns from the slugger. If not, he could be a huge bust the strikes out 7 times more than he goes deep. If he struggles, he'll lose his spot to Horne.

SP Hector Amaral - Amaral comes back via a veteran pitching trade with Twin Cities. Portland liked Amaral's popularity status to bring in some fannies to the seats while also being a lefty. Not to mention the front office liked the contract flexibility with Amaral's deal to get out from under a high paying contract after 2045.

What can Fans Expect: 159.2 innings. No more.

P Lee McHone - A pivotal piece in the Surfers Landis finals run a year ago, McHone signs a 1 year deal to bring that experience to Portland in 2045. The 37 year old put up a sub 1.00 ERA last season and a WAR over 1 with Long Beach.

What can Fans Expect: - Put some fans in the seats. Come out, wave your little cap to the fans, then go sit back down.

Re: We Got Wood - 40.11 - Who Are These F#$%ing Guys

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 2020 9:22 am
by usnspecialist
I approve of the title/picture reference.

Re: We Got Wood - 40.11 - Who Are These F#$%ing Guys

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 2020 9:38 am
by RichY
I like this format with the "What Can Fans Expect" part. Nice read.