Phoenix Talons 2000 Preview

[jcrmoon42]

PHOENIX TALONS

1999 record/finish: 72-90, 2nd place in JL Midwest

Manager: Stu Hopkins (5th season in Phoenix, 268-380, .414)

Arrivals: CF Eddie “Cheat to Win” Guerrero, 1B Kevin Greene, CF Wilson Calderon

Departures: RP Jose Mercedes, RF Samuel Palos, RP Garlands P. Gumdrops, LF [url=http://baseballretrospective.com/MBBA/O ... _2108.html]Joe Belinda, RP Jerry Dipoto, SP Joseph Heywood, SP Larry Marts, LF Kal Daniels (signed then retired)

The Phoenix Talons haven’t been to the playoffs or had a winning record since 1993, but last year saw a nice jump from 1998 when their 54 wins were the second worst in the MBBA. Their 72 wins in ’99 jumped them into second place behind the mighty Madison Wolves. This was a team that added not a single significant free agent in the off season and won most of its games on the strength of a decent pitching staff led by a young ace. Their offense was anemic, scoring the second fewest runs in the JL and placing not a single player among the league leaders in any offensive category. Let’s see what 2000 holds for the Talons.

Pitching Rotation
1. David Klopp, RH, 24, 7-17, 3.98, 5th in hits/9 and complete games, 7th in K/9
2. Jean-Philippe Tetreault, LH, 27, 11-10, 3.72, April Rookie of the Month
3. Emile Yost, LH, 33, 11-11, 3.83, 3rd in K/9, 10th in K/BB
4. Mike Rebhan, LH, 29, 9-13, 4.34
5. Dominick Bromley, RH, 21, 4-1, 3.51, (7-4, 2.57 in AAA), Pitched no-hitter in AAA, Named #73 prospect in pre-season

Klopp really stepped up as the ace of the squad last year, although Tetreault might have an argument with that statement as he finished third in the JL Rookie voting. Yost is a long-time Talon who continues to be a solid contributor but is in the last year of his contract. Rebhan retains the #4 slot from last year and continues to be solid if unspectacular as the rotation’s third lefty. Youngster Bromley is the newcomer to the rotation as last year’s #5 Andrew Bogan finds himself in AAA. He brings spectacular stuff, particularly against righties, but his below average control and movement could hold him back.

Bullpen
Closer – Mel Famey, LH, 31, 11 saves, 3.77, 12th in Gunga Awards
Setup – Santos Benedicto, RH, 28, 12-7, 3.26 in AAA, #20 MBBA prospect in 1997
Andy Nebraska, LH, 29, 4 saves, 3.16, 8th in Games Pitched, 10th in Gunga Awards
Segundo Prado, RH, 25, 22 Saves, 4.73, 7th in Saves
Ken Gaynor, RH, 29, 3.07 ERA combined between MBBA and AAA
Jeremy Crume, RH, 26, 12-4, 2.63 in AAA, 1998 AA Outstanding Pitcher
Francis “Destiny” Garza, RH, 29, 12-6, 3.41 in AAA

Former starter Famey took over as closer for the first time in his career last year and holds the spot over Prado whose penchant for the long ball led to 10 losses last season. Some of these guys could really be in the rotation. Among them the underachieving Benedicto and control pitching, junk baller Crume who has torn up the minors. 25-year old John Daniels sits in AAA and probably deserves more of a shot than he got last year.

Starting Lineup
1B – Dave Ward was last year’s best hitter, finishing seventh with a .322 average and 21 homers. Unfortunately, he doesn’t hit lefties well and is likely to get benched occasionally in favor of Kaneyasu Akahito who never saw a ground ball he didn’t want to butcher.

2B – Tim Naehring came over last year from Hackensack where the vet’s career had taken a downturn. He takes the field against righties, even though he hits lefties much better. That’s because the club wants to get some ABs for youngster John Simonson who did a decent job last year in a starting role.

3B – Cody “Slim” Chamberland was a Rule V draftee from Madison a few years ago and did a passable job last year, showing speed and a willingness to get hit by a pitch while splitting time between second and third. He’s a good fielding third baseman. Unfortunately, he really can’t hit righties. Still, the club is giving him ABs as he continues to work to develop.

SS – Kosuke Fukudome hits lefties much better than righties but still takes the field in a platoon on his weak side. Benjamin Calfo was the starter last year and also hits lefties better than righties. Still, it seems Phoenix may have these two hitting backwards. Calfo is a fantastic fielder all over the place as well.

LF – Beck “Loser” Campbell played a lot of center field last year but really didn’t do anything particularly well. He starts against righties while Wilson Calderon brings his power bat and excellent glove to the field against lefties. Really, if you are going to play Calderon at all, they really should play him both ways. He hit 40 homers as recently as 1997 but was released last summer by Long Beach, the one team in the MBBA worse than the Talons. Long time Talon and 500 home run hitter Joe Belinda sadly took his deteriorating skills to free agency rather than retire as a Talon.

CF – Erubiel Martinez is the best Phoenix could come up with in center. He has a good glove, and he hit well last year. His career .283 average is a bit inexplicable since he has never had a contact rating higher than 9.

RF – Calfo brings his great glove to the outfield against right handers while Chinese-Canadian Peng Sun takes the field against lefties. Sun has been tearing up AAA for a couple of years now and has nothing left to prove in the minors. Still, fans should temper their expectations for him.

C – An All Star two years ago, 26 year old Elwood Hope bulked up in the off season and should be expected to bring more power coming off of a rookie season which saw him finish eighth in the Rookie voting after being named the #45 prospect before the season. The former first rounder has a good arm, but pitchers don’t like pitching to him, preferring to throw to left-handed catcher Jimmy Waite who has been unable to turn his batting talents into numbers for the last couple of seasons.

Offensive Outlook
It really doesn’t look pretty. The club was bad offensively last year and added very little to improve that offense. They platoon at nearly every position, sometimes with odd configurations, and there doesn’t seem to be much sense to it. For example, Cody Chamberland leads off against righties, against whom he seems to have little ability to get on base. This is also not a young offense, as only one position player is under the age of 25.

Down on the Farm
Thankfully, there is some talent on the farm as Phoenix has put together the #2 farm system in baseball. The parade of talent starts with slick-fielding Werner McConnell whose bat shows potential for both average and power. A former second round choice, McConnell has developed himself into a top prospect who could play in the big leagues right now. Pitcher Jake Ens was the second overall pick last summer and brings a fine collection of skills, including one of the best sliders in baseball. However, his third pitch is a weak one, and his endurance is not good. That could mean the big lefty ultimately heads for the pen. He’s still several years away from the bigs. Catcher Sam Brewington is average defensively but has big potential with the bat. A bonafide super genius, Brewington has thunk his way from a lowly fifth round choice to one of the best young bats around. Infielder John Wilkinson brings a fantastic eye to the plate to go with good contact. His cannon arm and good range allow him to play all over the infield as well.

Overall Outlook
Unfortunately, 2000 doesn’t look much better than 1999. The top of the rotation is good, and good things should be expected there. The pen is solid as well, but the offense is still anemic. Give them a couple of years to get those youngsters developed. If they can continue to make good financial choices (read: don’t sign Kevin Greene for $14.5 million when winning games is actually NOT a good idea for you) then they should have the cash to keep their good, young pitching while the offensive youngsters have time to catch up.

[felipe]

It'll look diferent when they are all healthy;

Calfo will play all the time in short, Greene will play first, Calderon will start every game in left, Guerrero will play center, Ward will play right. Martinez and Loser will backup like they should have always been doing...

I figured we were almost .500 last year, with poor defending and awful hitting and good young pitchers; infusing better fielding across the field, and adding some power bats to help out poor Ward, should help Hope increase his numbers too.

The free agents we signed were for 1 or 2 year deals - and we have the cap room. And like you said, the kids are going to be arriving soon...

I think we'll be challenging for a wild card this year; worse comes to worse, I'm hoping I can flip Greene at the deadline for some prospects if for some reason we're out of it at that time. (Seems a gamble worth losing a 2nd rd pick for...)

and thanks for not mentioning the two pitchers I forgot to protect in the Rule V...(stupid, stupid, stupid)

[jcrmoon42]

LOL...only reason I didn't mention the pitchers was because I'm still pissed I didn't leave enough room on my 40 man roster to get them!