Trail Droppings 2045-22 Changes Coming to Calgary Offense?

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Trail Droppings 2045-22 Changes Coming to Calgary Offense?

Post by indiansfan » Mon Feb 01, 2021 6:38 pm

Changes Coming to Calgary Offense?

The Calgary Pioneers need to fix what is ailing them this offseason. The team hit the ball well, but the pitching was crap. Last season the pitching was great and the hitting was average. So lets look at some areas where the team needs to make some big decisions.

The team was 3rd in the JL in runs, hits and batting average. It was 2nd in SLG and OPS. However it was last in the JL with only 436 walks, but only struck out a league leading 969 times. I bet you didn’t see that one coming, given Calgary’s history of playing big swingers. The team was also next to last in ZR, even though it made some fielding upgrades.

Catcher - Is Howard Burton the catcher that the team wants to stick with. He is asking for a big pay raise in arbitration. Over the past 3 seasons he has hit for a .283 AVG and doesn’t strike out a lot. He’s a lefty and he hits right handed pitching well. The team needs to fill out the platoon ideally with a guy that comes in for late inning defense. The team has Augusto Vargas who has the glove and should be able to hit lefties, but didn’t this year. The other option is going outside the organization or moving Juan Noriega straight from A ball to the big leagues.

Shortstop - The team started the year with Imazighen Kibasila, but increasingly used rookie Fergal Tyrie. Kibasila has underperformed over the past 4 seasons both with his bat and his glove. Tyrie gave the team a decent glove, but probably overperformed this year with his bat. The team doesn’t have anyone in the minors to match Tyrie’s defense and most of the prospects are better suited to 2B or 3B. This is a position that the team should be looking to improve in free agency or through trade.

Corner Outfield - The team has to decide if it wants to keep Juan Karyabwite and Francisco Medina as it’s primary corner outfielders. Both players are popular with the fans and still produce, but not at the level they once did. Karyabwite no longer has a Zimmer glove and his ceiling is probably .300. Medina has seen the sharper decline hitting in the .230s the past 2 seasons and he has also seen a decline in his extra base hits. The team started platooning him with Hadji Ufanisi and one wonders if it is time to turn over more at bats to him. Steve Rogers has subbed for Karyabwite about once a week and really needs a starting job. Rogers has averaged .882 OPS over the past 2 seasons. In addition to these two the team has a couple more in the minors knocking on the door particularly Chris Thomas. Getting Medina out of the field would help the team’s defense, but are they ready to move him to DH or the bench?

Center Field - Jorge Lopez and Robinson Trujillo gave the team a solid platoon this year. Lopez hit .302 against righties and had a 0 ZR, while Trujillo hit lefties at a .300 clip with a -1.5 ZR. Obviously the team would like to improve the defense in center, but the team has had worse. It is unlikely the team would make a deal for a CF, unless it was for a superstar, but there is one player in the minors that could factor into the mix. Jeffrey Tate was just drafted this year, but he could be ready for Calgary next season. He could play both ways and his defense has more potential then either of the guys playing there now. It could be an interesting Spring in center field.

Designated Hitter - Matt Normore shouldn’t be worried about his job. True he isn’t the typical power hitter you would normally see Calgary putting in this slot, but he hits more extra base hits than you would think. He hit .325 this year with 51 doubles, 9 triples and 20 home runs. That is 80 extra base hits from the leadoff guy. His 133 runs is 3rd all time for Calgary, his 222 hits ranks 4th and his 51 doubles rank 5th. While some might be tempted to move a power hitter like Medina to this spot, Normore had far more production this year.
Kevin

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Calgary Pioneers 2004-
BBA Landis Champs 2018, 21
FL Champs 2018, 21, 39
FL Pacific Champs: 2016, 19, 21, 34
FL Frontier Champs 2039
FL WC 2018, 26-29, 31-32, 35
JL WC 2040, 41, 44
FL MOY 2019, 34
JL MOY 2044

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