2062 Yellow Springs Preview - Nine Up? We'll See!

[DaveB]

The Yellow Springs Nine are coming off their 4th 100 loss season out of the last 8 seasons. It's been a very rough patch as the team led by @Trebro seems to be in a constant state of rebuild, retool, get frustrated and start anew. The 2062 Nine however could be a different result as management finally (hopefully) seems to have a plan in place to get the Nine back to respectability in a very tough Heartland Division.

We're going to start with the offense:

Catchers:

Cecil Durdle looks like he's going to be given the bulk of the starts behind the plate this year. Durdle looks like a decent backup catcher to me. I think you're looking at a 0.0 to 1.0 WAR out of him if he's the starter for the Nine. He won't wow you with the bat, nor will he wow you with the glove. He looks like just a guy, which isn't a bad thing if you're the backup. He'll get exposed I believe in the starters role.

I'm assuming from the depth charts that Rule V draftee Talib bin Jawad will be the backup for the Nine this year. Jawad is going to be a project. He looks like he could be a future top 10-15 catcher in the league if he develops fully. The big question is will the Rule V selection hurt his development and cause him to not reach his full potential?

I'm throwing this name in here because I think he'll push Durdle. Guillermo Espinoza to me looks like he's the best catcher on the roster right now, but the Nine don't even have him on the depth chart behind the plate.

Rumors have circulated that Rob wants to upgrade the catcher position. This wouldn't be a terrible idea pending the cost.

1B:

Emilio Navarro is a name to remember. He quietly put up a .275/.349/.501/.849 slash line last year with 34 homers and 98 RBI. The 24 year old looks like a key piece of the Nine's future.

2B:

Quick, who put up the highest WAR amongst Yellow Spring players last year? The answer Juan Silva. Silva posted a very repsectful 4.4 WAR and like Navarro looks to be a very important piece of the future for the Nine.

3B:

Tony Bunce appears to be the starting 3B. I'll be honest I had no idea who this guy was until I started this piece. Bunce is a former 2nd rounder pick from 2057 by the Nine. He looks to be the starting 3B in his potential big league debut this year. He had a .786 OPS with the AAA Indianapolis Downforce last year and has a some solid range. I don't really know what to think of Bunce. I think a .700 OPS wouldn't be out of the question. I just hope the SS and LF are prepared as he looks like he might be a bit error prone (30 Errors in 2061 between AA and AAA). Still I like the idea of bringing a fringy player up to see what he can do if you're rebuilding.

SS:

The Nine went to the free agent market and spent a lot of 5's on Quintin Trewartha. Trewartha spent last year with Vancouver. He's not a player who is going to scare anyone with the bat (42 OPS+ last year), but he's as steady as they come defensively and a 2 time Zimmer Award winning SS. It's my belief that he's just keeping the SS position warm for Leslie Hartman. If management deems Hartman ready it could make Trewartha an interesting trade chip at the deadline.

LF:

Negussu Adisa is penciled in as the starting LF this year. Adisa is coming off a rough 2061 with a -1.1 WAR over 107 games last year. He's a plus defender with some room to still grow offensively. He's a guy I'd probably have on a short leash with the idea that he's my 4th OF in the future.

CF:

Raise your hands if you saw Don Anderson winning the Puckett Golden Bat Award for CF last year. I don't see anyone with their hands up. It was truly a breakout season for the former Rule V pick. The Nine hope that Anderson can continue his excel play last year and be one of the main pieces for the Nine as they continue to build the roster up.

RF and DH:

Remember how I mentioned that the Nine seem to not be sure on which direction they wanted to go earlier? The RF slot currently held Bill Bowers and the DH slot currently held by Cinema Jones in the lineups are an example of what I was talking about. Nothing against these two players, but to be honest I think the at bats for both of these positions would be better suited for a young player like Roberto Gabriel, Hilel Bahir, or Attana Sangeeta because each of those players potentially developing is more important than whatever Bowers or Jones could possibly give you this season.

On the whole I like the direction that Nine is going offensively. They should be a fun team to watch the progress of as the season moves forward. I just hope the young talent is given enough time to see if they can handle being everyday BBA players.

Starting Pitchers:

I absolutely loved the trade for Sakutaro Kawano. At the very least Kawano gives the Nine a very nice trade piece for the deadline to add some solid talent. He could also make an interesting to resign.

Dewey Harris appears to be set as the #2 guy in the rotation. Harris has yet to pitch in the big leagues and I believe he has the ceiling of a solid #2 and the floor of a solid #4 guy in the rotation. He's an interesting player to keep an eye one. Could be a Gillstrom Award candidate.

Hannes Schwarzacher is currently set as the #3 guy in the rotation. "Say Hey" had a rough 2061 with an 80 ERA+ and a trip back to AAA. To me Schwarzacher looks like he might be better suited for the long relief role as I think whatever positives he brings will be negated by iffy control.

A few seasons ago I thought Cory McGuire would be a solid starting pitcher for the Nine. He's unfortunately been severely plagued by the long ball (1.8 HR/9 in 2060 and 1.6 HR/9 in 2061). The Nine would probably love to see McGuire revert back to his 2059 self. I just don't see it and the contract is going to be one that hurts the team in the near future.

Finally Hector Delgado is in line to be the 5th starter for the Nine. Delgado appeared in 8 games last year posting a 5.29 ERA and 79 ERA+ in 49.1 innings. He gave up 1.8 HR/9 last year, but honestly I don't see him struggling with the long ball as badly this year. He along with Harris are two guys I can see having some luck this year by the team adding Trewartha at SS.

Bullpen:

Not going to lie. This is going to be difficult because he has about a million dudes set in the pen. I'm guessing the bullpen is made up of some sort of Jesus Rios, Bryant St. John, Ollie Lowry, Geoffroy Robert, Guo-liang Chen, Hirohisa Tanaka, Dane Colclough, and Dorian Tzannetakis. The bullpen I think is going to be a work in progress for the Nine, but should be fun to watch to see how it plays out. Being waiver watcher would probably be a smart move for Rob.

Expectations:

The Nine are coming off a 103 loss season. I'm not really sure what @Trebro was doing last year as I noticed players playing out of position last year. I'm thinking a 74 win season is something that is doable for the Nine this year because I genuinely like their offensive potential and I'm intrigued by their young starting pitching. I think best case scenario they end up around 83 wins while flirting for a wild card with the worst case scenario being another 100 loss season. I'm confident with the 74 win prediction though.

[BaseClogger]

They should have a great young offensive core when they call up Hartman in the second half. Navarro, Silva, Hartman, Gabriel, and Anderson.

I bet Bahir starts at 3B for his defense.

Kawano was exactly what Rob needed.

A veteran catcher would be perfect as none of these guys are the answer.

[JRamirez]

I offered a catcher but trebo said Clarke was not to his liking.

[BaseClogger]

Clarke still has negative career WAR so I kinda get that. Doesn’t look like a great pair for a young pitching staff either.

[Trebro]

Thanks for the preview, sorry Cinema threw you off but that was just to see if he was worth keeping as DH insurance in Indy

If we make 74 wins, especially given where we are at now, I will post one of my embarrassing sing-alongs to the discord.

[Trebro]

They should have a great young offensive core when they call up Hartman in the second half. Navarro, Silva, Hartman, Gabriel, and Anderson.

I bet Bahir starts at 3B for his defense.

Kawano was exactly what Rob needed.

A veteran catcher would be perfect as none of these guys are the answer.

I didn't want to expend prospect capital on a starting catcher when even an improved team only gets to 70 to 72 wins in my best case scenario. Next year will be a different story. Maybe. We seem to be heading for another 100 losses. Just cannot seem to right this ship. Very frustrating.

[Trebro]

Clarke still has negative career WAR so I kinda get that. Doesn’t look like a great pair for a young pitching staff either.

This.