46.14 Checking the Locks: Right Field

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46.14 Checking the Locks: Right Field

Post by crobillard » Fri Feb 19, 2021 11:38 am

This is a series where I will evaluate the options in each position leading into Spring Training. This is the eighth of eleven parts. I will be taking a look into the right field position in this post.

Sure fire locks: Pedro Huerta
Trying to get in the door: Antonio Gonzales, Juan Solis, Carlos Jimenez

The easy sure fire lock in this group is Pedro Huerta. He's been really solid for the Jackrabbits since coming onto the scene in 2041. He has only missed 15 games in the five seasons he's played with seven of those coming in just last season and they were just healthy scratches on Juan Carlos Gonzales' lineup. He's very resilient to injury and typically plays through them. In fact, he hasn't had an injury that has removed him from play since 2042. Of course this comes with it's costs and as Huerta is approaching free agency at the end of this season, the Jackrabbits' front office is negoatiating a new contract for the two time all star, two time Landis winner and multiple playoff series MVP. As it stands now, the two sides look too far apart, but as we saw with the Collins negotiations several years ago, these things can change really quickly.

Huerta isn't the game changer that he was in his first three seasons, but he's no slouch. Definitely good for around 3-4 WAR a season. He hit .311/.356/.535 with 38 doubles, seven triples and 31 homeruns last season for a 3.3 WAR. He doesn't have the range you want in the field with his -5.7 ZR in right, but he has a gun for an arm catching 11 runners last season. He also doesn't commit any glaring errors with his .990 fielding percentage.

The next three guys are all probably vying to be the 27th man. Last season this roster spot mostly belonged to Lorenzo Leon and he was swapped out for several people throughout the season. With Leon out of option years, it's forcing the team into the position when it's Leon or someone else with more value. We'll start with Gonzales who is the high defense option of the four, including Leon. He saw his first big league play last season and at nearly 25 time is running out of the elite defensive corner outfielder. He played alright in his very limited time hitting 3 for 14, but all three hits were big ones. Two doubles and one homerun. I can't confirm this, but I believe that homerun was a grand slam, too. 11 defense in the corners and 8 at center is really solid though. If Patrick Cross or Bill Morley get injured, Gonzales is almost a guaranteed callup. Until then, it's not too likely. Maybe he could beat out Cross for a spot though?

Solis and Jimenez are the more offensive options with Solis being more of a DH and Jimenez a more all around solid player, not exceling at anything in particular. Jimenez was only mediocre in his split time between AA and AAA last season with 1.4 combined WAR between the two levels. In AAA though he has a .260/.359/.390 batting lines. At almost 23 years old, I can't imagine the team would call him up last season unless he has a huge progression bump. Solis on the other hand is a rule 5 pickup from Phoenix this offseason and he would need to be given back to Phoenix if the team doesn't want to put him on the active roster. At 25 years old, Solis has a very real chance at making the team. He hit .302/.345/.405 in AAA last season in limited time played split between A and AAA. He's rated 9/9/3/3/10, but only 3/8/8 defensive ratings. Jackrabbits may want to take an extended look at his play in the field this spring to see if he can provide backup value in the corner positions. The initial thought with Solis is that he may be able to spell Girolamo L'Archibudelli at DH with Solis' 10/10/4/4/10 ratings against LHP. If the Jackrabbits are looking to retain L'Arch this provides additional value in preserving the injury prone DH.

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