Poblanotes 49.2- 5 To Watch in 2049

[chicoruiz]

This will be my third season for doing the “Five To Watch” feature, and mostly… we’ve all watched them go slowly down the drain. Okay, there have been a few pleasant surprises, but mostly the first two editions could be used as evidence that I’m a bad talent evaluator (though in my defense, I’m not saying these guys will be “good”- I’m just saying I’ll be watching them with interest).

That said, here are my five guys I’ll be keeping a close eye on in 2049:

ANGEL GARCIA, C- I really wanted to upgrade this position in free agency, but once again the FA pool seemed like pretty weak tea to me. I eventually landed on Angel as the best risk/reward guy I could find. He can catch, he has some power, and he had a couple of nice years as a backup in Omaha in ’46 and ’47. His Chilis debut will be delayed, however, as he recovers from a torn groin (ouch!).

PETE BRACE, 2B- Part of the return for trading Phil Cole, Pete hadn’t really found his mojo in Vancouver, but perked up nicely once he got to West Texas. His game is pretty well suited to our park, and if he can’t make it here, he ain’t gonna make it anywhere. I’m showing confidence in him by hitting him leadoff, despite his .306 career OBP.

WLLIBALD AKBULUT, 3B- A late-spring FA signing. I was resigned to Ed Leialoha at the hot corner, figuring a guy who OPSed .885 deserves a regular position, but I had money in the budget, and as they say, I saw him in the store window and I couldn’t resist. Akubult’s superior glove, arm and power earns him first dibs, but every year Ed manages to sneak his way back into my lineup, so who knows?

KADE LEBOWSKI, RF- I should have some big boppers in the middle of my order; what I could use is a guy to get on base in front of them so all the homers aren’t solo ones. That’s where Kade comes in. He’s shown well in part-time roles the last two years; now it’s time to see if he’s ready to step to the front of the stage. If he sticks, I can keep Hao Hang as a DH, which is where he belongs.

MAZIBA ISA, P- I claimed him on waivers last August, mostly because he’s an extreme groundball pitcher, and I’m collecting them. He hasn’t done much since that point, and I was thinking a return to the waiver wire might be in order, but then he went and had by far the best spring of any of my starters. So I’m giving him a shot; if he fails, at the very least he’d be an interesting candidate for a conversion to reliever.

Oh, and I’ll also be keeping an eye on that Hector Cano Jr. guy- I kind of have a feeling about him…

For more info on the players mentioned in this article, click here.