1 April 2062
Boise, Idaho
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by Stubby Bardenwerper
Now that we've covered the infield and catching positions coming out of Spring Training, we'll shift the discussion to the outfield. The calculus out here is much more complicated. So much so that this could be fluid for the entire first month of 2062 if not the entire season.
LF Tsutomu Yamauchi
Center Field25yo L Bob Hills - 2061: 102 G, 24 2B, 2 3B, 6 HR, 30 RBI, .258/.335/.384, .719 OPS, 23 SB, +2.2 WAR
Let's get CF out of the way first since that pretty crystal clear. Is Bob Hills the best guy at CF? Nah. Need more defense at that position, but everyone says that about their CF, right? (the exception being Sacramento who landed Lou Bayou from the Spuds) But in the lineup he either goes in the #8 slot (we do have Dan Raymond's bat if you'll remember) or #1. Don't laugh as he's put up a mid-.300 OBP at the ML level. Not the best leadoff guy Teague has ever had (ref. Bayou once more), but his +3.4 ZR and 1.016 EFF is not bad up the middle. If we have to name a backup for him we guess it would be Cosmo Pan (see below) but Teague will probably be making a move if Hills is out for an extended period.
Left Field/Right Field/DH
whew...ok, here we go...
36yo Martin Hemming - 2061: 115 G, 35 2B, 3 3B, 16 HR, 71 RBI, .302/.322/.511, .833 OPS, 7 SB, +1.5 WAR
26yo R Tsutomu Yamauchi - 2061: 115 G, 22 2B, 3 3B, 16 HR, 66 RBI, .279/.328/.454, .782 OPS, 5 SB, +1.6 WAR
26yo R Cosmo Pan - 2061: 113 G, 22 2B, 1 3B, 10 HR, 44 RBI, .264/.343/.410, .753 OPS, 7 SB, +1.0 WAR
25yo L José Montoya - 2061: 141 G, 27 2B, 6 3B, 28 HR, 91 RBI, .269/.313/.497, .810 OPS, 7 SB, +1.7 WAR
21yo DH R Perry Taylor - 2061: (AAA) 66 G, 9 2B, 1 3B, 15 HR, 38 RBI, .321/.405/.523, .929 OPS, +1.5 WAR
Hemming is the man at RF with solid defense, ratings, and stats. But only vRHP as he can't even look at a LHP. Maybe Montoya? He sucks more than Hemming vLHP. Pan seems to be the platoon answer in RF as Yamauchi is the man vRHP & vLHP in LF. Or does Montoya belong in that LF spot with his vRHP numbers? That comes down to Hemming vs Montoya in RF vRHP, or Yamauchi vs Montoya in a vRHP battle. But Montoya may not be available to man LF as it's not clear that 21yo DH Taylor is really ready vRHP as a rookie so Hemming could be at DH vRHP. But vRHP at DH could also be 1B Pedro Hozven with Montoya at 1B. Teague seems comfortable with Taylor at DH vLHP as we do know Hozven & Montoya & Hemming will be riding the pine in that setup (this means Allison is the man at 1B vLHP). That makes Cosmo Pan & Yamauchi the only remaining solutions at LF & RF which is fine as they are both right-handed batters.
Talking to Teague, it seems the answer to the equation is the play of Taylor at DH, which means he needs ABs to prove himself vRHP. If he can't, Montoya is DH, but early signs point to Taylor being ready for a solo gig. So much fun!!