17 June 2062
Boise, Idaho
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by Stubby Bardenwerper
21yo 1B William Coleman
21yo DH Perry Taylor
Both Coleman and Taylor are blocked by the same factors even if only one of them, Coleman, is capable of playing defense at the ML level (Taylor will never take the field on defense). The ascendance of both players was considered a settled matter before the regular season but two players have muddied the waters.
31yo 1B Pedro Hozven has spent the last few years in a platoon with 28yo righty Tracy Allison. The obvious factor is that both are young enough to contribute for years to come at the ML level. But Allison had never hit above .307 coming into the season with a +1.5 WAR in 2061. Maybe the specter of Coleman spurred him on, but he is raking out of nowhere with a .345/.387/.539 slash, 18 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 15 RBI, 29 SB (which tops his career high by 3 steals) and already a +2.0 WAR. That means Hozven has slid to the DH role where he is hitting .314/.383/.606 with 17 2B, 1 3B, 12 HR, 38 RBI, and has already matched his +1.5 WAR from last year.
That means a backup role for either Coleman or Taylor, which raises the question of playing time. Being the regular starter at first base, Coleman is hitting .327/.410/.473, 9 2B, 7 HR, 32 RBI, 0.8 WAR. Taylor has been full time at the DH spot in AAA slashing .342/.448/.616, 5 2B, 5 HR, 13 RBI, +0.6 WAR.
So this is purely a playing time issue. The ideal step would be to trade either Allison or Hozven (or both), but the 1B/DH position is notoriously soft in trade value. Coleman and/or Taylor would only see starts every 5th or 6th game with Allison and Hozven playing as they are.