So close, yet so far (Opening Day edition)
Roster…check.
Probable pitchers page back up…check.
MLB.TV…check.
It’s back!
There aren’t really many surprises in the final 25-man roster that hasn’t already been cleared up in the last week or two. At the beginning of March, however, I would have been surprised to see Chris Duffy on the roster over Tony Gwynn Jr., simply based on Gwynn already having a period of playing time in the majors, but poor play and a household name will only get you so far as Gwynn was put on waivers and then unclaimed, meaning he’ll be in Triple-A Nashville when the season starts and is most likely only going to be used in case of an injury to Chris Duffy or Mike Cameron.
Gwynn is a career .281/.352/.354 career hitter in the minor leagues with average defensive numbers (according to Minor League Splits) so he had no place on a major league roster in the first place. Without the high-profile father, Gwynn would just be another spare part in the minor leagues who would hardly even be considered for a backup role. An OPS that barely cracks .700 in nearly 1500 minor league at-bats just doesn’t cut it for a major league roster. Meanwhile, Duffy had a monster spring.
Another spring casualty that I’m concerned about is losing prospect Joe Bateman. Bateman was picked up in the Rule 5 Draft from the San Fransisco Giants last year and sparkled between AA-Huntsvile and AAA-Nashville in his time. Last year was his best season, tossing a 2.47 ERA in 44 2/3 innings.
Bateman’s career has pretty much been spent dominating hitters in the minor leagues, and at 29 years old already, he’s a bet to get worse starting this year or next. With all that said, he would be extremely valuable to have on the team in AAA this season as backup when the inevitable reliever goes down in May for the entire season (David Riske, I’m looking at you). In his time in the minors so far, he’s recorded a wonderfully low 3.17 FIP in nearly 300 innings, most of those at AA. He strikes out nearly a batter an inning, keeps the walks very low, and keeps the ball in the ballpark. He may not have had a huge future in the major leagues, but a reliever who performs at that high of a level for multiple years deserves a shot on a minor league roster spot that’s starving for depth and talent in the first place.
Many of the players and roster moves determined by the team appear to have been based on a small sample size of a camp that’s supposed to take the players out of rusty mode instead of looking at the entire body of work. Guys shouldn’t be evaluated based on one month of baseball where they receive limited playing time. Bateman only pitched four innings in spring training and the organization decided he wasn’t a good enough pitcher to compete in the organization.
Nevertheless, someone will pick him up. Maybe he’ll appear in a Reds or Twins uniform later this season.
Nevertheless, let’s watch some major leaguers play!
