Really interesting Danny, good stuff.

I too have like Machado to replace Beltre for a couple of years now, and if not Machado, maybe pay for Arenado for 2020. Hopefully, someone gets desperate for Choo this month, but by December, surely JD will have made a deal for someone to help clear up the logjam of Gallo/Mazara/Calhoun/Choo/Profar.

Maybe tomorrow, I'll piece together an update of the minor league options, and we can handicap their arrival. We've mulled over much of this, almost weekly.

When will they get called up.
When will they make their "stay" in the rotation.
How effective will they be.

I think we have upwards of 10 guys that will be on the bubble for 2019 and 2020. Here are the ones who are ranked in the Top 30 prospects.

Prospect Rank and the designated ETA projection for MLB:
#6. Jonathan Hernandez (22, AA, ETA 2019)
#7. Taylor Hearn (23, AA, ETA 2019)
#8. Joe Palumbo (23, A+, ETA 2020)
#14. Tyler Phillips (20, A, ETA 2021)
#15. Jason Bahr (23, A+, ETA 2020)
#17. Yohander Mendez (23, AA, 2018)
#19. AJ Alexy (20, A, 2020)

Personally, I think Gallardo (32) is auditioning for a rotation spot in 2019. Otherwise, there is little reason to keep trotting him out there.

Minor, Perez and Jurado have spots.
YoMen and Palumbo have roster spots.

Some context...
Matt Harrison @22 got 15 GS with a 5.49 ERA. He was 25, before getting a full season.
Derek Holland @22 got 21 GS with a 6.12 ERA. He was 24, before getting a full season (32GS, 3.95 ERA)
Martin Perez @21 got 6 GS with a 5.45 ERA. At 22, went 20 GS, 3.62 ERA.

I will have to look at which of these guys were HS and College. So are these prospects just not having the success Harrison/Holland/Perez were having? Did the Rangers just rush them too fast and slow-rolling these others? Or just mostly injuries?!

When we say we don't have prospects in the upper levels, what does that really mean?!

Looks like it will be interesting to watch some things develop.

I was hoping the Rangers would demote Bartolo Colon, once he became the winningest LATAM pitcher.

From this article, he wants most IP. It states he needs 62 IP. There are 46 games left for the Rangers and a 5man rotation gets him 9 more GS. That would require him to finish out 2018 in the rotation at almost 7.0 IP/GS. He has gone more at least 7.0 IP at least 9 times of his 22 GS. That surprised me. He has averaged right at 6.0 IP/GS.

The article suggests he could be back in 2019. Now, I suppose, the Rangers could bring him back as a RP. Say he is 20-25 IP away. Rangers could use him as a RP and maybe a couple GS.

With Gallardo still getting GS, I'm assuming he is a consideration to be resigned for 2019, as well.

A rotation to start 2019:
Jurado: 3 GS, 4.02, 1.21 (only 1 GS in July)
Minor: 21 GS, 4.53, 1.16 (5.04 in July)
Gallardo: 9 GS, 4.97, 1.38 (3.74 in July)
Colon: 21 GS, 5.18, 1.27 (6.46 in July) <- Replaced by YoMen, I would suppose upon passing Marichal.
Perez: 10 GS, 6.15, 1.94 (3.47 in July)

Makes you want to throw up, a little, no?!

I would move Mazara before moving Profar. Profar has 31 doubles and 9 SB without being caught. It would free up Gallo to become the everyday RF.

I'm not sure you guys see what Profar is becoming on offense. If we somehow got Machado, I wonder if Profar could transition to CF, ala Desmond or Biggio. An OF of Calhoun, Profar, and Gallo gives you enough speed and arms out there.

I really do like the way Mazara's approach to the plate, but really brings versatility, and if Guzman doesn't figure it out offensively, JP can also play 1B.

TLDR: Profar is about to become a top 25 offensive player in the AL. Flip Mazara for a controllable arm.

I think Profar would be a fairly poor center fielder, but I suppose he could be worth an attempt among of a group of poor defenders.

He's certainly been putting it together offensively this season.

He mashed XBH back at the start of the season but the average was poor. Then he got the average up but fell a bit as a slugger. Now, small sample in August, but the early return is he's hitting for power and keeping the average up.

It's not necessarily who is the more valuable player to keep, but also who is more likely to net you a return. Yeah you'd keep Profar over Mazara... but that means you'll get less for Mazara than you would Profar in trade.

Also comes down to whether or not you can extend Profar in the off-season -- he's a free agent after 2020, so for those of you that don't think we are going to compete next year then it might make more sense to trade him unless we're both willing to commit to a deal.

Interesting....

Weren't they the worst at this last year?

94chem said:

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I would move Mazara before moving Profar. Profar has 31 doubles and 9 SB without being caught. It would free up Gallo to become the everyday RF.

I'm not sure you guys see what Profar is becoming on offense. If we somehow got Machado, I wonder if Profar could transition to CF, ala Desmond or Biggio. An OF of Calhoun, Profar, and Gallo gives you enough speed and arms out there.

I really do like the way Mazara's approach to the plate, but really brings versatility, and if Guzman doesn't figure it out offensively, JP can also play 1B.

TLDR: Profar is about to become a top 25 offensive player in the AL. Flip Mazara for a controllable arm.

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Profar has looked good at 1st, but I think it is a waste of talent for him to play at 1st. I'm not sure about the comment for Guzman to "figure it out." He is 20 months younger than Profar.

11 months younger than Gallo.
8 months younger than Odor.
1 month older than Calhoun.
6 months older than Mazara

86 GP, .238, 9 HRs isn't a terrible line for a 23 year old getting his 1st real MLB experience. Projects to about 16-17 HRs for a year.

I think if Profar likes 3B... we keep him at 3B.

Gallo has expressed he doesn't want 3B, which means OF, 1B or DH. IKF has been groomed to become a C.

So, Profar in the mix for OF was really to get him AB, IMO. Not because that was where he was destined.

For OF we have Gallo, Calhoun, DD, Choo, Mazara, Tocci, Robinson, Rua and every other player.

While Machado is unlikely to sign here, if he did, Elvis would opt out, not move to 3rd. I see basically a 0.01% chance of Elvis and Machado being on the roster at the same time.

If Colon pitches in 2019 it will likely be on another team. He has been a vagabond in his late career and it doesn't make sense to bring him back.

I have also been in the camp of trading Mazara the entire year. Regardless of value between him and Profar, I'd like the think the front office has realized what a pain it is to have 3-4 DH guys who can play close to below average defense on the field. We need to move two of them and Mazara makes the most sense. Even if you could get a slightly better SP for Profar, we still have the same DH glut and not moving 1-2 of those guys is bad in my opinion.

Quote:

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I'm not sure about the comment for Guzman to "figure it out." He is 20 months younger than Profar.

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It had nothing to do with his age. He just hasn't proven he can play offense like a MLB 1st baseman. Of course he gets every chance to do so. And unlike Mazara, you have a good defensive player.

That Gallo/Odor relay the other night was a thing of beauty. I hate having OF who can't throw. At least Mazara can do that. I'd be okay with hiding DD in LF.

94chem said:

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Quote:

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I'm not sure about the comment for Guzman to "figure it out." He is 20 months younger than Profar.

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It had nothing to do with his age. He just hasn't proven he can play offense like a MLB 1st baseman. Of course he gets every chance to do so. And unlike Mazara, you have a good defensive player.

That Gallo/Odor relay the other night was a thing of beauty. I hate having OF who can't throw. At least Mazara can do that. I'd be okay with hiding DD in LF.

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I think my point was... Guzman likely has some time to grow into where they expect him to be and that he probably isn't there from an expectation perspective.

I missed the relay and hate having an OF with a weak arm. DD.

Is it me, or has it seemed a higher percentage of trade-deadline deals have players going on the DL.

With the announced DL of Leonys Martin, it seems like 50% of the players traded-for have hit the DL and we're barely 10 days past.

free_mhayden said:

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Also comes down to whether or not you can extend Profar in the off-season -- he's a free agent after 2020, so for those of you that don't think we are going to compete next year then it might make more sense to trade him unless we're both willing to commit to a deal.

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FWIW, I do not believe Profar will get his 6 years of service time until the 2021 season.

Im not 100% sure, i was just going by Cot's

It is true. Profar got screwed I think last year and cost him a year of eligibility towards being free. They either sent him down, or didn't call him up and so his tenure time is short I think a few days.

DallasAg 94 said:

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It is true. Profar got screwed I think last year and cost him a year of eligibility towards being free. They either sent him down, or didn't call him up and so his tenure time is short I think a few days.

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Players should remember this. George Springer is one who comes to mind.

Eh. Kris Bryant was purposely left down for awhile 3 years ago to extend his control. And he's pretty good.

It happens.

It's just something you remind the team about when they try to get a hometown discount, play sentimental games, etc. Houston even kept Springer down because they were afraid he might help them win games, and they weren't ready to stop deliberately tanking yet.

I think in Profar's case it will be significant simply because him and the club certainly had some issues with one another.

But as a whole it evens out so much that it probably doesn't matter. The value gained by keeping control of the player for another year likely offsets the extra money you might have to pony up in free agency.

And I really don't think it's all that bad a thing for a club to do. The club is bringing up the player when it is best for their franchise -- not just when the player is major league ready.

Guzman

Have a night Guzman

Guzman with 3 HR tonight. These young bats look so promising.

curry97 said:

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Guzman

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Martin not happy with Bannister for taking him out

How long till y'all think we can contented for a WS again?

rgthomas said:

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How long till y'all think we can contented for a WS again?

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All depends on how long it takes to get a pitching staff. The lineup has shown us the last couple weeks what they can do, combine that with pitching and we have a contender again.

Yeah, as always, pitching is key. Next couple years, the key is for the young guys in the lineup to keep taking steps forward. Need Gallo's floor to be .230.

free_mhayden said:

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I think in Profar's case it will be significant simply because him and the club certainly had some issues with one another.

But as a whole it evens out so much that it probably doesn't matter. The value gained by keeping control of the player for another year likely offsets the extra money you might have to pony up in free agency.

And I really don't think it's all that bad a thing for a club to do. The club is bringing up the player when it is best for their franchise -- not just when the player is major league ready.

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If JD has proven one thing, players seem to like him... or at least the club he has put together.

As with Perez. Odor... Andrus...et al, he does come to the table in the end. What I loved about the Martin Perez contract, was JD's commitment within the parameters to help facilitate the extraction of his family from Venezuela.

With only 162 IP in MLB, Perez had his agent approach JD about a contract. The contract included a $1M signing bonus, which Perez needed/wanted, in order to get his family out of Venezuela. Now, the contract was very team friendly, with several team options. Perez hasn't delivered like many of us expected, He has a 3.56 ERA in 5 GS, since going to the DL.

With Profar, I think Profar voiced his desire to stay with the Rangers, but also his desire to play SS everyday. I think Profar realized he was kinda stuck. It wasn't like he was going to replace Andrus. In fact, Andrus' injury probably helped heal some issues. He got 64 G at SS. He has 20 G at 3B. Most importantly, he has been on the Active Roster and getting playing time.

94chem said:

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It's just something you remind the team about when they try to get a hometown discount, play sentimental games, etc. Houston even kept Springer down because they were afraid he might help them win games, and they weren't ready to stop deliberately tanking yet.

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Good explanation:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/how-mlb-service-time-dictates-top-prospect-promotions-041914%3famp=true

Speaking of young pitchers for the future:

Round Rock-AAA
Sadzeck in 1.0 IP of RP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO

Mazara - 0/4.

Frisco - AA
Hearn got lit up: 4.2 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 7 SO
YoMen goes tonight.

DEWDS - A+
Steven Bruce goes tonight: 13 GS, 3.09 ERA
He is 26 and a 2010 grad of Flower Mound. Spent 2 years at OU, 2 years after that in Florida (Keiser U: '15 & '16).
Signed in 2016 by the Rangers.

Interesting background if you don't know him:

Spok - ASh
Dease went 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO

Harry Dunne said:

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94chem said:

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It's just something you remind the team about when they try to get a hometown discount, play sentimental games, etc. Houston even kept Springer down because they were afraid he might help them win games, and they weren't ready to stop deliberately tanking yet.

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Good explanation:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/how-mlb-service-time-dictates-top-prospect-promotions-041914%3famp=true

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Thanks. Article provides more detail, such as Lunhow lying (that's what it was) to Springer and the Houston fans. Springer was even ready the Year before.

TLDR...I was 100% correct.

Looking at the Astros' treatment of Springer, that is the type of thing I can't see a GM fixing.

Combined for 2013 in AA and AAA, he went .303, 37 HRs, 45 SB. He had a .411 OBP and a 1.010 OPS.

The 2013 Astros went 51-111.

LF: .256, 24 HR, 12 SB
CF: .218, 8 HR, 10 SB
RF: .251, 9 HR, 20 SB

In 2014, Springer went: .231, 20 HRs, 5 SB.

Then, consider what they did with Aiken... and how that affected other draft picks they had agreements with.

Just doesn't seem like a team/Front-Office I'd want to come work for, all things being equal.

Lol Betances has pine tar on his hat. It's clear as day