DallasAg 94 said:

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Found this:

https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/baseball/professional/who-did-the-phillies-trade-who-did-they-get-at-the-trade-deadline/article_99cf1b16-f177-11eb-a2c4-77a013dc29c4.html

Maybe Howard benefits from being in the AL, with a DH:

Quote:

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Howard was one of the Phillies top prospects. But he's 25 not young for a prospect and never fulfilled his potential.

Howard is 0-2 with a 5.72 ERA in 11 games this season, seven of them starts. His velocity often dipped after an inning or two on the mound. After one game, Howard said his velocity dipped because he ran hard to first base after hitting a groundball. He threw four or more innings in just two of his starts this season.

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hawk1689 said:

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Right now, we only have what I consider to be prospect depth under contract to pitch next year. Zero veterans. I know that a few of the guys will have not qualify as rookies any longer, but they have less than two years service time and options to be sent down. By my count, we have about 20 prospects to fill out Arlington, Round Rock, and Frisco. I've listed them by what I think are the most to least likely to pitch in the majors next year. I've also included a football type rating for what I think are their chances of success

4* Dane Dunning 26 (R) 40man
3* Kolby Allard 23 (L) 40man
4* Spencer Howard 24 (R) *Likely to be added to 26/40
3* Kohei Arihara 28 (R) 40 Man (60DL)
3* Taylor Hearn 26 (L) 40 Man
3* John King 26 (L) 40 Man
3* Kyle Cody 26 (R) 40 Man (60 DL)
2* Joe Palumbo 26 (L) 40 Man
3* Jonathan Hernandez 24 (R) 40 Man (60 DL)
4* Glen Otto 25 (R) *Likely to AA
4* Yerry Rodriguez 23 (R) 40 Man
2* Brock Burke 24 (L) 40 Man
4* Cole Winn 21 (R)
3* AJ Alexy 23 (R) 40 Man
5* Jack Leiter 20 (R)
4* Cole Ragans 23 (L) Rule 5 Eligible
3* Jake Latz 25 (L) Rule 5 Eligible
4* Ronny Henriquez 21 (R)
3* Cody Bradford 23 (L)
3* Zak Kent 23 (R)

I'd like to know how you guys see this group.

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jtstanley4621 said:

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DallasAg 94 said:

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Listening to JD on "The Fan." Heard he was going to be on.

Question: "Did you put an offer on the table?"
JD: "I don't want to characterize the negotiations.... blah blah blah... we had enough information to know there was nothing there. blah blah blah reasonable people can differ in their views. blah blah blah"

*Not an exact replay of words. The bolded was an exact quote.

So... NO. The Rangers never made an Offer.

Howard left his last start with a blister. They will chat with him, and see what he wants. If he wants to pitch, they'll let him, but they don't have any plans for 2022.

Otto to AAA

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I HATE that JD is still part of the organization and gets to do these interviews. Could we maybe interview... oh, I don't know, our ACTUAL GM?

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Quote:

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Spencer Howard

Age: 24 yr
Height: 6-3
Weight: 210 lbs
Hits/Throws: R/R
Acquired: 2017 Round 2
RuleV: On 40 Man Roster

Physical Description: Sturdy, workhorse frame; tall with a thick neck and sloping shoulders, long arms, fit torso. A high waist with long and strong thighs and legs. Well-proportioned with minimal projection remaining in the frame. A good athlete on the mound. Injury history includes a right knee 'tweak' and right shoulder stiffness in 2020. Overall build reminds me of former MLB pitcher Chien-Ming Wang.

Mechanics: Fires from a high 3/4 with high effort; tall-and-fall motion that yields deception thanks to high leg kick, busy glove work, and impressive extension. Plus arm speed from hooking path. Subtle head-whack upon finish; stiff front leg with a slight arm recoil following release. Uses legs well. Moves well; proficient fielder despite high finish.

Fastball: 92-95 t96 with modest armside run; explodes out of the hand and maintains velocity through starts. Flashes riding life when thrown in the upper third; commands to the arm side well; occasionally misfires when throwing glove side. Has lowered usage as of late, but should remain an above-average offering at the big league level. Grade: 55

Curveball: Under-utilized in the pitch mix; 12/6 bite flashing nasty drop at 73-75; ideal velocity considering the rest of the arsenal; command is spotty at times; mostly bouncing pitches in the dirt. Likes to throw it way ahead in counts or as a get-me-over strike to start a hitter off. Plus potential with some command gains and subsequent added usage; likely settles in above-average. Grade: 55

Slider: Primary secondary offering; 83-86 with slurvy action. Shows feel but the movement lacks significant bite; works the corners and fringes of the zone to limit damage. Sequences well; induces weak contact consistently. Figures to be a solid-average offering with minimal projection remaining. Grade: 50

Changeup: An above-average pitch at 78-81; maintains arm speed and shows advanced feel; throws for strikes and flashes fade beneath the zone. Tends to get flat in the middle and upper thirds of the zone. At its best, he works the corners at the bottom part of the zone, yielding both swinging and called strikes. Grade: 55

Control and Command: Above-average control with average command; can throw all pitches for strikes consistently; occasionally struggles hitting the glove within the zone, especially with breaking pitches. Impressive considering busy motion. Advanced sequencing that has potential for further improvement with increased use of the curveball. Control: 55 | Command: 50

Overall: Coming off shoulder stiffness that ended his debut season early, Howard will likely find big league time early in 2021. His rare combination of a legitimate four-pitch mix with his ability to command the zone makes sticking in the rotation much more realistic than usual for the position. Overall, a number three starter on a competitive team is the most likely outcome for him long-term, with a safe backend/spot start floor.

OFP: 55
Role: 60 - #3 SP
Risk: Moderate

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DallasAg 94 said:

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jtstanley4621 said:

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gigem1223 said:

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Hopefully the front office will spend a little and add a few pieces along the way via free agency. Several available this off-season that could help.

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Color me stunned the day I see this ownership group actually shell out to try and improve the team. My guess: we add some more spares

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Here is my take away from the trade deadline.

We have no intentions to compete in 2022. We are tanking 2022. We have absolutely nothing in terms of players to compete.

Our rotation: Dunning, Howard, Allard, King, Arihara

What many of you thought was 2021 would be a year we find out what we have... Solak, IKF @SS, Adolis, maybe Jung, Tavares, White, Dunning, etc... We found out they either aren't whom we hoped they were, or it was too early to know (or injury).

I would tell you that 2022 will be a "What do we have season." Specifically for the SP. That makes 2023 a "well if we play well enough we'll invest for 2024."

I really don't see the Rangers competing before 2024. Maybe later.

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Mr Gigem said:

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We may not "compete" in 2022, but I don't see that as a reason why we couldn't be aggressive in FA this offseason. Especially if we think 2023 is the year the window opens

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hawk1689 said:

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I could see them putting Leiter on a really agressive path. He grew up with a major league pitcher father and went to the strongest college baseball program around. He probably has already worked on the little things that most prospects have yet to be exposed. He might already be advanced in things like fielding the position and repetitive mechanics. I could see them sending him to AZ fall league and then starting him in AA next year. It's conceivable that he's in the majors in '22.

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wbt5845 said:

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Some good news today - Trevor Story was not traded, so there isn't some team with 2 months to romance him. So he can come home to Texas next year.

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KT 90 said:

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wbt5845 said:

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Some good news today - Trevor Story was not traded, so there isn't some team with 2 months to romance him. So he can come home to Texas next year.

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After seeing those home/road splits the other day, not sure I want to throw too much $$$ his way. Maybe I'm underestimating him, but we need to do some due diligence on this one. Hell, our owners will only be signing re-treads this off-season anyway, so doesn't really matter anyway.

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CampingAg said:

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Man, I hope the night is darkest just before the dawn. Because we are about to enter some daaark times (on the field that is). Tempted to just get season tickets to Frisco the next couple of years.

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