Power hungry, win starved
Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2022 12:49 am
In today’s game thread I asked the question where will the future power come from? For this purpose, let’s look two years out, be aggressive, and maybe even unrealistic.
C -- Henry Davis: He should provide both power and decent average.
1B – Matt Gorski: Led the minors in HR with 23 at the time he was injured.
2B – Make a choice. Gonzales would be the short-term hope. But he may never beat out a slew of others in the system. Johnson is more than 2 years out. Anyone will add more than Newman.
SS – Cruz will provide power either here or in RF. Peguero could be a 20 HR guy.
3B – Hayes will probably be here – will his power?
LF – We can only hope Suwinski finds consistency. 30+HR doesn’t seem like a stretch from what we have seen.
CF – Keep Reynolds. He is good for 25-30 HR … besides being a damn good player all-around.
RF – Cruz. Though his play at SS has been better than I thought, I think 30 HR and the OF are in his future.
This lineup has power potential like we’ve rarely seen in Pittsburgh. Gorski maybe a stretch at this point, but he has everyone’s attention. If Gonzales stalls, you still have guys like Bae or Castillo who could play. At SS, I enjoyed watching Peguero earlier this year. He’ll be back. This OF should be solid.
That leaves Hayes. In 2015, Kevin Newman and he were selected about a dozen picks apart in the first round. Newman got to Pitt first, and in his first full year in 2019, he hit .308 with 12 HR and 16 SB in 493 AB. In the in the 776 AB since, Newman has hit .229 with 6 HR and 8 SB.
Hayes arrived during the 2020 Covid year. In 85 AB, he hit .376 with 5 HR (one per 17AB). In 21-22, Hayes is 179 for 705 (.254) with 10 HR. His 2020 pace was unsustainable, but now he only hits a HR every 70 at bats.
Both Hayes and Newman are very good defenders, but Newman’s days are numbered. The Bucs are committed to Hayes. Let's hope he matures as a hitter and develops the power with it. Who knows, we all may end up disillusioned as the next few years pass, but I can't remember being this optimistic about our power potential and how it will hopefully allow us to get back to post season ball.
C -- Henry Davis: He should provide both power and decent average.
1B – Matt Gorski: Led the minors in HR with 23 at the time he was injured.
2B – Make a choice. Gonzales would be the short-term hope. But he may never beat out a slew of others in the system. Johnson is more than 2 years out. Anyone will add more than Newman.
SS – Cruz will provide power either here or in RF. Peguero could be a 20 HR guy.
3B – Hayes will probably be here – will his power?
LF – We can only hope Suwinski finds consistency. 30+HR doesn’t seem like a stretch from what we have seen.
CF – Keep Reynolds. He is good for 25-30 HR … besides being a damn good player all-around.
RF – Cruz. Though his play at SS has been better than I thought, I think 30 HR and the OF are in his future.
This lineup has power potential like we’ve rarely seen in Pittsburgh. Gorski maybe a stretch at this point, but he has everyone’s attention. If Gonzales stalls, you still have guys like Bae or Castillo who could play. At SS, I enjoyed watching Peguero earlier this year. He’ll be back. This OF should be solid.
That leaves Hayes. In 2015, Kevin Newman and he were selected about a dozen picks apart in the first round. Newman got to Pitt first, and in his first full year in 2019, he hit .308 with 12 HR and 16 SB in 493 AB. In the in the 776 AB since, Newman has hit .229 with 6 HR and 8 SB.
Hayes arrived during the 2020 Covid year. In 85 AB, he hit .376 with 5 HR (one per 17AB). In 21-22, Hayes is 179 for 705 (.254) with 10 HR. His 2020 pace was unsustainable, but now he only hits a HR every 70 at bats.
Both Hayes and Newman are very good defenders, but Newman’s days are numbered. The Bucs are committed to Hayes. Let's hope he matures as a hitter and develops the power with it. Who knows, we all may end up disillusioned as the next few years pass, but I can't remember being this optimistic about our power potential and how it will hopefully allow us to get back to post season ball.