Chris Owings, (SS-ARI) Chris Owings is a young player to watch. He is 22 years old and won the SS competition on the Arizona club earlier this week. When a club decides to pass over the superior defender at SS, in this case Didi Gregorius, it shows me that they think that the youngster has a very live bat. He had one hit out of 4 AB's in today's loss at Colorado and left with a .404 BA with 2 SB's. His last minor league season in the PCL produced a .330/.359/.482 slash line with 12 HR, 104 Runs, 81 RBI's and 20 SB. Now the PCL is noted for inflated offensive stats, but he performed well in limited AB's with the big club in 2013. He has good plate discipline, some pop, and above average speed. His ownership in CBS Sportsline Leagues has jumped to 42% this week and a .280/.310/.410 triple slash line is possible with 10-15 HR's and 20-25 SB's. He is mixed league material at the MI position.
Giancarlo Stanton, (OF-MIA) The prodigious power of Giancarlo Stanton was on display today in an 8-2 win over San Diego when he launched the longest HR hit in the history of the Marlins ballpark. The blast was measured at 484 feet and is clearly the longest round tripper hit in this young season. In fact, it is just short of 2013's longest, the 486 foot blast off the bat of Evan Gattis. The ball just explodes off his bat. The problem with projecting Stanton's numbers lies in the weak offense that surrounds him and his poor contact rate which was 67.9% last year. When/if he figures out how to make more contact, with an ISO of .231 and a HR/FB rate of 21.8%, he will be a perennial NL HR Leader. At 24 years old, I would expect some incremental improvement which would mean 30+ HR's this year.
Jenrry Mejia, (SP-NYM) Jenrry Mejia, an oft- injured but highly touted prospect in the Mets organization, captured the 5th starter position on the Mets roster. He's had Tommy John Surgery in 2011 and elbow surgery just this past off-season. What makes him compelling is his stuff which can be electric. He has a number of strong pitches in his arsenal including a slider which has a 27% Whiff rate and an effective change up which induces ground balls in bunches. Just when you get excited you have to remember that he has some control problems and has yet to log more than 110 innings in any season. So what did he do in his first start today? Well, he was the winning pitcher and showed his K ability by striking out 8 batters in 6 innings with just 4 hits and 1 ER. But, his control issues also surfaced with 5 walks. He is the classic risk/reward pitcher so as long as you don't invest too much he can easily be worth the risk.
Jordan Zimmerman, (SP-WASH) Jordan Zimmerman was brilliant in a no decision outing on Friday against the Braves in Atlanta. Zimmerman allowed 1 ER on 4 Hits and 1 walk while striking out 9 Braves in 5 innings of work. The 2-1 loss by the Nationals might have ended differently, but Ian Desmond's inside the park HR bid was reversed by the umpires. Jordan's fastball had a Velo of 94 with his best touching 96. His slider was a devastating out pitch with a 38% Whiff rate and he threw 58 of 81 pitches for strikes. He might not win 19 games again this year, as wins are very unpredictable from year to year, but Zimmerman certainly has arrived as a high quality starter for the Nationals.
Freddie Freeman, (1B-ATL) Freddie Freeman, the Braves sweet swinging 1B, continues to rake in the early start to the season. Another two hits today in the Braves 2-1 win over Washington brings his average to .385 to go along with 2 Hr's and 2 RBI's. The Braves need to reconsider their decision to bat BJ Upton 2nd in this lineup. Batting in front of Freeman, Upton has been unable to get on base this year posting a microscopic .063 average. It's very early, but coming off a 2013 where Upton had a 67% contact rate and a 19% Infield Fly Ball rate, it might be better to let him figure it out lower in the order. Freeman will probably see some regression in BA, based an inflated .377 BABIP last year, but any significant increase in his ISO and the right combination of hitters in front of him could lead to MVP contention.
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