Angels Sign 1B Chris Carter to a minor league deal

[totdprods]

Just now, Scotty@AW said:

If the Angels don't promote him, Carter might end up hitting 60 HR's in the PCL (particularly Salt Lake) this year.

I seriously am interested at how many he can hit there. 

[eligrba]

14 minutes ago, Scotty@AW said:

If the Angels don't promote him, Carter might end up hitting 60 HR's in the PCL (particularly Salt Lake) this year.

Crash Davis' record may be in jeopardy,.

[Second Base]

17 minutes ago, totdprods said:

I seriously am interested at how many he can hit there. 

If he plays 120 games, my guess is he'd hit 50.

But I doubt that happens. Luis Valbuena isn't going to last the year with the Angels.

Not with his injury history, not with his performance last year, not with him being unable to hit lefties, or inability to play good defense, and certainly not with Chris Young, Chris Carter, Jose Miguel Fernandez, Zach Houchins and Matt Thaiss all being capable of playing 1B.

My guess is Valbuena's shortcomings only become more pronounced with repeat exposure and he's out of a job by June. By that time, someone will separate themselves from the pack and get the call to play 1B on the three games a week that Albert DH's. 

[totdprods]

Most vets also get opt-outs on minor league deals these days too, so even if he gets stuck in SLC, good chance he opts out by end of May or so.

[eligrba4ever]

See if you can make the 40-man out of Tempe. If you wind up in SLC, you go free if somebody else offers you  a deal.

Isn't that how this usually works?

[AngelsLakersFan]

28 minutes ago, Scotty@AW said:

But I doubt that happens. Luis Valbuena isn't going to last the year with the Angels.

Not with his injury history, not with his performance last year, not with him being unable to hit lefties, or inability to play good defense, and certainly not with Chris Young, Chris Carter, Jose Miguel Fernandez, Zach Houchins and Matt Thaiss all being capable of playing 1B.

My guess is Valbuena's shortcomings only become more pronounced with repeat exposure and he's out of a job by June. By that time, someone will separate themselves from the pack and get the call to play 1B on the three games a week that Albert DH's. 

Im not high on Valbuena, and I was disappointed that they let Cron go, but man this is a lot more pessimistic than I am. 

Valbuena is what he is. A poor defender at both corners, a .200-ish hitter who can takes some walks and hit for some power with righties on the mound. I liked him as a backup at third and first but in the starting lineup he could be a problem. That said, I am not too high on any of the players who are lined up to cover for him.

[Warfarin]

1 minute ago, AngelsLakersFan said:

Im not high on Valbuena, and I was disappointed that they let Cron go, but man this is a lot more pessimistic than I am. 

Valbuena is what he is. A poor defender at both corners, a .200-ish hitter who can takes some walks and hit for some power with righties on the mound. I liked him as a backup at third and first but in the starting lineup he could be a problem. That said, I am not too high on any of the players who are lined up to cover for him.

This is a fair point.  That said, it's hard for a team to roll out with stars at every position.  Currently, we have the best player in the game in CF, a top 5 LFer, a top 5 SS, above average players at RF, 2B, 3B, and catcher.  1B and DH (assuming Pujols still gets a lot of time there) are our weaknesses, and it is what it is.  It's not an awful weakness in the way our DH was an awful weakness in 2017, but it's a weakness nevertheless.

But yeah, as I said, it's hard to be stacked in every position.  I'll take a Valbuena/Pujols platoon at 1B, given how we look on the rest of the field.

[Second Base]

4 minutes ago, Warfarin said:

This is a fair point.  That said, it's hard for a team to roll out with stars at every position.  Currently, we have the best player in the game in CF, a top 5 LFer, a top 5 SS, above average players at RF, 2B, 3B, and catcher.  1B and DH (assuming Pujols still gets a lot of time there) are our weaknesses, and it is what it is.  It's not an awful weakness in the way our DH was an awful weakness in 2017, but it's a weakness nevertheless.

But yeah, as I said, it's hard to be stacked in every position.  I'll take a Valbuena/Pujols platoon at 1B, given how we look on the rest of the field.

Kole Calhoun is not an above average corner OF. 

[AngelsLakersFan]

5 minutes ago, Warfarin said:

This is a fair point.  That said, it's hard for a team to roll out with stars at every position.  Currently, we have the best player in the game in CF, a top 5 LFer, a top 5 SS, above average players at RF, 2B, 3B, and catcher.  1B and DH (assuming Pujols still gets a lot of time there) are our weaknesses, and it is what it is.  It's not an awful weakness in the way our DH was an awful weakness in 2017, but it's a weakness nevertheless.

But yeah, as I said, it's hard to be stacked in every position.  I'll take a Valbuena/Pujols platoon at 1B, given how we look on the rest of the field.

Im mostly concerned that 1b/DH could turn into a black hole.

[AngelsLakersFan]

3 minutes ago, Scotty@AW said:

Kole Calhoun is not an above average corner OF. 

He's 17th in WAR among outfielders since 2014. Considering there are 90 starting outfield positions in MLB...

[Warfarin]

4 minutes ago, Scotty@AW said:

Kole Calhoun is not an above average corner OF. 

Then let's agree to disagree, as I feel he is definitely in the top 15 when it comes to MLB RFers.

[Warfarin]

Just now, AngelsLakersFan said:

He's 17th in WAR among outfielders since 2014. Considering there are 90 starting outfield positions in MLB...

Definitely.  In terms of fWAR, his rankings in the last 4 seasons amongst RFers:

2014: 7th

2015: 7th

2016: 5th

2017:  12th

If that's not "above average," then..??

[Stradling]

3 minutes ago, Warfarin said:

Then let's agree to disagree, as I feel he is definitely in the top 15 when it comes to MLB RFers.

This is one of those times where Scotty sours on a guy because of the next guy (Hermosillo). 

[Jason]

2 hours ago, Tank said:

At least this way he won't beat the crap out of us like he did in Houston.

Lord, he was annoying

[Glen]

2 hours ago, OHTANILAND said:

Just another Goodwill store pickup. I bet he gets released like he did with both the Astros and Yankees. 

You have to be the most relentlessly negative poster on this board. 

[Second Base]

1 hour ago, Stradling said:

This is one of those times where Scotty sours on a guy because of the next guy (Hermosillo). 

Actually, it's because Kole Calhoun is a .249 career hitter with no power against LHP and hit all of .223 against lefties last year.

He's a platoon player that is a fan favorite because of his all out style of defense.

While I believe Herm is as good if not better than Kole, ultimately I view his replacement as Jahmai Jones, not Hermosillo.

But keep floating the other narrative. It fits your outlook of me.

[Second Base]

1 hour ago, Warfarin said:

Definitely.  In terms of fWAR, his rankings in the last 4 seasons amongst RFers:

2014: 7th

2015: 7th

2016: 5th

2017:  12th

If that's not "above average," then..??

Compare him to the LF's that also fill in at RF, as in all corner OF. Calhoun is firmly average or slightly below. In WAR (not FWAR) he's 17th, and that's only among RF, not counting LF. 

If you only focus on the offensive side of things, Kole's WRC+ ranks get behind offensive juggernauts like Matt Joyce and Ben Gamel. And that's just RF only. If we include LF, he sits firmly behind recently DFA'd Corey Dickerson and slappy Brett Gardner.

But yeah Kole Calhoun is totally an above average corner outfielder. 

 

[Stradling]

10 minutes ago, Scotty@AW said:

Actually, it's because Kole Calhoun is a .249 career hitter with no power against LHP and hit all of .223 against lefties last year.

He's a platoon player that is a fan favorite because of his all out style of defense.

While I believe Herm is as good if not better than Kole, ultimately I view his replacement as Jahmai Jones, not Hermosillo.

But keep floating the other narrative. It fits your outlook of me.

Ok will do.  Remember when you pointed to WAR as the reason Weaver wasn’t good six years ago?  Well WAR shows that Kole is above average.  So Scotty, sorry if I call bullshit on this one.  I only say it because it’s true.   You favor our prospects over our players and you have for awhile. 

[Second Base]

4 minutes ago, Stradling said:

Ok will do.  Remember when you pointed to WAR as the reason Weaver wasn’t good six years ago?  Well WAR shows that Kole is above average.  So Scotty, sorry if I call bullshit on this one.  I only say it because it’s true.   You favor our prospects over our players and you have for awhile. 

Which WAR? Also refer to me quoting his BA vs LHP and his wRC+, and player comps like Matt Joyce, Ben Gamel and Corey Dickerson....

But yes....prospects. That's the reason.

[VariousCrap]

12 minutes ago, Stradling said:

Ok will do.  Remember when you pointed to WAR as the reason Weaver wasn’t good six years ago?  Well WAR shows that Kole is above average.  So Scotty, sorry if I call bullshit on this one.  I only say it because it’s true.   You favor our prospects over our players and you have for awhile. 

Not to mention how much he overvalues our prospects.  This has been discussed on the boards many times about his opinions.

[UndertheHalo]

can’t have all stars at every position Scotty.... When he’s going Calhoun is near or is an all star level player.   At worst is around average.   

There’s really no reason to be pessimistic about Calhoun vs. a guy like Hermosillo. 

Edited February 19, 2018 by UndertheHalo

[Warfarin]

36 minutes ago, Scotty@AW said:

Compare him to the LF's that also fill in at RF, as in all corner OF. Calhoun is firmly average or slightly below. In WAR (not FWAR) he's 17th, and that's only among RF, not counting LF. 

If you only focus on the offensive side of things, Kole's WRC+ ranks get behind offensive juggernauts like Matt Joyce and Ben Gamel. And that's just RF only. If we include LF, he sits firmly behind recently DFA'd Corey Dickerson and slappy Brett Gardner.

But yeah Kole Calhoun is totally an above average corner outfielder. 

 

I am comparing him to RFers, as that is the niche he fills on our team and has done so pretty much the entire time he has been here.  It would seem a bit odd to compare him to LFers who occasionally shift over to RF, and hence why I am comparing him moreso to his cohort. 

As for just looking at his offense, that's all nice and good, but I think as a RFer, he is obligated to play some defense, too.  So again, in terms of analyzing whether I think he is an above average RF, I do the following:

1. Compare him to other guys who mainly occupy RF

2. Include his defense as part of his value

I think, given 1 and 2, he is an above average RF, as compared to the RFers on all the other MLB teams.  This means that I think he is better than the RFers of 15+ other MLB teams.  I stand by this assessment.

[AngelsLakersFan]

4 hours ago, AngelsLakersFan said:

He's 17th in WAR among outfielders since 2014. Considering there are 90 starting outfield positions in MLB...

Not sure why you ignore this @Scotty@AW - That's 17th out of 108 qualified outfielders. Yes he had a down year in 2017, but its too soon to write him off as below average.

[ten ocho recon scout]

My only "gripe" with caalhoun is that hes suppossed to be one of the big hitters on the team. I think hes one of those guys you appreciate more with a better lineup.

Hopefully thats this year. Hes not a moto hitter, and thats not a big deal. The team the last few years had to kind of use him as one though.

[Docwaukee]

Calhoun isn't above average?  

4 hours ago, Scotty@AW said:

Compare him to the LF's that also fill in at RF, as in all corner OF. Calhoun is firmly average or slightly below. In WAR (not FWAR) he's 17th, and that's only among RF, not counting LF. 

If you only focus on the offensive side of things, Kole's WRC+ ranks get behind offensive juggernauts like Matt Joyce and Ben Gamel. And that's just RF only. If we include LF, he sits firmly behind recently DFA'd Corey Dickerson and slappy Brett Gardner.

But yeah Kole Calhoun is totally an above average corner outfielder. 

 

what?  

He's 17th for all qualified OFers for the last 4 years.  fWAR is WAR.  Do you mean bWAR?  Why are we only focusing on offense?  Defense is an important part of the game.  

Just as an FYI, the avg wRC+ for LF/RFers for the last 4 years is 104.  Kole's is 110.  And that's without his defense.