A Case For Matt Thaiss

[Chuck]

Do you guys see a pathway for Matt Thaiss? He's absolutely crushing the ball in AAA. 

Right now he's slashing .304/.413/.616 with a 1.029 OPS. He's also logged 9 HR's and 29 RBI in just 34 games mostly playing 1B (9 games) & the catching position (16). He's played three games at 3B as well. 

Question to the board?

Would you move Walsh back to RF (I thought he did a great job out there and his range and arm played out).

Then move Taylor Ward to CF as he exhibited good range, solid reads and a strong arm at the position. 

Finally, insert Matt Thaiss to 1B. He can also be the third catcher. 

Thoughts?

[Revad]

Until Trout gets back…

[failos]

I don’t agree about moving Walsh from 1B—but Thaiss should be in the lineup somewhere. If Wong, Lagares, and Gosselin are getting starts/ABs then Thaiss should as well

[Angelsjunky]

It seems like now would be a good time to give him a shot, moving Walsh to RF and Ward to CF, with Lagares as the 4OF. 

 

[Chuck]

9 minutes ago, failos said:

I don’t agree about moving Walsh from 1B—but Thaiss should be in the lineup somewhere. If Wong, Lagares, and Gosselin are getting starts/ABs then Thaiss should as well

Walsh is a better 1B than RF, but the difference between the two isn't vast from my observation. I think Thaiss' time at the hot corner and first base should fare well for him at the position. I really like Walsh' in the outfield tbh. 

[Chuck]

From @totdprods prospect hotlist earlier this week. 

1) Matt Thaiss – C/DH/1B, Salt Lake City, AAA:

So far, no Angels’ minor league position has done more to definitively place themselves atop one of these lists than what Matt Thaiss has done. Alternating between catcher and DH over the last two weeks – with one appearance at 1B – Thaiss has put his well-balanced offensive profile on display, showing strong contact (14 hits in 10 games), discipline (6 walks to 9 strikeouts), and power (four doubles, two triples, five home runs), good for a .359/.457/.949/1.405 slash, while also driving in runs (13), stealing a base, and throwing out three baserunners – his first in his pro career since converting back to catcher. Despite this, there isn’t a clear path to Anaheim at the moment for Thaiss, and it’s likely in his (and the Angels) best interest that he continues getting reps behind the plate at SLC, as well as regular playing time. Should the Angels find themselves buyer, Thaiss’ versatility, ability behind the plate, offensive profile, and MLB-readiness could make him an attractive deadline option – or an easy promotion should they part ways with Kurt Suzuki at some point.

 

Matt hit another HR last night, an absolute bomb off a southpaw. 

 

[WicketMaiden]

Yes I'd give him a go at 1B with Walsh in RF. If Thaiss thrives at 1B and Walsh and Ward continue to shine, then with the outfielders in the minors behind them we've got some really nice trade pieces.  

[AngelStew43]

He sure doesn't have anything left to prove in AAA.  

[Inside Pitch]

Lol....

I was honestly just expecting to see a picture of Kurt Suzuki.

 

 

[eligrba]

Thaiss was a dead pull hitter the last time he was up.  Every team played a shift on him and pitched him away. Thaiss had to set the record for ground outs to the second baseman.

Thaiss can have all of the stats suggesting he is ready, but if he still can’t hit the ball to all fields, he will be useless at the major league level.

[Angel Oracle]

12 minutes ago, eligrba said:

Thaiss was a dead pull hitter the last time he was up.  Every team played a shift on him and pitched him away. Thaiss had to set the record for ground outs to the second baseman.

Thaiss can have all of the stats suggesting he is ready, but if he still can’t hit the ball to all fields, he will be useless at the major league level.

He’s had a few HRs this season to LCF/CF.

[Docwaukee]

28 minutes ago, eligrba said:

Thaiss was a dead pull hitter the last time he was up.  Every team played a shift on him and pitched him away. Thaiss had to set the record for ground outs to the second baseman.

Thaiss can have all of the stats suggesting he is ready, but if he still can’t hit the ball to all fields, he will be useless at the major league level.

he's been hitting the ball to all fields in AAA this year.  

[eligrba]

1 minute ago, Dochalo said:

he's been hitting the ball to all fields in AAA this year.  

[Angel Oracle]

Upton, Ohtani, Ward, Walsh, Stassi, Rendon, Thaiss, Iglesias, Fletcher

Intriguing

[eligrba]

3 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

Upton, Ohtani, Ward, Walsh, Stassi, Rendon, Thaiss, Iglesias, Fletcher

Intriguing

Uptown’s future will be interesting if Thaiss can play. I like it. 

[WicketMaiden]

28 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

Upton, Ohtani, Ward, Walsh, Stassi, Rendon, Thaiss, Iglesias, Fletcher

Intriguing

Rengifo for Iglesias.

[Angels Fan Forever]

Tough call. Thaiss feels like a DH/1B to me. We have pretty good options there currently. There are guys in every AAA city who are stuck…

[Angels 1961]

NO, Walsh a great defensive 1B and Thaiss is not. Really do not have a spot for Thaiss.

[Revad]

35 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

Upton, Ohtani, Ward, Walsh, Stassi, Rendon, Thaiss, Iglesias, Fletcher

Intriguing

Just add some Trout and that group looks pretty good.

[Chuck]

19 minutes ago, Angels 1961 said:

NO, Walsh a great defensive 1B and Thaiss is not. Really do not have a spot for Thaiss.

He's a good 1B, not gold glove great. 

If the Angels can put Wong and Rengifo in RF, Ward is in CF tonight, Walsh who we've seen play well in RF can go there to accommodate for Thaiss' bat in the lineup at 1B. 

[rageous]

No the team will lose runs defensively with Ward at center and Walsh in right.

Didn't you guys already see how bad the defense was earlier this year and you want to make 2 bad changes to put in Thaiss into the lineup?

Even if he hits he's not going to be in the lineup once Trout gets back which should be in a couple of weeks.

[Revad]

It would be cool to give him at bats if we have them.  He’s earned a call up, even for a couple weeks.

Edited June 20, 2021 by Revad

[Second Base]

Matt Thaiss needs to be up, but there's a simpler answer here.  

Here's a few things to consider:

- Thaiss isn't relegated to 1B. He can play all over the diamond and catcher. 

- Rendon is still on the mend.

- The team specifically got rid of Pujols so that Walsh could play 1B, because Walsh is a very good defensive 1B and this team's defense sucks. 

- LHB with power at Angel Stadium do pretty well ever since they put they ridiculous yellow line in. It plays like Coors Field to RF now. Matt Thaiss is a LHB with power.

- Players of his ilk need major league reps. Just look at what happened with Ward as soon as he got his opportunity.  

- The backup catcher on this team isn't a defensive specialist but an offensive specialist at catcher.  Simply put, the Angels now have an even better offensive option than Kurt Suzuki. 

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I would personally wait until the deadline to cut bait on Suzuki though.  It gives Thaiss more time to develop as a catcher.  His future is actuality pretty intriguing as an offensively capable catcher, first baseman and third baseman.  

[Chuck]

 

[ten ocho recon scout]

Hes playing catcher?....

So long, Kurt.