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Post by JohnM on Nov 7, 2017 13:00:36 GMT -5
I don't either Roger. Hard to see him getting enough reps to sustain himself as a hitter long term(I envision him as a pitcher first). Pretty much every pitcher in the bigs was a stud hitter at one point too. There's a reason this doesn't happen. Guess we'll see. Hopefully with him in pinstripes. Rays may have a two way player this coming season.
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Post by roger on Nov 7, 2017 13:07:37 GMT -5
No guys...he will pitch every 5th day, and DH on the other days. It's perfect! Perfect ?? Should we re-visit threads from past years when people around here were screaming like little girls when a Yankee pitcher "may" have injured himself during an at-bat in an inter-league game ?? Now, you are saying that you would be okay with a STARTING PITCHER (!!!) going up to bat about 16 times between pitching days ?? He gets injured running to first, scratching his privates too harshly, or tapping his foot with the bat and you are out a DH and a starter. Let's not get carried away with this two-way hyperbole.....great marketing scheme at the get-go. Pure madness beyond that !
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Post by JohnM on Nov 7, 2017 13:10:12 GMT -5
Pitchers that get hurt batting are not conditioned to hit and run the bases. He is. It’s a non issue.
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Post by NYY23 on Nov 7, 2017 13:15:52 GMT -5
There's a reason in the 120+ years of baseball this rarely happens. My guess is he'll focus more on one and start to deteriorate on the other. It takes a lot of work to be a major league hitter or major league pitcher.
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Post by GoodFriar on Nov 7, 2017 13:17:15 GMT -5
No guys...he will pitch every 5th day, and DH on the other days. It's perfect! Likely won’t play the day before he starts. DH the other days. Now, that does make sense. Friar was wondering if he would not DH on his bullpen days or something like that.
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Post by Yankin'It in Beantown on Nov 7, 2017 13:17:31 GMT -5
If a player does come up who can pitch and hit with the elite players, can you imagine the salary expectations?
"You play Joe X $20M per year to pitch and Jim X $25M to hit. I can do both just as well and only take up one roster spot. Give me $50M per year please."
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Post by Skinnyhead on Nov 7, 2017 13:26:58 GMT -5
I just don't see it in this age of pampered athletes.
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Post by JohnM on Nov 7, 2017 13:31:15 GMT -5
Often said if he waits two years he’d get a $200M+ deal. Japan League MVP at age 21. Check out this video on YouTube: youtu.be/3B05dBnrN1oSent from my iPad
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Post by Knuckles on Nov 7, 2017 14:11:44 GMT -5
I think Otani, wherever he signs, will do SOME 2-way play. Do I think he'll start every fifth day, and DH the other 4? Probably not.
We've seen a lot of things the last 2 decades that would "never" happen.
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Post by yankeeyogi on Nov 7, 2017 14:13:05 GMT -5
I just don't see it in this age of pampered athletes. It's not the athlete who is making that decision.
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Post by jimbue2 on Nov 7, 2017 14:13:50 GMT -5
I'm w u. If he's as advertised he'll get a chance to showcase himself.
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Post by JohnM on Nov 7, 2017 14:17:05 GMT -5
I think Otani, wherever he signs, will do SOME 2-way play. Do I think he'll start every fifth day, and DH the other 4? Probably not. We've seen a lot of things the last 2 decades that would "never" happen. He didn’t do that in Japan. Sat the day before he started.
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Post by Norkee on Nov 7, 2017 14:22:10 GMT -5
I only watched half ... very impressive. Hits to all fields with power but seems to go with the pitch and adjust to the situation. Pitching speeds are all over the place, including 100+, with apparently very good command. Even has wheels, beating out some infield hits. If they had the DH in the Babe's day, he would have hit every day.
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Post by JohnM on Nov 7, 2017 14:25:41 GMT -5
Throws 102mph. Scouts compare him most to Verlander.
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Post by Knuckles on Nov 7, 2017 14:27:26 GMT -5
No gyro ball though, right?
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Post by JohnM on Nov 7, 2017 14:30:17 GMT -5
No gyro ball though, right? No trick pitches.
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Post by rags on Nov 8, 2017 9:53:40 GMT -5
I understand the skepticism. The reports about him sound so unbelievably good that veteran baseball fans like us instinctively suspect that this is hype, and he's going to turn out to be completely ordinary or even a bust. We've seen it before.
I can't completely dismiss those concerns, but I still think we should be all in on this guy, for two reasons. First, he's not going to cost a fortune. As I understand it, the maximum he can get because of the rules about signing foreign FA's is somewhere around $10 million. That's less than half as much as we're paying Tanaka. We can potentially pay him and still fit under the luxury tax.
Second, the fact that he both pitches and hits doubles the chances that he'll be a worthwhile player at something. If he can't hit MLB pitching but can pitch as well as Tanaka, he'll still be well worth $10 million. That would also be true if he "loses the tilt on his slider" but can hit .280 with 25-30 HR's. Of course, if he can do both, we totally hit the jackpot.
Not a lot of money up front, two chances to win. Sounds like a good gamble to me.
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Post by JohnM on Nov 8, 2017 10:01:56 GMT -5
He won the MVP at age 21. Scouts say he’s the real deal. A lot of talk about the low buy-in and salary but after two seasons under the CBA he’s arbitration eligible. If he has a big first season likely the signing team buys out his Arbitration years and signs him to a long term mega deal. Regarding a team signing him and not using him as a full two way player he has all the leverage. He can simply refuse to play after one year. The team that signs him will own his rights but will be forced to trade him and their $20M rights fee goes down the drain. No way it goes down like that.
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Post by jimbue2 on Nov 8, 2017 10:05:52 GMT -5
There r always once in a generation players. U never know.
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Post by DavidL on Nov 8, 2017 10:13:42 GMT -5
rags makes a compelling case for going all in. Obviously, many teams can afford the max., so if he's coming, we have to hope that the history and prestige of the pinstripes appeals to him. Tanaka's presence certainly won't hurt, either.
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