Wilson Betemit

by lonestar on Jul 1, 2005 2:02 PM EDT Comment 3 comments

How good is he?

In 2002, Betemit was BA's #5 prospect overall. This year he got a C+ from John Sickels. Currently he is tearing the cover off the ball in Atlanta.

What can we expect in terms of offense?
How good is his defense at SS and 3B?
Where does he fit into the Braves plans?
What would be a reasonable trade?

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Braves Plans

Not sure where he fits into the Braves plans, with Chipper Jones likely coming back soon Betemit's playing time will decrease. Still, he is hot and Chipper could move to 1st. Or, with Furcal on his last year of a contract, Betemit could see significant playing time at SS after C.Jones is back.

by dbimberg on Jul 1, 2005 2:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Tearing the cover off the ball.

While he has hit more than expected, and probably more than anyone on that team other than Andruw and lately Johnson, I wouldn't exactly say tearing the cover off the ball. He still strikes out too much, and his swing can get long. He has made the kind of strides they were hoping for out of him being that he was out of options. It doesn't appear that Bobby trust him enough just yet for him to be an everyday player, but he is coming around. Furcal would have been traded already if he wasn't laying such a huge egg in a FREAKIN CONTRACT YEAR! Anyway I still don't think his D good enough to play short everyday, but it could improve with some work and concentration, and he ain't moving Marcus off second or Chipper off third. He definitely won't block Marte in the future if they ever decide to move Chipper to first. So he has to prove that he can be steady with the glove at short, and keep on hitting the ball or he will be utilityman #1, or traded.

by JFP on Jul 1, 2005 3:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I would

I think any rookie (even an oldish one) with a .553 slugging (.244 IsoP) can be described as tearing the cover off the ball. And at his current rate he'd have about 100 Ks (and 60 BBs) in 500 at-bats. I guess "striking out too much" is a matter of legitimate debate, but, coupled with that slugging, the Ks don't worry me. I do think he is probably slugging over his head, though. I'd like to believe that he can hit more than enough to play short, but I wouldn't think he can hit enough to play 3rd (which is fine since that's plenty covered). I hope that the Braves give him a shot next year and see if his defense can be improved. The options within the organization are dreadful, and the market for shortstops is ridiculous. I'm still hopeful that someone will take Furcal's salary so he can stay in the lineup AND so Atlanta can have some budget flexibility to deal for pithing help, but I have no idea who would do that.

by creynolds on Jul 1, 2005 3:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs