Wood vs. Kendrick

by goose102977 on Jan 13, 2006 11:45 AM EST Comment 16 comments

Both Howie Kendrick and Brandon Wood had unbelievable seasons in 2005. Which of the two do you foresee having a better career?

In my personal opinion, I feel Howie Kendrick is the type of player that comes around less often than Wood. He hits for a high average, has pop, and can steal bases from a position that historically is not known for its offense. Wood on the other hand strikes out too often and is destined to play 3B in the Bigs, a position where power is easily found.

What current or past players would you compare Wood and Kendrick to?

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I want to see Wood

hit at AA. Kendrick seems to be more complete, so I would take him. I would compare Wood to uhh I have no idea. I've always thought of Kendrick as a Marcus Giles type player.

by Ienpw on Jan 13, 2006 12:05 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

more complete how?

wood strikes out more than Kendrick, but that is about it, i've seen both play several times and they are both athletic but don't run much. Wood is a better defender, kendrick is average at 2b, and Wood was thought to be a glove man til he broke out this year. Neither walks a lot, but Wood walked twice as much. I don't see how you could say Kendrick is more complete when both are probably most deficient in the same are, plate discipline.

anyway, my two cents

by SoCalSoxFan on Jan 13, 2006 5:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I didn't write "more complete", but...

How about these ways of being "more complete":

Has showed competence at AA already,
Has a career MiLB BA of .359, higher than Wood's career MiLB OBA.
Has a K-rate of 12%, compared to 24% for Wood.

All that said, Wood is 20 months younger than Kendrick, and plays SS, so I think it's pretty safe to say his upside is enormous.

I haven't seen Kendrick play, but his stats suggest to me someone who will just rake at the MLB level, in the mold of Julio Franco, Kirby Puckett, and Barry Larkin. I have to admit, that usually when I hear "more complete", I envision someone who has plate discipline, but I don't see anything to suggest that there's any other part of Kendrick's hitting that is lacking.

by BobbyMac on Jan 14, 2006 5:28 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Either one

As a long suffering Royal fan I would take either of them. I do like Kendrick more in the long term at this point, I wonder how many of Wood's hr turn into lazy fly ball outs once he leaves that hitters paradise. That said his numbers have NEVER been done before. A-Rod, no one put up a line like that. 58 bombs at 20 is real hard to ignore. His defensive positon is not a concern as power hitting third baseman DO NOT grow on trees either.

So in summary give me either straight up for Angel Berroa or Mark Teahan for that matter and you got a deal....

by DaninKC on Jan 13, 2006 1:42 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

58 HR's

Why do people keep commenting on the 58 HR's?

He hit 40. Not only does the AFL not count it is also a hitters paradise and usually the competition is light.

by pedrophile on Jan 13, 2006 2:32 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Danin

I don't know if you were implying that not even A-Rod put up 58* HRs at 20 like Wood did, but let's not forget that that's because at 20 A-Rod was too busy winning a Major League batting title while being robbed of the MVP as he hit .358/.414/.631 in one of the great SS offensive seasons ever.

...NJASDJDH...

by Fabian on Jan 13, 2006 3:25 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Wood

I'm curious to see how he handles AAA, and see if his power breakthrough this year was legit or not. The 100 XBH tells me that even if he falls back to earth, he could still be a regular 30 double, 30 homer. Which is why I think Wood could compare to Bobby Crosby, both in stature and hitting.

Blue Jays - '92, '93

by SharpeShooter on Jan 13, 2006 1:48 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

hmm

Erick Aybar will play SS in AAA (the PCL), and Wood in AA (the TexasL), no? Maybe I'm wrong.

by Azteca on Jan 13, 2006 1:52 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Wood destined for 3B?

Of the reports I've read, it sounds like most scouts think he can stick at SS. I think when a lot of people refer to him shifting to 3B, it's more of a reflection of Orlando Cabrera or Aybar (superior defenders) playing SS.

http://www.OriolesThinkTank.com

by Tettleton on Jan 13, 2006 2:14 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Wood at Shortstop

Tony Reagins, who oversees the Angels' farm system, has said that they plan to keep Wood at shortstop until he proves he can no longer handle the position.

Any you're right, too, that most scouts have projected Wood to be at least an adequate, if not great, shortstop.

Finally, many Angel observers believe Wood will take over at shortstop for the Angels in 07, displacing Orlando Cabrera.

by Crows Landing on Jan 13, 2006 5:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

re

Both are studs, but I think Kendrick has a better chance at being special in the bigs. I don't see Wood ever hitting 40 jacks in the Bigs, and I don't see him hitting .290 again either. I think he'll be a .260-.270 hitter that hits 25-30 homers anually at SS. Kendrick will hit .315-.325 with 15-20 homers anually.

That said, I have seen Wood play since he was at Horizan High School here in Phoenix. He has come a long ways from the skinny kid that was DH'ed for much of high school.

by ScottAZ on Jan 13, 2006 3:35 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

I'll take em both

An infield of Kotchman/Kendrick/Wood/McPherson in 2008 would be fun to watch.
The BP Pecota projection for Kendrick says that if he was to play in the Majors in 2006 he would be the best 2nd baseman in baseball. In baseball!

"Howie Kendrick, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (36.1)
Now here's something you don't see every day: Kendrick has the highest projection of any second baseman in baseball including Jeff Kent (who won't even be a second baseman anymore), Marcus Giles and Brian Roberts. You just don't get any more ready for the bigs than that."

I had to trade Kendrick as part of a deal to get AROD in scoresheet. I was hoping he'd ask for Wood or Gordon instead.

Patience is for those who die waiting for something to happen.

by Phil Gurnee on Jan 13, 2006 5:46 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Wood over Kendrick

Bobby Crosby is a pretty decent fit for Wood in terms of body structure, but if people thought that Wood was going to end up like Crosby, then he wouldn't be rated so highly . . .no offense to Crosby or Oakland fans.

What makes Wood so special, IMO, is the combination of elite raw power and the plate awareness to find a pitch he can hammer and send it into orbit. I don't have too many doubts that when he gets to the majors, he's going to be a guy who you have to be exceptionally careful when pitching to him, regardless of whether he's a .250 or a .280 hitter.

I think he stands a decent chance of upping that walk total over the next year or two, especially if Anaheim maximizes his development time (as they seem content to do).

by mrkupe on Jan 13, 2006 6:04 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Wood raw power

Where was it before? How did he go from 46 XBH's to 98? He was just one year older, but rose up 1 level higher. The plate discipline was identical in both years ( 04 and 05). I bet a significant amount of his production was a product of the CAL league. It's pretty hard to comprehend such a massive spike in production, therefore i'm still a bit sceptical. I mean, he raised his OPS by 350 frikkin points.

Here's what BA said about him in the 04 scouting report:

"The Future: Because of his athletic ability and aptitude, Wood has a high ceiling. He profiles as a reliable everyday infielder who should hit for average with 15-20 homers annually. The Angels won't rush him and may give him another half-season at low Class A Cedar Rapids."

They did also note he has quick hands, strong wrists, good bat speed, and natural loft in his swing.

by ohad on Jan 13, 2006 6:22 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Wood's power

For what it's worth, Wood did hit for tremendous power as a high school shortstop in Arizona.

by Crows Landing on Jan 14, 2006 8:01 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

HUH?

Elite raw power and plate awareness?

First of all there is the park factor. But there are also many scouts saying his power does not project beyond 25HRs at the pro level.

Plate Awareness - he hacks at anything he can see. When he gets to higher levels his walks will go down as they will start throwing more junk.

Obviously he is a quality hitter regardless of park. But he benefitted hugely from the park. IMO - this is where you have to listen to scouts. Both him and Butler played in hitters parks. But the scouts believe Butler can hit jacks in any park where Wood can not.

ps: if he was so freakin good why didn't Anaheim promote him earlier?

by pedrophile on Jan 15, 2006 1:36 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs