Gordon / Royals

by sdangler on Apr 22, 2006 9:41 AM EDT

Alex Gordon (AA): .344/.414/.623
Mark Teahen (MLB): .233/.261/.419

Is there anything else that needs to be said?

There's no need to rush him, as the Royals aren't even close to contention, but it seems that Gordon is about as close to ready as one can be. Should they bring him up and put him on this stinker squad? It seems the losing got to Greinke; but are the Royals going to be any better in the near future?

A couple of sad KC Royals facts:

Team OPS: .631
OPS Allowed: .906
Mark Grudzielanek leads the team with a .735 OPS (and a .315 OBP)
Only 1(!) Royals starter has more K's than BB's on the year: Denny Bautista

WOW.

Poll

Should the Royals bring up Gordon?

Yes, ASAP.

37 votes

No, he can't help THAT much.

51 votes

88 votes | Poll has closed

Tweet Comment 15 comments | 0 recs |

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Comments

Huh?

"Alex Gordon (AA): .344/.414/.623
Mark Teahen (MLB): .233/.261/.419

Is there anything else that needs to be said?"

Uh, yeah. You are comparing a AA stat line to a an MLB stat line. If GM's were to make it that simple, they woulnd't be GM's for very long. Maybe they want him to work on some aspects of his game first? Whether it's tweaking his swing, some defensive footwork or whatever, they may have more than one reason to leave him AA for a while. The big league club sucking is definately not a valid reason to bring him up. They will suck regardless if he up or not. If you want him to work on refining his game, AA is probaly the best way to go about it so when he does come up, he can be confident and aggressive when it's time. Being a low-budget team, the arbitration clock is also a factor.

"Second guessers are guys that could have never gotten it right the first time." - Tommy Lasorda (for guys that have no other defense for their actions.)

by slurve on Apr 22, 2006 10:04 AM EDT reply actions

Re: Huh?

It seems to me that Gordon is ready. I'm sure there are things that he could work on, but if you look at scouting reports, spring training stats, and his start at AA, all signs point to him being ready to take hacks. I saw one scout (can't remember the source, sorry) during spring training said that he was already the Royals best hitter.
I'm not sure you read my post correctly. I asked specifically if it was a good idea to bring him up to a crappy team. And as far as comparing AA to MLB stats, of course you can't directly compare them, but the stark difference is pretty striking, regardless of the league differences. Teahen is one of the worst MLB regulars, putting up a -1.7 VORP over 491 PA's last year.
GM's also have to worry about putting butts in seats, and right now there is not many good reasons to go watch a Royals game. Bringing up a highly touted young player would be one way to increase fan interest.
Thanks for your comments and adding to this discussion.

by sdangler on Apr 22, 2006 10:28 AM EDT up reply actions

Yeah, I realize

the differences are striking, but I'm sure Teahen could put up similar numbers in AA with a little less power-wise. Like Dean says below - rushing prospects has burned them in the past. Between that and the low budget team/arbitration clock, I wouldn't bring him up yet.

"Second guessers are guys that could have never gotten it right the first time." - Tommy Lasorda (for guys that have no other defense for their actions.)

by slurve on Apr 22, 2006 10:50 AM EDT up reply actions

sure!

Why not rush him up, since they've rushed up every other prospect they've had for years (besides Huber and Butler) and that strategy has worked brilliantly!

Do you follow this team at all? They're finally learning from their own mistakes, and you want them to revert back to them.

and boom goes the dynamite.

by Mean Dean on Apr 22, 2006 10:28 AM EDT reply actions

Royals

I am a Cardinals fan, but living near KC I talk with many Royals fans and follow the team quite a bit. Personally, I think he should cool his heels at AA/AAA for a while (and if you read my original post, that's pretty much what I intimated).
I also agree with you that the Royals have rushed almost every other prospect they have had, but Gordon seems to be different. He came advertised as nearly ready, played 3 years of college baseball at a high level program, hit well (or at least decent) at both the AFL and in spring ball. He's not a great third basemen, but he's good enough to stay there for quite some time.
KC fans deserve better than they are getting right now. If you want to see fan apathy, head over to the Royals Review, the SB Nation site of the Royals. Could Gordon provide something exciting to watch without hindering his development? That is precisely the question I am trying to answer.
Thanks for your thoughts and adding to the discussion.

by sdangler on Apr 22, 2006 10:49 AM EDT up reply actions

maybe up to AAA

I agree that a call up to the majors wouldn't be the best thing for him, but I also think it would make sense for him to get some exposure to AAA pitching which should have more veterans with a pitch selection more like the majors than he is seeing now. Calling him up from AA to AAA in a few weeks if all goes well seems like the way to go.

by BERSMR on Apr 22, 2006 3:16 PM EDT up reply actions

Injuries

have had a lot to do with the fact that they brought up most of their guys quickly, and none of the guys they have rushed are even close to the prospect status of Gordon.

by SoCalSoxFan on Apr 22, 2006 4:47 PM EDT up reply actions

Huber

I think if they bring up a prospect it should be Huber. He is no longer a young guy and Doug M is quite worse than Teahen. At least Teahen - based on his last couple months of last season - has some upside (even if it is minimal). Doug M is downright awful.

by count sutton on Apr 22, 2006 11:42 AM EDT reply actions

Absolutely.

Huber's hitting .347/.475/.735 in AAA, 6 HR and a 11/10 BB/K ratio in 49 ABs. This is after he put up a .905 OPS in his first run at AAA last year. He deserves to be up, as it's pretty clear that he's not being challenged at the moment.

I think Huber would be a better major league hitter than Gordon at this point--certainly better than Mientkiewicz.

by DrunkIrish on Apr 22, 2006 2:12 PM EDT up reply actions

Yes

I agree with Huber coming up. Let Gordon come up to AAA at some point and then maybe a September callup. They really need to see what Huber can do at this point.....ditto for JP Howell if he keeps pitching well.

by melt12 on Apr 22, 2006 3:20 PM EDT up reply actions

huber

does anyone know exactly what ceiling huber has?

Sabean, stop giving away our 1st round draft picks!!

by z4 landshark on Apr 22, 2006 4:24 PM EDT up reply actions

Ceiling

Yes, I heave measured his ceiling precisely.

In his age-27 season he will give you a typical John Olerud year, without the defense.

OK, I cheated and borrowed from his Pecota projection...

by igreen01 on Apr 22, 2006 4:39 PM EDT up reply actions

Gordon

I can see leaving him in the minors for a couple of months but he should be in KC soon. Then KC would have 3 major league players(DeJesus, Sweeney and Gordon). And Huber should there too and Sweeney should be traded.

by ehteam on Apr 22, 2006 1:39 PM EDT reply actions

re

Huber should be up in the last week of June. Delay his clock to keep him an extra year. Gordon needs to sustain this for a couple months before the Royals even think of promoting him to AAA. He already has a very advanced placement.

No problem waiting to see what they have with Teahen. They fucked him bad by skipping him over AAA. Too early to give up on him. Though maybe he should be the one in AAA.

by bootsy on Apr 22, 2006 8:09 PM EDT reply actions

Teahen

Teahen was only promoted to the majors because of an injury. They had signed Chris Truby to play 3B, but he got hurt in Spring Training so Teahen made the roster.

by count sutton on Apr 22, 2006 11:31 PM EDT up reply actions