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Lucroy or D'Arnaud: Whom do you prefer?

I have Milwaukee catcher Jonathan Lucroy AND Philadelphia catcher Travis D'Arnaud on my fantasy team. I don't have room to keep both. Was wondering if you fine folks in prospectland can help me figure out which one to cut............

(the following is taken from the Phillies' 2008 season review that is currently on minorleaguebaseball.com)

Travis D'Arnaud, C: Another catcher on the rise is the supplemental first-round pick from 2007, who earned New York-Penn League All-Star honors this past summer, hitting a combined .305 between Williamsport and a promotion to Lakewood. He is a good defensive catcher as well.

here are D'Arnaud's stats:

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Travis%20D%27Arnaud&pos=&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=518595

(the following is taken from the Brewers' 2008 season review that is currently on minorleaguebaseball.com)

Jonathan Lucroy, C: Just in case Salome doesn't continue to grow, the Brewers always have Lucroy, the 2007 third-rounder from Louisiana-Lafayette University. Lucroy split this season between the South Atlantic and Florida State Leagues, and combined to hit .301 with 20 homers and 70 RBIs. He even stole nine bases. He threw out a combined 45 percent of runners attempting to steal, and will take the arm and the bat to Double-A next season.

here are Lucroy's stats:

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Jonathan%20Lucroy&pos=C&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=518960

a few observations:

1. D'Arnaud was 19 the entire season while playing in the NYP, then getting bumped up to the SAL. His BA, OBP and defense all appear to be above average. I would guess that he would return to the SAL to start the 2009 season. D'Arnaud is behind Marson, whom the Phillies' brass seem to like.

2. Lucroy was 22 while playing in the SAL and then getting bumped up to the FSL. His BA, OBP and defense all appear to be above average. He even has a tick of speed. The article I mentioned above that is currently on the minorleaguebaseball.com website says that Lucroy will start the 2009 season in Double-A Huntsville. He is, obviously, behind Angel Salome, who does nothing but rake.

3. Lucroy is a tick ahead of D'Arnaud developmentally, though he is also older. Lucroy has much more power right now than D'Arnaud but that could possibly be attributed to him simply being older.

I've read almost every article on the Internet about both of these players and I can't seem to find anything negative about either one. My question to you is this:

Which player would you rather have for a fantasy team?

I'm in a 12-team league that keeps 30 minor leaguers. I currently own a multitude of catchers, including Brian McCann, Kyle Skipworth, Angel Salome, and Tyler Flowers. I would prefer to keep Lucroy or D'Arnaud but not both. Please help me figure out which to cut.

Thanks in advance for your help.

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I'm not good with fantasy, but

I think Lucroy is the better offensive bet. Does D’Arnaud have potentially a bit more upside? Perhaps, but I don’t think it’s by that much, and I think Lucroy is a safer bet with the bat. From what I recall on Milwaukee’s system reports, Lucroy has a decent shot at sticking at catcher.

That said, I can see a viable case the other way, so there, I didn’t really help much.

by toonsterwu on Nov 16, 2008 8:02 PM EST reply reply actions actions   0 recs

Stagnation of catchers...

scares me. For that reason I chose Lucroy over D’Arnaud in my simulation keeper draft this past summer. With Lucroy being closer to the majors, I think there is less chance of him stagnating. I also read an interview he did that was linked on this blog and he seems to know that he is not too great defensively (maybe average?) and that his defense will be what stops him from getting to the majors, so he keeps working on it hard.

In real life baseball, I can understand the desire to get high upside players, but in fantasy or simulation I think it is important to get more sure things since we don’t have 100+ prospects to keep each season. With limited space you have to be more sure of who you are taking up a spot with.

"My mom always taught me it's better to laugh at yourself than to laugh at others. She was so wrong. ;)" -Pedrophile

by Boxkutter on Nov 17, 2008 1:47 AM EST to parent up reply reply actions actions   0 recs

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