Roster Revelry

OK, although it has been fun for me to geek on roster projections since December, the full season rosters are finally official, although some roles remain unclear. There were a number of oddities, exclamations, and elisions on each of the 4 full season rosters, as well as, of course, those assignments that we all expected. What follows is a brief, selective review of the rosters for each full season club, along with some ruminations about future promotions, demotions, and, err, commotions.

A few observations. The A-ball clubs are each carrying an extra pitcher to help manage the depth at these levels. Hickory will manage innings a bit differently this year with as many as 3 starters said to be on a "limited innings" schedule. This likely means that some version of a split-starter system will be used, blurring the distinction somewhat between starters/(long) relievers. A few of the placements at each level are undoubtedly "placeholders" until someone else is ready/healthy, so if a few of the assignments seem a bit incongruent, then you know why. A number of these "placeholders" will likely be released or sent (back) to extended sometime during the first half of the season. Finally, while there were a few notably aggressive assignments for position players, with a couple of head-scratchers thrown in, the assignments for relievers were notably conservative (if not altogether puzzling). Some of the ambiguity stems from the nature of "Extended Spring Training" itself -perhaps the last unregulated roster manipulation stratagem in professional sports - as we don't know why some players have been assigned there: some are injured in some way; some have "issues" mechanical or otherwise; some need more work or more innings; and some, well, we may never know. In fact, sometimes, over the course of the season, players disappear altogether, only to pop up again some months later. OK, on to the clubs.


OKC (AAA)
There was nothing really unexpected for the position players on the roster. I'm surprised that Fox isn't there, given his late spring at bats during ST, but then, I only realized the day the roster came out that the PCL only carry 24-man rosters. Fox could make it onto the club if Metcalf doesn't clears waivers. Frostad likely gets sent to AA when Richardson is activated sometime in June. Gentry, Smurf, and Fox were not promoted because there is simply no room. They have to be disappointed. And in the "not surprising but disappointing" category, slugger Shanksy got claimed by the Brewers, and we were forced to claim Thorman for depth.

Expect Boggs and Ramirez to be the first position players promoted to TX. Duran, Arias, Borbon, Harrison and Golson could all see time as injury replacements. 

As for the pitchers, there were a few surprises. For the starters, Diamond was sent to the pen and surprisingly replaced by "the Lizard" who is really not a prospect as a starter, and probably not as a middle reliever either (despite the last 2 sterling spring training outings he has had with TX). Expect him to be replaced by Hunter when he has built up enough innings in AA. With Gabbard and Ballard also committed to the pen, that left Mathis as the only viable fifth starter on the 
roster. 

To be honest, I would rather see the Rangers roll with Gabbard in the AA rotation. I like him. I think the only way he helps Texas in the next couple of years is as a starter. If not in TX then for someone else. Showcasing him as a (healthy) starter could net a very nice prospect. With all of the the relief arms that will be passing through the upper levels of the system, some all of the way to the majors, I just don't see Gabbard helping in the Rangers' bullpen, ever.

For the relievers, I was surprised that Torres didn't make it over AJ Murray who did not make it over Ballard as the situational lefty. Torres was sent to EXT to rehab his back and will likely appear in AA when ready. Murray was also sent to extended despite a good spring training where he was unscored upon as a specialist in 3 appearances. Not sure why, possibly to build up stamina.

The Rangers went with age when going with Vaughn and Gordon. Both impressed enough in spring training to get the nod over struggling prospects Garr, Kometani, Diaz and Laughter. The lizard could bump one of them off the roster or move to AA or EXT when Hunter moves into the rotation. In addition, AJ Murray could bump someone off as well when he gets activated, though he could start off in the AA pen.

I expect Eyre to be optioned to the AAA pen when he finishes his rehab (most likely in AAA). Also, expect Madrigal to be optioned to AAA when Nippert gets moved to the Rangers' active roster.

Finally, expect Holland, Feliz, Strop and Turnbow to be the first pitchers promoted to the majors from AAA. Turnbow can opt out on 5/1.


EXTENDED/DL 
AJ Murray should be the first in line to be assigned to AAA when there is a vacancy but expect Hunter, Eyre and Madrigal to join the staff by the end of April and send some placeholders packing or to Extended. Richardson will likely be activated from the DL sometime in June. 

Possible Cuts/Demotions by All Star Break?
Fukimori, Corey, Turnbow, Vaughn, Gordon, Lizard, Thorman, Huffman



Frisco Roughriders (AA)

For the position players, only one real surprise here. Sticking Osuna in A+ is a travesty. The kid is ready for AA and merits a starter's PT there by backing up all the infield positions and a little LF. I assume the only reason he is in A+ is that they plan to start him at a position other than 2b (ss or 3b) so that he can get a lot of reps there. However, I really hope that the Rangers don't screw him over like they did Moreland and Smith last year when they let those two rot in Clinton for the whole year. 

Smoak to AA is no surprise. Vallejo to second is a bit surprising. I thought that Vallejo would start at SS, which does not preclude a platoon there. However, in a further revelation, coach Micucci revealed that there will in fact be _no_ 2b/ss platoon at all. Not sure this makes any sense for either player considering that they probably profile best as future utility infielders. Gentry, Smurf and Fox didn't get the call to AAA, as i said, because there was simply no room. Micucci also announced that Tracy would get most of his AB at DH with Majewski as the RF. 

Now forgive me but, there is no need to be coaching AA as if you are in the midst of a world series run. Development is the order of the day, right? Majewski is an org guy. Tracy should be starting in LF and playing some 1b to spell Smoak. Vallejo and Lemon should be platooning at least, and the argument could be made that Vallejo should _start_ at SS to see how he rolls there. Osuna should be there over Fox and/or GRod. Puzzling to say the least.

Expect Smoak, Vallejo, Gentry, Smurf and Tracy to be the first position player promotions to AAA. Smoak could simply remain in AA all year but he will be the the starting 1B next year for the Rangers regardless (and a Sept. call-up for sure).

For the starters, Micucci revealed that Nipples and Moscoso would be split-starters until Nipples is activated from the DL, likely about 3 starts he says. This will also allow Moscoso to slowly get stretched out which is certainly not a bad thing for his shoulder. He went on to add that Hunter would start off in the pen to slowly get stretched out. When he is ready, I hope that he will be reassigned to the AAA rotation as having Lizard there in his stead makes little sense. Why they elected to send Hunter to AA, I have no idea. If the plan is to simply _leave_ Hunter in AA for the first half, well, that does not compute. Well, it only makes sense if Hunter has in fact been demoted for whatever reason(s). It seems more likely that Hunter is merely being stretched out, end of story, but we'll know more in short order.

As for Schlact and Hyatt, neither one has starting in their ML future so, having both of these guys in the rotation should scare no one. What one should keep in mind though is that they are both placeholders for whoever rockets to AA from A+ in the first couple of months. Both will be sent to the AA or AAA pen when that happens. Having "the Lizard", Mathis, Mendoza, Schlact and Hyatt in the AAA and AA rotations should also remind one how superior Oakland's upper level starting rotations are compared to our own. For now. That will reverse itself at mid-season, I'm just sayin'. Don't let all of the #1 system talk go to your head.

Three pitchers who can expect to be sent to extended or released when Lueke, Torres, Murray and/or Swanson get added to the roster from extended: Hamilton, Kometani, and Diaz. Kometani is pitching for his job while the other 2 are roster fillers.

Finally, I think that Poveda and Moscoso will be the first ones promoted to the AAA rotation. Jones, Hyatt, and Schlact could be the first relievers promoted to AAA. I am not a great believer in either Bannister or Laughter (or Lueke).

EXTENDED/DL
Swanson, Torres, Lueke and Berkey should be the first in line to be assigned to AA when there is a vacancy. Slusarz will likely be released when healthy.

Possible Cuts/Demotions by All Star Break?
Komeatani, Jose Diaz, Hamilton, GRody, Majewski, Swanson, Lueke, Fox, Berkey, Torres



Bakersfield Blaze (A+)

The most puzzling roster decisions of all the full season clubs were made here. For the position players, Osuna merits a AA assignment as I detailed above, period. Bianucci was inexplicably assigned to Hickory. Mauro Gomez and Ian Gac made the team as DH/1b while Greene will apparently be a backup DH/RF/3B. In Gac's 118 games at A+ for his career, he had 30 walks and 193 strikeouts. No that is not a misprint. This trio would make up Texas' All Non-Contact Team. I see no reason why Gac and Gomez should still be in the system unless there are injuries and even then probably not. They should be in EXT and or released. And while the butchery at 3B finally ends with Greene's move to the outfield, his OF play will surely scare some folks, and not in a good way. Greene is a DH prospect (as was GAC) no matter where else you try to stick him; Cobb and any number of others merit the 4th OF role over him. To make room for the strikeout trio, a backup MIF was sacrificed but that probably won't last for long. Starting Stoner can only mean that Osuna is playing 3B and/or that Morrison is hurt. Stoner is an org guy. Morrison might start at 3B when he gets assigned but was below average defensively there so unless they see a lot of upside he may come off the bench again or make the permanent move to the OF. 

Promotions. Smith, Moreland, Osuna, and Lawson should be the first to get the call from AA for position players. 

The pitching assignments are also replete with oddities. The starting staff is what most thought it would be. The bullpen is a different story with four quality arms left off the roster: Eppley, Schlect, Tufts and Brader. Demoting Garr to A+ seems a bit odd. If he has been having problems this spring, then why not send him to extended? Reed will go back to his natural setup/closer role that he occupied in college. I am surprised that the "Reed as SP" ended after only his first year. As a reliever, Reed definitely qualifies as a reach as a third rounder. (Hopefully, Hunter won't be the next reach who ends up in the pen.) I though that Falcon, and his junkball assortment, would start of in EXT, possibly being released. I'm a little surprised to see Phillips repeating A+ now that he is going to the bullpen. 

The first starters likely to be promoted to AA are Kirkman, TMurph and/or Gomez to replace Hyatt and Schlact. Main or Beavan could leap that trio but unless they show a Feliz/Hollandesque developmental explosion, there is really no hurry. I would say a post ASB promotion is most likely, say late June, early July. As for the relievers, I think everyone except Flores and Falcon are candidates; whoever is hottest for the longest will be first. Garr is the real mystery here; not sure what is going on with him but he was projected to be ready to contribute to the big league bullpen by mid-season out of AAA. One hopes that he is not having a recurrence of the shoulder problems that sent him to the DL a couple of times. 

EXTENDED/DL 
Morrison, Domingo, Cobb, Eppley, Brader, and Schlect should be the first in line to be assigned to A+ when there is a vacancy. Sattler will likely be released once his comes off the DL.

Possible Cuts/Demotions by All Star Break?
Stoner, Gomez, Gac, Falcon, Sattler



Hickory Crawdads (A)

I really like the aggressive placements at this level. Macumba, CMurph, and Martinez all could have started the season in Spokane but all three must have made a great deal of progress in fall instructs and during spring training to merit these promotions. I am really excited to see them in action. 

As I noted before, placing Bianucci here seems a bit of a waste. I expected Kaase to be in A+ and Tim Rody to be cut. The most surprising absences are Alfonso, Santana, James and Koncel, particularly the first two. The promotion of Macumba seems to all but confirm that Santana has been officially moved off of catcher. Alfonso was slated to repeat and I'm not sure what TRody offers to merit a spot on the roster in lieu of him. I'm not sure if Ogata is starting at 2B or not but look for him to be moved to LF by season's end; he has hands as soft as a boot heel.

Look for Kaase, Bianucci and Bolden to be the first of the position players to be promoted to A+.

As for the rotation - WOW! - what a candy store. The word is that Boscan, Brigham, Perez, and possibly Font as well, will pitch "limited innings", whatever that means. It seems that only Pimentel and Bleier are free from inning limits for the season. In addition, it seems that Wieland and Ramirez will be assigned to Hickory from extended sometime before June. No word on Miggie and Ocampo. Both merit assignments here from extended as well, Miggie to the pen, and Ocampo to the rotation. Starting off Font and Perez in the rotation is a bit of a surprise as it would seem easier to manage their innings by starting them off in extended. Ocampo's exclusion counts as the biggest elision in my estimation. There is also a strange rumor that Hamburger might get a few starts initially to work on his slider. Yeah right, Hamburger opening for Font? Weirdness. I am very surprised to see Bleier in Hickory given his excellent control and good secondary stuff; I thought for sure he's end up in A+.

To help manage everyone's innings - Hickory may come to resemble Spokane/AZL more and more in this regard - you may see a split- or tandem-start system become prevalent. Castillo pitched within that framework last year and likely will again as he is currently listed in the bullpen. I doubt that the decision has been made to permanently move him to the bullpen at this stage as he is still only 20(!) but it could come before the end of the season if he has not made sufficient progress. Nevarez could also get innings in a tandem start arrangement but the bullpen might be his future right now; wherever he ends up, the ball will be out of the zone. Font surely won't pitch more than 65 innings this year while Perez and Brigham surely will not go more than 95 you would think, with Brigham coming off an injury. It will be very interesting to see how the innings are managed this year as the depth at the lower levels will necessitate some changes.

UPDATE: Per coach Micucci (via the Morganton News), Springston(LH) will be the fifth starter, while Brigham and Perez will be split starters with one another and Font will start the season in the pen. Font out of the pen makes sense. He can be brought along slowly, then stretched out, and possible start after the ASB. Springston over Ocampo, Castillo, and Miggie, well, what can one say? As a reliever, Springston put up some very ugly numbers his first 2 years at Baylor and last year in Spokane. However he put up decent #s as a starter after transferring to the Univ. Ark last year. Whatever the case, again, all i can say is, really?

The bullpen has a few surprises. I thought for sure that Nevarez would be cut as he has never regained his control after his surgery (and it wasn't that great before anyways). I figured Tufts for A+ and Nam for extended. While Tufts _might_ merit an assignment to A+, Eppley, Brader, and Schlect surely do. The latter three merit an assignment somewhere in A ball over the likes of Springston, Nam and Nevarez (and Falcon). Not seeing Bermudez is a bit of a surprise; if he doesn't merit an assignment to Hickory at his age, he may not be much of a prospect. 

PROMOTIONS
I would say that Brigham and Bleir will be the first starters promoted with Bleier likely seeing the bullpen. Castillo, Tufts, Nam and Ortiz will probably be the first relievers to see A+.

EXTENDED
Alfonso, Santana, James, Koncel, Hollander, Wieland, Ramirez, Miggie, and Bermudez will be in competition to be the first ones assigned to A+ when there is a vacancy. Gutsie will be assigned here when he comes off the DL. Some are bullish on Gutsie; I am not. He has the dreaded "no feel for pitching" tag. Selen and Ortiz could see Hickory in the second half.

Possible Cuts/Demotions by All Star Break?
Zaneski, Koncel, Hollander, Nevarez, Springston, TRody, King, Miller, Hurley, Ragsdale, Quintero, Nelo, Barto, Dove, Podraza, Valdez, Torres, Puello


Rookie Ball: Spokane and AZL

Currently there are about 14 players who seem destined for Spokane once their season opens in June: 7 positions players and 7 pitchers. There are are least 12 players who seem ticketed for the AZL club at present: 8 position players and 4 pitchers. Both clubs have 30-man rosters, so that leaves about 26 spots open (15 position players, 11 pitchers) between both clubs before the draft when about 35 players will be signed. At the very least, there will be about 10 players cut once these draftees begin to sign 1-2 weeks after he draft.

Spokane - Most notable players: The Grullon brothers, Ross, Ocampo, Miggie, Ortiz, Selen.
AZL - Most notable players: The Garcia brothers, Telis, Pimentel, Polanco, Kyung, AMendoza, Thompson, Zeke, Melo, Alvarez, DPeralta, ERosendo, "Ace" Ventura.


DSL Clubs

It appears that the combined rosters of both DSL clubs have about 55-60 players. Given the 14 Latin American free agents that the Rangers signed during the off-season, expect there to be about 10 players cut before they open their seasons at the end of May/early June.

DSL - Most notable players: Esdras Abreu (of), Oduber Herrera (SS), Escobar (SP), Parra (SP), Hector Martinez (OF), Teo Martinez (CF)


I'll close with a surprising bit of scuttlebutt. Jason Cole (lonestardugout.com) speculates that Henry, Wilkins and Stanford will be sent to the DSL1 squad to get more innings and personal attention in the face of an overcrowded Arizona facility. Not sure how that will work, maybe they go there now, play the first 3 weeks of the DSL season, then come over to spokane when their season begins? Who knows. What _is_ apparent is that there isn't even enough space in the entire continental US of A to contain our frackin' system. Word. (first posted at minormoosings.blogspot.com)