Blue Jays Discussion: free agency #2: Jays sign Cuban Gurriel Jr 7yr\22 mill, & Kendry Morales 3yr\33 mill)

[hockeywiz542]

 

[Garlando]

What's the Reddick appeal? 10 homers from a corner outfielder? That sucks.

Reddick is a solid player coming off a down year while fighting injuries that limited him to 115 games. He still looks like an average-ish hitter and fielder and compared to the rest of this free-agent class, he’s still kinda young, since he’ll only be 30 next year. There’s no superstar upside here or anything, but for someone wanting a solid everyday player at a reasonable price, and without draft-pick compensation, Reddick could be a nice addition. What worries me a bit about Reddick is his Flyball % dropped significantly last year, in turn, he pulled the ball on the ground more. Also for a guy that is known as a strong fielder with a big arm, his defensive metrics have REALLY dropped the last 2 years as he's been worth a combined -14.3 def WAR. On the good side, he's athletic and does a lot of things well. He's 2 years removed from a 20 HR and 10 SB season while hitting .272 and striking out in just 11.2% of his at bats (pretty elite). He has hit 30+ HRs in the past for those fixated on his HR output, and he has generally shown really well while playing at the Rogers Center so he might be able to tap into that power more if he played here full time and away from the cavernous confines of Oakland Colisseum.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Not a bad way to spend their first dollars of FA. Jays needed quality in the system; they didn't have too many guys with potential up in the AAA and AA ranks, rather filling up on a lot of older players who are career minor leaguers, or are maybe average depth players. Now they have him, Urena, Tellez, Smith Jr., Ramirez, McGuire, Greene, etc. among those with some good MLB potential in the AAA and AA ranks.

 

[Amadeus]

Reddick is a solid player coming off a down year while fighting injuries that limited him to 115 games. He still looks like an average-ish hitter and fielder and compared to the rest of this free-agent class, he’s still kinda young, since he’ll only be 30 next year. There’s no superstar upside here or anything, but for someone wanting a solid everyday player at a reasonable price, and without draft-pick compensation, Reddick could be a nice addition. What worries me a bit about Reddick is his Flyball % dropped significantly last year, in turn, he pulled the ball on the ground more. Also for a guy that is known as a strong fielder with a big arm, his defensive metrics have REALLY dropped the last 2 years as he's been worth a combined -14.3 def WAR. On the good side, he's athletic and does a lot of things well. He's 2 years removed from a 20 HR and 10 SB season while hitting .272 and striking out in just 11.2% of his at bats (pretty elite). He has hit 30+ HRs in the past for those fixated on his HR output, and he has generally shown really well while playing at the Rogers Center so he might be able to tap into that power more if he played here full time and away from the cavernous confines of Oakland Colisseum.

He rakes at the dome so he should be a solid fit.

 

[Kurtz]

Reddick is a solid player coming off a down year while fighting injuries that limited him to 115 games. He still looks like an average-ish hitter and fielder and compared to the rest of this free-agent class, he’s still kinda young, since he’ll only be 30 next year. There’s no superstar upside here or anything, but for someone wanting a solid everyday player at a reasonable price, and without draft-pick compensation, Reddick could be a nice addition. What worries me a bit about Reddick is his Flyball % dropped significantly last year, in turn, he pulled the ball on the ground more. Also for a guy that is known as a strong fielder with a big arm, his defensive metrics have REALLY dropped the last 2 years as he's been worth a combined -14.3 def WAR. On the good side, he's athletic and does a lot of things well. He's 2 years removed from a 20 HR and 10 SB season while hitting .272 and striking out in just 11.2% of his at bats (pretty elite). He has hit 30+ HRs in the past for those fixated on his HR output, and he has generally shown really well while playing at the Rogers Center so he might be able to tap into that power more if he played here full time and away from the cavernous confines of Oakland Colisseum.

Please post more.

 

[BlueForever]

Very good sign from the Jays. This move if he pans out will give us cover at 2B in the future that gives us some flexibility in moving some assets around. If Travis can prove to be an above average second baseman and Gurriel can turn into a player. We can plug some more holes around the diamond.

Good move by Atkins and Shapiro I like their thinking.

 

[Woodman19]

I believe he profiles more as a SS/3B/LF type.

 

[Nasty Nazem]

Considering the lack of infield depth Jays have in the upper minors, this is a worthwhile gamble to take. Would be huge if he turns into an everyday player, it would give the Jays an extremely cheap player for a long period of time.

 

[Eyedea]

I said how big a Jose Ramirez type player is. Urena/Gurriel could potentially give that.

If anything this is intriguing because the Jays actually targeted a pretty well known IFA (even if he was not imposed by the international spending pool).

 

[Suntouchable13]

I was surprised when I saw that he is already 23. I thought he would be like 17 or 18 or something. That means that he could be competing for an opening day roster spot.

 

[Eyedea]

I was surprised when I saw that he is already 23. I thought he would be like 17 or 18 or something. That means that he could be competing for an opening day roster spot.

I'm assuming he'll need work in the minors (all reports suggest he's still relatively raw), but if he goes gangbusters at the start we could see him midseason. That would be pretty enormous for the Jays.

 

[Diamond Joe Quimby]

I said how big a Jose Ramirez type player is. Urena/Gurriel could potentially give that.

If anything this is intriguing because the Jays actually targeted a pretty well known IFA (even if he was not imposed by the international spending pool).

I assumed he'd end up in the Houston org with his brother as a package deal after Oct 19th. This is pleasant surprise.

Still a project, but Gurriel projects for a little more power than a Ramirez type. I actually think Harold Ramirez has a chance to be a Jose Ramirez type hitter.

 

[Shimso]

Bartolo colon signs with the Braves. The steel wheelchair tour starts in Atlanta. Can't wait to see whose next.

Buehrle might want to check his phone to see if he has any missed calls from Georgia...

 

[Walshy7]

Very good sign from the Jays. This move if he pans out will give us cover at 2B in the future that gives us some flexibility in moving some assets around. If Travis can prove to be an above average second baseman and Gurriel can turn into a player. We can plug some more holes around the diamond.

Good move by Atkins and Shapiro I like their thinking.

do you have any idea where he would slot in on our prospect list? too early to know? and what level they will start him at? A,AA,AAA? im guessing at 23 he wont start in low minors right?

 

[TheBeastCoast]

do you have any idea where he would slot in on our prospect list? too early to know? and what level they will start him at? A,AA,AAA? im guessing at 23 he wont start in low minors right?

Most likely AAA and no lower then AA I would say. As for the prospect list I don't know a ton about him compared to what we already have but top 5 seems to be a safe spot.

 

[Walshy7]

Most likely AAA and no lower then AA I would say. As for the prospect list I don't know a ton about him compared to what we already have but top 5 seems to be a safe spot.

thank you

 

[Canada4Gold]

why does the title say 4 years?

 

[Eyedea]

I assumed he'd end up in the Houston org with his brother as a package deal after Oct 19th. This is pleasant surprise.

Still a project, but Gurriel projects for a little more power than a Ramirez type. I actually think Harold Ramirez has a chance to be a Jose Ramirez type hitter.

Harold Ramirez might be more similar in terms of batted ball profile and just the wildness of the swing (still somehow making contact), but I was moreso talking about the versatility of Gurriel and the ability to play the infield and outfield. With benches becoming so short nowadays you need one or two super-utility guys like this, and him and Urena have that type of solid potential.

 

[The Nemesis]

why does the title say 4 years?

It doesn't.


and it never did.

 

[Nasty Nazem]

Jeff Passan ‏@JeffPassan 7m7 minutes ago
Toronto's plan is to start Lourdes Gurriel Jr. at shortstop, probably at Double-A. Ultimately, thought is he may end up a corner outfielder.

Urena starts in Buffalo then?

 

[Eyedea]

do you have any idea where he would slot in on our prospect list? too early to know? and what level they will start him at? A,AA,AAA? im guessing at 23 he wont start in low minors right?

MLB.com is pretty damn high on him so I'd expect Callis/Mayo to slot him in the top two or three of the Jays 2017 prospect rankings (depending on how they currently view Vlad Jr). Here's their report on him:

Scouting grades: Hit: 55 | Power: 50 | Run: 50 | Arm: 55 | Field: 60

Gurriel was once considered the top prospect in Cuba, and now he's making his way toward fulfilling his big league dream.

Gurriel was hitting .321 with eight home runs, 32 RBIs and a .924 OPS in 43 games for the Havana Industriales this season before defecting with his brother in February after the Caribbean Series in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. A good runner with a good glove, Lourdes is athletic enough play infield and outfield, which is part of his appeal to scouts. He's shown some power potential at the plate and is still honing his overall approach.

Some evaluators believe Lourdes could be considered the top overall player in this year's class, because he has a shorter path to the Major Leagues due to his age and experience. But others give the nod to shortstop Kevin Maitan (Braves) or left-handed pitcher Adrian Morejon (Padres) due to their upside. Also working in Maitan's favor is his defensive position in the middle of the diamond and his complete package at the plate.

Gurriel, who played six seasons in Cuba, will not be subject to the international signing guidelines if he signs after he turns 23, and therefore stands to have more leverage if he signs after his birthday, because teams would not have to use money from their international bonus pool to sign him.

Gurriel trained briefly in Florida with his older brother and is now working out in Panama.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Edit: Double post.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Jeff Passan ‏@JeffPassan 7m7 minutes ago
Toronto's plan is to start Lourdes Gurriel Jr. at shortstop, probably at Double-A. Ultimately, thought is he may end up a corner outfielder.

Urena starts in Buffalo then?

Move to second is more likely.

 

[Canada4Gold]

Jeff Passan ‏@JeffPassan 7m7 minutes ago
Toronto's plan is to start Lourdes Gurriel Jr. at shortstop, probably at Double-A. Ultimately, thought is he may end up a corner outfielder.

Urena starts in Buffalo then?

the AA thing sounds like conjecture from Passan, just a guess. Urena wasn't in AA long this past year, I doubt they jump him up to AAA already. I'd say Gurriel will be more likely for Buffalo if he's playing short.

 

[trellaine201]

I read he was the 6th of the international players currently.

Good signing. Cost us nothing.