What you can expect from Aki

Thanks for the post.

Chavez has improved control a bit and pitched solid in relief this season. His strike out rate has evidently dropped a bit since the minors and he had some homerun trouble especially in August. Others will be able to give you a better scouting report than I though.

And I doubt we’ll be talking again in October as much as I’d like to.

My question is not whether we needed Iwamura (we do), but what we paid to get him. Here’s hoping we were not the sole bidder out there for a guy whose option had to be declined by the Rays 1 day after the World Series.

“You will more then certainly fall in love with his child-like smile as he makes remarkable catch in shallow right field.”

I could go on one of my patented diatribes, but then azibuck or cocktails would have to take the time to settle me down.

a Japanese player’s smile as child-like if you’d lived in Japan for 13 years.

It’s a cultural thing and I’ll leave it at that.

Chavez is a decent but unspectacular reliever. He’ll bring the heat, but doesn’t put up the strikeout numbers you might expect from a power pitcher. He’s definitely a hard worker, feels honored to be in the league, and wants to establish himself as a high leverage reliever. Whether he can or not is up for debate, but I think he’s a solid reliever who will at least stick around for a while. The Rays definitely could have done worse in a deal they felt they had to make.

Off the field he’s a fairly quiet but sort of funny guy. Kind of what you expect from a middle reliever personality-wise. One thing you might find interesting is that although his last name is Chavez and clearly he’s of Latin American descent the guy’s lived in the US his whole life and actually doesn’t speak a word of Spanish. Everyone just kind of assumes he does.

Aki, although only 30 , was the oldest guy in a crowded Tampa middle infield. They didn’t want to buy out a guy they didn’t need, and certainly didn’t want to pay a guy 5 million that they didn’t need. This doesn’t mean he’s less valuable. The guy led the AL Champion Rays in several statistics. I thought Aki was a guy the Pirates should have tried pursuing after the 08 season, with all the talent Tampa had up the middle. I think this is a great move by NH and, at the very least, shows the PBC fans he’s willing to spend on a veteran.

I’m a long time Rays fan in St Pete. All I usually read about the Pirates is how their trades are mostly salary dumps and subject to unbelievable second guessing by the fans. Believe me, as a Rays fan since 1998, I know what those trades used to look like.
This is not one of those. Aki is a class act through and through. Hustles at all times, plays hurt and is a good contact hitter with occasional power – surprisingly usually to the opposite field. He is unselfish to a fault and has turned into an above average second baseman. Enjoy watching him in Pittsburgh as much as we did in St Petersburg.

One other thing you should know about Jesse Chavez is that he’s fond of lighting candles. So was Sean Burnett and now they’re both gone.