Pedro Alvarez - AA game 1 & 2 posts

by TonyPenaforHOF on Jun 24, 2009 11:11 PM EDT Comment 22 comments

Game 1 Last night:

0-4 with 3 strikeouts. Did make a nice play defensively on a bunt but looked terrible at the plate. In his first at bat he swung at ball three and ball four to strike out. In his last two at bats he looked overmatched. He was confused by curve balls and got a fastball blown by him for strike three in his last at bat. He was chasing pitches out of the zone and showed little patience at the plate. Early on they were not pitching to him and he went after pitches out of the strikezone. Later in the game when Erie was ahead they went after him and got him.

Game 2 Tonight:

He went 1-4 - Two strikeouts, one fielder’s choice and one monster HR. He made an error in the first which gave up two runs, made up for it with the two run homer and some great defensive plays throughout the game. They pitch him with a lot of respect, usually nothing early in the zone. When Alvarez goes fishing outside the zone that is when they start to go after him. If he was patient, working the strike zone and looking for his pitch to hit the kid could do well.

He is wearing # 13, his first name is Pedro and he can’t hit a curve ball…. all he needs is a hat for his bat, some rum and a live chicken and we have Cerrano from Major League!!

In all seriousness he is painfully raw but very talented. I don’t know why he is in AA – looks to me like he could use quite a bit of time in the minors.

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He’s 22 years old and was a big star in a top college program. If he isn’t ready for the majors within the next year or so, he’s not going to be more than a decent player.

by WTM on Jun 24, 2009 11:16 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I couldn’t disagree more.

Some players take longer to develop. It doesn’t make them any less.

by Suffering Buc on Jun 24, 2009 11:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, it does. The really good ones develop quickly. The guys who reach the majors at 25 and 26 rarely turn into much and tend to go downhill much earlier.

by WTM on Jun 25, 2009 12:28 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

His situation is a little different:
He was injured part of last year and lost development time.
He signed late and lost development time.

As a result we are seeing what we should have seen from him last year. But there is a larger question here: most people, but especially 22 year old millionare athletes, are going to be concerend on promotion. If our coaches are telling him he needs to do X, Y and Z well in order to get to “the show” and he is promoted before he excells in these areas, he will begin to lose faith in the coaches, have too much faith in his natural ability and he can become a head case. This is the way to waste talent – just look at the talent the Pirates have wasted, not because of ability but because they handled these young men in a way that does not put them on a path to success. It is an organization first view of the world, not a player development view. The Pirates have professed they are changing this culture. With this promotion I am beginning to wonder. Jose Guillen was the best player I have ever see in 15 years of watching minor league baseball come through Erie. He was dominant in every facet of the game and was very young. Just look at him today.

I agree he is 22 and from a major college program but he should have a year or two for development. 24 is not too old to be an impact player in MLB.

by TonyPenaforHOF on Jun 25, 2009 11:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

WTM isn't saying that he doesn't need and/or won't get more development time.

He’s saying that if Pedro still needs extensive development time, then the odds are good that he won’t end up as an impact player.

Which is generally true.

by Vlad on Jun 25, 2009 3:25 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

24 isn't

but 25, 26 is. Which is what WTM said.

www.sixtyftsixin.com

by Sixty Feet, Six Inches on Jun 27, 2009 1:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

An Idea

Maybe we could trade him for a couple good prospects.

by Androgen Jar Jimmy on Jun 25, 2009 12:25 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Haha…you never know with the Pirates!

by mspirate on Jun 25, 2009 12:37 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

They’ve gotta get this kid to know when to keep the bat on his shoulders. Same with Calvin Anderson, who has a lotta power potential as well.

by Gorkys n' Beans on Jun 25, 2009 1:36 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I’m kinda baffled by the Calvin Anderson adoration. He’s got a 5:1 K:BB ratio. His OPS is .808, which is weak for a firstbaseman. And his monthly OPS, April thru June, has gone like this:

.961
.789
.648

Looks to me like the pitchers have figured out that he can’t hit a breaking ball. He’s basically an inferior version of Walter Young.

by WTM on Jun 25, 2009 7:50 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

808

I’d say, given that you can find a player at just about any position with an OPS of .808 and pretty easily convert him to first base, it’s not just weak for a first baseman. It’s completely pointless. You can replace him with someone better with little effort.

The Kansas City Royals’ second baseman has an OPS of 815 this year.

by Androgen Jar Jimmy on Jun 25, 2009 8:10 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Castillo isn't a bad hitter.

He was a pretty good prospect as of maybe two years ago – he only got shipped out of Arizona because he’s got character problems (drunk driving, wife-beating, etc.).

by Vlad on Jun 25, 2009 9:20 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Er, Callaspo, rather.

Freudian slip.

by Vlad on Jun 25, 2009 9:20 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Walter Young may not have been a great prospect.

But he was awesome, which made up for a lot.

by Vlad on Jun 25, 2009 9:18 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not baffling

It’s proven that people remember the beginnings and endings of things more than things in the middle. So it’s easy to take notice of a .961 beginning, especially followed by a not-horrfic .789. The scales just haven’t tipped the focus to recency (endings) yet, but if things don’t change, they will. So I think the adoration is just a coattail-riding of sorts on his good beginning. And he’s just so damn big.

by azibuck on Jun 25, 2009 1:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

thanks for the report!

as an “elite” prospect, hopefully Alvarez can handle the steep learning curve and make the majors by next year.

and I completely agree with your username, but at this point it looks like Tony will have to make it into the HOF as a manager….

by humbucker on Jun 25, 2009 10:08 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Pedro has another homerun today for the curve

1st inning, 2-run shot

by biglar33 on Jun 25, 2009 12:55 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Stats

So now he’s got 2 HR, 5 SO, 1 FC

by Androgen Jar Jimmy on Jun 25, 2009 1:12 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

And one routine fly out to center field.

by TonyPenaforHOF on Jun 25, 2009 1:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

So no K today? yet?

He’s turned the corner, call him up!

by azibuck on Jun 25, 2009 1:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Pedro hit a double as well. So far 2 for 3 a double, HR and 2 RBI.

by TonyPenaforHOF on Jun 25, 2009 2:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don’t get me wrong – I am rooting for the kid. But I am a Pirate fan, not a particular player fan. I had my WS tickets ripped out of my hand by Cabrea, Belinda and Bream when I was in college and now my kids are old enough to enjoy baseball and they think the Pirates stink. I don’t care if we break the record for under 500 or even add to it for a few years IF IT MEANS WE ARE COMPETATIVE FOR THE NEXT DECADE!!!

So take the time with Pedro, Cutch, Lincoln, Tabata and anyone else who may be a real MLB player and build an organization that is professional and sound. Keep the money issues to a minimum and develop the players the right way. We have lived far to long doing it the wrong way.

by TonyPenaforHOF on Jun 25, 2009 2:19 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs