The other day regular reader Chris D put up a possible opening day lineup. I thought it might be fun for other readers to put in their thoughts. So jump in. Just put in a lineup in the comments and I'll update this post. Note that I'm leaving out the pitchers. If you change your mind, just leave it in the update.
Chris D:
C - Robinson Chirinos
1B - Juan Miranda?
2B - Tim Beckham
SS - Hak-Ju Lee
3B - Will Rhymes
OF - Brandon Guyer, Stephen Vogt, Jeff Salazar
DH - Matt Mangini
Chris W:
C - Robinson Chirinos
1B - Leslie Anderson
2B- Will Rymes
SS - Tim Beckham
3B -Matt Mangini
OF - Brandon Guyer, Stephen Vogt, Jeff Salazar
DH - Juan Miranda
Doug Milhoan (of Rays Prospects):
This is harder than I thought, lots of catchers and CFs, no DHs.
C - Robinson Chirinos (because Lobaton is out of options)
1B - Juan Miranda
2B - Will Rhymes
SS - Tim Beckham
3B - Matt Mangini
OF - Stephen Vogt, Brandon Guyer, Brad Coon
DH - Nevin Ahsley (I don't know)
DRR:
C - Robinson Chirinos
1B - Stephen Vogt
2B - Will Rhymes
SS - Tim Beckham
3B - Matt Mangini
OF - Brandon Guyer, Brad Coon, Jeff Salazar
DH - Juan Miranda
General thoughts:
- I have seen a few comments on Rays blogs about Stephen Vogt being a "jack of all trades" who would be valuable off their bench as someone who could play a lot of different spots. Therefore, I would expect to see him getting starts all over the place.
- I hope that we can settle into a pretty standard duo of Lee and Beckham in the middle of the infield, but I don't quite see Lee in the mix right at the start of the season.
- I see this team as one with a lot of potential, but I worry about the lack of Bulls veterans in the clubhouse. The way the Rays treat the minors, there is almost always a few vet holdovers from the previous season or two. I think that this team may be lacking that.
Anyone else? Jim? Sue? Fritz?
Posts
This is harder than I thought, lots of catchers and CFs, no DHs.
ReplyDeleteC - Robinson Chirinos (because Lobaton is out of options)
1B - Juan Miranda
2B - Will Rhymes
SS - Tim Beckham
3B - Matt Mangini
OF - Stephen Vogt, Brandon Guyer, Brad Coon
DH - Nevin Ashley (I don't know)
What is the status of Leslie Anderson anyway? I thought he wasn't in any camp?
ReplyDeleteC - Robinson Chirinos
ReplyDelete1B - Stephen Vogt
2B - Will Rhymes
SS - Tim Beckham
3B - Matt Mangini
OF - Brandon Guyer, Brad Coon, Jeff Salazar
DH - Juan Miranda
General thoughts:
- I have seen a few comments on Rays blogs about Stephen Vogt being a "jack of all trades" who would be valuable off their bench as someone who could play a lot of different spots. Therefore, I would expect to see him getting starts all over the place.
- I hope that we can settle into a pretty standard duo of Lee and Beckham in the middle of the infield, but I don't quite see Lee in the mix right at the start of the season.
- I see this team as one with a lot of potential, but I worry about the lack of Bulls veterans in the clubhouse. The way the Rays treat the minors, there is almost always a few vet holdovers from the previous season or two. I think that this team may be lacking that.
I had wondered the same thing about Anderson, Chris. Seems to be MIA.
ReplyDeleteGood list DRR, I thought about Vogt at 1B too.
ReplyDeleteLeslie was not included in the the Rays Media Guide when it came out a couple of weeks ago. (RDLS also wasn't included.) That's about all of the substance behind the rumors.
On one hand I really doubt he was released without anyone knowing. With all of the attention his signing received, no way someone didn't find out, especially Matt Eddy at BA.
On the other hand, Leslie and RDLS were the only players who were omitted if it was just a typo. I track every player in the org and they were the only 2 who were missing. And I think the RDLS thing might have been timing, he was re-signed January 10th, so figuring the amount of time it takes to write the media guide, his signing might have been in the middle of the process and they just forgot to add him back in.
I'll go with the typo theory, can't believe his release would go unnoticed. I still have him on our depth chart at RP for that reason. But even assuming he's back, I think the Rays have lost interest in him as far as ever contributing to the big league team. He turns 30 this month and doesn't hit nearly enough for a guy who mostly plays 1B/LF/DH. They have better options. I also think his playing time at Durham will be less going forward, no use letting him take ABs away from other players that the Rays still think might help in St. Pete some day.
I actually put Anderson in there just to remind myself that he wasn't around. I didn't know that he was completely MIA this spring. If it were anyone else we could guess that there's a visa issue, but unlikely that he went back to Cuba for the winter. When the Rays optioned him last year, it was clear that they didn't see much of a future for him. In Durham he does OK in the short left field and he plays a passable 1B. But surely the Rays will want to be keeping folks in shape to bring up.
ReplyDeleteHave to keep reminding myself that this is speculation about opening day. A few of these guys surely have opt-out contracts so we won't see them all year in any circumstance.
To fill out the opening day (probably only 11 position player slots) we need another catcher (Ashley?) and Feliciano? Coon?
I assume Giminez will be our #2 catcher, but Ashley does have to end up somewhere.
ReplyDeleteSaw this on twitter:
ReplyDeleteBREAKING NEWS: #Athletics OF Jason Pridie suspended 50 games, violating minor-league drug program. Agent Matt Sosnick not returning calls.
He didn't spend a lot of time with the Bulls, but I enjoyed watching him. I had lost track of what happened to him after the Rays traded him. Apparently he ended up in Oakland. Doing steroids.
Not roids, a "drug of abuse." So probably pot. And 50 games means it's his 2nd time being caught.
DeletePridie, who I also really liked watching, was part of the Delmon Young trade to the Twins. Came up through the "Devil Rays" system. Time with Twins and Mets, mostly AAA. I didn't keep a close eye on him, but it seemed to me that he was having the kind of career path that Justin Ruggiano's having. Really sorry to hear this. Brings back memories of Jon Weber, although Jason was certainly not as colorful a player during his Bulls days.
DeleteStacy Long is reporting Leslie Anderson in minor league camp.
ReplyDeletehttp://stacylong.blogspot.com/2012/03/137-in-tampa-bays-minor-league-camp.html
Now that Neil Solondz is in Tampa who is the new announcer?
ReplyDeleteThat would be Patrick Kinas. Long time Mudcats and basketball announcer. And other places. But he's not showing up on the website yet. Brief discussion about him buried in the comments at this posting:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.watchingdurhambullsbaseball.com/2012/01/april-fools-day-comes-early.html
For those of you who care about such things, Kinas can be found on twitter at @kinasonair.
ReplyDeleteThanks, DRR.
ReplyDeleteGot an opening day lineup for us Fritz?
I come here for the answers I am clueless about the lineup..LOL
ReplyDeleteI am glad it is Kinas and not that guy they had as a substitute from Tampa last year whose name escapes me
Hopefully Kinas will have some kind of chemistry with the other people he shares the booth with this season
Solondz set the bar high .... a hard act to follow
Just FYI, Paul Phillips signed with an indy ball team, the Somerset Patriots of the Atlantic League. His three-year Bulls streak might be over.
ReplyDeleteHe struggled in his few innings with the Bulls last year and he's aging out. But sure wish him well. He really helped out a lot in 2010 and he picked up some slack last year too as the Bulls really never did figure out the starting pitcher puzzle.
ReplyDelete