Does Landon Powell deserve more AB's?
by PL78 on Sep 3, 2009 10:26 AM PDT
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PrintSSS or no, his bat appears to be "the truth" as kids say on the streets these days, and one cannot help but wonder how much better or worse it would be if he played every day instead of his current slipshod starts. He does have 3 HR in his last 6 starts, but those were over 3 weeks. His power ceiling is higher than Kurts right now but we dont have a spot for him at C or DH. This post here to ask you: what do we do with Landon?
Kurt Suzuki is a young catcher with a GG glove and average bat that will improve with time, only problem is, Powell's 20+ HR power appears to Be Here Now (Oasis RIP) and Suzuki still seems very fond of GIDPs and not taking a walk to save his life, which is hurting his OPS which is nearly in the 600s which even though we have put up with it, is just an unacceptable bat to have in the lineup. Sorry, its true. We cannot afford to have more than 1 sub-700 OPSing hitter in the lineup everyday. Thats the truth and it seems like more people seem to not care about this. This needs to stop. We cant accept this mediocrity in 2010.
Powell is the backup catcher, but he's a rookie and hasnt ever been given a chance to play everyday at the big league level before. He's also had an injury plagued minor league career that started late and kind of derailed him which is why he's getting his first taste at 27. The question is, if he keeps delivering with the bat and to a lesser extent his glove (which will never be at Zuki's level but appears to be decent), what do we do with him?
We can keep him as a great hitting backup who can sub exceedingly if Kurt gets hurt, move him to DH or 1B, play him everyday in September because the seasons over and Kurt is slumping, to get his value up or maybe one of the other options listed. Feel free to add possible scenarios I missed.
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Teams are too afraid of the emergency catcher coming into play...
and I’m all like… boo hoo.. so you have a shitty catcher for a couple of innings… boo frickin’ hoo…
I’d DH Powell 4 days a week and catch him once.
If that cuts into Cust or Sweeney ABs then so be it.
"Flea Markets aren't just for blind dates anymore!"- The Reverend Billy Lard
Totally agree....
Use his bat 3 days a week at DH / C. If he turns out to be a good hitter consistently its great flexibility…..
by Colorado Booze Hounds on Sep 3, 2009 10:40 AM PDT up reply actions
Barton is the EC and from what I remember he's not bad
as a EC. I say both should see more time at DH. I would have a 60/40 Kurt split for the rest of the season with both seeing major time at DH, (I think the big reason Kurt’s OPS is down is he’s worn out). We need to get Powell’s bat in the line up as much as possible.
PREPAREDNESS_Because those goddamn zombies aren’t going to kill themselves
Yes.
next thread?
"I’m Joey Devine, I’m what Joba Chamberlain would be if he was good and nobody had ever heard of him."
With call-ups upon us...
…the A’s could probably afford to bring up Munson and add him to the 40-man roster unless they’re saving it for someone else. That’d let them use Powell more as a DH and not have to worry about any problems if Suzuki has to leave a game.
On the other hand, if they did have Powell DHing and he did have to move to C and open the DH spot up to a pitcher, they could just pinch-hit in that spot – but they haven’t brought up any position players yet, just pitchers.
The problem with Munson and a 40-man spot is he’s really just organizational filler at this point and getting Powell a few extra ABs with a third catcher in uniform isn’t really enough of a reason to make a move like that. Besides, Munson’s had a good year in Sacramento and they’re about to go to the playoffs.
The solution: season’s over. Rest Suzuki two or three times a week and give Powell some more playing time, or let Powell DH more and deal with it if the unlikely happens and Suzuki gets hurt. Moving Powell out of the DH spot would only have to happen once.
The Oakland A's: Pissing off fathers of disappointing baseball players who still managed to be better than their dads (charter club members: Tom Grieve & Ed Crosby)
Last of the Ninth - Photography
Sadly for Powell, there are now plenty of guys who the A’s should give lots of ABs to in September, for the sake of seeing what they’ve got for the future. I’m thinking Buck, Barton, Cunningham, Patterson to name a few. Powell is already part of the future, as the backup catcher, so he’s actually less likely to get DH at-bats this month, I would think.
I do agree with resting Zukes more during the season, however. 1-2 days a week would be more than he’s been getting the last few years, and might keep his numbers above the .700 or so OPS he’s got now.
"To tell the truth, I'm not excited to go to Cleveland, but we have to. If I ever saw myself saying I'm excited going to Cleveland, I'd punch myself in the face, because I'm lying" - Ichiro
by Philip Christy on Sep 3, 2009 11:27 AM PDT up reply actions
It's all health related.
Founding member of the Eric Patterson fan club.
Yeah, I don't think Powell
can last at catcher. But if the a’s give him at bats at the expense of sweeney that’s fine with me. But that puts cust in the outfield.
You do realize the average catcher's OPS is like .715, right?
And that’s in neutral parks, not offensive hellholes like Oakland.
I’d like to see Suzuki start taking some more pitches too, and honestly I’m not sure why his walk rate has dropped off so much this season (although I suspect it’s derived from the same general-purpose stupidity that led to Jack Cust’s change of approach, since any number of A’s players have suffered unexplainable declines in their walk rates this season). But if nothing else, it at least suggests that he’s capable of getting back to that approach at some point.
I don’t see the problem with Powell in his current role. He’s likely to break down if he’s used too often. Having two catchers who are more or less equally good and can cover a full week’s worth of games is a good thing.
Also, I should just mention that I want to go jump off a cliff every time someone refers to “riding someone’s hot bat.” Not only is it weirdly freudian, it’s totally unsupportable by any kind of rational argumentation.
Linda's in the cold ground, won't see her anymore
Somewhere out on the highway tonight, the drunken engines roar
It's just one of those things, one of those things
-- Al Stewart, "Accident on 3rd St."
In memory of Nick Adenhart and all victims of drunk driving
"Riding a hot bat"
Whats so unsupportable about it?
If a player averages a 750 OPS suddenly starts OPsing 1500 over the course of 2 weeks, then a good manager should try to get them as many PA’s as possible while they are streaking, then send him down the oder or to the bench when the inevitable slump happens.
Baseball is full of streaky guys, and in the case of a new player, such as Powell, the streak might be permanent but we need to find out what happens when we play him everyday to see.
Sabermetricians have done like 50 gazillion studies (number slightly exaggerated) on hot streaks
I’m not aware of anyone who has ever concluded that they have any meaning whatsoever.
I mean, you’ll get plenty of streaks from tossing a coin, too. That doesn’t mean you should “ride the hot coin” when it’s flipped heads five times in a row.
Linda's in the cold ground, won't see her anymore
Somewhere out on the highway tonight, the drunken engines roar
It's just one of those things, one of those things
-- Al Stewart, "Accident on 3rd St."
In memory of Nick Adenhart and all victims of drunk driving
it doesn't make sense rationally,
but it makes complete sense irrationally.
"Flea Markets aren't just for blind dates anymore!"- The Reverend Billy Lard
by Gaijin_Suketto on Sep 3, 2009 3:27 PM PDT up reply actions
the "avg C" isnt what im talking about
There’s only 9 catchers in mlb who are qualified, meaning they are everyday guys. Suzuki is one of them, meaning it has been determined that he is worthy of such a rare spot meaning he is great with both glove and bat.
However he is 6th in BA, 8th in OBP, 6th in SLG and 7th in OPS out of the 9. We have decided that he’s good enough to play everyday, but he isnt rewarding us with the bat as well as promised. If we have another guy whos mashing, why would we keep an offensive liability playing everyday? If Kurt wasnt the big man on campus that everyone loved, his batting numbers are just about platoon-worthy.. We arent the Giants and supposedly have a clue, this is kind of flying in the face of that.
That said, I agree that the anti-walk memo that went around the team might have played a big part in this, and he is young and deserves a year or two to get close to his offensive ceiling. But if Powell keeps on mashing and Zuki keeps on failing at the plate, Powell’s going to force this issue to erupt.
THe reason only 9 qualify
is mostly because there are only a handful of catchers that are good enough to play everyday. Those positions, without anything more suggest to me that he is about the 7th best offensive catcher in mlb. Which is good.
He's 12th out of 30 for catchers who have the most pas on each team
He is a better hitter and fielder than Powell and is not permanently injured….
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
He's not a better hitter than Powell
Powell is better. Kurt is a better defender than Powell, although even there Powell is and always has been better at the one area where catcher’s defense is most frequently highlighted: throwing out base stealers. There’s a reason why Powell was drafted 24th overall and Suzuki was drafted 67th overall in the same draft. Dude’s got skills.
There’s also a reason Kurt started out a level behind Powell but reached the big leagues much earlier and ranks ahead of him now: durability. Durability is a hugely important skill and Suzuki has it in spades; Powell does not. Durability may be all that is keeping Powell from fulfilling those draft-day comparisons of him to a young Jason Varitek.
Still, if he really could be a young Jason Varitek for 100 games a year, it might be a good idea to find a way to play him 100 games a year instead of 40. The A’s do have a consistent pattern of falling in love with their #1 catcher and riding him into the ground, partly because they can’t seem to imagine leaving his “leadership” on the bench and partly (it seems) because it would hurt his feelings not to play nearly every damn day. The first of those reasons is a failure of the imagination; the second is even more lame. I like Kurt Suzuki a great deal, but I’d like him even better if about 20 more of his starts went to Powell.
by Faust on Sep 3, 2009 6:30 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
With his inability to stay healthy,
there’s almost 0 chance he gets close to that sealing.
Founding member of the Eric Patterson fan club.
He's been up for basically the whole season
and has only appeared in 36 games.
You don’t see a problem with that? Really?
"I’m Joey Devine, I’m what Joba Chamberlain would be if he was good and nobody had ever heard of him."
I don't; what is the problem?
I find it difficult to believe that resting Suzuki 5-10 more times scattered through the season is going to make any kind of difference. And the fact that people think Powell is some kind of really good hitter based on this year is absurd. Even if it’s true that it would be better to play Powell twice a week instead of once, it’s hard to see how it would make anything more than a very very very minor difference.
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
Yeah, maybe Suzuki should just play every game. You're right.
It’s a complete waste to have a position player on the roster if he is only going to get into 40 games in a a season, especially a guy like Powell who’s got a solid minor league record, has hit reasonably well in what limited time he’s been given so far,
I mean, yeah I guess I could see why you’d rather have Nomar or Crosby getting time at first base or pinch hitting. Wait, no I couldn’t.
"I’m Joey Devine, I’m what Joba Chamberlain would be if he was good and nobody had ever heard of him."
Whoa
It’s a waste to have a backup catcher on the roster?
“I find it difficult to believe that resting Suzuki 5-10 more times scattered through the season is going to make any kind of difference.” =/= “Start Suzuki every night.”
I think Powell’s usage is about right, though I’d rather see him pinch hit than Nomar.
m*****f***ing c***s***ing peanut butter and jelly!! f*** f*** f***!!!
Linda's in the cold ground, won't see her anymore
Somewhere out on the highway tonight, the drunken engines roar
It's just one of those things, one of those things
-- Al Stewart, "Accident on 3rd St."
In memory of Nick Adenhart and all victims of drunk driving
I got the opening and closing sarcasm.
I’m just having trouble understanding what the hell he’s talking about
m*****f***ing c***s***ing peanut butter and jelly!! f*** f*** f***!!!
They should invent a sarcasm font.
Founding member of the Eric Patterson fan club.
+1
It’s astounding to see someone bashing Suzuki as a lousy hitter than needs to get out of the lineup. Suzuki is one of the best things about our team.
I think Powell in his current role is fantastic. You have to have backup catcher anyway. How great is it to have one who can actually come off the bench and hit well.
If someone’s proposing giving Suzuki a couple more days off, or using Powell a little more often as a PH, I’m fine with that. But the basic roles are good as they are.
"Go ahead and overachieve, you scrappy Brett-Favre-colored walk-takers." —Rev Halofan
Suzuki IS a lousy hitter in 2009 though. If he’s one of the best things about the offense, then we are in ginormous trouble.
He's not lousy for a catcher who plays almost every day.
That’s the point.
"Go ahead and overachieve, you scrappy Brett-Favre-colored walk-takers." —Rev Halofan
If he OPSd 800 Id have no argument. Until then, I say his bat isnt deserving of an everyday player spot. Im not saying it never will get there, in fact im sure he will be around 800-850 when hes 28-33. But Powell is working with less time and its important we see what he’s got, because its looking like its going to more than a backup C.
It's difficult to find catchers who can play nearly everday,
harder to find catchers who can play good defense, even harder to find catchers who can hit. It’s rare to find a combination of the three. Kurt is right about league average offensively, but he’s playing in the Coli. There are a lot of holes on the current team, but Kurt ain’t one of them.
Founding member of the Eric Patterson fan club.
I would like to see him DH a couple of times a week to go along
with the one start he gets as a catcher but only when there are right handed pitchers. He obviously is way better from that side of the plate from the small sampling anyway.
I don’t see his knees holding up if he gets much more time behind the plate and you cannot take time away from Kurt unless he DH’s.
I love the way Powell guns down runners as well.
There's no reason to thinkthat Powell couldn't keep this up if used well
I mean, he’s got a solid, level power stroke and has consistently hit better the more big league pitching he sees.
The obvious and really only question should be regarding his health. There’s really no possible way he will ever be a starting catcher on a big league club, so if he is to be an everyday player it will be some combo of backup/emergency catcher, 1B, and DH…
"Did you know you can comment on Athletics Nation from your phone or PDA? SB Nation has launched mobile commenting. Check it out next time you’re at the game or bar and have something to say."
Powell is not even remotely close to being good enough to DH...
That is just an absurd idea.
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
could be...
that the A’s back-up catchers have been so bad over the years, everyone sees Powell hit and is amazed……..
by Colorado Booze Hounds on Sep 3, 2009 12:56 PM PDT up reply actions
nah
people were amazed when Melhuse would hit a HR.
Powell has no track record, he just came up and has nearly an 800 OPS when he is called on to play. The whole point of this thread is to figure out if he should be stretched out to see if he can keep up on a daily basis.
Yep
And if not on a daily basis, at least more than a once-a-week basis.
There’s only one way to find out.
The Oakland A's: Pissing off fathers of disappointing baseball players who still managed to be better than their dads (charter club members: Tom Grieve & Ed Crosby)
Last of the Ninth - Photography
andi I said earlier
play him more…
by Colorado Booze Hounds on Sep 3, 2009 9:21 PM PDT up reply actions
I said for a couple of games a week
Not a full time DH.
Or let Kurt DH and Powell catch like 2 days a week. Whatever.
I am not saying play him that often. It certainly would not hurt to give him an extra game at DH to go along with the one game a week he seems to catch when they rest Kurt.
yeah, that, or they could not use one of their catchers at DH since there's no reason to...
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
I'd say we let Nomar and Crosby split DH.
"I’m Joey Devine, I’m what Joba Chamberlain would be if he was good and nobody had ever heard of him."
you are a funny man
but seeing that, (even in jest) almost stopped my heart
PREPAREDNESS_Because those goddamn zombies aren’t going to kill themselves
Huh?
His OPS is .774 in limited playing time.
Founding member of the Eric Patterson fan club.
Not bad for a once-a-weeker
The Oakland A's: Pissing off fathers of disappointing baseball players who still managed to be better than their dads (charter club members: Tom Grieve & Ed Crosby)
Last of the Ninth - Photography
Ya, but not DH worthy.
And I doubt he will ever have the bat to be DH worthy. Or more importantly, the health.
Founding member of the Eric Patterson fan club.
Back it up, MikeA
"Chicks dig the long ball, although fat chicks will settle for warning track power" - Nick Diamond
okay....
1. 121 PAs… that is not a lot… His full season pace is ~~30 HRs and 42 2Bs. He will not keep that up. Even if he did, this year’s numbers are kinda bad for even a part time DH. He’s hit about as well as Cust this year, and “09 Cust” is not a good player. On top of that, he is probably one of the ten worst baserunners in mlb.
2. He is 27, which is the peak age for hitting (though maybe not for catchers.)
3. He hit .227/.358/.413 in AAA last year; mle of .190/.292/.332. That is not good! If he wasn’t a catcher, but instead a 1B/DH, he would not even be in the majors. Not even close. That is over a full season.
4. Before that, he had an excellent half-year in Midland, and a couple shittyish years in the lower minors.
5. Current zips projection is .239/.300/.413. That is good for a catcher, and great for a backup catcher. Not for a DH. Not even close! I’d rather see him get ABs at DH or wherever than someone like Nomar who shouldn’t be on the team, but you could just as easily call for anyone who is halfway decent to DH sometimes… But people here are obsessed with backup catchers and how much they play for some reason…..
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
Most importantly,
he hasn’t been close to being healthy enough to play full time, even at the DH spot. He’s gotta prove he can stay in the lineup.
Founding member of the Eric Patterson fan club.
It bears noting
that the catastrophic injury he suffered two seasons ago in AAA was suffered running the bases, NOT playing catcher.
I just don’t think he’s got the cellular regeneration rates needed to play 120 games at the major league level.
Linda's in the cold ground, won't see her anymore
Somewhere out on the highway tonight, the drunken engines roar
It's just one of those things, one of those things
-- Al Stewart, "Accident on 3rd St."
In memory of Nick Adenhart and all victims of drunk driving
Ok
1. You say 121 PAs isn’t a lot, then go on to judge him on 121 PAs.
2. Injuries. It’s like criticizing Desme for being 23 in the Cal league (of which i am guilty of)
3. No clue where you’re getting those #’s from. BB-ref says he went .230/.360/.417 through 360 PAs, definitely good enough for a guy coming off major surgery and catching every day.
4. Not sure where you’re getting this from. 2004 was a SSS, 2006 was excellent for a guy coming off surgery, 2007 was outstanding, and 2008 was solid. Judging minor leaguers by their numbers (at least without going into any detail) is dumb anyway. I suppose you think Travis Wood is a better prospect than Jhouyls Chacin.
5. Because ZIPS clearly = reality.
"Chicks dig the long ball, although fat chicks will settle for warning track power" - Nick Diamond
1. No I’m not, unless you think he’s even better than this year’s numbers…
2. Point is that he probably won’t get much better than he is now…
3. It is sort of good for a catcher, it is not good at all for a major league dh… The second numbers are his mle… not good. His 121 PAs is way better than his recent minor league performance, indicating that he’s not as good as this year’s numbers which in any case are not good for a dh. Maybe he’s improved a whole lot since last year? Could be, but no particularly good reason to think so.
4. Nothing in his minor league record indicates he is/will be anything better than a league average hitter.
5. zips projection>>>>2009 ops in 121 pas/projection of upside or something from opinions when he was drafted 5 years ago.
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
How do you know?
And I don’t think anyone’s calling for him to DH full-time.
The Oakland A's: Pissing off fathers of disappointing baseball players who still managed to be better than their dads (charter club members: Tom Grieve & Ed Crosby)
Last of the Ninth - Photography
I don't know...
I don’t know if Patterson would be a good DH. Don’t know if Matt Carson would be a good DH… Maybe Adam Kennedy if we find a 3B… He’s been pretty good… Really, I don’t know about anyone…
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
And I don’t think anyone’s calling for him to DH full-time.
I wouldn’t have thought so, but for hilariously stupid ideas there’s always byg urb
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
I will pay you good money
to never quote or re-post anything from that idiot hack on here ever again.
Now I want to DFA Powell, just because “big urb” likes his bat.
Also, love how he completely ignores our foray into the FA market like we wont do it again. Wouldnt be surprised at all to see Beane put in a bid for Chone Figgins.
Good Lord...
The Oakland A's: Pissing off fathers of disappointing baseball players who still managed to be better than their dads (charter club members: Tom Grieve & Ed Crosby)
Last of the Ninth - Photography
Platooning suzuki/powell
wouldnt be the worst idea, lookng at their splits, but i doubt that happens.
If anything, I could see powell taking away some of cust or barton’s AB’s.
Also depending on the progress of donaldson next yr, it will be a nice problem to have with 3 legit catchers.
At this time last yr, the catchers position looked like an organizational weakness without much depth. They basically had suzuki and recker last summer. Now powell has come back from his injuries, they added donaldson through trade, drafted paramore, ortiz, stassi, leyland, etc. Plus roster filler w/ Gallaraga, Thigpen who might useful backup types once healthy.
Powell had even splits in the minors
31 PAs vs. LHPs this year…. Suzuki has a reverse platoon split for his career…
With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory. ----Hero Defector Montgomery
Someone should crunch the numbers
and see how much production each team had from their catching position. Something tells me that the A’s are close to the top 5 in MLB overall. If thats the case then, considering Powell’s injury history, why fix something that’s not broke?
They showed the A's were second in RBI's by the catcher position for the AL this year
during the KC series, KC was first with 87 I think.
PREPAREDNESS_Because those goddamn zombies aren’t going to kill themselves
Speaking of Powell's injuries
Is it flirting with disaster to play him more when he has a difficult time running as it is? How are his hamstrings going to get better?? I guess off season will tell that tale.
"Baseball is dull only to dull minds." Red Barber
by BERRYJO on Sep 3, 2009 5:55 PM PDT up reply actions
Poweell s/b DH
It makes no sense to not let him have as many AB’s as possible. Cust cannot be our only option at DH. Powell is the man.
The greenmachine
Well if we're talking about DH
He would be taking AB’s from Cust and despite the fact that Cust is having his worst season as an A he still has a slightly worse OPS than Powell but a slightly better WOBA. So unless you think Powell will play better with more AB’s and that Cust has irreversably declined and won’t rebound at all I don’t think giving the DH spot to Powell is all that great an idea.
against lefty's I would be OK with that, (keep Nomar off the feild)
PREPAREDNESS_Because those goddamn zombies aren’t going to kill themselves
I'm not sure what to do with Powell...
BUT anyone is crazy if they think he should be starting over Suzuki (not saying you or anyone is, I’m just saying lol)….Powell has a nice bat so I wouldn’t mind him at DH or 1B to see what he can do, but in no way should he be starting at catcher. Suzuki has a decent bat and plays great defense, so he needs to start. His numbers have dropped as of late because he is having to bat so high in the lineup. Suzuki would be a very solid number 7 hitter (if we had a decent offense) with great defense. Plus he handles the young staff very well.
by iBleedGreenNGold on Sep 3, 2009 1:57 PM PDT reply actions
I voted play Powell everyday.
But Suzuki’s the guy who’ll be the A’s everyday C. I think it’d be nice if he could get a few DH at-bats, and C a few more times a month than he is currently. If he’s able to lock in a few games at 1B maybe – but I don’t either of those guys playing anything other than C. If they come into spring training, and Powell hits, then why not give him a shot at 400 PAs rather than Suzuki in 2010?
By the way, Suzuki’s OPS is in the 700s, and while it’s probably in the lower half of AL backstops, I don’t think Zooks is doing anything really to hurt the A’s other than not walking a few more times.
Nick Swisher is handsome.
My vote is to have him start @ catcher twice a week (partially to give captain kurt a rest)
and one start at 1st of DH each week depending on the other hitters “hotness”.
You have to include smiley faces - Poppy
;- ) :- ) :-O : -> : -] : -}
powell
Landon should be backup C and DH. Bring up another C for emergency.
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