Minor League Discussion

[CincyRedsFan30]

Unless we desperately need him in the rotation, I wouldn't mind Hudson in the bullpen. He seemed more comfortable there and was more in control of his pitches it seemed.

I'm still very impressed by Denorfia. I seriously think he could put up numbers similar to those of WMP if he were traded(if not as good, at least more than good enough to compensate, since we would hopefully be adding some sort of pitching in the process of the trade).

[Wally Mo Pena]

Hudson has walked 6 in 22.1 innings. not stellar, but maybe passable. His other problem (not being able to go deep in games) doesn't seem to be getting any better, so he may be better suted for the pen. We have always been told that he warms up really slowly though, so i'm not sure. Whether or not we see him in the rotation i think will be determined by ST and what we do in the offseason. He might be a serviceable 5th starter, but we also might not need a 5th starter if we get someone in trade and paul wilson looks good.

CRF: I'm down with denorfia. I'm actually down with denorfia and howard and hope they are both with the reds next year. But i don't know what would make you say that denorfia will put up "similar" numbers as wily mo. Even if you thought that denorfia would be just as good for the reds as wily mo would be (and i don't agree with that) their numbers won't look anything alike. Over the last two years denorfia has hit 37 HR over 1001 AB between A and AAA. That's about 19 over a 500 AB season, in the minors. Wily mo over the last 2 years has hit 45 HR over 647 AB, or about 35 HR over a normal season... in the majors.

If both of them played a full season in the majors i would guess that Wily Mo would hit at least twice as many HR, which doesn't seem that similar to me.

[missionhockey21]

Wily Mo would definitely slug more than Denorfia although I think Denorfia would perfectly be suited as the backup outfielder (question then becomes again, who goes which would involve an open roster spot? Casey, Griffey, Dunn, Kearns, Pena).

As for Hudson, I think the pen might be the best option. His stuff is there no doubt and letting him go all out for an inning or two and his fastball is the kind that our pen always seems to lack. Or at the very least let Hudson work his problems out in the pen next season, build some confidence and see where we could go from there. Not even considering the control or the endurance problems, you know Hudson could be just a few pitches away from a career ender (given how much his arm has been cut up), the safe choice might be the pen.

[CincyRedsFan30]

That BB rate for Hudson isn't bad. That would be about 2 BB per every 7 IP, which would probably lead to a decent amount of success for him.

As for Denorfia, it's more of a matter of what I saw from him. He gets on base a lot more than WMP. He might not be as good of him, but I think he'll be closer than some think. I could easily see him with an OPS of .800 or greater at the major league level.(He finished his limited time with his last year(small sample size) with a .785 OPS. I think he could stay at least close to .800 over the course of a year.

He had a .955 OPS in Chattanooga last year and a .896 OPS in Louisville.

[ghettochild]

there this thread is

big BUMP

anywho heres a great story i found on bruce on that other forum.

Tom Archdeacon: Dragons' star Bruce inspired by his sister
By Tom Archdeacon

http://www.daytondailynews.com/sport...71306arch.html

It's fitting he showed her a way to new heights — that he got her on that escalator — after all, she's done the same for him her whole life.

This is the story of Dayton Dragons' 19-year-old outfielder Jay Bruce — the Cincinnati Reds No. 1 draft pick last year, a young man who signed for $1.8 million and now is one of the Midwest League's top-rated players in almost every offensive category.

It's the story of his 24-year-old sister Kellan, who — born with the umbilical cord wrapped twice around her neck — suffered some damage to her brain, but not to her spirit.

And it's also testimony of how Bruce — as Dragons manager Billy Gardner Jr. put it — "was brought up right. If you didn't already know, you wouldn't be able to tell he's a first-round kid with a lot of money. Some (money) guys stick out like a sore thumb. They flaunt it. Jay Bruce is not that type of kid. He seems to understand what's important."

That's where Kellan comes in. She's taught him to appreciate what you got in life. With her unconditional love and support, she's also reinforced the importance of family.

And that brings us to the escalator.

"She'd never ridden on one ... was scared to death of them," Joe Bruce said of his daughter. "But last season when Jay played in Sarasota, Fla., in the Gulf Coast League (GCL), we went to a nice restaurant where you had to take an escalator. She took the stairs coming in, but he finally got her to try it on the way out. ... He takes his sister under his wing."

Jay said that's how it should be: "She didn't get the chances I got. I've been blessed. Things were easy for me."

Especially playing ball, Joe said:

"The first time he picked up a Wiffle bat — we were barbecuing in the backyard and he was still in diapers — he started swinging so natural. He kept hitting the ball harder and harder. I was holding a beer in my hand and he hit a line drive that dented the can."

The same prowess showed at West Brook High in Beaumont, Texas — where he was a national player of the year candidate — and last season, first in the GCL and then Billings, where Baseball America rated him the Pioneer League's top prospect.

Going into Wednesday's game in South Bend, Ind., he led the Midwest League in extra-base hits and slugging percent, was second in hits and batting average (.322), third in RBIs and fourth in home runs.

Yet, he's been even better off the field. He's paid off his parents' house, bought them a new car and bought his oldest sister Amy and her family a new home.

As for Kellan, he said: "She'll never have to worry about anything, never have to go without."

Still Martha, their mom, felt something more tangible was needed:

"I told him, 'You know, you didn't get Kellan anything particular.' So he said, 'Tell her the car is really hers.' And now she doesn't let us forget it. It's like I'm driving Miss Daisy."

Mostly, Kellan gets around by bicycle. A few days ago she took a nasty spill and cut her knee. That gave her a badge to match her brother, who badly skinned his arm when he fell on the Kane County warning track recently.

Kellan has her own cell phone, so she and her brother talk daily. "Jay and his sister tell each other good night and 'I love you,' " Joe said. "And each morning Kellan wants to know 'Is Jay playing today? Is he doing OK?' "

Thanks to her, he's doing just fine.

[ghettochild]

today was homer's first start for aaa

his line: 5.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K, 5 GO/7 FO

42 strikes
41 balls

he had a good line going until his last inning and a half where the weather got to him.

[missionhockey21]

It's concerning that his strikes to balls ratio was so awful, but its early. I just hope he didn't have his hopes too set on making the major league club and that this is just due to the weather or getting the rust worked out.