Red Sox trade (P) Springs and Mazza to TB Rays for (C) Hernandez

E5 Yaz

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Are you missing my point that Bloom worked for the organization that the player came from? My "contribution" would be that Bloom should have some info we're missing. Not everything is a shot at you, it was a note that despite OUR lack of info, Bloom is even more plugged into it as a former member of that organization.
Why so Sirius?
 

nvalvo

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Should be noted his 2019 was in the very pitcher-centric Florida State League
This is a good point. His line was .265/.299/.397 for a .696 OPS, but the league line was only .242/.313/.353 for a .666 OPS. The league ERA was 3.45.

So doing a little long division to give us some context, he followed up an .832 OPS in 2018, 19% better than the Midwest League that season, with a .938 in Arizona, 29% better than average. In 2019, he dipped to a .696 OPS that was nonetheless 5% better than the Florida State League, and rebounded in another Arizona stint where he was 32% better than the league.

That's a pretty good hitting catcher.

edit: If there are questions about him as a prospect, it's the receiving and framing.
 
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effectivelywild

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But 23 with a big gap year where he faced live pitching sparingly compared to a full season?
Well, every 23 year-old prospect pretty much had that exact same situation, so I don't know why you would use that against him. I think it's safe to say that most of the prospect evaluators are higher on him than you are and, given the relative paucity of information on him (which you point out), I think it's reasonable to go along with their evaluations, unless you have uncovered something more substantial than his OBP in 2019.
 

amRadio

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Well, every 23 year-old prospect pretty much had that exact same situation, so I don't know why you would use that against him.
I mean, I definitely said that I think zone recognition is an attribute that requires live game action to improve at the highest levels, it is clearly this players worst attribute as an offensive contributor. Given his apparent defensive prowess and mitigating league factors from the year he dipped offensively, I'm probably wrong about his prospect status. If I'm wrong on that, I'm wrong, whatever, but that is the way it looks from here at the moment. I use it against him because of the particular nature of his offensive weakness. You can't improve zone recognition unless you're facing live pitching, in my opinion. The league average performance in 2019 where he was playing full time is persuasive, so is his wRC+ relative to catchers his age in the pros.

I didn't say other players weren't in the same boat and certainly the information posted above by nvalvo has moved my opinion on whether or not he is a legit prospect. I think in general, referring to a player as a "legit prospect" who has just dropped from a .830 OPS to a .696 OPS from low to high A ball requires some deep showing of work. Nvalvo's post definitely is super persuasive. In general, I don't believe in projecting players up in the face of poor statistical performance.

Edit: run ons and clarity
 
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Sox and Rocks

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Credit to Bloom for finding value on two players he decided weren't important to keep on the 40 man. If either pitcher turns out well for TB, any fault will be with the decision to DFA them in the first place. But given that this decision was already made, the trade itself can only be a win. He not only picked up a young catcher with possible upside, he also picked up another prospect who doesn't require a 40 man spot yet.

These are the types of moves he was specifically hired to do and must do right now (these meaning this and the Benintendi trade, which will net additional prospects, too).
 

Sin Duda

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It's 10-below in Texas and Lou Merloni is making sense.
Living in Austin, where we are experiencing our 8th straight day with below freezing temps, I've never appreciated this community more for the diversion from real life. I have a burst pipe already (with the subsequent cleanup of the flooding of two rooms and regular fill up of toilets with water from a cooler), unplowed and unsafe streets limiting driving, gathering firewood in the woods daily, and kids home from school. I'm thankful for neighbors both real (who helped me shut off the master water valve and provide the coolers of water) and virtual. I'm sure some of my Texas brethren have lost power; we haven't had to live through that this week thankfully (but that's why I continue to gather firewood).

It was always amusing when I lived up north and a southern state got freezing temperatures which northerners are used to living through, but now I know that this town is not equipped for this kind of weather (multiple days of single digit temps). The walls are poorly insulated, the snowplows do not exist, and no one thinks to winterize their homes.

Some people without power are living in houses where the indoor temperature is in the 30s. Keep Texans in your prayers.
 

joe dokes

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Jul 18, 2005
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Living in Austin, where we are experiencing our 8th straight day with below freezing temps, I've never appreciated this community more for the diversion from real life. I have a burst pipe already (with the subsequent cleanup of the flooding of two rooms and regular fill up of toilets with water from a cooler), unplowed and unsafe streets limiting driving, gathering firewood in the woods daily, and kids home from school. I'm thankful for neighbors both real (who helped me shut off the master water valve and provide the coolers of water) and virtual. I'm sure some of my Texas brethren have lost power; we haven't had to live through that this week thankfully (but that's why I continue to gather firewood).

It was always amusing when I lived up north and a southern state got freezing temperatures which northerners are used to living through, but now I know that this town is not equipped for this kind of weather (multiple days of single digit temps). The walls are poorly insulated, the snowplows do not exist, and no one thinks to winterize their homes.

Some people without power are living in houses where the indoor temperature is in the 30s. Keep Texans in your prayers.
Stay safe. I have in laws outside austin and tulsa and know it's not a laughing matter.
 

The Talented Allen Ripley

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Out of curiosity I checked Hernandez's stats for this past year, he had a really good season at the plate (especially for a C), batting .284/.326/.501 across AA and AAA (only 7 games at AAA to end the year, but his numbers at Worcester were generally higher than his season averages). 16 HR and 53 RBI in 387 ABs.

Couldn't find any substantial assessments of his defense from the past year, everything was prior to the season.
 
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Granite Sox

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The SoxProspects guys have talked about him here and there. Seems, offensively, he had a good final third of the season. As for his defense, they’ve shared that it is below par, and that he would benefit from a robo-ump. Not exactly glowing praise.
 

Sandy Leon Trotsky

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The SoxProspects guys have talked about him here and there. Seems, offensively, he had a good final third of the season. As for his defense, they’ve shared that it is below par, and that he would benefit from a robo-ump. Not exactly glowing praise.
I'm pretty bullish on him as part of a Wong starting C pair by '23. Expecting his offense to take a step back at AAA next season to work on his glove and arm more.
 

billy ashley

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Yep, there's a reason that they got him for Springs and Mazza. Hernandez is definitely interesting and far better of a return than we had any right to expect as fans for two guys that were organizational flotsam. It's fine to note that both Springs and Mazza were serviceable at times for the Rays this season, but it's not like either figured into the organization's long-term plans.

Robo-umps are probably not in the immediate future. I've not listened to the most recent SP podcast yet, but I know they discussed in a recent one how they weren't that successful in the low minors this year for testing. So yeah, I don't think robo-umps save Hernandez.

What he needs to do is put significant work into his defense. If he does and gets to passable, he's a viable lower-end starting catcher with that bat. I don't know if that's a likely outcome but he absolutely has some major league talent offensively. That's a really good haul for what the Sox gave up.
 

RoDaddy

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I'm pretty bullish on him as part of a Wong starting C pair by '23.
Same here. They both looked great in the last part of the season. Hernandez' OPS was around 1 for this final three months including the AAA callup. He also has a great arm. SP has him ranked at 24 but to me, he might be a top 10 Sox prospect now, and if he progresses enough defensively, I could see him moving up to the 6/7 range next year
 
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