Sunday Notes: Top Red Sox Prospect Roman Anthony Adjusted To Energy Up

Roman Anthony arguably has the best upside within the Boston Red Sox system. Three months shy of his twentieth birthday, the left-handed-hitting outfielder is No. 14 on our recently-released Top 100, and within the phrases of Eric Longenhagen, he “has the offensive foundation (plate discipline and contact) to be a top five prospect if he can more readily get to his power in games.”

Getting to extra of his in-game energy was an organizationally-driven aim all through a primary full skilled season that noticed the 2022 second-rounder start in Low-A Salem and end in Double-A Portland. Progress was made. Of the 14 residence runs Anthony swatted over 491 plate appearances, all however one got here from mid-June onward. Learning to carry was the important thing and, in line with the teen that got here not from an overhaul of his mechanics, however somewhat from delicate changes.

“At the beginning of the year, I was pulling it on the ground a little more than I would like to,” acknowledged Anthony, who was 200-plus plate appearances into the season when he went yard for a second time. “But I worked with my hitting coaches and eventually it clicked. It was really just minor tweaks. It’s not as though I was redoing my swing, or anything like that. I still have pretty much the same swing I’ve always had.”

According to Red Sox farm director Brian Abraham, Anthony’s changes have been crafted primarily in a batting cage with easy, but inventive, drill work.

““It wasn’t necessarily him changing his mechanics,” defined Abraham. “It was our hitting group placing him in sure positions, inside sure environmental constraints, that allow him to leverage extra balls to the pull aspect. Some of it was specific drills that permit him to be himself, but power him to hit the ball within the air with out really bodily attempting to take action.

“Say I were to put my hand on your arm and told you push me back,” Abraham elaborated. “The only choice you have is to push in a certain way, so you’re going to push harder. It’s similar to that. Or it could be standing in front of a wall so that you can only go to the pull side, or in batting practice having the ball thrown from a certain angle — things that allow the body to be working naturally, but because of constraints only in a certain way. The more repetitions with that happening, the more the body adjusts and it becomes natural.”

Anthony’s slash line was .272/.403/.466 final season, with a wholesome 17.5% stroll fee contributing closely to his OBP. In Longenhagen’s eyes, the looks of plus-plus plate self-discipline deserves a caveat. As our lead prospect analyst identified in his writeup, Anthony’s swing fee on pitches proper down the center of the plate was among the many lowest within the minors, suggesting “an approach that includes premeditated takes rather than actual selectivity.”

Asked about that speculation, Abraham stated that the group doesn’t dictate takes, at the very least not in a approach that will starve younger hitters’ alternatives to crush cookies. If something, Anthony’s lapses in selective aggression have been of his personal volition, and never a directive from above.

“I think sometimes there might have been pitches where he could have let it eat, for lack of a better term, versus taking a pitch,” the farm director stated. “But that’s just an education thing, him learning himself as he further acclimates to pro ball. We really don’t put limitations on our players, saying you have to not swing at this pitch. I don’t think that’s sustainable or scalable. To me, a training environment is where you are going to create something that’s a little bit more innate and can be carried over from level to level. We give them an approach — an understanding of what they want to do — and then allow them to go do it. If we need to make adjustments afterwards, the conversation will be about the why.”

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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS

Bingo Binks went 3 for 16 in opposition to Tiny Bonham.

Bing Miller went 1 for 18 in opposition to Ivy Andrews.

Mike Ivie went 8 for 14 in opposition to Tug McGraw.

Wally Pipp went 4 for five in opposition to Slim McGrew.

Bob Seeds went 5 for 7 in opposition to Lefty Smoll.

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Ben Cowles is a sleeper within the New York Yankees system. The just-turned-24-year-old infielder wasn’t included when our 2024 Yankees Top Prospect checklist went up in December. That doesn’t imply he doesn’t possess potential. In 444 plate appearances with High-A Hudson Valley, Cowles put up a 109 wRC+ whereas swatting 10 residence runs and swiping 26 bases in 30 makes an attempt. He additional impressed within the Arizona Fall League, logging a .956 OPS, leaving the yard 4 occasions, and going an ideal 3-for-3 within the theft division.

Cowles led the Big Ten with 18 residence runs in his 2021 draft yr, however the Tenth-round decide doesn’t see himself as a bopper. When I talked to him on the tail finish of the AFL season, he instructed me that getting on base and “wreaking havoc on the pitcher” are his main targets, whereas any energy he produces is a plus. Defensively, he feels that shortstop is his finest place, with the flexibility to additionally play second and third — he cut up time between the three positions final yr — including to his worth.

His baseball hero was a shortstop, which made his draft expertise all of the extra thrilling.

“I grew up near Rochester, New York and was always a Yankees fan,” defined Cowles. “I loved Derek Jeter. It was hard not to.”

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Daniel Vogelbach was 25 years previous and a Seattle Mariner after I talked to and wrote about him in spring coaching 2018. Hitting for extra energy was on his thoughts on the time, and whereas the additional oomph didn’t emerge that very same season — at the very least not on the big-league stage — he did go on to bash a career-high 30 residence runs in 2019. Ups and downs have adopted. The lefty slugger is now 5 groups faraway from Seattle — this after Friday’s reported signing with Toronto — and final yr’s ledger included a modest 13 dingers to go along with a 109 wRC+.

This previous summer time I requested Vogelbach, then a New York Met, for an up to date tackle his fence-clearing intentions.

“I think you’re always trying to hit for power,” he replied. “It’s just a matter of how you go about it. I mean, homers are thrown, they’re not hit. Pitchers have to make mistakes. If you go up there trying to hit home runs every at-bat, given how good pitchers are — how much they can make the ball move — you’re basically setting yourself up for failure.”

As for changes he’s made over time, Vogelbach instructed me that he’s at all times working to be one of the best hitter attainable, and that the sport will dictate what he must do higher, and what he must work on. Moreover, “When the game tells you something, you have to listen.”

Jay Jaffe will handle the Blue Jays’ reported acquisition of Vogelbach — may it have been Joey Votto as a substitute? — right here at FanGraphs within the coming days.

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A quiz:

The identical pitcher holds the Cincinnati Reds franchise report for each profession saves and profession video games completed. Who is he?

The reply could be discovered beneath.

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NEWS NOTES

The SABR Analytics Conference has added a Statcast panel comprising Jason Bernard, James Buffi, Graham Goldbeck, Clay Nunnally, and Mike Petriello, More info on the convention, which might be held in Phoenix from March 8-10, could be discovered right here.

MLB has promoted Ryan Wills and Clint Vondrak to full-time umpires, changing Ed Hickox and Jeff Nelson, who’ve retired. Chris Guccione, a 17-year veteran, has been promoted as a brand new crew chief.

The Oakland Athletics have employed Jenny Cavnar as their new TV play-by-play broadcaster. Cavnar, who has spent the previous 12 seasons with the Colorado Rockies as a backup play-by-play announcer, pre- and postgame host, and reporter, will reportedly be the the primary feminine main play-by-play voice in MLB historical past.

Jim Hannan, who pitched in 276 video games from 1962-1971, primarily for the Washington Senators, died earlier this month at age 85. The right-hander from Jersey City was a part of a noteworthy transaction late in his profession, going from Washington to Detroit in an eight-player deal that included Denny McLain, Joe Coleman, and Aurelio Rodríguez.

Don Gullett, a left-handed pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds from 1970-1976, and for the New York Yankees in 1977-1978, died on Wednesday at age 73. A member of The Big Red Machine who was simply 19 years previous when he debuted, Gullett went 109-50 with a 3.11 ERA and pitched in 5 World Series earlier than accidents ended his profession at age 27. Boston’s Bill “Spaceman” Lee famously stated of his Game 7 matchup in opposition to the flamethrower within the 1975 World Series, “Gullett will go to the Hall of Fame and I will go to the Eliot Lounge.”

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The reply to the quiz is Danny Graves, who had 182 saves and 337 video games completed whereas pitching for the Reds from 1997-2005.

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Zack Scott debuted a podcast this previous week, and the preliminary episode of “Deconstructing Champions: The Art and Science of Winning” is a must-listen. The erstwhile Boston Red Sox and New York Mets entrance workplace government — now the CEO of Four Rings Sports Solutions — welcomed Texas Rangers GM Chris Young to the present, and their wide-ranging dialog is predictably each entertaining and informative. One change that stood out to me was Young’s response to a query about how his team-building philosophies have advanced over his brief time within the function.

“More than anything, it’s probably made me double down a little bit on the characteristics, or attributes, that I really believe strongly in, in terms of what winning players look like,” stated Young, who pitched within the massive leagues from 2004-2017. “It’s not always about the most talent; it’s about the right collection of talent. You have to have the right role players, and you have to have the right stars… and they’re equally important. [The role players] can actually set the culture and the chemistry of the team more than anybody. It’s their sacrifice that leads to the success of the collective group. Your star players are going to be your star players, but it’s what you get out of everybody else — the role players around those star players — that is going to set the team up for its success.”

Scott’s “Deconstructing Champions” is on the market on Youtube, Spotify and most in all places else you take pleasure in your favourite pods.

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Who is/was higher, Clayton Kershaw or Pedro Martinez? I introduced that query in a Twitter ballot earlier this week, and the latter gained in a landslide. Of the votes forged, 86.6% went to the Hall of Fame right-hander, whereas the left-handed future Hall of Famer garnered a paltry 14.2%.

Their credentials? Let’s have a look.

Kershaw: 210-92 report, 157 ERA+, 2.82 FIP, 2,944 Ks, 27.6 Ok%, 75.8 fWAR.
Martinez: 219-100 report, 154 ERA+, 2.91 FIP, 3,154 Ks, 27.7 Ok%, 84.4 fWAR.

Each has 5 ERA titles, three Cy Young Awards, and a World Series ring on his résumé. Kershaw is a 10-time All-Star who has gained an MVP Award. Martinez was an eight-time All-Star who was by no means named MVP.

Pedro is hands-down my all-time favourite pitcher. Was he higher than the good Kershaw? That’s up for debate.

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FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Rintaro Sasaki, who had been projected to be the highest decide within the forthcoming NPB draft. will reportedly enroll at Stanford University this spring and subsequently be a part of the baseball workforce for its 2025 season. The 18-year-old first baseman from Iwate Prefecture set Japan’s highschool residence report whereas attending Hanamaki Higashi High School, the alma mater of Shohei Ohtani.

Andrew Campbell has introduced his retirement. An outfielder for the Brisbane Bandits for the previous 13 seasons, the 32-year-old native of Ipswich, Queensland was a part of 4 ABL championship groups and was a member of Team Australia..He performed within the Cleveland system in 2011 and 2012.

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A random obscure former participant snapshot:

Larry Yount is the brother of Robin Yount, however that isn’t his declare to fame. The Hall of Famer’s older sibling formally appeared in a big-league sport but was by no means on the sphere whereas the ball was in play. On September 15, 1971, Lawrence King Yount took the mound for the Houston Astros in what was to be his MLB debut, solely to injure himself whereas warming up. Because he had been introduced, his identify went into the annals. It was to be his solely alternative at baseball’s highest stage.

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Philadelphia teammates Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto have been home-road polar opposites in 2023:

Harper slashed .352/.459/.622 with 15 residence runs at Citizen’s Bank Park and .234/.340/.374 with six residence runs in street video games.

Realmuto slashed .198/.257/.320 with six residence runs at Citizen’s Bank Park and .306/.364/.587 with 14 residence runs in street video games.

And then there was Kyle Schwarber. The Phillies slugger had 58 hits, 23 residence runs, and 138 complete bases at residence, and 57 hits, 24 residence runs, and 139 complete bases on the street.

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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE

The Detroit Tigers introduced their 2024 broadcast groups, which embody Carlos Peña as a notable addition on the TV aspect. Evan Woodberry has the story at MLive.

At South Side Sox, Chrystal O’Keefe wrote about bike and pedestrian security issues concerning the proposed web site for a brand new White Sox ballpark.

Pitcher List’s Adam Salorio broke down the arbitration circumstances of Luis Arraez, Adolís García, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Citing a report from Marlins beat author Craig Mish, Royal Review’s Max Rieper wrote of how Kansas City and Miami might have mentioned a deal that will have included Bobby Witt Jr. and Eury Pérez.

SABR’s oral historical past interview with Jon Matlack, which I quoted from in final Sunday’s column, is now archived and could be heard right here.

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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS

Vern Stephens made eight All-Star groups and amassed 48.3 WAR in a 15-year profession that spanned the 1941-1955 seasons. One of the highest shortstops not within the Hall of Fame, Stephens completed with 247 residence runs, 1,178 RBIs, and a 117 wRC+. A detailed offensive comp is Victor Martinez, who had 246 residence runs, 1,174 RBIs, and a 117 wRC+.

Cecil Travis batted .327 and made three All-Star groups as a shortstop with the Washington Nationals from 1934-1941 earlier than lacking the subsequent three seasons serving within the Army throughout WWII. Potentially a Hall of Famer had his profession not been interrupted by service to his nation, Travis was born and raised in Riverdale, Georgia.

Archie Reynolds pitched for 3 groups from 1968-1972 and completed his profession with a report of 0-8. The right-hander had at the very least one loss in all 5 of his winless seasons.

Moose Stubing’s big-league managing profession comprised eight video games, all on an interim foundation with the California Angels in 1988, and all have been losses. Twenty-one years earlier, Stubing went 0-for-5 with the Angels in his solely big-league motion as a participant.

Jug Thesenga pitched in 5 video games for the Washington Nationals in 1944 and is certainly one of simply 39 South Dakota-born gamers in MLB historical past. Twenty-seven of the 39 took the mound, together with Terry Francona, who in 1989 tossed an ideal inning for the Milwaukee Brewers in a 12-2 loss to the Oakland Athletics.

Reggie Richter pitched in 22 video games for the Chicago Cubs in 1911 and is certainly one of 45 gamers born in Germany to play within the majors. Per his B-Ref bio web page, the Düsseldorf native is the earliest big-leaguer with the identify Reggie.

On immediately’s date in 1999, the Toronto Blue Jays traded Roger Clemens to the New York Yankees in change for David Wells, Graeme Lloyd, and Homer Bush. Clemens went 77-36 with the Yankees over the subsequent 5 seasons. Wells went 37-18 in his two seasons with the Blue Jays.

The Florida Marlins signed Tim Raines on immediately’s date in 2002. The Hall of Fame outfielder, by then 42 years previous, slashed .191/.351/.258 over 114 plate appearances in what could be his closing big-league season.

Players born on immediately’s date embody John Mayberry, a left-handed-hitting first baseman whose profession included a four-season stretch (1972-1975) with the Kansas City Royals by which he launched 107 residence runs and put up a 153 wRC+. All instructed, the Detroit native went deep 255 occasions whereas logging a 123 wRC+taking part in for 4 groups from 1968-1982.

Also born on immediately’s date was Zip Zabel, who went 12-14 with a 2.71 ERA with for the Chicago Cubs from 1913-1915. Born George Washington Zabel in Wetmore, Kansas, the right-hander set the report for many innings pitched in aid in a single sport, hurling 18-and-one-third frames on June 17, 1915 in a 4-3, 19-inning win over the Brooklyn Robins.