Archive for adam moore

Thoughts on some catchers to start your day.

Chris Iannetta | Rockies | 4% Owned

A FanGraphs favorite, Iannetta has proven that with steady playing time comes production. But, Jim Tracy doesn’t care and prefers playing the inferior Miguel Olivo behind the dish most days. He is drawing interest from teams such as the Red Sox, but it looks like the Rockies may hold onto him as they continue to push for the playoffs. Make sure Iannetta is on your watch list, and be ready to pounce if something happens to Olivo (you didn’t hear it from me, but by the time you are reading this, he’ll have a broken leg).

Adam Moore | Mariners | 0% Owned

Even though his MLB stints have been brief, he has struggled mightily during his time in Seattle. He hit the DL earlier this year and has been playing in Tacoma (AAA) ever since. He’s hitting .303/.345/.404 in Tacoma, which is similar to the Triple-A line he put up last year. He’s already 26, so there is no better time than the present to bring Moore back to the majors. Moore should be relevant in deep keeper leagues, and should be kept an eye on in AL-only leagues, both redraft and keeper.

Ronny Paulino | Marlins | 12% Owned

Paulino has slipped under the radar this year due to his lack of name recognition, but he’s been a great low-risk option behind the plate. He won’t hit for much power or drive in a ton of runs, but his .274 batting average makes him an asset for some owners. If you are looking for a catcher who simply won’t hurt you, don’t be afraid to pick up Paulino.

John Jaso | Rays | 5% Owned

Jaso has gotten a good amount of attention in the saber-sphere due to his line drive and walk rates, but it hasn’t translated into fantasy owners picking him up. He has had some problems with BABIP during June and July, but that comes with the territory of being a platoon player (lower sample size). He’s a good buy in OBP leagues, but you could probably find a better option if you use AVG.

Kenji Johjima won’t be back with the Seattle Mariners next year. The 33 year-old backstop, signed out of Japan prior to the 2006 season, has decided to return home. He leaves two years and $16M on the table, as part of an ill-advised Bill Bavasi contract extension covering the 2009-2011 seasons (is “ill-advised Bill Bavasi contract” redundant?)

Johjima posted solid 2006 and 2007 campaigns, with wOBA’s of .338 and .327, respectively. However, his offense fell off a cliff in 2008 (.272 wOBA), and he turned in another mediocre season in 2009 (.305 wOBA). Johjima’s walk and strikeout rates remained stable, but his BABIP tumbled from the low-.290’s over the 2006-2007 seasons to the .240 range from 2008-2009.

That’s extremely low, but the former Fukuoka SoftBank Hawk had a few factors working against him: he hit a lot of groundballs (never a good idea for a slow-footed backstop) and he popped the ball up often (infield flies are near automatic outs).

With Johjima now out of the picture, Seattle’s internal options behind the dish are Rob Johnson and Adam Moore.

Johnson, 26, split time with Johjima this past season. The University of Houston alumnus is known more for his defensive virtues than his lumber. Johnson has authored a .270/.323/.389 line during his minor league career , including a .270/.323/.381 triple-slash in three seasons at AAA Tacoma.

The righty batter was an absolute hacker his first time around the Pacific Coast League in 2006, walking in 3.7% of his PA, punching out 22 percent and posting a lousy .258 wOBA. In 2007, he bumped that wOBA up to .311, drawing a free pass 8.5% and whiffing 14.7%. Johnson posted similar walk and strikeout numbers in 2008, but his wOBA climbed to .351 (he hit for slightly more power, but a 40 point increase in BABIP boosted that figure).

In his first extended big league trial, Johnson batted just .213/.289/.326 in 290 PA, with a .274 wOBA. On the positive side, he walked in 9.2% of his PA. But as you might expect from that line, there were plenty of problems with Johnson’s lumber.

He was jammed at a sky-high rate, with an infield/fly ball rate of 20 percent (7th-highest among batters with 250+ PA). Opposing pitchers bullied him with fastballs, as Johnson posted an ugly -1.7 run/100 pitches value against heaters (5th-worst among batters with 250+ PA). He posted a negative run value against curves, sliders, cutters and changeups, as well.

Moore, 25, is the more interesting player from a fantasy perspective. A 6th-rounder in the 2006 draft taken out of Texas-Arlington, Moore has shown considerably more offensive promise.

In 2007, he batted a robust .307/.371/.543 at High-A High Desert. That ball park is a launching pad, but his park-adjusted line of .296/.363/.498 was still pretty tasty.

Bumped up to AA West-Tennessee in 2008, Moore mashed to the tune of .319/.396/.506. He walked 8.5% of the time, with a modest 17.9% K rate and a .186 ISO.

The 6-3, 220 pound right-handed hitter split the 2009 season between AA and AAA Tacoma. Back at West-Tennessee, he showed excellent plate discipline (14.4 BB%), batting .263/.371/.411 in 116 PA.

With the Rainers, Moore posted a .294/.346/.429 triple-slash in 368 PA. He walked 7.1 percent and punched out 15 percent, with a .135 ISO. Moore was called up to Seattle in September, drawing a few starts down the stretch.

As a guy in his mid-twenties, Moore isn’t a monster prospect. But, he has enough offensive ability to be a league-average (.330-.335 wOBA) hitter. That’s pretty valuable, when one considers that the average MLB catcher hit just .254/.320/.395 in 2009. That equates to a wOBA around .324.

The Mariners could opt to bring in a veteran via free agency, but the pickings appear slim. Assuming Seattle sticks with Johnson and Moore, fantasy owners should be rooting for Moore to grab the starting gig.

Every Thursday throughout the season, Minor Impacts takes a look at some of the hottest minor league players that could have impacts at the Major League Level in the near future. With the end to the minor league season less than a month away, many of the players we’re looking at now will be making their impacts in early-to-mid 2010. Some of the players we’ve educated you on before their promotions include: Vince Mazzaro, Andrew McCutchen, Gordon Beckham, Alex Avila, Brian Matusz, Marc Rzepczynski, Jake Fox, Nolan Reimold, Daniel Bard, Bud Norris, and Mat Latos.

Wes Hodges: A former second round pick out of Georgia Tech, Hodges is knocking on the door for a shot at the third base job in Cleveland. He is currently hitting .264/.308/.416 with 20 doubles and five homers in 231 at-bats. Hodges, 24, has struggled with his batting average a bit this season, but he should be able to maintain a .270-.290 average in the Majors with average to slight-below average power for the hot corner. He performs equally well against right-handed and left-handed pitchers in terms of batting average and on-base percentage, although his slugging percentage is almost .100 points higher against right-handers.

Mike Stanton: Stanton’s double-A numbers are not overly exciting but he’s just 19 years of age. The powerful, young outfielder hit .294/.390/.578 with 12 homers in 180 at-bats prior to his promotion from high-A ball to double-A. At the senior level, Stanton is hitting .239/.317/.468 with 12 homers in 222 at-bats. Last season, he hit 39 homers as a 19 year old. His power is off the charts, but he needs to trim his strikeout rates, which currently sit at 33.3 K%. He may also be pressing to drive in runs with a .259 batting average with the bases empty and a .183 average with runners in scoring position. Stanton will no doubt return to double-A in 2010 but, if everything clicks, he could be in Florida by mid-season.

Pedro Alvarez: Alvarez got off to a slow start in his first pro season, but he’s picked things up since being promoted to double-A. The third baseman is hitting almost .100 points higher despite playing at a more difficult level. He may be the type of player that needs to be challenged. Alvarez, 22, is currently hitting .327/.395/.558 with eight homers in 156 double-A at-bats. His numbers have been helped by an extremely high BABIP at .413 and his walk rate (10.9 BB%) is down three percent from high-A ball. His strikeout rate is almost identical at 28.2 K%. Alvarez does have a healthy line-drive rate at 20.7%. The power is legit, but at this point he’s probably a .250-.260 hitter in the Majors.

Adam Moore: The trade of Jeff Clement to Pittsburgh opens the door to the full-time catching gig once Seattle tires of Kenji Johjima behind the dish. Rob Johnson has an early lead on the job thanks to his current presence in the Majors and solid defensive work, but Moore is the superior hitter. The right-handed hitter opened the season in double-A but moved up to triple-A after just 27 games. At triple-A, Moore is currently hitting .298/.347/.419 with six homers in 265 at-bats. His walk rate is at its lowest point in three seasons at 6.7 BB%, but so is his strikeout rate at 15.1 K%. The 25-year-old has the potential to hit 15-20 homers in the Majors and he performs well against southpaws (.329/.372/.466 in ’09).

Allen Craig: The former eighth-round pick out of the University of California (2006) has been spending more time in the outfield and could see significant playing time for the Cardinals in 2010 if Matt Holliday does not resign with the club. Craig can also play first base and third base, so his versatility adds to his value. The 25-year-old is currently hitting .312/.368/.534 with 21 homers in 382 at-bats at triple-A. He’s hit 20 homers-plus and batted more than .300 in three straight seasons. Craig has a walk rate of 7.5 BB% and a strikeout rate of 19.9 K%. He’s an underrated prospect with a real chance to help St. Louis in 2010.

Angel Salome: Milwaukee recently purged a number of under-performing veterans and catcher Jason Kendall could be on the way out of town after the season ends. Salome is a step down defensive, especially when you consider Kendall’s leadership and game-calling skills, but the prospect has a much better bat. The right-handed hitter is a legitimate .280-.300 hitter with excellent contact skills. He’ll probably never hit for power in the Majors with his line drive swing and 5’7” stature. Durability could also be an issue with the young catcher. This season in triple-A, Salome is hitting .289/.338/.418. He has a walk rate of 7.3 BB% and a strikeout rate of 19.3 K%.