Archive for Lou Marson

As beloved editor/writer Eno Sarris continues to roll out the RotoGraphs Consensus Positional Rankings, those of us not included in the Fab Four (with the handsome mugshots) but that cover a specific position were asked to chime in with our thoughts after the rankings were released.  You can find my personal rankings either on FantasyPros or on my site, but for now, let’s just talk backstops and the consensus rankings.  Also, don’t forget that next week we will be rolling out the position tiers as we did last season.

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The Cleveland Indians enjoyed the services of switch-hitting dynamo Victor Martinez until his trade to Boston last summer. Soon enough, another power-hitting backstop who takes cuts from both sides of the plate (Carlos Santana) figures to pick up where V-Mart left off.

Until then, Lou Marson will try to establish himself as more than just Santana’s placeholder. The 23 year-old came to Cleveland from Philadelphia in last July’s Cliff Lee trade, along with INF Jason Donald, RHP Carlos Carrasco and RHP Jason Knapp.

Philly’s 4th-round pick in the 2004 draft, Marson was a premium high school quarterback prospect in Arizona. He broke his collarbone as a senior, however, and decided to focus on baseball.

The 6-1, 200 pound righty batter didn’t light up the box scores in the Gulf Coast League in 2004 (.257/.333/.389 in 126 PA) or the Short Season New York-Penn League in 2005 (.245/.329/.391 in 252 PA). Still, Marson controlled the strike zone (10.6 BB%, 18.5 K% between the two stops), and Baseball America said he was capable of becoming “an intelligent, dependable receiver with an above-average arm and solid power.”

It was more of the same in Marson’s 2006 full-season debut. He hit a mild .243/.343/.351 in 410 PA in the Low-A South Atlantic League. While he showed little pop (.109 ISO) and his K rate crept up (23.4 K%), Marson drew walks at a 12.3% clip. That advanced eye, coupled with Marson’s blossoming receiving skills, led BA to gradually nudge him up Philly’s prospect list (27 in 2005, 23 in 2006, 19 in 2007). However, there were holes in his offensive game: “his swing can become very long at times, and breaking balls give him fits.”

In 2007, Marson made significant progress at the plate in the High-A Florida State League. Batting .288/.373/.407 in 457 PA, he maintained a patient approach (11.7 BB%) while paring down his whiff rate (20.4 K%) and lacing a few more extra-base hits (.120 ISO). Marson moved up to 8th in the Phillies farm system prior to the 2008 season. BA noted a shift in hitting philosophy: he “shortened his swing and developed a much more consistent two-strike approach.”

Bumped up to AA Eastern League in 2008, Marson did nothing to dent his improved prospect status. He hit .314/.433/.416 in 395 PA, taking a free pass a whopping 17.4% of the time and punching out 21.7%. Marson’s ISO (.102) was down somewhat, and a .389 BABIP no doubt played a big role in the batting average spike. Even so, he earned a September call-up and climbed to third on Philly’s list of farm products before the 2009 campaign. Though they considered his power ceiling low, Baseball America lauded Marson’s advanced plate discipline and “professional approach.”

Marson actually spent much of April in the majors in 2009, helping to fill in for a banged-up Carlos Ruiz. He was sent to the AAA International League once “Chooch” was healthy. In 241 PA with Lehigh Valley, Marson posted a .294/.382/.370 triple-slash, with a 12.4 BB%, a 19 percent K rate and a .076 ISO.

After the Lee swap, Marson was sent to AAA Columbus, where he batted a bland .243/.319/.340 in 116 PA. He walked 8.8%, whiffed 18.4% and had a .097 ISO. Lou’s overall AAA line in ’09 was .277/.361/.360. Marson got some starts in Cleveland in September. In 72 total big league PA between the Indians and Phillies, he hit .246/.347/.361, with a 14.4 BB%, 34.4 K%, and a .115 ISO.

Kelly Shoppach is now a Tampa Bay Ray. Santana thrashed AA pitching last year (.290/.413/.530), but he underwent surgery to remove a broken hamate bone in his right hand in December. The needed recovery time might push back Santana’s major league ETA, and he’ll likely open 2010 with Columbus. The only other catcher on the 40-man roster is 27 year-old Wyatt Toregas.

As such, Marson has a short window to avoid being cast as a backup at the major league level. He’s definitely not going to hold off Santana’s impact bat for long, and perhaps Cleveland will prefer to keep Marson as a capable second-string option. But he could become trade bait again if he shows promise.

CHONE has Marson hitting .255/.342/.349 in 2010, while ZiPS envisions a .247/.338/.325 line. He reminds me of Cincinnati’s Ryan Hanigan (good eye, little power), though he doesn’t have Hanigan’s contact skills. Marson has a shot at being a starting catcher in some other city later on, but he may be best utilized as Santana’s caddy in the long term.

Kelly Shoppach is a potential non tender or trade candidate this off season. But the soon-to-be 30 year old still does have value despite a disappointing 2009 season.

He’s destined for a raise after making nearly $2 million in 2009 and the Indians have a MLB ready catcher in Lou Marson whose waiting in the wings. And don’t forget about blue chip prospect Carlos Santana who will be banging on the MLB door after destroying Double-A pitching in 2009.

The former Baylor standout was the first college catcher selected in the 2001 draft by the Red Sox. They used their first available selection on him in the second round. He appeared on Baseball America’s top 10 Red Sox prospect lists for a few seasons before being dealt away to Cleveland before 2006 in the Coco Crisp deal.

Shoppach spent time as Victor Martinez’s backup and when Martinez went down with injuries in 2008 Shoppach ran with the starting opportunity. He led all starting catchers in 2009 ISO (.256) in 353 at-bats. All in all he hit for a .370 wOBA but his .261/.348/.517 line was fueled by a .359 BABIP.

David G. successfully predicted a decline in Shoppach’s 2009 production. While Shoppach’s 2009 batting average plummeted to .214 he still reached base at an above average clip (.335) but his prestigious power that the hacktastic Shoppach previously featured vanished. In 89 games and 271 at-bats Shoppach slugged .399 with 12 home runs.

Shoppach was squeezed for playing time this season. Before some late season trades he was vying for playing time with Victor Martinez as the regular catcher and Ryan Garko at first base. Travis Hafner gobbled up DH time when his shoulder cooperated with him. Prior to the trades Shoppach would typically see playing time when Martinez played first base, Shoppach caught, and Garko hit the pine or saw time at designated hitter. Shoppach didn’t receive an ample opportunity to produce at the rate he did in 2008 until the trades of Garko and Martinez.

With the acquisition of Lou Marson (who also received a September call up and could start 2010 as the starting catcher) Shoppach doesn’t seem to fit in with the Indians. They already have another capable and cheaper back up in Wyatt Toregas. Marson and someone else (possibly Toregas) will likely keep the catching seat warm until Carlos Santana bursts onto the big league scene.

While Shoppach didn’t receive the best opportunity to replicate his 2008 showing he still presents value to other MLB clubs if the Indians do indeed decide to move on. Shoppach’s always been known as a strikeout prone (his strikeout rate is right up there with Jack Cust and Mark Reynolds at 36%) catcher with plus power and solid defense. Scouting reports usually treat Shoppach well in the defensive department. But for what its worth from a recent quantitative standpoint/analysis from new Fangraphs contributor Matt Klaassen AKA Devil_Fingers he was rated as a smidge below average in 2009 (#84 on the list and -1.5 totalruns).

While a throbbing .359 BABIP aided Shoppach’s stellar 2008 campaign a .286 BABIP cut into his 2009 slash stats. The average 2009 MLB hitters BABIP was .299 and that may lead you to believe that Shoppach’s 2009 BABIP normally regressed to the mean. But that is wrong. Shoppach’s consistently over performed the league average BABIP throughout his short career until 2009. Dating back to 2006 his BABIPS has been .286, .359, .357, and .387. It’s likely a fluke that this number remained so high in 2006 and 2007 despite just 110 and 161 at-bats.

This data tells us that Shoppach isn’t a .286 BABIP hitter and that number damaged his 2009 numbers heavily even though he walked and struck out at a similar rate to his 2008 season. The Hardball Times has the best BABIP estimator currently available and this trusty tool can paint a much better picture than raw BABIP. The new toy (and new Rotographs favorite) finds an estimated BABIP based upon his rate of HR’s, K’s, SB’s, line drives, fly balls, pop ups and groundballs. This tool gives us a .332 BABIP for Shoppach in 2009 and a .322 mark for him during his 2008 career year. This estimator suppresses his 2008 numbers but does not damage them as much as alternative methods suggest.

Over Shoppach’s career (right around 900 at-bats) The Hardball Times BABIP estimator has his estimated career BABIP at .327 so his 2009 expected BABIP of .332 doesn’t sound out of line at all. This represents a much more realistic BABIP skill for Shoppach. A .332 BABIP for Shoppach in 2009 would have given him a .260/.381/.445 line assuming that all of those extra hits were singles. It’s fair to assume that his power would have increased more than the normal player with a boosted BABIP due to his known knack to hit for power so this revised projection might be a little light on the power side. I’d personally suppress the batting average and OBP a bit while adding some to the slugging percentage. That gives you some nifty production from the catcher position that some team will have to find resourceful if Cleveland decides to cut ties with the arbitration eligible Shoppach.

It’s worth keeping a close eye on Shoppach’s situation this off season especially since he doesn’t appear to fit Cleveland’s plans very well. Wherever he lands the month of March will likely be key to his future. If Shoppach receives ample playing time he should be a cheap source of power from the catcher position and can be had extra late in your drafts or plucked off of the waiver wire due to his uninspiring, yet misleading, 2009 campaign.

Playing on the same team and at the same position as the hottest player in the Arizona Fall League (Tyler Flowers of the Atlanta Braves organization), Lou Marson did not get a lot of press this past month. However, the 22-year-old backstop prospect is poised to surface in Philadelphia in 2009 – and he has above-average offensive potential at a position that does not traditionally generate a lot of production for fantasy baseball team owners.

Marson was selected out of an Arizona high school in the fourth round of the 2004 draft. His first three pro seasons were spent in relative obscurity thanks to average to below-average offensive numbers. Something clicked, though, in the summer of 2007 when Marson – then 21 – hit .288/.373/.407 with an ISO of .120 in 393 High-A at-bats.

The catcher, who swings from the right side, then improved even more in 2008 at the Double-A level, where he hit .314/.433/.416 in 322 at-bats and earned a one-game appearance at the Major League level. Marson still hasn’t shown much power (.102 ISO in 2008) but his eye at the plate has improved significantly – with an increase in BB% from 11.7 in 2007 to 17.4 in 2008. Marson also had a successful Arizona Fall League in Flowers’ shadow. The Philly’s prospect hit ..324/.425/.588 in 34 at-bats against some of the better pitching in the minor leagues.

Standing – or squatting – in Marson’s way to a Major League career are Carlos Ruiz, 29, and Chris Coste, 35. Both veteran catchers are right-handed and neither one had overly successful offensive seasons. Ruiz hit .219/.320/.300 with an ISO of .081 in .320 at-bats, while Coste managed a line of .263/.325/.423 with an ISO of .161 in 274 at-bats. Ruiz’ off season in 2008 definitely leaves him vulnerable to the incoming young talent. The organization’s second round pick from 2004, Jason Jaramillo, has also spent the last two seasons in Triple-A and should be a capable big league back-up whenever his skills are needed. The Phillies also recently added A-ball Australian prospect Joel Naughton to the 40-man roster.

A little more time at Triple-A certainly won’t hurt Marson, but he is close to being ready to contribute at the Major League level and add his name to the young, talented offensive core in Philadelphia.