So what's wrong with this Edgar guy?

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ghostrunner
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So what's wrong with this Edgar guy?

Post by ghostrunner »

http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/ ... alez.shtml

Had 2 hits for us today. He's hardly had an OPS below .800 his entire career. For a 2nd baseman, you could do a lot worse. Can't understand why he hasn't advanced past AAA.

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haltz
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Post by haltz »

Derrick Goold weighed in on his blog. I have been wondering the exact same thing.
EDGAR GONZALEZ singles to right-center field, scoring both Ludwick and Rodriguez, and Gonzalez takes second on the throw to the plate. The scoring binge ends with one of the most intriguing hitters of camp. He’s had almost as many errors at second base this spring (2) as he has home runs (3) and his obvious ability at the plate is offset only by his lack of agility in the field. Twice selected in the Rule 5 Draft, all Gonzalez has done as a minor-leaguer is hit.

He played at three different levels for the Marlins last season and never hit worse than .293 while never slugging lower than .457. Over his past 191 at-bats in Triple-A, he’s hit .382 with five home runs and 40 RBIs and 41 runs scored.

His home run Friday was off Atlanta lefty reliever Mike Gonzalez, who has allowed only five home runs in his previous 147 1/3 innings over the previous three regular seasons.

The brother of San Diego’s Adrian Gonzalez, a Gold Glove-caliber first baseman, Gonzalez has been working out at shortstop and third base, but the Cardinals have only used him at second base this spring. He had 19 errors last season, 20 the season before. He’s ticketed for Triple-A, where he’ll probably start at second base, but if he gets his glove in tune with his hitting he could be insurance with pop.

“That’s what he’s working on,” La Russa said. “If he had it all figured out then he already would be in the big leagues. There’s room for him to continue to improve. He takes his at-bats like he has a chance to hit. … He’s opened some eyes, so now he’ll go down and play and we’ll see what he makes of the opportunity.”

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cabby7588
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Post by cabby7588 »

Maybe it's because he played for the Yankees at one point.

Seriously though, it's kind of a shame our bench is full, baring anything unexpected. I doubt LaRussa cuts either Preston or his lover, So. Can he played short stop? If so, he can't be worse than Miles.

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Post by sighyoung »

I know nothing about him--has he mostly played corner infield, is he a Tin Glove, or is he a potentially good utility infielder with a solid bat?

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ghostrunner
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Post by ghostrunner »

sighyoung wrote:I know nothing about him--has he mostly played corner infield, is he a Tin Glove, or is he a potentially good utility infielder with a solid bat?
Well, he does appear to have made a number of errors, roughly 20 a year. But that's pretty comparable to Soriano and we were interested in him during the offseason, and we retained the services of Chris Duncan. His offensive stats would push him ahead of Kennedy.

EDIT: There's no reason he shouldn't be on the team, looking at it again. Miles is the only backup 2b. Jolbert Cabrera and Brendan Ryan are the backup shortstops and both of them can stay down in the minors. Miles would actually be a better option there. Have Miles as a backup 2B/SS and Gonzalez as a backup 2b/3b and pinch hitter.
Last edited by ghostrunner on March 17 07, 9:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Bo Hart
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Post by Bo Hart »

ghostrunner wrote:
sighyoung wrote:I know nothing about him--has he mostly played corner infield, is he a Tin Glove, or is he a potentially good utility infielder with a solid bat?
Well, he does appear to have made a number of errors, roughly 20 a year. But that's pretty comparable to Soriano and we were interested in him during the offseason, and we retained the services of Chris Duncan. His offensive stats would push him ahead of Kennedy.
To be fair, those guys offer a lot more offensively.

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ghostrunner
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Post by ghostrunner »

Kyle wrote: To be fair, those guys offer a lot more offensively.
I know, I just hope defense doesn't become TLR's rationale for keeping him down in AAA.

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Post by jagtrader »

If you're mediocre or worse defensively, you better be an extraordinary hitter. Gonzalez isn't. He's just good. In the end, he'll probably hurt you more in the field than help you at the plate.

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ghostrunner
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Post by ghostrunner »

jagtrader wrote:If you're mediocre or worse defensively, you better be an extraordinary hitter. Gonzalez isn't. He's just good. In the end, he'll probably hurt you more in the field than help you at the plate.
I'm not saying he should start, but a bench role seems within reason, especially when Aaron Miles is the current backup and not exactly a defensive whiz.

He's got a lifetime .821 OPS which he's essentially maintained at every level of the minors, and would have put him 4th among all second basemen last year. Just stick him on the bench and see if he can learn something defensively.

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Jmodene
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Post by Jmodene »

He's not going to learn how to play defense sitting on the bench. Better he play every day at Memphis and get it going.

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