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Kevin Goldstein FanGraphs Chat - 2/21/2022
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J-Shot
12:53
Is Druw Jones the consensus #1 prospect for this years draft?
Kevin Goldstein
12:53
No. There is no current consensus.
SJ
12:54
If you were put in charge of a front office, what industry would you look into hiring from that isn't currently seen as a standard path into baseball?
Kevin Goldstein
12:54
Let me stew on this. Nothing immediately comes to mind. I came from a non-traditional background. I think you just have to open to looking at smart people regardless of background.
Phil
12:55
Could you say more about there being no line between a prospect and a non-prospect? There is such a thing as an "organizational player," yes?
Kevin Goldstein
12:55
There is, but it can change. Players chance, often in dramatic and unexpected ways.
David
12:56
Considering the (apparent) move to daily meetings. Before/after next Wednesday night for CBA agreement.
Kevin Goldstein
12:56
I'm glad they are talking and talking a lot, and it's definitely a good thing, but I really don't see them finding common ground in the next 48 hours.
David
12:57
NEXT Wedneday, 3/2
Kevin Goldstein
12:58
My bad. That's possible. I think we're going to end up with 144-154 games.
Erik
12:58
How common was it for the Astros' internal evaluations of their own prospects to diverge from the public consensus by at least a full grade during your time there? And if that happened, was it almost always that the Astros were higher on their own lesser-known guys, or did the public ever love a prospect that you guys weren't big fans of?
Kevin Goldstein
12:58
Often, and in both directions.
stanky
12:59
If there was one prospect in the minors who was allowed to lead off every single inning (so roughly 2x the PAs as he would otherwise get), would his hitting ability advance 2x faster? I know it'd be player to player but, generally speaking, would prospects advance much faster if they had twice the reps per game?
Kevin Goldstein
12:59
Faster yes, but I don't think it would be perfectly linear so less than 2x.
Drew
1:00
Now that the Astros have a draft again, assuming they still draft as well as the did before with new management...do you have an idea of how long it can take to rebuild the system to a point where it's respectable again? Seems like it can be done, would just take about 2-3 years of good drafting at least
Kevin Goldstein
1:01
The amateur group is still pretty much intact and in very good hands. Of course it can be done, it happens all the time.
Guest
1:01
The year is 2035. You look back at your 2022 Prospect Rankings and see that Oneil Cruz has had the best career on the list. What single aspect of his game would you guess he must have been more successful at than anticipated?
Kevin Goldstein
1:02
Ability to stay at SS comes to mind. Between swing decisions improves the whole offensive profile. Also, if I'm 66 years old and looking at 13 year old prospect lists, I'm worried about what my life has become....
Guest
1:02
How much wood would Brandon Woodruff chuck if Woodruff could chuck wood?
Kevin Goldstein
1:02
81.45.
Ok, final minutes here. Lots of prospect week content to get back to!
Insert Witty Name Here
1:03
If the players just said we won’t play unless you give us everything we want, how many years would they have to sit out before the owners would agree?
Kevin Goldstein
1:03
Not gonna happen.
Chi City Mayne
1:03
Where does Ed Howard go from here?
Kevin Goldstein
1:03
To Hi-A. Obviously he's got a long way to go, but it's not like anyone should give up on him.
Guest
1:04
I’ve seen FG prospect evaluation talk about mistake hitters at low levels a lot. Is there any way to scout the stat line for a prospect who is a mistake hitter? Any way to identify someone who is hitting well, but will struggle with big league stuff
Kevin Goldstein
1:04
Just off the stat line? That would be very very hard. You need the underlying metrics and looks to establish that kind of thing.
J-Shot
1:05
Do you think Elly De La Cruz's hit tool ever develops? He has some of the loudest tools right now in the minors.
Kevin Goldstein
1:05
It's crazy tools, no doubt. He definitely needs to clean up his approach.
Ben Schneider
1:05
Going back to the Astros eval question, if a front office is lower on their prospect than other teams, then do they actively try to trade him for good value?
Kevin Goldstein
1:05
Oh yeah.
Josh
1:06
Did you think Hiura would struggle given the tap and leg kick or was this unexpected?  Would you be optimistic about his future if he can tame down those 2 things?
Kevin Goldstein
1:07
I did not, but neither did anyone else. It's not like anyone was surprised he was drafted where he was drafted.
Chi City Mayne
1:07
Burl Carraway seems on the James Karinchak track. Could he be up this season?
Kevin Goldstein
1:07
I don't think they're that similar.
stanky
1:07
Thanks, pitching dev question this time: how important is getting work in games to minor league pitching dev? Is there a future where more than 50% of the work of improving pitchers in the minors is done via driveline and other analytical tools, and actual in game reps are less important?
Kevin Goldstein
1:07
They're both very important. You can't just practice your way to good.
Guest
1:08
Is MILB ever going back to league names, like the PCL? Or are they sticking with AAA West?
Kevin Goldstein
1:09
I don't know. I haven't heard anything. I wouldn't be surprised to see some sort of corporate sponsorship on the naming of those, unfortunately.
Jon Gruden
1:09
If Kyler Murray decided today he wants back in on baseball, how many at bats would he need before he cracks OAK's lineup?
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