Seems like an appropriate time to remind folks that there’s a commenting policy at this here place, and you are expected to know it/adhere to it. Three things you agree not to do, that I’ll highlight:
to abuse, harass, threaten, impersonate, or intimidate other Bleacher Nation users;
to unfairly insult, attack, deride or threaten players, managers, executives or other persons affiliated with MLB (i.e., name-calling, personal insults, threatening comments, aggressive language, etc. – this is not designed to stamp out reasoned or fair/thoughtful criticism); or
to engage in behavior that is not in the interest of facilitating enjoyable, productive discussion (i.e., disruptive comments; excessive caps, exclamation points, and/or text-speak; “trolling;” comments designed to annoy, irritate, or otherwise inflame the passions of other users). Disagreements are fine and encouraged. Persistent, irritating behavior is not.
These rules apply to everyone, regardless of their position on the substance of the discussion (and/or their desire to be treated like a victim – “you’re just singling me out because I don’t agree with you!” – when the rules land on them).
Quick Emilio Bonifacio analysis: we should take a look at some of his projections for the 2014 season, as they haven’t been discussed around here (since he was signed after the projections came out). ZiPS – projecting him with the Royals in the Royals’ ballpark, mind you – sees Bonifacio as a .258/.315/.339 guy this year, with 31 SB against 8 CS. Similarly, PECOTA has him at .261/.318/.335, with 26 SB and 6 CS. That’s not a great player, but it’s above replacement-level, and the projections are better than those for Darwin Barney (.253/.299/.349 from ZiPS, .248/.291/.342 from PECOTA). I have no doubt that Barney has the better glove, though Bonifacio is at least average defensively at second (and he brings a baserunning ability that Barney doesn’t have). I’m not saying Bonifacio should be the starting second baseman (depending on what happens at third, you could make an argument for Luis Valbuena), but I do think it’s reasonable for there to be a discussion.
If you’re looking for a reason to believe 2011 Bonifacio (.296/.360/.393) could return this year, Mark Gonzalez reports that the thumb and knee injuries that curtailed his 2012 season bled into the offseason and contributed to his slow start with the Blue Jays in 2013 (after a mid-season trade to the Royals, Bonifacio’s numbers once again resembled the 2011 guy). Of course, if you’re looking for a reason to believe that 2011 Emilio Bonifacio was a blip, you could point to his .372 BABIP, which is a full 40 points higher than his career average.
Jason Hammel looks and feels good so far in camp. Recall, he had some forearm issues last year and some teams were a little nervous about signing him, so his Spring health is a notable thing to follow.
Folks get tired of hearing “best shape of his life” stories in Spring Training, but it’s certainly better than hearing that one of your young players (Jesus Montero of the Mariners, in this case) showed up to camp 40(!) pounds over his target weight.
Over at the Message Board, BN’er Chris Neitzel discusses why today’s top Cubs prospects are not yesterday’s top Cubs prospects, in no small part because rankings have improved dramatically.
Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here.
Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.
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NEWSLETTER
Seems like an appropriate time to remind folks that there’s a commenting policy at this here place, and you are expected to know it/adhere to it. Three things you agree not to do, that I’ll highlight:
