State Guys to Watch for in MLB in 2008

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Yeah, I was in the show…You know, you never handle your luggage in the show, someone else carries your bags. It was great. You hit white balls for batting practice, the ballparks are like cathedrals, the hotels all have room service, and the women all have long legs and brains. (Crash Davis in “Bull Durham”)

These are the four former State players you’re most likely to see on a major league roster in 2008. They are each either currently on a 40-man spring training roster or a non-roster invitee for their organization. We’ll keep an eye on these guys and update their progress regularly this season.

Joey Devine (2003-05)
Right-handed Pitcher
Oakland A’s
To many Braves fans’ chagrin – myself included – Devine was traded in the off-season to Oakland for the aging Mark Kotsay, who will hopefully help fill in the gap in the outfield left by the loss of Andruw Jones, who signed as a free agent with the Dodgers.

Devine had pitched only 19.2 innings over three seasons with Atlanta, but he had shown tremendous potential at both Mississippi (AA) and Richmond (AAA), having ended the 2007 season second in the Braves’ farm system in saves (20) and ERA (1.89); in fact, he was named the Mississippi (AA) Pitcher of the Year. Additionally, his 10 relief appearances with Atlanta in 2007 were by far his best in the majors: surrendering only one run in 8.1 innings of relief with an ERA of 1.08, he picked up his first (and only) major league victory against Milwaukee in September after pitching out of a bases-loaded jam in the 11th inning.

Unlike many relievers, Devine has proven effective against both right- and left-handed batters, but he has pitched slightly better against right-handers, yielding only a .211 batting average, .211 slugging percentage and .360 on-base percentage.

Devine is on Oakland’s 40-man spring training roster, and as of now, it appears that he will have the opportunity to begin the season in the A’s bullpen.

Chad Orvella (2002-03)
Right-handed Pitcher
Durham (AAA)/Tampa Bay Rays
Still making the transition from middle infielder to pitcher, Orvella has only pitched 69 innings of primarily middle relief with Tampa in three seasons, posting a career record of 4-10 with a 5.79 ERA; he made 10 appearances with Tampa Bay during May and June in 2007, but went 0-2 with an ERA of 14.63. However, he spent most of 2007 in Durham, where he pitched well in 42 relief appearances, having posted a record of 3-3 with a 3.12 ERA and a team-leading 20 saves, good enough for second in Tampa Bay’s farm system.

His biggest drawback in the majors to this point has been that he can only be used as a situational reliever. He has struggled mightily against left-handed batters, who have posted against him a .500 batting average, .579 on-base percentage and .688 slugging percentage; incidentally, however, all of his earned runs have been against right-handers.

He’ll likely begin this season in Durham as well, but with Tampa Bay’s thin bullpen after Troy Percival and Al Reyes, Orvella might at least have the opportunity to pitch as a Ray in 2008 if he starts the season well in Durham.

(Tampa Bay is now officially known as the Rays rather than the Devil Rays; complete with a brightly-shining sun as the new team logo, this was an attempt by the front office to purge the negative connotation of what a Devil Ray represents as a bottom feeder of the ocean.

Note the particular, extreme irony in this: one, in its 10 seasons, Tampa has never finished above last place and never won more than 70 games; two, a team with a brightly-shining sun as its logo is the only team that plays in a domed stadium without a retractable roof.)

Colt Morton (2001-03)
Catcher
San Antonio (AA), Lake Elsinore (A)/San Diego Padres
Morton missed spring training in 2007 and spent most of the season rehabilitating a bad shoulder, but he is reportedly completely healthy for spring training this season, where he will have the chance to prove his worth as an up-and-coming raw power hitter. He started 2007 in the Arizona Rookie League but quickly worked his way up to Lake Elsinore (A), where he batted .500 in 24 at-bats before being called up to San Antonio (AA), where he batted .266 with six homeruns and 19 RBIs in 29 games.

Morton is on San Diego’s 40-man spring training roster but will begin 2008 in Portland (AAA) as the third catcher on the Padres’ roster, behind Josh Bard and Michael Barrett. By all indications, he may very well get his opportunity with San Diego this season if Barrett continues to struggle at the plate as he did after being traded by the Cubs last season, where his batting average and on-base percentage dropped off and he finished the season far below his career averages.

Joe Gaetti (2001-03)
Left Field
Colorado Springs (AAA), Tulsa (AA)/Colorado Rockies
Gaetti is a non-roster invitee to the Rockies’ spring training camp this season but has never played in a major league game in five seasons. In 49 games with Tulsa (AA) and 74 games with Colorado Springs (AAA), he’s only a career .254 hitter with a .333 on-base percentage and .473 slugging percentage.

The defending NL-pennant Rockies have Matt Holliday in left field, so Gaetti’s chances to play in Colorado this season will be limited.

VTpackfan contributed to this post.

About LRM

Charter member of the Lunatic Fringe and a fan, loyal to a fault.

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21 Responses to State Guys to Watch for in MLB in 2008

  1. CarnifeX 03/03/2008 at 8:15 AM #

    Anyone know what the status is on Brackman? How is he recovering from Tommy-Johns surgery? Is he on a roster? Still a Yankee (dammit)?

    LRM: Brackman had surgery in August and reported with pitchers and catchers to spring training last month. He was throwing from 95 feet but will miss all of 2008 to rehabilitate. He is expected to make a full recovery.

  2. Anthony Grundy 03/03/2008 at 10:48 AM #

    Unrelated, but thanks for changing the logo at the top. I still prefer the original, but this is much improved over the previous.

    and thanks for maintaining this site.

  3. Noah 03/03/2008 at 11:02 AM #

    You don’t want to include Aaron Bates? He hit .332 with 24 HR at single-A ball last year and I think he’s going to start out at AA ball this year. He’s the top first base prospect in the red sox org.

    LRM: Noah, I left off Aaron Bates because he wasn’t invited to the Red Sox spring training, which makes it highly unlikely he’ll see any time in the majors this season.

  4. Noah 03/03/2008 at 2:42 PM #

    My mistake, I didn’t bother reading that this was only for guys who might see time in the majors this year.

    Duh.

  5. vtpackfan 03/03/2008 at 6:36 PM #

    True story….

    A friend of mine summered in N’orleans after he had finished schooling at Tulane. He went into a seedy lookin’ dive (pick one it’s the Big Easy) and he sits up at the bar and orders a beer. It’s a bit after noon and it’s just a couple yokes like you and I sitting there and staring at the tv next to the top shelf material (makers mark, 10 high, you know the classy choices).

    Any who its some ESPN 2 roto world looking geek talking about who’s hot in Fantasy Leagues and who’s not. The owner of the establishment comes up from a trap door below the bar with two cases of chilled Abita and looks up at the tv. He sits the beer down for the bartender to handle and looks back at the tv, the pencil neck broadcaster, and the gimmicky backdrop that represents the latest downgrade in the Total Sports Network.

    He turns to the clientele, all three, and asks inquisitively,

    “Do any of you play fantasy baseball?”

    The two to the left of my buddy nod their head.

    “Oh, yeah. Sure do.”

    “FAGS!”, is all the owner said before he walked down into the cellar.

    I don’t know why but I always get a kick out of that one whenever it’s recalled. Which reminds me of what I actually wanted to say on this thread.

    Does anyone want to have a SFN private league? Mix it the rules make it interesting.

  6. cowdog 03/03/2008 at 8:08 PM #

    An aging Kotsay… geez nice lead in to Devine. Shouldn’t have done that . Kotsay is a couple of rungs above our boy Devine. And that word aging kinda tweeked me as a bit biased.

    Have special place for Kotsay I must admit…saw him at Fullerton a bunch when we lived out there. My kids have many one on ones with him.

    No knock on Devine but was very surprised at his draft pull. Kids got to see him at Doak too.

    Just sayin

    LRM: I’ll admit my bias (I’m a Braves fan), but it’s not personal with Kotsay. Devine had finally started to come around in a bullpen that badly needed him, so it was tough to see him go. As for Kotsay, 32 is “aging” in professional sports. Not to mention Kotsay’s numbers have dropped off steadily over the past few seasons (he’s got good range in center, but he’s a career .282 hitter and doesn’t bring much power). He’s hit over .300 only once in his career (.314 in 2004) and his on-base plus slugging has dropped off drastically and was a paltry .575 last season. He only played in 56 games last season due to injury and across the board, his numbers have fallen steadily; 2007 was his worst year since his rookie season. I just wonder if the Braves gave up too much for a one-year band-aid?

    Plus, my buddy wormlikewhoa really hasn’t dealt well with Andruw being a Dodger, so Kotsay gets some of that grief.

  7. vtpackfan 03/03/2008 at 9:47 PM #

    I like what Oakland has done in developing young arms for years now. It’s probably between them and the Twins as far as the finest franchises’ when it comes with grooming pitchers.

    The braves have done nothing of note in that area since Smoltz, Glavine, and Avery. They followed the Yanks lead by becoming buyers and not investors in pitching for so long that they stopped raking through the finer details of what it takes to produce a great young stable of arms.

    Regardless of who got traded for what, I think Devine is in a better place now and hopefully will succeed towards his full potential.

    LRM: In fact, the Braves can thank the A’s for developing Hud, too…as can the D-Backs with Haren, the Giants with Zito, and the Cards with Isringhausen…although guys like Mulder, Gaudin and Koch seemed to be overworked, which led to eventual injuries.

  8. vtpackfan 03/03/2008 at 9:54 PM #

    Mortons biggest obstacle for making the team is Bard. They won’t send Barrett down because of the cash they shelled out, so we will have to wait to see if he gets in a bar room fight with a brocken cue stick and “Boomer” Wells.

    Bard is very good defensively and a very streaky hitter with power from both sides of the plate. I thought the Red Sox were pretty dumb letting him get away with Varitek getting a little grey in the whiskers. What do I care, I loathe Red Sox Nation.

    LRM: This likely isn’t Morton’s season to move up. One, he could use a full season in AAA to develop into a better game-caller; two, like you said, it’s unlikely he comes up (until September when rosters expand) unless the Pads decide to shop Barrett, unlikely considering his one-year contract after arbitration. But then again, no one expected Brian McCann to take Estrada’s job in 2005, and last year no one expected Jared Saltalamacchia to play so well so early that he’d eventually be part of a mid-season blockbuster trade for Mark Texiera (just to use an obvious example of possibilities). Bard is the better catcher right now and I wouldn’t wish injury on either him or Barrett to see Colt get his chance, so here’s hoping he earns it.

  9. Noah 03/04/2008 at 9:29 AM #

    I think the “prime” part of one’s career is considered 27-32 in MLB, so Kotsay is definitely “aging.” I say that as a 35 year old.

    Devine’s got great stuff and he can be a successful closer, he just has to learn how to pitch consistently. I think the Richmond pitching coach said his biggest problem was that his arm slot would wander.

    In the 90s, the Braves put together the best pitching staff in baseball since the 1954 Indians. They signed Leibrandt and Maddux via free agency. Glavine was a fifth-round pick. Avery was a firstie. And Smoltz was a fire-sale reject for Doyle Alexander.

    He’s really the anomaly. He was drafted somewhere like the 38th round by the Tigers and never really did much of anything in their organization. He showed no signs of being this great prospect and you know the Tiggers had to be giggling down the homestretch in 1987 (I remember that final series with Toronto very well).

    So they put this staff together and it becomes a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I don’t know if you can legitimately complain that they haven’t done it since. It’s like people complaining that they only won a single World Series. They won one more than most of the teams in baseball did during the same period.

    Regarding the Red Sox, I would imagine that Boston is planning on addressing Varitek’s replacement via FA. Catchers are usually pretty cheap. It’s pitchers you don’t want to have to go get via FA.

    (card-carrying member of RSN)

  10. Dr. BadgerPack 03/04/2008 at 10:20 AM #

    I’m not so sure I’d say Devine turned a corner last year. Yes, his ERA was nice. But his utterly disgusting WHIP (1.8 I think) indicates he’s going to run into some problems if he doesn’t quit putting people on the bases. Don’t get me wrong- I hope he kicks butt this year. But, if I’m a GM and need a warm body for CF and the other team says “give me that guy with the 1.8 WHIP,” the deal is done.

    LRM: Good point. However, his WHIP was skewed by his two atrocious April starts, where he gave up 5 hits and 5 walks in only an inning of work total. His WHIP with Richmond was half that (0.95) and he averaged 11 Ks and 2.5 BBs per 9 IPs as well — I imagine the A’s were banking on that being more representative of what he is capable. Also interesting to note is that he actually pitches better with runners on base, but struggled mightily when falling behind in the count.

  11. Dr. BadgerPack 03/04/2008 at 10:27 AM #

    Noah- Of course catchers are cheap. That’s because 95% of them couldn’t hit their way out of a paper bag. You’re of course right about wanting to develop your own pitchers– although isn’t part of that a numbers thing? You need 11-12 pitchers, 5 of them starters. You need 2 catchers, and if you’re lucky and have a good one (that can rake), you really only need the second guy for about 30 games.

    The biggest problem with catching is it’s hell on the body and not many people are durable enough to do it. So, if an organization has a guy crushing the ball he is typically moved to save his legs. I’d expect Mauer, for example, to be moved pretty darn soon if he shows he can’t stay healthy again this year.

  12. LRM 03/04/2008 at 10:31 AM #

    Noah,
    Any ideas on who the BoSox will go after to replace Varitek?

    The 2009 FA catcher pool is kind of weak considering it lacks plate production and/or is aged: Johjima (31), Estrada (31), Barajas (32), Ross (30), Valentin (32), Zaun (36), Redmond (36), and Blanco (36). Of these, Estrada or Brajas seem like the best bet. However, since Zaun will also be a FA and is 36, I’d imagine Toronto will attempt to re-sign Barajas (and Zaun wouldn’t really be an upgrade over Varitek anyway).

    Neither Ross nor Valentin have done much in Cincy.

    So will they make a move for Johjima?

  13. vtpackfan 03/04/2008 at 12:33 PM #

    Although I might put Varitek in the caterory thats really only occupied in today’s game by Posada. It’s that ageless, teflon catcher thing Gary Carter and Calton Fisk were able to pull off.

  14. Noah 03/04/2008 at 1:22 PM #

    “The biggest problem with catching is it’s hell on the body and not many people are durable enough to do it. ”

    Which is why you don’t spend money on the position. If you can hit .250, handle a pitcher and throw out more base runners than Mike Piazza, you can get a contract and play.

    No, I don’t know who the Red Sox are targetting. They’ve got a guy somewhere in their system that they like, but I’m blanking on who it is.

    The Red Sox are so pitching-rich that they can make moves for position players that everyone else can’t.

  15. LRM 03/04/2008 at 1:49 PM #

    They’ve got George Kattaras at Pawtucket (AAA), who they picked up in the David Wells trade — he’s on their spring training roster. They also have the very young Ty Weeden at Lancaster (A).

    This is the most I’ve ever talked about the Red Sox and I loathe myself a little bit for it.

  16. Noah 03/04/2008 at 2:40 PM #

    Honestly, there was something a little more enjoyable to pulling for the Bosox in the AL and the Braves in the NL in 1988. The Braves started off with something like 15 straight losses and Boston was about to move into the Tom Brunansky years.

    I was a Dale Murphy/Jim Rice fan, so those were my teams.

    As far as I’m concerned, if you don’t know who Biff Pocaroba and Tony Conigliaro are, you don’t get to be a fan. 🙂

  17. Noah 03/04/2008 at 2:43 PM #

    Former NC State-er John Still is Boston’s A-ball catcher, I think.

  18. LRM 03/04/2008 at 3:18 PM #

    I was going to cover Still, actually, but he didn’t get invited to spring training.

    You’re right, he was a catcher in Greenville (A) mainly, but moved to Lancaster (A). I’m not sure where he’ll begin 2008 because from what I can tell, he lacks the arm-strength to be a major league catcher, and it seems that he started making the move to first base last season and will likely continue to do this season.

    Interestingly enough, if he develops at 1B then his main competition in the next few years will be Aaron Bates (see above).

  19. Noah 03/04/2008 at 4:34 PM #

    Lars Anderson will probably be more competition at 1B than Bates. I think they’re at the same level.

  20. Dr. BadgerPack 03/05/2008 at 7:38 AM #

    Wasn’t Conigliaro the elite hitter who took one right off the melon and pretty much ended his career?

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