Morning Rundown: 2023 Rookie rankings, Silver Slugger Award winners
Morning Rundown: 2023 Rookie rankings, Silver Slugger Award winners
MLB Pipeline ranks the 2023 rookies 'long-term' value
Overall, it was a fantastic year for rookies, with some playing significant parts in playoff and championship-caliber teams.
At the end of the year, MLB Pipeline does an article ranking the rookies for that season when it comes to what they think their long-term value will be.
Two players from the Pirates made the list, with Endy Rodriguez finishing 30th and Henry Davis one spot behind him at 31.
Rodriguez was solid behind the plate after getting called up and showed some of that plus-hit tool from the minors in spurts. Catchers can take a little longer to acclimate to the majors with all their added responsibilities, so it’s expected for him to only get better from here.
The first overall pick in 2021, it’s not a surprise to see Henry Davis ranked, even if he struggled in the majors - both offensively and defensively.
At the top of the list were Gunnar Henderson, Corbin Carroll, and Eury Perez. Players from the NL Central were Jordan Walker (fourth), Elly De La Cruz (seventh), Sal Frelick (16th), Matt McLain (18th), and Andrew Abbott (34th).
The Silver Slugger Awards were also announced, awarded to the top offensive player at each position, as the managers and coaches voted.
No Pirates won, but going into 2024, they have a few names that could challenge for the award if things go right for them.
Francisco Lindor won the Silver Slugger at shortstop after becoming just the sixth at his position to record a 30-30 season. If Oneil Cruz bounces back to 100% and takes the next step in his development, he could challenge those numbers.
Jack Suwinski is the other obvious answer, as he’s hit 45 home runs in his first two years in the majors. That’s a little steeper hill to climb, as the three winners in the NL averaged 38 home runs this past season, and the position itself is incredibly deep.
Another name, Henry Davis, has 25-30 home run potential, too, and if it all comes together for a season, it could also challenge the top.
Yesterday’s feature was headlined by Nola Jeffy, who looked at multiple advanced pitching metric models to look at some notable names in the bullpen this past year.
With the right additions, the bullpen could be a potential strength in the upcoming year. We saw this postseason how important the bullpen is during the playoffs.
Another reminder about our upcoming mailbag feature, dropping every Monday. Send your questions to bucsondeckqa@gmail.com.
Triolo will end up being better than 90% of that list
It's a little disappointing that in year 4 of the tear-down/rebuild that we don't have better representation on the Pipeline list than players at 30 and 31, especially given how quickly the Reds have turned things around. Maybe it's a year or two too soon to expect better, but we traded away a lot of talent for prospects that haven't panned out yet.
OTOH, development isn't linear and I'm hopeful that players like Peguero, Bae, Gonzales, ... follow the Suwinski path where they take significant leaps forward in the sophomore years and that Contreras, Ortiz, Priester, ... figure things out the way Keller has.
For now, though, I'm skeptical as to whether we've fixed the biggest issue from the previous regime in terms of development. There's no doubt things are different, but for all the talk where is the tangible evidence that the changes are helping prospects get to and then succeed in the majors? Again, maybe too soon and I'm staying open-minded, just skeptical.