Kuzul

What good is talent to a fantasy owner who lacks timing?

Fantasy baseball—just like the real thing—is a game of skill, luck and timing. That last trait, in particular, comes in handy with regard to getting value in the trading game.

Knowing which player(s) to trade away and which to deal for—and knowing just the right time to do so—can make all the difference.

After all, it doesn’t get much better than making a move to unload a hot flavor-of-the-week type who’s about to cool off in exchange for a slumping stud who’s ready to take off.

Now, speaking of timing, let’s get to some players to sell high and buy low.

Statistics are accurate through June 19 and come from MLB.com, Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs, except where otherwise noted.

Begin Slideshow

It might have taken a little longer than expected, but Dee Gordon has arrived. Once a top prospect for the Los Angeles Dodgers, the son of longtime big league pitcher Tom and brother of recent first-round draft pick Nick struggled with consistency, both in performance and in playing time, over his first three big league seasons. This year, though, the speedy Gordon has gone from almost-afterthought to breakout player the only way he knows how—fast.

Despite entering spring training without a guarantee he would make the 25-man roster, the 26-year-old has earned his spot as the Dodgers’ starting second baseman and leadoff man by hitting .285 with a team-high 37 runs and 36 stolen bases. By the way, that last number leads the majors by 11 over Cincinnati Reds rookie Billy Hamilton.

The day after he had one of his best games of 2014, leading the Dodgers to a 6-1 win over the Colorado Rockies by going 4-for-4 with two runs scored and a triple—that more or less turned into an inside-the-park home run after an error—Bleacher Report caught up with Gordon for a Q&A.

Not literally, of course.

Q: Your first few seasons in the majors weren’t always easy, and your standing with the Dodgers coming into 2014 was up in the air. Yet here you are in mid-June playing every day at second base, leading off and literally running away from the pack in stolen bases. What do you attribute your success to?

Gordon: Hard work. Just working as hard as I can and believing in myself to prove that I can be a major leaguer and help the Dodgers win, even if I don’t cost that much toward their $200 million payroll.

Q: You’re listed at 5’11” and 170 pounds, and you’ve always had a slender build. There were reports during spring training that you had focused on adding weight and muscle to your frame over the winter. Can you talk about that?

Gordon: In the offseason, I knew I needed to get bigger. To be honest with you, it sucked trying to do it, because it was a long process. I ate. A lot. It wasn’t what not to eat—it was how much. I got to eat everything. I ate healthy food, I ate junk food, I ate everything in between. At first, I almost couldn’t take it—I wanted to quit. But I recognized that it was about finding a way to play so I could help the Dodgers.

Q: Given that you’re leading the league in steals by such a wide margin, is it a personal goal of yours now that you’re playing every day to stay atop that category for the rest of the season?

Gordon: Man, I just wanna score a whole bunch of runs. That’s my goal. If I have to steal bases to do it, that’s what I’m gonna do. If I win the stolen base title, that’d be awesome—and I wanna win it for years to come—but if I don’t and I still help the team win, get to the playoffs and win the World Series, that’s all the gratification I need.

Q: Stealing and sliding into bases isn’t exactly the safest aspect of baseball these days. We’ve seen players like Ryan Zimmerman and Bryce Harper and Mike Napoli of the Boston Red Sox injure themselves while diving headfirst, and so did your teammate Yasiel Puig earlier in the year. How do you protect yourself when you’re running and sliding all over the place?

Gordon: I wear a bunch of McDavid pads for protection. Sliding and diving and playing so hard all the time can be a grind on your legs. So I use McDavid pad products to help keep me on the field so I can play every day. When I lost my spot with the Dodgers in 2012, it was because I broke my thumb stealing third, so I’m definitely aware of the risks.

Q: When did you first realize just how fast you are?

Gordon: It’s funny, because growing up I played football, and I was always faster than everybody else. I played running back, so I would run sweep left or sweep right and then just outrun everybody. But then I switched to basketball and didn’t have to use my speed quite as much. I didn’t really know how fast I was in baseball until I got into it as I got older.

Q: Speaking of speed, when you scored on your triple-with-an-error Monday night, you rounded the bases in 13.98 seconds. That’s the fastest time in the majors since at least 2010, according to Tater Trot Tracker, but it’s still behind Billy Hamilton’s 13.8-second dash around the diamond when he hit an inside-the-park home run at Double-A a couple years ago. Any thoughts?

Gordon: I actually almost fell rounding third base on that [laughs]. No, seriously, if you watch the video, I tried to stretch too far reaching for third.

Q: With the season you’re having to this point, you’re at least in the discussion to earn an All-Star nod for the first time in your career. The latest voting results show you’re in third place behind Chase Utley of the Philadelphia Phillies and Neil Walker of the Pittsburgh Pirates. What would making it to Minnesota in July mean to you?

Gordon: That would mean a lot, man. It would mean all my hard work has paid off and make some of the struggles I went through my first few years worth it in the end. But even to be mentioned in the running is awesome. 

Q: Sticking with Minnesota, your younger brother, Nick, was just selected as a shortstop out of high school with the fifth overall pick in the draft by the Twins. What’s your scouting report on him?

Gordon: I don’t think Nick has any flaws in his game. Especially for a player coming out of high school, he’s pretty polished. He’s going to be a great major league player one day because he can hit for power, hit for average and he’s going to steal bases. Plus, he’ll be a leader on the field every day as the shortstop. For now, though, I told him to get used to some long bus rides, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and watermelon while he’s in the minors.

Q: Your father was a big league pitcher for 21 seasons, and he had the nickname “Flash” because of the last name Gordon. It seems that nickname might suit you better, though, because of how fast you are, right?

Gordon: Well, back in high school, my dad ran a 4.3 40-yard dash, so he was pretty quick, too. I’ve kinda taken on his nickname, but I did it more as a way to show that I appreciate how he brought us up and that I was gonna continue the legacy.

Q: Did you have to ask your dad first if you could borrow his nickname?

Gordon: Nah, I just told him, “Dad, I’m stealing your nickname.” [Laughs]

Q: The big topic around baseball right now is the passing of Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn and how everybody in the sport is mourning the loss of such a great player and great man. You played with his son, Tony Gwynn Jr., on the Dodgers in 2011 and 2012, and your father’s career overlapped with Gwynn’s from the 1980s through the 2000s. Did you get a chance to meet him ever?

Gordon: Honestly, the news hit me hard, because Tony [Jr.] is one of my best friends in this world. We first met in 2010 right after he signed with the Dodgers [that December], and we just became cool real quick. We’re like brothers, and you never wanna see your brother down. He’s always been there for me, like a big brother. I talked to Tony [Monday], and I told him that I’m gonna keep him in my prayers and that I love him and hope he gets past it.

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Mr. Gwynn at his house, sharing a meal with him and his family, talking about the game, talking about life. Watching him swing the bat and get all those hits when I was growing up, and then knowing how much he loved to coach and help people—that’s what’s gonna stick with me.

Statistics are accurate through June 16 and come from MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com, except where otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

At 29-39 heading into Tuesday, the Chicago Cubs are on a familiar path. That is to say they’re looking at their fifth consecutive losing campaign and their 106th straight season without a championship. And yet, for an organization that hasn’t had much success lately—and even not so lately—there is hope.

That hope is all about a future in which the Cubs are no longer Lovable Losers but perennial contenders. Better yet, it’s a future that is gradually becoming the present, thanks to the presence and progress of one of Major League Baseball’s very best farm systems—and a “Core Four” of elite prospects, in particular.

Those four? Why, they’re easy to name, and not only for folks waiting (and waiting and waiting) for their inevitable arrivals on the North Side: Javier Baez, Kris Bryant, Albert Almora and Jorge Soler.

Although all four ETAs aren’t identical, if the plan put into place by team president Theo Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer plays out just right, that quartet should reach Wrigley Field and help the Cubs start making some noise as soon as 2016—and for years beyond.

Epstein, who took over baseball operations for the Cubs in October 2011 after winning two titles as GM of the Boston Red Sox, told Tim Keown of ESPN The Magazine this past spring training: “There’s definitely a dichotomy with how we’re perceived from the outside and how we feel about ourselves as an organization. There’s a great vibe around here. The sense of progress and potential is palpable.”

Of the seven Cubs prospects to earn a ranking in the top 100 among five well-known sites that track and rate young players—Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, Bleacher Report, ESPN and MLB.com—the four mentioned above as the club’s potential “Core Four” are those who checked in as top-50 prospects in each preseason ranking:

There are a few noteworthy points to make about this quartet. The first is that they’ve all been acquired within the past three years, starting with Baez, who went No. 9 overall back in the 2011 draft; followed by Almora at No. 6 in 2012; then Soler, a Cuban defector who signed a nine-year, $30 million contract in late June of 2012; and most recently, Bryant, last year’s second pick, who has been absolutely tearing up the minors since he signed.

The second is that they’re all still extremely young, even by prospect standards, for their respective levels of play, which is especially promising. The youngest of the bunch is Almora, a 20-year-old at High-A, and Baez is 21 and already at Triple-A. Bryant and Soler, both 22, are teammates at Double-A.

And lastly, all four are position players. While Baez is a shortstop and Bryant a third baseman, Almora and Soler are center and right fielders, respectively. As for their strengths on the diamond, Baez, Bryant and Soler have some of the best power in the minors, and Almora is considered one of the best up-the-middle defenders.

Indeed, this fantastic foursome of prospects is not only new and young, they’re also more likely to make an impact on a daily basis in some way or another—hitting, running, fielding—and less likely to succumb to a progress-halting or career-derailing elbow- or shoulder-related injury like oh so many young pitchers have recently.

That’s not to say all of them are quote-unquote “can’t-miss” or “safe”—if such a thing exists. While Baez and Bryant have remained relatively healthy as professionals, both Almora and Soler have dealt with injuries that have hampered their development.

Almora suffered a broken hamate bone and a strained groin last year, and Soler has been particularly snake-bitten, having played only seven games at Double-A this season while dealing with a right hamstring ailment after losing much of 2013 with a fractured tibia.

There are other prospects in the Cubs pipeline aside from Baez, Bryant, Almora and Soler, too. Among them are infielders Arismendy Alcantara, Jeimer Candelario and Dan Vogelbach, as well as right-handers C.J. Edwards (acquired as part of the Matt Garza trade last July) and Pierce Johnson (the team’s second selection after Almora in 2012), both of whom are currently out with injuries.

Any of them, and a host of others, could factor into the franchise’s future at various stages from the next few months to the next few years and help the team return to relevance.

But if the Cubs are going to be more than just relevant any time soon, Baez, Bryant, Almora and Soler will be at the heart of the resurgence.

Funny how the stars sometimes align, but if that comes to fruition, baseball just might be gaining a new “Core Four” in Chicago just as the one in New York is wrapping up its run. With the retirement of Derek Jeter at the end of this season, the Yankees’ version—Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera and Jeter—will be saying goodbye just as the Cubs’ is breaking in, starting with Baez and Bryant.

Of course, there’s a long way—and about five rings—to go before any “Core Four” comparisons can really be drawn. But the build-it-back-up-from-within approach started working about 20 years ago in the Bronx after what were arguably the darkest days in Yankees history.

Although the Yankees’ 17 championship-less seasons from 1979 through 1995 (counting the 1994 strike year) don’t quite measure up to the Cubs’ never-ending drought, the point isn’t to compare futility, but to point out the way in which it turned to an extended period of success thanks to the team’s rebuilding with savvy draft picks and steady player development. 

Whether the Cubs’ “Core Four” of Baez, Bryant, Almora and Soler, supplemented by other prospects and players brought in by Eptsein and Hoyer via the draft, free agency and trades, eventually proves capable of doing what the Yankees’ model did—have sustained success and maybe even win it all—remains to be seen.

Ultimately, though, that’s the Cubs’ plan: to turn the future into the present and then ensure the present lasts well into the future. This is how Hoyer put it to Keown: “One of the challenges with the drought or the streak is the idea that next year’s the year. You want to reach the point where next year can always be the year. Trying to cobble something together every year to make a run has had a negative impact here.”

With Baez and Bryant nearly ready and Soler and Almora to follow, the Cubs’ “Core Four” will be in place soon. So for a change, the Chicago Cubs are acknowledging that next year won’t, in fact, be the year. But 2016 and beyond? Maybe. Just maybe.

Statistics are accurate through June 16 and come from MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com, except where otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

What good is talent to a fantasy owner who lacks timing?

Fantasy baseball—just like the real thing—is a game of skill, luck and timing. That last trait, in particular, comes in handy in regard to getting value in the trading game.

Knowing which player(s) to trade away and which to deal for—and knowing just the right time to do so—can make all the difference.

After all, it doesn’t get much better than making a move to unload a hot flavor-of-the-week type who’s about to cool off in exchange for a slumping stud who’s ready to take off.

Now, speaking of timing, let’s get to some players to sell high and buy low.

Statistics are accurate through June 12 and come from MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com, except where otherwise noted.

Begin Slideshow

It’s hard to blame Chicago Cubs fans, really.

After all, they’ve had to wait what is now going on 106 years for their team to win a World Series. And now that the team sports one of baseball’s best farms systems, fans are more or less being told that they have to wait a little bit longer—amid what’s shaping up to be a sixth straight losing season—before they get to watch any of their premier prospects make it to the North Side.

Indeed, the Cubs are overflowing with young offensive talent in the minors, including shortstop Javier Baez, second baseman Arismendy Alcantara and outfielders Albert Almora and Jorge Soler. But perhaps the one prospect who has become the most eagerly anticipated to reach the Bigs is also the newest member of the bunch.

Despite being drafted No. 2 overall barely a year ago, Kris Bryant is playing so well that the fervor and expectations in Chicago are skyrocketing—rather quickly and not at all quietly—in anticipation of his looming, inevitable arrival in the major leagues.

As David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune wrote this week:

…at some point, the losing at Clark and Addison needs to quit looking so tactical. At some point, the Cubs need to stop violating the basic tenets of sports that say the best players play and franchises have an obligation to put the most competitive teams on the field.

And it is almost impossible to argue that Bryant, a product of the University of San Diego who hit a whopping 31 homers on his way to winning the 2013 Golden Spikes Award as the nation’s best amateur player, isn’t one of the 25-best players in the Cubs organization based on his performance in his first full professional season.

Let’s put the 22-year-old’s 2014 numbers—all of which have been accumulated while wrecking the Double-A Southern League for the Tennessee Smokies—into a spiffy, easy-to-read table:

Ummm, that’s ridiculous. Not only is Bryant leading the league in just about every single offensive category, he’s also well out in front in some of them. For instance, his 57 runs scored are 16 more than the next-highest total, his 84 hits are 10 more than anyone else and his 22 homers are almost twice as many as the second-place total (13).

Talk about trying to force the big league club’s hand. And don’t think the decision-makers haven’t noticed.

Here’s what general manager Jed Hoyer recently told Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago: “Looking at the numbers he has put up in the month of May, it is fun. We tell every young class to go dominate (at their level), and (Bryant) is certainly doing that.”

Plenty of people believe Bryant is ready—more than ready—for Chicago and that he would bring some much-needed buzz to Wrigley Field immediately. Bryant would more or less be a tangible embodiment of the promise and hope from a rebuilding process that is a handful of years in the making.

Former big league Rookie of the Year Todd Hollandsworth, now an analyst for CSN Chicago, can be counted among that group:

My personal opinion, I’d love to see these young kids get up here and get a chance to play…You gotta learn it up here, you gotta play up here, you gotta learn if you can stand on your own two feet at the major-league level. So the sooner you get these guys going, that’s when the process really starts.

Alas, it seems that none of the folks who want Bryant in the Bigs—like, now—work in the team’s front office. Despite all of the above, the Cubs brass continues to insist that Bryant’s ETA is a bit longer than just about every Cubs fan wants to hear.

To Hoyer and team president Theo Epstein, who are tasked with rebuilding the Lovable Losers, Bryant represents more of the future than the present. And while that’s understandably frustrating for fans, it’s also part of the plan, which involves bringing up this wave of elite young talent together so it can congeal into a legitimate contender, in both 2016 and beyond.

As Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune wrote this week:

The urge to promote Bryant from Tennessee to the majors would go against the patience that president Theo Epstein has stressed with the Cubs’ prospects, and the early struggles of Javier Baez at Triple-A Iowa serves as evidence not to consider skipping the Triple-A level.

Plus, it’s not like Bryant doesn’t have elements of his game to hone. Quite often that lip-service excuse is floated out even when a top prospect’s development is complete, but it is simply said so that the player’s service-time clock can be started later, thus delaying free agency and/or arbitration by a year.

In Bryant’s case, his defense at third base remains a work in progress; some expect that he’ll eventually have to move to a corner outfield spot—in part because of what should be an overcrowding on the dirt, but also because Bryant might be better suited there.

And with all of that crazy, change-the-game-with-one-swing-of-the-bat power comes quite a lot of swing and miss. Bryant has struck out 73 times in his 278 trips to the plate this season, which translates to a 26.3 percent strikeout rate. For an advanced college hitter, a rate that high isn’t damning, but it’s also something that should be cleaned up while he’s still in the high minors so it doesn’t cause problems once he’s a big leaguer.

So it remains to be seen exactly when Bryant will reach Wrigley. This coming July? During September roster expansion? On Opening Day 2015?

It also remains the decision of Epstein, Hoyer and others in charge of a franchise and a fan base that has waited long enough to simply win again, much less win it all again.

In that sense, then, the Cubs and their fans are in the perfect position when it comes to Bryant’s arrival. Waiting just so happens to be what this organization and those who obsess over it do best.

Statistics are accurate through June 11 and courtesy of MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com, unless otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

At long, long (loooong) last, super prospect Gregory Polanco of the Pittsburgh Pirates is being promoted Tuesday, as Tom Singer of MLB.com writes. That makes it a great day for Polanco, the Pirates, their fans and baseball as a whole, since one of the sport’s premier young talents will be making his debut.

As much as this news—which Polanco himself announced on Twitter—is exciting, though, it also brings to light something that has become a needless and short-sighted problem for Major League Baseball. To put it simply, teams have taken to keeping their top prospects in the minors as a way of manipulating their service time.

The reason? A little rule that has become a big deal in recent years known as “Super Two” status.

In case you’re unfamiliar with the term, here’s the explanation of Super Two straight from MLB.com:

A player with three or more years of service, but less than six years, may file for salary arbitration. In addition, a player can be classified as a “Super Two” and be eligible for arbitration with less than three years of service. A player with at least two but less than three years of Major League service shall be eligible for salary arbitration if he has accumulated at least 86 days of service during the immediately preceding season and he ranks in the top 22 percent (increased from 17 percent in previous agreements) in total service in the class of Players who have at least two but less than three years of Major League service, however accumulated, but with at least 86 days of service accumulated during the immediately preceding season.

That’s a long, complicated way of saying that certain players wind up going through the arbitration process four times instead of the usual three, which puts them on a quicker path to making a higher salary.

The popular misconception surrounding Super Two is that there’s a hard-and-fast “deadline date” after which players can be called up. In reality, this is a moving target, as Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors shows by laying out the past five Super Two cutoffs:

While team decision-makers won’t publicly admit as much, delaying the promotion of prospects is primarily about saving money. Baseball, after all, is a business, and saving money is good for business. Except in this case, it’s also a maddening, frustrating way to operate, and frankly, the payoff isn’t necessarily worth it in the end.

Plus, this often leads to front office executives and managers spewing tired lines and retread explanations as to why a particular prospect—including shortstop Javier Baez of the Chicago Cubs to right-hander Noah Syndergaard of the New York Mets to lefty Andrew Heaney of the Miami Marlins—isn’t helping the big league club yet.

In Polanco’s case, Pirates GM Neal Huntington repeatedly insisted the outfielder was “continuing to refine some of the intricacies of his game,” as Rob Biertempfel of Trib Live reported at the end of April. This despite the fact that the 22-year-old has looked more than major league-ready while hitting north of .350 into June at Triple-A.

To be fair, Polanco, a natural center fielder, was being groomed to play right field—reigning NL MVP Andrew McCutchen is in center—and perhaps hit leadoff, as Jenn Menendez of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported in late May. So, yes, there were some things for Polanco to work on.

Ultimately, though, the baseball world is getting its first look at Polanco on June 10 instead of May 10 or even April 10 more or less so Pittsburgh can save some money in the long run.

That amount could wind up being several million dollars, and certainly, every little bit counts for a small-market team like the Pirates. But the fact that the very structure of the sport, thanks to the Super Two rule, encourages teams to keep their top young talent out of the majors is something that dates back at least to the Tampa Bay then-Devil Rays and Delmon Young in the mid-2000s—and needs to change.

This isn’t at all how it goes in other professional sports. In basketball and football, players go straight from college to the NBA and NFL—and often can have a major impact right away. In hockey, some of the non-elite drafted amateurs might spend a little time in developmental leagues, but there’s nothing that benefits a team from keeping its best prospects off NHL ice.

Imagine the uproar had the Cleveland Cavaliers not immediately unleashed LeBron James after drafting him. Or the constant questions the Indianapolis Colts would have faced if they kept claiming that Andrew Luck just wasn’t ready yet. Or if it wasn’t in the best interests of the Penguins to promote Sidney Crosby right away.

That last example is a little more close to home for the folks in Pittsburgh.

Yet because of the Super Two, baseball teams actually have money as a motivating factor for keeping their next big things in the minor leagues, where they dominate the competition and inspire awe among fans—all while riding buses and playing in ballparks with one tier of seats.

While this keep-the-prospects-down approach has become popular over the past handful of seasons as a way of doing baseball business, there are examples of clubs choosing to promote their top youngsters once they’re deemed ready—Super Two be damned!—and having success because of it.

Perhaps the best for-instance of that is Tim Lincecum with the San Francisco Giants, who debuted on May 6, 2007. The right-hander put that extra experience to good use by winning back-to-back Cy Young Awards in 2008 and 2009, and he remained a key contributor during the Giants’ World Series wins in 2010 and 2012.

As Matt Shetler of City of Champions Sports notes, here’s how that decision played out financially for Lincecum, who qualified for Super Two, compared fellow pitching phenom Clayton Kershaw, who didn’t after being promoted by the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 25, 2008:

One great Super 2 example is that of San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum, who qualified for it and made $9 million during his first year of arbitration. His salary went up $4-5 million each of his next three arbitration years until he was making $22 million during his final arbitration season.

To compare, Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw was not a Super 2 and made $500K in his fourth season in the majors. He proceeded to jump to $7.5 million and $11 million his next two arbitration seasons.

Look, that’s a big difference—and a lot of money—so it’s hard to hate on the Pirates for their decision with Polanco. But the problem is that the Pirates—a franchise that just last year ended a record 20-season streak of finishing below .500 and falling short of the postseason—really could have used Polanco over the first two-plus months of this season.

They’ve managed to hang around .500 (30-33) and the NL playoff picture, but it’s hard not to play the what-if-they-had-Polanco-all-along game right about now, isn’t it?

There’s a pretty strong argument to be made that saving what might end up being a few (or even several) million dollars isn’t worth it to a team when it comes to winning in the here and now—let alone creating some buzz and attracting fans to the park to come see their next star.

In essence, the Pirates are hoping that Polanco becomes so great so soon that they wind up saving several million dollars on him a handful of years from now. And again, it’s not their fault for handling their prized prospect as they have.

There has to be a better way, doesn’t there? Maybe the league and players association should consider shrinking the percentage of players who qualify for Super Two to, say, 10 percent during the next labor negotiations. That would encourage clubs to get their best prospects up sooner rather than later.

Or maybe the idea of the Super Two simply should be abolished. While the point of the rule is to allow more young players to get paid a higher salary sooner via arbitration, if it’s actually delaying their arrival in the major leagues—and in many cases, clearly it is—then ultimately the rule is costing players service time and, thus, money.

The Super Two rule is one of the main reasons teams have been trying to lock up young players to long-term extensions very early in their careers, a trend that’s gaining more and more steam. That’s just what happened with Jonathan Singleton of the Houston Astros last week, and not coincidentally, he made his MLB debut the very next day.

Earlier in the season, Pittsburgh tried to do the same thing with Polanco, but he rejected the offer. Undoubtedly, that kept him in the minors—until now.

As Huntington told Menendez last month:

Everyone wants to pretend there’s this magic date or this magic number [for Super Two]. … We don’t know that. That’s why we don’t let it drive our decisions. If you did, and you’re wrong, then you should’ve had the player up the whole time.

Just a thought: Maybe baseball should work on making that the point in the first place.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The working title for this column was simply “Oscar Taveras: ‘Bout Damn Time.”

That’s because, at long last, the St. Louis Cardinals are calling up Taveras, a 21-year-old outfielder who is the crown jewel of their formidable farm system and one of the best prospects in Major League Baseball.

Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2008, Taveras has risen through the ranks primarily on the strength of his bat and pure hitting ability, which is considered among the very best in the minors, if not the best. He is ready—and has been for some time now—and the next-great-hitter hype is for real.

Taveras, who swings from the left side, sports a career slash line of .321/.377/.519. He was batting .325/.373/.524 for the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds this year and was particularly hot over his past 10 games, going 18-for-39 (.462).

News of the promotion first came late Friday from Rob Rains of StL Sports Page, who points out that Taveras initially was penciled into the lineup for Memphis, only to be scratched during a rain delay so he could head to St. Louis.

Taveras is expected to be with the Cardinals in time for Saturday’s contest and in the lineup as they take on the San Francisco Giants, who have won the first two of the four-game set.

Incidentally, Rains also notes that on the very same date last year—May 30—the Cardinals brought up Michael Wacha for his big league debut. The right-hander, who has since become the team’s second-best pitcher behind ace Adam Wainwright, is slated to start Saturday.

The corresponding move to get Taveras on the Cardinals’ 25-man roster is placing first baseman Matt Adams, who leads the team with a .325 average, on the disabled list due to a calf injury that has bothered him since earlier in the week, according to Alex Halsted of MLB.com.

With Adams on the shelf, Allen Craig will shift from right field to first base, opening up a spot for Taveras. And starting Wednesday, the Cardinals play in American League parks for seven straight games, which allows them to expand their lineup via the designated hitter.

Given his immense potential, Taveras wasn’t called up not to play every day. With his hitting ability, the hope—if not expectation—is that he can make an immediate impact for a Cardinals club that has struggled offensively so far. St. Louis ranks in the bottom half of baseball in runs scored, primarily due to having hit only 29 home runs (second-fewest) and slugging .369 as a team (seventh-worst).

Taveras can help with that. Prior to the season, Baseball America (subscription required) rated him as the Cardinals’ top prospect—and No. 3 overall in baseball:

Taveras has a preternatural gift for hitting, one honed by trying to hit the caps of water jugs spun fast to veer like a Frisbee, and thousands of swings against a tire lashed to a fence. He has electron-quick bat speed. He barrels pitches in the zone, and he can drive any pitch he can reach, sometimes going outside the zone to do so. He’s a bad-ball hitter who doesn’t strike out often. 

Here’s Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus (subscription required) dishing on Taveras:

The bat is very special, with electric hands, ferocious bat speed, and contact so easy and natural that it’s conceivable that Taveras shares a genetic relationship with the bat in his hand. He’s ready to hit at the major-league level…so whenever he gets to promotion, be prepared to watch a future batting champion and perennial All-Star.

But enough with the words. Let’s get to some footage of Taveras‘ so-violent-it’s-sweet swing, which has earned comparisons to former MVP Vladimir Guerrero for his outstanding plate coverage and ability to barrel up just about any pitch in any location.

Here’s a double from this past spring training against Daisuke Matsuzaka of the New York Mets:

At the very beginning of the clip, you can hear announcer Ron Darling mention that Taveras has won multiple batting titles in the minors. He hit .386 in 2011 to lead the Midwest League, and while his average dipped to “only” .321 in 2012, that was good enough to finish atop the Texas League. Plus, Taveras nearly tripled his homer output from eight to 23 that year.

For a closer look at what makes Taveras such a gifted hitter, here’s video from his four-hit game against the Minnesota Twins back in spring training of March 2013:

It’s worth pointing out that Taveras collected those knocks against four different pitchers, with two coming against right-handers and two against left-handers.

That second hit shows Taveras keeping his bat in the hitting zone while generating crazy bat speed at the point of impact and into his high finish. The third hit, meanwhile, displays his uncanny ability to make an adjustment to a breaking ball from a southpaw literally while the pitch is in flight. (Pay particular attention to the slow-motion replay shown from the side angle.)

Is Taveras the perfect prospect? No. He’s battled injuries over the past year, including a hamstring strain this past spring that cost him any chance to make the club out of camp. He also suffered an ankle injury last season that limited him to only 47 games (188 plate appearances) and ultimately required surgery.

His defense remains a work in progress too, and his effort and focus have been called into question in the past. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch‘s Derrick Goold wrote for Baseball America (subscription required): “The other elements of his game, including attention to detail and constant effort, are catching up to his hitting. Taveras’ zest is at the plate, and his game can wander away from it.”

While Taveras has been getting time in center field of late, Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak recently told CBS Sports Radio 920 in St. Louis, “He’s a nice corner outfielder. He’s got some improving to do if you really want to put him in center field. I think it would be a tough place to play day in and day out at the Major League level.”

Whether Taveras sees any action in center once he’s up, though, will be key. If he proves he can handle the position, that will be the best-case scenario for both him and the Cardinals, as it’s his easiest path to stick around once Adams returns. At that point, Craig would have to shift back to right field, and veteran Matt Holliday is set in left.

In center, though, Jon Jay and Peter Bourjos aren’t exactly roadblocks, given the former’s defensive struggles and the latter’s lack of production with the bat.

Given the situation—the Cardinals offense is in need of a spark, especially after losing Adams, and there’s a potential opening in center field—the timing of Taveras‘ promotion makes a lot of sense. Now, it’s about damn time to see what he can do.

Statistics are accurate through May 30 and come from Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs, except where otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The New York Yankees may be thought of as Major League Baseball’s model franchise, but here’s the worst-kept secret in the sport: They’re not. These days, that title belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals.

With the two teams facing off for a three-game series in St. Louis, now is as good a time as any not only to explain why, but also to point out what the mighty Yankees can—and should—learn from the Cardinals.

To be clear, the Yankees have baseball’s best resume, thanks to all sorts of accomplishments, like 27 World Series titles, and their lofty status as the game’s most recognizable and valuable franchise with a long and storied history. The Yankees are a perennial power, one that has made it to the postseason practically every year for the past two decades (17 out of 19 seasons, to be exact). There’s no denying or debating this. It is fact.

The Cardinals’ recent run of success, however, merits that they be mentioned as a part of—if not as the lead in to—any discussion of baseball’s most well-run organization. While the Yankees and Cardinals have reached October 11 times and nine times, respectively, since the first season of the 21st century (2001), St. Louis actually has won more playoff games (56 to 51) and, most importantly, more championships (two to one) over that time.

Two incredibly successful franchises, and yet two very different paths to said success. The difference lies not in their on-field achievements but in their behind-the-scenes methods, primarily their draft-day decision making and organizational player development process.

If the Yankees and Cardinals were subjected to an examination on the show How It’s Made, the methods of manufacturing all their success over the past decade-plus would look drastically different.

For instance, take a look at the cumulative wins above replacement (WAR) totaled by draft picks while they were a part of each team, according to Baseball Reference:

While not overwhelmingly so, the difference in total WAR over this span is pretty stark. And there are a few quick takeaways that put the numbers into context better—and serve to widen the gap.

First, the Yankees have had only two fruitful drafts (WAR of 10.0 or higher) in their past 13, while the Cardinals have had four. Obviously, it’s a bit early to be gauging any of the last few drafts, but safe to say that youngsters like Michael Wacha and Kolten Wong already look like they’re ready to create even more distance in the WAR tally—especially since not a single Yankees selection from the past three Junes has made it to the majors yet.

Secondly, the majority of New York’s draft WAR accrued as Yankees comes from Brett Gardner (21.0 WAR) and David Robertson (10.2). Those two were drafted all the way back in 2005 (third round) and 2006 (17th round), respectively, by the way.

Think about this for a second: Gardner is the last player drafted and developed by the Yankees who has reached even 200 career at-bats while wearing pinstripes.

The failings of the Yankees farm system are both well-known and well-documented, whether it’s the actual picking of amateur players or the eventual (lack of) development of them.

General Manager Brian Cashman acknowledged as much to Wallace Matthews and Andrew Marchand of ESPN New York this past February:

It’s not as good as we need it to be in terms of results. There are a number of reasons behind that. At the end of the day, we’ve had some misses, without a doubt. We’ve had some guys who didn’t make their projections, who failed to cross the finish line. So basically it’s fair to criticize where we’re currently sitting.

And while picking late in the draft year after year doesn’t make things easy for the Yankees, that argument is moot in this case because the Cardinals have had the same fate most years.

Meanwhile, so much of the Yankees’ ability to sustain their success over the past decade has been tied to the simple fact that they’ve spent more money than any other team in the sport. New York was usurped by the Los Angeles Dodgers this year for the top spot in payroll, and that marked the first time since 1998—15 years ago—that the Yankees won’t be No. 1 in that regard.

Of course, the Yankees’ roster still checked in at $204 million, according to calculations. It’s not as if they suddenly stopped splurging.

In fact, it was just the opposite, as they spent about half a billion—yes, with a “b”—to bring in free agents Masahiro Tanaka ($155 million), Jacoby Ellsbury ($153 million), Brian McCann ($85 million) and Carlos Beltran ($45 million), among others.

The Cardinals’ biggest move of the winter? Inking Jhonny Peralta to a $53 million deal to help solidify a shortstop position that has been a black hole in St. Louis for years.

This past offseason more or less symbolizes the difference in approaches between the Yankees and Cardinals, who have consistently ranked on the fringes of the top 10 in payrolls since the turn of the century, according to USA Today’s database—but never anywhere near New York.

That’s because St. Louis has shown an ability to get the most out of its draft picks, both early selections like Wacha (Round 1, 2012), Shelby Miller (Round 1, 2009) and Lance Lynn (Supplemental Round, 2008) and later ones like Allen Craig (Round 8, 2006), Matt Carpenter (Round 13, 2009), Trevor Rosenthal (Round 21, 2009) and Matt Adams (Round 23, 2009).

Because the Yankees have failed to make the right choices most every June for the past decade and then didn’t help themselves in the development process, they’ve been forced to spend in free agency to obtain talent.

That tends to lead to a roster full of older players, which is why the Yankees’ pitchers rank as the 10th-oldest in baseball at 29.3 years on average and their hitters check in as the oldest—by a large margin—at 32.7.

The Cardinals have worked the opposite way: choosing wisely and cultivating young talent along the way, then supplementing with a key free-agent acquisition or two. St. Louis’ average ages, by the way, are 26.6 for pitchers (second-youngest) and 28.9 for hitters (16th-youngest).

Monday night’s game between these two clubs is a perfect example of this dichotomy. In what turned out to be an extra-inning affair that went 12 frames, the Yankees and Cardinals both used exactly 17 players.

Whereas the Cardinals’ lineup featured 12 players who were originally drafted or signed by the team, the Yankees could say the same about only eight.

And of those eight, Alfonso Soriano’s career actually began in Japan, and he only just returned to New York in a trade last July; while captain Derek Jeter is the longest-tenured Yankee, having been drafted in 1992 and debuting in 1995. And don’t forget: This is Jeter’s last season, as everyone is more than well aware.

The Yankees may have won Monday’s game 6-4, but old man Jeter’s looming retirement is but another reminder that although the Cardinals have become baseball’s model organization, the Yankees’ model, while far from broken, is clearly showing its age. And more than a few cracks.

Statistics come from Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs, except where otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

What good is talent to a fantasy owner who lacks timing?

Fantasy baseball—just like the real thing—is a game of skill, luck and timing. That last trait, in particular, comes in handy in regard to getting value in the trading game.

Knowing which player(s) to trade away and which to deal for—and knowing just the right time to do so—can make all the difference.

After all, it doesn’t get much better than making a move to unload a hot flavor-of-the-week type who’s about to cool off in exchange for a slumping stud who’s ready to take off.

Now, speaking of timing, let’s get to some players to sell high and buy low.

Statistics are accurate through May 22 and come from Baseball Reference and FanGraphs, except where otherwise noted.

Begin Slideshow

So much of the focus of the 2014 Major League Baseball season in recent weeks has been on the Tommy John surgery epidemic, the ever-growing list of injured star players (Ryan Braun, Bryce Harper, Joey Votto, Jason Kipnis, etc.) and the historic, can’t-miss performances by a pair of rookie phenoms in Masahiro Tanaka and Jose Abreu (who is now hurt, too). It’s almost as if arguably the biggest plot point heading into the campaign—the inaugural year of expanded instant replay—has been overtaken.

With so much else going on, that’s understandable. Plus, the league acknowledged that the expanded instant replay system wasn’t going to be perfect off the bat, and as such would remain a work in progress to be tweaked and adjusted for the first few years.

“It is in three phases,” said Atlanta Braves president John Schuerholz, who was part of the committee who helped implement the new system. “We’ll check on how well we did after Year 1, again after Year 2. And after Year 3, we expect to be as near to perfection as we humans can get.”

That’s a wise approach, but it doesn’t mean we can’t do a status check along the way. Because in its first season with a wider scope and new and different circumstances, replay is impacting MLB in a few major ways outside of, say, fewer manager ejections.

Like these.

Correct Calls…

The biggest impact expanded replay has had is on giving teams a chance to have umpires take another look at a close play in a big spot in a game. Turns out, challenged calls are being overturned at a rate of about 50 percent, writes Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star:

There already have been numerous occasions in which a game-altering decision has been reviewed. None has been bigger than the one that happened when Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle challenged the third out on a play at the plate in the bottom of the ninth of a tie game against the San Francisco Giants on May 6.

The result? After one minute and 14 seconds, we had baseball’s first walk-off review:

…But Not Always

The occasional gaffe still happens, even when a play (or sequence) is looked at again.

Like, for instance, on April 22 when Yunel Escobar of the Tampa Bay Rays was called out on strikes—on a 4-2 pitch:

This actually happened. Some things are just hard to believe.

The league issued a statement afterwards to admit the mistake, saying: “An error was made when replay officials and supervisors mistakenly thought one of the pitches was a foul ball, when it was actually a ball.”

The same after-the-fact admission of error happened on April 12 when Dean Anna of the New York Yankees ever-so-briefly lifted his foot off second base—with the tag still applied—after sliding into second with a double against the Boston Red Sox.

Manager John Farrell had the umpires check the play, which wound up being confirmed as safe in a game the Red Sox ultimately lost:

Clearly, that’s something that cannot be happening and needs to be fixed.

Catching Up

Speaking of fixes, already one change has been made because it is so important to the fabric of baseball it was necessary to fix during the season: Ruling when a catch is considered a catch.

Remember when everyone was in an uproar over the fact that umpires were being much more strict about players having to complete the entire process of a catch by transferring the ball from glove to hand without dropping it?

Kudos to MLB, because that was taken care of right quick before things really got out of hand. That proves the league is serious about evaluating replay and making changes.

Management Decisions

If there’s one aspect of instant replay that is most deserving of criticism or most in need of change going forward, it’s the need for managers to challenge an umpire’s decision. There are two factors at play here.

First, this requirement creates too many awkward occasions where, having witnessed a close play, a manager will leave the dugout, enter the field of play, approach the umpire and chat for a few moments—all while awaiting a signal from his bench on whether to risk a review.

Alas, there is no data on how often this happens and how much time it wastes, per Kennedy:

What Major League Baseball does not have stats on are the number of times a manager stops play without using a challenge — one of the more annoying quirks of the new system. As part of the new system, each team is allowed to have a member of the coaching staff watch the same video feeds as the league and communicate with the dugout via two-way phone whether a play should be challenged or not. A manager can decide after he takes the field whether or not to use a challenge.

“You knew there was going to be some growing pains with this system, and all and all I think it’s doing its job,” Toronto Blue Jays pitcher R.A. Dickey told Kennedy with regards to the manager-umpire conversations that lead to a non-challenge. “It’s just I wish it wouldn’t interrupt play so much.”

More than awkward, it’s unnecessary, time consuming and easily done away with: Just have an umpire in the Replay Command Center in New York take it upon himself to double-check any close call, which would happen after he alerts those on the field that just an extra minute or two is required to do so before play can resume. Or simply make it an automatic challenge whenever a manager steps out of the dugout.

Either way, that would do away with what has become the silliest aspect of the expanded replay system and simultaneously speed up the time of games.

Secondly, the inherent “strategy” that comes with deciding when to use and when to save the challenge would be gone. While there’s some intrigue to this will-he-or-won’t-he concept, it’s also ultimately problematic if a manager loses the challenge and then no longer has the ability to have a play reviewed later that ultimately has a bigger—or potentially, outcome-deciding—impact on the contest.

This happened to longtime skipper Bruce Bochy and the Giants back on April 1, and the whole thing felt a little like a cruel April Fool’s joke:

Let’s be clear: Baseball is better off with instant replay, and expanded replay is working well for the most part. Plus, the average time of review is now under two minutes, as Richard Justice of MLB.com notes, which is manageable.

The goal, though, should be to get calls right as often and as quickly as possible, and it’s pretty clear so far that there are ways to improve both.

Fortunately, Major League Baseball understands this and already has shown that the review process itself is under review.

Statistics come from Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs, except where otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com