2008 Preview

On paper, I am not exactly sure what to expect from the Chiefs this year. The team looked more impressive before injuries kept Randy Wells and Buck Coats in Toronto to start the year, but I guess that's not exactly a surprising development in Toronto's case.

Catchers:

This is the best looking part of Syracuse this year. Curtis Thigpen and Robinzon Diaz are extremely good with the bat. Thigpen's .285 batting average was among the best for the Chiefs last year, while Diaz batted over .300 the whole year (most of which was with New Hampshire, however he did hit .338 in his 19 games with Syracuse towards the end of last season). The only downfall of this group is the inconsistency at throwing out base runners. Diaz's arm was stronger, while Thigpen seemed to improve his throwing during his stint in Toronto. With question marks around many other areas, this duo is very steady. A-

Infield:

With 18 games being the most that one player (excluding Russ Adams, as he is being groomed more to DH and spend time in the OF) from this group spent in Syracuse last year, I am not exactly sure what to expect. Chip Cannon brings some power, while Hector Luna brings a decent stroke with him. The late addition of Jorge Velandia doesn't add much to the team, whose infield yields an extremely small amount of power, aside from the Cannon and Sergio Santos. Santos, however had no home runs in his 13 games in Syracuse last season, after taking 20 out of the yard in his stint with New Hampshire. Defensively, Inglett seems solid, while Santos will hopefully break out of his fielding slump that occurred during his late season callup last year. There is potential on Cannon's part, but the rest of the infield has a lot of red flags in my opinion. D+

Outfield:

Looking at the names, most people would be excited to have this outfield. Adam Lind should be able to have some good numbers this year. He still has a problem with striking out a bit too much, but hopefully that is something that was worked on during the offseason. Wayne Lydon brings speed to a team that only had 60 steals last year (2nd least in the IL). I think he'd be a bigger weapon if manager Doug Davis would be willing to take more chances involving Lydon's speed, though. David Smith going on the DL takes away the most powerful hitter in the group, while giving Russ Adams more of a chance to get some playing time in the outfield. Defensively, this group will benefit greatly due to the newly installed grass at Alliance Bank Stadium. Lind and Lydon were both liabilities at times in the field last year. Lydon improved towards the end of the year at seeing the ball (early on he would often misjudge fly balls, which would end up as extra base hits, due to the extremely fast carpet at ABS), while Lind still seems to be having troubles, at times seeming afraid to dive on the hard outfield surface. With Russ Adams learning the ropes in the outfield, I do expect some mistakes. Overall, not a great defensive group, but one that can put some numbers up when at the plate. B-

Pitching:

The starters on this team should be Josh Banks, David Purcey, Mike Gosling, Bill Murphy, and possibly Davis Romero. These are the only five on the team who have had recent history of playing the role of starter. Bubba Nelson was used for a majority of the year as a 1 or 2 inning reliever, but may be considered to start. Banks should provide a bit of consistency, while Gosling and Murphy provided decent ERA's last season. Romero's return from missing last season may be turbulent to start, but I think he will be a nice addition.

The relievers look adequate but not great. Jordan De Jong, Shawn Camp, and Kane Davis should provide good numbers. John Parrish spent much of last year in the majors, but also had an ERA of over 5, while an almost even K/BB ratio. The rest of the group all come from AA.

Overall, this group will be hit or miss. The starters look good, but after the 6th or 7th inning, things may be shaky. If Purcey can turn into the strong pitcher that has been expected of him and a darkhorse or two become strong and reliable relievers, this staff could be great. At this point, who knows. B-

Coaching/Toronto:

Anyone who reads this blog probably knows where this is going. We all know that the main reason for a farm team is to serve the major league club. This is why in some cases certain players are used in positions that most sane people wouldn't agree with, pitch counts are given causing a struggling pitcher to stay out for 3 innings to hit that magical number of 75, even though it causes the team to be down 8-0, etc. Most teams, however, do not seem to pull this as much as Toronto.

Since most of these things are not public knowledge (who is on a pitch count, etc), I have to group both the coaching and Toronto as one group. In situations of game play that are not controlled by Toronto, we have manager Doug Davis, pitching coach Rick Langford, and batting coach Al Le Boeuf to rely on. This is where things fall apart at times. Last year, it seemed as though Davis and Langford were a step behind most of the year. Everyone in the stadium would feel that opposing team home run coming, but a Langford visit to the mound seemed to come right after the home run, kind of the equivalent to a doctor telling a patient to cut out fast food after that third heart attack. Again, I cannot judge what happens behind closed doors or how these managers develop players during practice. What I can judge are situations when the Chiefs consistently play by the book. No matter what situation, if the count was 3-0, Davis put up the stop sign. I can count the times at home games where a player swung at a 3-0 count. ONE. One time, and it was one of the last games. Davis does not allow this team to gamble, which puts Syracuse at a distinct disadvantage. Opposing managers know how to play defensively against the Chiefs, something that I think cost them at least 5-6 wins last year. When I made a statement to a player late last year that I felt Davis should be replaced, his response to me? "You're not the only one." That says it all. F


Where do I see this team finishing? Around the same spot as last year. I think offensively there are some holes. This reminds me of last year, when a good amount of the team took about 2 months to finally start hitting. Defensively, I don't see another 10 error game (I would hope not..) but I think there will be struggles. If Toronto stays healthy, things may be a bit better, but I don't think too much. If Toronto doesn't strip us like last year and some other years, add a couple wins to the total.

My Prediction: 65-75

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