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Fish Farm: Hitters Turning Heads at AA Jacksonville

April 23, 2013 in Fish Farm

It may not be who you expected. There are some hitters that are turning heads at AA Jacksonville, but it isn’t the big three OFers in Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna, or Jake Marisnick. Yelich is working his way back from injury, as is Ozuna, and Marisnick is still waiting to be cleared to play.

No, it is names like Derek Dietrich, Zack Cox, Kyle Jensen, and Mark Canha who are showing some need for a promotion.

Derek Dietrich, acquired in Yunel Escobar trade with the Tampa Bay Rays back in December, is logging time at 2B. He is currently hitting .288 with a .440 OBP, .492 SLG, and .932 OPS. Brought along in the Rays system as a SS, he has been slid over to 2B and could possibly convert to 3B if he continues to hit. The Marlins do have an immediate need for a 3B but even with Donovan Solano struggling a bit, Dietrich just may get a longer look at 2B, too.

Dietrich is not the only former college stud to be cruising along right now – Zack Cox, acquired in the Edward Mujica trade with the Cardinals back in July of last season, is heating up. He currently is batting .340 with a .453 OBP, .453 SLG, and a .906 OPS. Over his last 10 games, he is hitting .355 with 11 hits in 31 ABs and only 4 Ks. He is manning 3B and if his offense can continue to improve, he may play his way up to the big leagues soon, or at least get a call up to face AAA pitching. He hasn’t hit a home run yet, but Cox doesn’t project to hit tons of homers, more like a 15-20 guy if he pans out but his defense is above average.

Kyle Jensen has plenty of power. He hit 27 HRs and 24 HRs over the past two seasons. The only question for him is, can he provide a sustainable approach at the plate once he gets to higher levels of baseball? That power has come at a price, with 137 Ks and 162 Ks in those past two seasons, too. That is over a K per game. Right now, the power is there (2 HRs in 57 ABs) but so are the Ks (18 in 17 games). He is hitting .263 with .394 OBP, .421 SLG, and .815 OPS. With the big three getting the focus, expect Jensen to get a little more time at AA JAX but with a more conservative approach, he should mature into a promising power hitter for the club down the road. He also may be moved to 1B to make him a little more dynamic and more marketable.

Which brings us to Mark Canha. A power hitting 1B prospect who hit 25 HRs back in 2011 at Greensboro, the power numbers took a dip last season. Yet his K’s and his average went up, so his maturity as a hitter may just now be starting to take root. The California 1B does have 2 HRs but is batting only .259. Yet over his last 10 games, Canha is catching fire hitting .389 with 2 HRs, 14 hits in 36 ABs, and only 8 Ks. If Canha can continue making this sort of progress, he will definitely make the leap he started last season as a hitter but also bring back the power that he showed in 2011.

 

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Who’s On First? Logan Morrison Still Injured

January 15, 2013 in Injuries, Offseason

logan morrison lomo camp for a cure

Nathan Eovaldi, Juan Pierre, Logan Morrison, Jeff Conine, Christian Yelich, and Justin Nicolino all were present at LoMO’ Camp for a Cure event.

Reports are that Logan Morrison, out since September with surgery on his knee, won’t be able to run for at least a month. Not good considering that Spring Training is only one month away. Most likely though, the Marlins’ young first baseman won’t be ready to take the field on opening day.

Other opinions start to take shape that perhaps the Marlins have just mismanaged LoMo’s injury and this is further evidence. Extending back to last spring training when the Marlins had both Gaby Sanchez and Logan Morrison in camp, instead of letting LoMo rest, they went ahead and rolled him out in LF, straining his injury further.

So, here we are a year later and LoMo is right back where he was. The difference is, the Fish are all out of depth as Sanchez is now gone. This doesn’t look like a great start to the upcoming season, which is already being labeled a “throw away” by many cynical Marlin fans – those that remain anyway. So, who are some alternatives?

Joe Frisaro has some ideas in mind. Greg Dobbs? Joe Mahoney? Why not Kyle Jensen?

Jensen hit 24 home runs last season in Jacksonville and although is projected as an OF, there is so much depth there it would suit him well to play some 1B. He reportedly impressed in the Arizona Fall League, hitting .330 with 5HRs. So much so that even the Miami Herald took notice. But he does K a lot – I mean, a lot: 162 in 445 ABs. That is 36%.

Spring Training is right around the corner and we have another LoMo injury to deal with. The question remains, can he be a productive MLB hitter like most have projected? Or is his knee injury going to prove too damaging to his long term health in this game? More importantly, the Marlins short term success will definitely take a hit in a lineup without LoMo’s bat there to help protect Giancarlo Stanton.

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