Minor Lines 8/4/10: Rampaging Rizzo

by Ben Buchanan on Aug 5, 2010 3:35 AM EDT in Minors

Portland L 3-6

Che-Hsuan Lin: 2-3, 2 BB
Nate Spears: 1-4, BB, 2 K
Luis Exposito: 0-2, 2 BB
Anthony Rizzo: 3-4, 2B, 2 HR, E
-What looked like possibly a disappointing season to start the year has turned out to be anything but. Not only has he turned it around in Double-A (dispite a promotion that seemed way too fast), but he's actually showing more power than ever before now, and his walk rates are climbing back up too.

Kyle Weiland: 4.2 IP, 10 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 HR
Jason Rice: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

Rizzo was so good before the jump, I'm just gonna mention that again.

Salem W 7-3

Box Score

Pete Hissey: 1-4, BB, K, SB
Oscar Tejeda: 2-4, BB, K, SB
Tim Federowicz: 1-4, 2B, BB, 2 K
Ryan Dent: 0-3, BB, K

Cesar Cabral: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

Greenville W 3-2 (In 11)

Box Score

Derrik Gibson: 1-4, 2 K, E
Jeremy Hazelbaker: 2-3, 2B, SB, CS
Michael Almanzar: 1-3, 2B, K
Reymond Fuentes: 1-3, K

Drake Britton: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 1 HR
-Perhaps most encouraging is how his innings limit is getting back up to normal levels. A promotion is in line.

Lowell L 5-6

Box Score

Jose Iglesias: 1-2, 2B, 2 BB, K
Kolbrin Vitek: 0-1, K
Miles Head: 0-4, BB, 2 K
Brandon Jacobs: 0-5, 2 K
Seth Schwindenhammer: 1-4, 2B, BB, 2 K, A
David Renfroe: 2-3, BB, K
-In the middle of a seven game hitting streak.

Madison Younginer: 4 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K

GCL Red Sox W 3-1

Box Score

Keury De La Cruz: 2-4, 2B, HR, K, E
Oscar Perez: 1-2
Jose Vinicio: 0-3, E
Henry Ramos: 0-3

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Good night

Rizzo lighting it up for Portland and Iglesias showing some solid patience during his rehab.

"We are not normal, We are Legends. People will tell their kids about us." - Deon Butler before Ohio State Game 2008.

by Rogue Nine on Aug 5, 2010 9:38 AM EDT reply actions

Rizzo= 1B of the future

That place was for diehard sports fans. I only follow my team when they're in the playoffs" - Homer Simpson
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by bestbostonsports on Aug 5, 2010 10:22 AM EDT reply actions

We'll see how he does in AAA

Don’t want to be applying the mantle too early, it took Lars a year to return to form after we anointed him as 1B of the future.

"We are not normal, We are Legends. People will tell their kids about us." - Deon Butler before Ohio State Game 2008.

by Rogue Nine on Aug 5, 2010 10:32 AM EDT up reply actions

What I like more about Rizzo is that he has done it over a girthier sample size.

Also Lars did amazing in AA this year but that was in like a 2 1/2 week span in his third go-around.

He has vastly underperformed in AAA this year.

Lars isn’t even showing 15 HR power ryte nao.

He looks like Casey Kotchman at best minus the glove.

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by Frederick0220 on Aug 5, 2010 1:35 PM EDT up reply actions

I don’t know about that, they’ve both been playing in our system since 2007, Rizzo in the GCL and Lars in Greenville that year.

Using your stat and some of my own-
Rizzo:
2007 – 6 games – 1 HR – .375 OBP – .804 OPS
2008 – 21 games – 0 HR – .402 OBP – .848 OPS
2009 – 119 games – 12 HR – .368 OBP – .828 OPS
2010 – 106 games – 18 HR – .328 OBP – .813 OPS

Lars:
2007 – 134 games – 11 HR – .393 OBP – .893 OPS
2008 – 118 games – 18 HR – .417 OBP – .934 OPS
2009 – 119 games – 9 HR – .328 OBP – .673 OPS
2010 – 100 games – 12 HR – .347 OBP – .800 OPS

It’s hard to call Rizzo’s sample size, “girthier” Lars is only a year older, I do understand though that Rizzo did have cancer in 2008, which is why he really missed a year.

Lars has a long track record of very solid hitting, one in which he passes your threshold of 15, one he will certainly cross again this year and one you might note that Rizzo has also only crossed once.

They’re both incredible batters and it’s too hard to just pick one over the other. In his best offensive years Lars has been the better hitter hands down, in his worst? That’s another story. But so far he’s put up more good years than bad years and has picked it up after his bad (and suspected premature) start in AAA this year. I wouldn’t count him out.

"We are not normal, We are Legends. People will tell their kids about us." - Deon Butler before Ohio State Game 2008.

by Rogue Nine on Aug 5, 2010 2:19 PM EDT up reply actions

Agree on Lars

That place was for diehard sports fans. I only follow my team when they're in the playoffs" - Homer Simpson
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by bestbostonsports on Aug 5, 2010 5:44 PM EDT up reply actions

I like you agree to an opinion like “girthier size” and then ignore the post below it that shows that Lar’s best years have been better than Rizzo’s, and he’s had more of them. 2009 in the history, is more of an except than the rule. He’s picked up AAA pretty well after that bad start. Next year will be the telling year on Lars. If he can start well and keep it going in Pawtucket, Lars for certain will be the higher regarded prospect in my eyes. Offensively that is, I hear Rizzo is pretty good on defense, haven’t heard as much about it from Lars, but at 1B it isn’t the biggest issue, SS, totally different issue.

If in that small sample size of spring training he had hit two grand slams would that have changed your opinion of him?

"We are not normal, We are Legends. People will tell their kids about us." - Deon Butler before Ohio State Game 2008.

by Rogue Nine on Aug 5, 2010 7:28 PM EDT up reply actions

Not really, to the last question

I base my opinion on the bunch of MILB games I go to ad moniter each player vey closely

That place was for diehard sports fans. I only follow my team when they're in the playoffs" - Homer Simpson
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by bestbostonsports on Aug 6, 2010 12:02 PM EDT up reply actions

I guess I put more faith in results. JD Drew looks like a bad player and no one likes the way he looks but I appreciate his awesome production. Same with Youkilis, he looks like he might suck at baseball, a big bald sweaty man that Beane thought he might get for cheap.

Maybe Lars doesn’t look great but if you look at his career numbers, they’re pretty fantastic, last year most believe he got into his own head a bit and pushed himself too hard. He laid back this year and lit up AA like we thought he would. He’s been pretty unlucky lately in Pawtucket to.

It’s hard to so easily pick one over the other, especially since Lars is getting on base at quite a good rate despite some good defense taking away his hits. Rizzo this year isn’t getting on base at a particularly outstanding clip just to nitpick.

"We are not normal, We are Legends. People will tell their kids about us." - Deon Butler before Ohio State Game 2008.

by Rogue Nine on Aug 6, 2010 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions