Batting .442 with 8 HR and a ridiculous OPS. Musty, he may make it to Oakland next year as you suggested.
| Team | League | AVG | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | TB | BB | SO | SB | CS | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| PDD | AFL | .442 | 10 | 43 | 12 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 16 | 45 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 0 | .500 | 1.047 | 1.547 |
0 Kudo
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 malibudude
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Grant Desme en fuego in the Arizona Fall League |
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Posts: 1206 10/27/09 10:04 AM |
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Musty |
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Posts: 974 10/27/09 11:46 AM |
malibudude wrote: Just an absolutely ridiculous 10 game run. He might break the all-time record for HR in the AZL (14), as he still has 20 games left. I wouldn't be surprised if he makes the Oakland roster out of ST, but I still think he'll end up starting out in AA/AAA. I will be surprised if he doesn't end up in the bigs sometime before the end of the season. Worse news for the two Poly pitchers in the AZL, though. Evan Reed has only seen action in three games and he gave up at least one earned run in each: 3 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 HR, 2 BB, 4 K. Gary Daley was a last minute addition to the league; his professional struggles have continued in the desert as he's given up 9 ER in 5 apperances: 5.1 IP, 10 H, 9 ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, 3 K. Brent Morel has been added to the roster of the Peoria Javelinas, but he has yet to play a game. |
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malibudude |
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Posts: 1207 10/27/09 12:24 PM |
I think Desme might be responsible for a bit of Daley's struggles. The 7 earned in 1/3 of inning were against Desme's club. Ah, they eat their own.
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FullertonBaseballFan.bigwest |
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Posts: 76 10/27/09 3:50 PM |
From last week, right before Desme heated up.......
http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4580363&name=grey_jason Desme struggling at AFL; young arms improving Tuesday, October 20, 2009 Posted by Jason Grey Oakland Athletics outfielder Grant Desme is one of the more intriguing prospects at the Arizona Fall League (AFL) this year, especially for fantasy players. When you hit 31 homers and steal 40 bases in a season split between low Class A and high Class A, you will get some attention. Desme batted .288 in 486 at-bats and was thrown out on the basepaths just five times. However, Desme was regarded as a "man among boys" in the words of one scout, as at age 23 he was not young for his level. The right-handed hitter was a second-round pick in 2007 out of Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo (two slots before the Florida Marlins drafted Mike Stanton), and seen as a proverbial "five-tool" player, but this has basically been his first season as a pro due to injuries. He broke his wrist his senior year of college, and it flared up again after he was drafted, requiring surgery and limiting his pro time. He lasted just three at-bats in 2008 after separating a shoulder trying to make a catch. Desme's best attributes are plus power and bat speed, but he's not quite the burner his stolen base totals might indicate. His speed is just average, but he has excellent instincts, a good first step and acceleration, and the steals could continue to translate as he moves up the ladder. He did strike out 148 times this season, and the book on him was that he still swings and misses too much on decent breaking balls, while being an excellent fastball hitter. His swing is a touch long, and he tends to drift forward, shifting his weight too early and leaving him vulnerable to off-speed stuff. There may not have been a hitter in the league that looked as bad as Desme did his first week here, and it wasn't the breaking stuff that gave him trouble. Over the course of three games, I saw him swing through no fewer than 10 fastballs. He's started to get back on track a bit, and is reportedly good at making adjustments, but that news is troubling considering his reputation as a fastball hitter. I'm trying not to read too much into it, because the hitter that arguably looked the worst over the first couple of weeks of last year's AFL season was Gordon Beckham, but he was the hottest hitter in the league over the final few weeks, and we all know how that eventually turned out. Desme is a player who really needs to have a good Fall League to show he can handle some more advanced pitching, considering his age and lost development time. He also hasn't looked great in center despite his athleticism, and his arm is merely adequate for right, which means he's probably a left fielder down the road. Power and speed combinations are always in demand, and Desme is definitely a sleeper to watch given his statistical output this year.
Last Edited By: FullertonBaseballFan 10/27/09 3:52 PM.
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malibudude |
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Posts: 1208 10/27/09 6:48 PM |
Oh well, that's why I use the phone rather than memorialize in cyber print.
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Musty |
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Posts: 976 10/27/09 8:52 PM |
I think concerns about Desme's strikeout rate are overblown. Sure, he piled up Ks at Kane County, but I would chalk that up to slower bat speed after his
rehabilitation time. Desme struck out plenty at Poly and after he moved up to Stockton, but not nearly at the same rate as at Low A (Poly -- 21%, Stockton --
25%, KC -- 29%). Is he a guy that will strike out 120-140 times a season at the big league level? Yeah, probably. But he also has the potential to throw up a
.260/.350/.480 line with 25 bombs and 25 steals, plus above-average defense in Center. I know it breaks the "Can't comp guys with different skin
color" meme, but I think the best case scenario for Desme is something like Mike Cameron -- he'll probably never hit .300 at the big league level, but
he definitely has the potential to be a championship-caliber starter.
/end baseball dorkiness |
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malibudude |
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Posts: 1209 10/27/09 10:04 PM |
Musty wrote: Glad you handled that one Musty, I was sort of counting on your take. TA. I am a bit of a Sabremetics challenged dude. Went 1 for 2 tonight. 2 RBI and 2 BB.
Last Edited By: malibudude 10/27/09 10:11 PM.
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Musty |
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Posts: 977 10/28/09 5:25 PM |
Just another day in the AZL for Desme...3-4, 2 HR, 1 BB, 1 K. Not only is he on pace to shatter Brandon Wood's AZL HR record, he's way ahead in every
Triple Crown category.
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malibudude |
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Posts: 1210 10/28/09 7:52 PM |
Seldom, if ever, have I seen an unexpected run like this ( Rick Monday's April in 1977? for the Dodgers) Before Desme got hurt at Davis in 2007 he was on
a very good run but not like this. This two week performance is just sailing off the flippin' map. 40 man roster or risk Rule 5? Musty, FBF? What does BB
do?
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091028&content_id=7567236&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb Baseball America on it as well: http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/?p=6886#more-6886
Last Edited By: malibudude 10/28/09 8:13 PM.
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Musty |
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Posts: 978 10/28/09 8:10 PM |
In another article on the A's site, Oakland Director of Player Development Keith Lieppman is interviewed about Desme, and seems to indicate that he's
ticketed for AA next year with a possible midseason move to AAA (following in the path of A's first base prospect Chris Carter). He is not eligible for the
Rule 5 draft; this was only his 3rd year with the A's, so he won't be Rule 5 eligible until 2011.
The 2nd most interesting nugget in the article (to me, at least), is that Desme clocked the 3rd fastest 60 yard dash time in the organization. I knew Desme had good speed, but that's pretty remarkable -- it means he's faster than at least one of Rajai Davis, Eric Patterson, Chris Denorfia or Aaron Cunningham, all "speedy"-type guys. http://oakland.athletics....p;fext=.jsp&c_id=oak |
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malibudude |
Desme 0-4 today | #10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Posts: 1211 10/29/09 5:37 PM |
Faced some tough pitching today. Mike Minor # 7 pick in this year's draft and Lo, the asian phenom.
Hey, Daley had a save, ERA below 13 now.
Last Edited By: malibudude 10/29/09 6:18 PM.
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FullertonBaseballFan.bigwest |
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Posts: 77 11/03/09 10:30 AM |
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/minors/winter-baseball/arizona-fall-league/2009/269098.html
Desme Does The Desert A's farmhand threatening AFL homers mark PHOENIX-It would be impossible to determine which player leads the Arizona Fall League in home runs just by watching the Phoenix Desert Dogs take pregame batting practice. Athletics outfielder Grant Desme tops the league with 10 homers, accumulated in only 15 games, at the midpoint of the season. His overall numbers-.393/.464/.934-rank in the top four in each of the three slash stats. He also leads the league in RBIs with 23. The righthanded slugger is content to work on his other hitting skills during batting practice. "The thing that impresses me is that he does not waver from his work in batting practice every day," Desert Dog manager Gary Cathcart said. "As a matter of fact, I don't think he's hit a home run in batting practice here. He stays within his routine-line drives in the middle of the field and opposite field, getting his hands working, and just feeling a good tempo. He pretty much saves the rest of it for the game." Desert Dog hitting coach Brian McArn chimed in on the effectiveness of Desme's pregame approach, even bestowing on him the degree of "professional hitter." "He takes his at-bats with a professional attitude," said McArn, the A's Triple-A Sacramento hitting coach. "His batting practices are amazing. He tries to use the whole field. He rarely hits a home run in batting practice . . . just a pleasure to watch." Desme's AFL performance comes after a breakout 2009 season, in what was in essence his first full professional season. The 23-year-old product of Cal Poly hit a combined .288/.365/.568, including eye-popping totals of 31 homers and 40 stolen bases, with low Class A Kane County and high Class A Stockton. His career got off to a slow start after the A's grabbed him in the second round of the 2007 draft. Desme totaled only 49 at-bats in his first two seasons due to a succession of injuries (wrist surgery and a shoulder separation), with only three trips to the plate in a lost 2008 campaign. Desme doesn't feel that last year was a total loss. He believes that the time away from the game helped him grow as a person. "I'm very thankful it happened to me," said Desme, in reference to the separated shoulder that sidelined him for most of 2008. "I think it needed to be. As a person, baseball was really the one and only thing in my life. With the injuries, it kind of put everything in perspective. There are much bigger things in life. Baseball could be taken from you at any moment . . . You step on the field and that could be your last game. There are a lot of other things that matter more . . . baseball's just a game." Desme's biggest area for improvement at the plate is cutting down on strikeouts. He fanned 148 times in 486 at-bats this year and has been punched out 17 times in 61 AFL at-bats. His strikeout totals could be viewed in two different ways. A pessimist might say that Desme's numbers are too high for a 23-year-old college product in A ball, while an optimist would point out that it's not bad for a power hitter in his first full pro season. Regardless, it's a facet of his game that Desme knows he needs to improve and he's using the AFL to make the necessary adjustments. "That's something I'm working on and trying to improve," said Desme, " . . . just try to find a two-strike approach I'm comfortable with and try to make more contact." Cathcart, who managed Double-A New Hampshire in the Blue Jays system, sees a hitter who should be able to make the necessary adjustments as he progresses though the minors. "I don't think he has a poor strike zone and he's not a free swinger," said Cathcart, "but he does miss a little bit . . . It's a natural maturation for him. It's really his first full season." McArn concurred, adding, "It's just a process. He'll realize what pitchers are trying to do to him." Perhaps even more surprising than the home run totals is the number of stolen bases he accumulated this year. He stole a total of 20 bases during his three years in college (one season at San Diego State and two years at Cal Poly), but was a perfect 24-for-24 during his time with Kane County and was caught stealing just five times in his 21 attempts with Stockton. "That was a pretty big surprise for me," he said. "It was the first time I had been able to steal. I really had no idea I could put up numbers like that." Desme is rated as just an average runner, but according to McArn he had more opportunities to steal this season by getting good jumps and knowing on which pitches he could go. His performance this fall has not gone unnoticed by the Oakland organization. "The amazing thing is that he's playing really good defense," said Billy Owens, Oakland's director of player personnel, "he's running the bases hard, and every last home run has been to every crevice of the ballpark-left, right and center-and none of them has been a wall-scraper." In addition to having McArn on the Desert Dog coaching staff, the A's minor league hitting coordinator Greg Sparks and farm director Keith Lieppman have been keeping close tabs on Desme. Desme is four home runs away from tying the Arizona Fall League record of 14, set in 2005 by Angels infielder Brandon Wood, but it's not something that he is worried about right now. "Records are nice, but I'm here to prepare to go on to the next level," said Desme. His AFL teammates from the Athletics don't let him forget about both the home run record and the numbers he's putting up this fall. "Grant Desme is a great person, very humble and a quiet guy," said fellow Desert Dog outfielder Corey Brown. "He knows it's there, in the back of his head; he's a guy that really doesn't like to look at his numbers and really know exactly what he's doing." That doesn't stop Desme's friends from continually reminding him of his accomplishments this fall. "It's just one of those things that we joke around about," added Brown. |
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malibudude |
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Posts: 1249 11/13/09 5:29 PM |
After a tough two week slump, Desme hits his 11th HR today.
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