on juan rivera - from ESPN chat.

[staticm]

http://dynamic.espn.go.com/espn/chat/chatESPN?event_id=1295


Dave (Seattle): The one popular response in the prospect community since your list came out has been "Juan Rivera on a Baseball Prospectus list?" Momentary loss of sanity or do you think Juan Rivera's resurgence from prospect nothingness is genuine?

Rany Jazayerli: (7:08 PM ET ) Let's start with a tough question...I'm not a big fan of Rivera's, in all honesty, but for us to reject a legitimate prospect just because he doesn't obey certain tenets that we believe in (like plate discipline), would be as narrow-minded as the scouts who thought Lance Berkman was an overrated prospect because all he did was hit.

The fact is, Rivera has great athletic tools, *and* he slugged over .600 in Triple-A. That's a nice combination.

[Dave in MD]

Rivera will be much like Soriano in that his plate discipline will improve over time. Having him in the outfield would give a shot in the arm to our defense as well. I hope Torre gives him a shot this spring.

[ChicagoYankeeFan]

Originally posted by Dave in MD
Rivera will be much like Soriano in that his plate discipline will improve over time. Having him in the outfield would give a shot in the arm to our defense as well. I hope Torre gives him a shot this spring.

It already improved substantially in the last 1/4 of the season last year after he was called up to Columbus. His walk rate pretty much doubled which I took as a very good sign.

[Dave in MD]

Originally posted by ChicagoYankeeFan


It already improved substantially in the last 1/4 of the season last year after he was called up to Columbus. His walk rate pretty much doubled which I took as a very good sign.

That is a very good sign. Remember, he does not need to be a Giambi in terms of plate patience. If he even improves a little, he could be a demon. The same with Soriano.

[Buzah!]

Let's also not forget that he's been a high average, high slugging pct. guy, so even with fewer walks his OPS ends up over .900 wherever he's been. Furthermore, he doesn't strike out much. This is why scouts started comparing him to a young Sosa or a Vlad-light.

[Dave in MD]

Originally posted by Buzah!
Let's also not forget that he's been a high average, high slugging pct. guy, so even with fewer walks his OPS ends up over .900 wherever he's been. Furthermore, he doesn't strike out much. This is why scouts started comparing him to a young Sosa or a Vlad-light.

I am going to be very disappointed if he does not get a chance to win the job this year.

[Buzah!]

Me too. He's apparently a super hard worker and when you mix that attitude with tools you get great Yankees.