| By Jason A. Churchill |  | By 11-14-2008 |
The candidates were easy to identify - catcher Rob Johnson, center fielder Greg Halman and second baseman Luis Valbuena, and the winner was somewhat easy to figure, too - Greg Halman.
Halman, speaking purely defensively, reminds some scouts of former Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners outfielder Brian Hunter; long strides, plus speed and the ability to track down any fly ball.
Halman comes with a lot more to offer physically than did Hunter, and he's still developing his jumps and reads, but his routes were significantly better in 2008, suggesting that the Netherlands native may stick in center field for the foreseeable future, if not the long-term.
"There are balls where it seems he's late on," said a National League scout, "but he always gets to them anyway. Later in the year he appeared to be more comfortable and confident in his first step. That's big for center fielders."
Another NL executive saw Halman in the Arizona Fall League and was impressed with his natural instincts.
"He's played right, left, center, back to left, center, right, right... it's like that in this league and he's adapted very well," he said. "In center he seems to be getting the edge a little bit. I saw him in the Midwest League a year ago and he wasn't nearly as aggressive."
Halman, at 6-4 and about 205 pounds, may still grow out of the position as he fills out, but most scouting and player development personnel believe he's got enough range to remain in center for the first half of his career.
Halman possesses well above-average arm strength that projects well enough in right field and if his bat fits, he'll find a spot in the Mariners spacious pastures at the Safe.
Halman gets the nod over Johnson and Valbuena based on the difference each of his managers and coaches felt he made on their team defensively, both in High Desert and in West Tennessee.
If I were basing this solely on what I saw myself, Valbuena would have gotten the nod - he doesn't have a ton of range, probably average to slightly above-average, but he makes every play and then some, including some dazzlers over the middle and in shallow right field last season.
"Both of those guys were here for half the season," said the NL scout. "My notes have Halman as a potential plus defender and at least an average defender now. Luis is very sure-handed and could play in the big leagues right now defensively, but Halman made more of a difference on that club with his glove during the series' I saw."
One play I saw on video that Halman made reminded me of Mike Cameron. He was playing straight away and Matt Gamel hit a searing liner toward right-center field that was slicing away from Halman. He got a good jump, though his route wasn't ideal. But as soon as he got to the balls depth, his route to the ball's final destination was perfect, and he turned on the jets and ran it down, lunging and backhanding the ball on the warning track, banging into the wall.
He quickly recovered, turned and threw a seed to the cutoff man, Valbuena, standing on the edge of the outfield grass where it meets the infield dirt. The runner at second had retreated to tag up, but the throw was perfect - Valbuena appeared to not even have moved his glove - and the runner had to scurry back to the bag to avoid being picked off.
The ball was hit 380 feet on the fly and the baserunner couldn't even advance.
Great play.
defensive-player-of-the-year
Comments
The following 30 comment(s) for this article are shown below:
| 1. By: Slurve on 11-15-2008 01:15:05 Test??? Glad to see a kid who can handle a bat and his position. |
| 2. By: safecochatter on 11-15-2008 01:40:45 glad to see it's working. tried to leave comment earlier and could not. i really think saunders and halman are going to be good everyday ml outfielders. i'm guessing they'll both need at least a full year at tacoma. are the m's thinking 2010 on halman? also haven't heard much on saunders since his stint with team canada. what's the latest on him as far as health and timeline. |
| 3. By: acqb1424 on 11-15-2008 10:09:23 Jason, what's Halman's ceiling? Is he a Mike Cameron type player or better? |
| 4. By: Slack on 11-15-2008 10:53:33 Is Halman likely to start the year at AAA or will he start at AA? I would leave him in AA and would guess he would start the year there but I was just wondering. |
| 5. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 13:07:35 re: Saunders Mike came back from Canada and played for Tacoma for a bit, before having minor shoulder surgery on August 29. He'll start the year in Tacoma, most likely, and I presume Halman will, too, but both guys will be given long looks in spring training. acb, I think Halman is more raw all the way around than Cammy was when he broke in, but he's just 21 and Cameron didn't really break through until he was, what, 25? Halman has the raw power to hit 40 homers a year, but his contact rates and overall plate discipline have to improve if he's going to be a major leaguer. But he took a nice step in '08. |
| 6. By: FelixElRey on 11-15-2008 13:07:38 Yeah, I hope he starts in AA in hopes of getting him off to a hot start, then bump him up to AAA for the second half or more. |
| 7. By: stickball on 11-15-2008 13:10:05 Jason, is Halman subject to the Rule V draft? How about Jakubauskas? |
| 8. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 13:22:36 Here are the rules and regulations for the rule 5 draft. It changed two years ago from three and four years to four and five years. A player that was 18 or younger on June 5 of the year they were drafted/signed is exempt from the Rule 5 draft for five seasons. Player who were 19 or older are protected for four seasons. Now you can make the distinction yourself on any player. Halman was 16 in June of 2004 when he signed, and four minor league seasons have now been played since then, so he's not due to be protected until next year, in which it's likely he'll have been added to the 40-man anyway. Jakubauskas is eligible for the draft, despite playing all bu t the last two of his pro seasons in the Indy leagues. For the record, Saunders, Tuiasosopo and Valbuena do not have to be protected until next winter, too, though Valbuena and Tui are already 40-man members. |
| 9. By: marinerdan on 11-15-2008 14:32:51 Jason, Do you think Wlad is going to be the odd man out eventually because he doesn't play very good defense? |
| 10. By: Slurve on 11-15-2008 15:27:44 Wlad will be a decent COF and he could DH if all else fails. |
| 11. By: Slack on 11-15-2008 15:58:07 Jason, If you were in charge, where would you have Halman start the year? I like AA better but would not be upset if he started at AAA. The M's have been successful with quick promotions before. What kind of shoulder surgery did Saunders have? |
| 12. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 16:31:16 Once Wlad gets settled in right, he'll be adequate or better defensively. It takes some time for him to get acclimated in new surroundings, and he played center field primarily until '07. Slack, I'd have to see how Halman fared in spring training against those AAA/AAAA types that get time in the A games of the Cactus League before deciding. If he fares well, I'd start him off in Tacoma - this kid handles adversity well. He was AWFUL the first half of 2007 at Class A Wisconsin, and I mean awful, he was among the worst hitters in the league until the M's sent him to Everett where he tore it up. Funny thing is, even though most see that as a demotion, the competition level is greater. Halman's only advantage after being 'moted' was the home ballpark where routine fly balls to right field are doubles and homers. If I saw enough in him during ST to "hold his own," in the PCL I'd start Halman in Triple-A Tacoma. I'd also look ahead to see what kind of pitching staffs the other clubs may break camp with in AAA to decide whether it was a down year, at least for quality starters (not just stuff wise, but veteran types). |
| 13. By: mcgillicutty on 11-15-2008 17:34:13 How does Halman compare defensively to other CF prospects like Maybin and Austin Jackson? |
| 14. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 18:02:40 Maybin is further along defensively, but does struggle occasionally with his jumps, but he's a plus-plus runner and typically makes up for it once he reaches his max speed. His arm strength is a tick above average but he's not the most accurate thrower. I'd say Halman has an edge in arm strength and accuracy, but in terms of range it's very close. Maybin is MLB ready with his defense, however, and makes fewer mistakes at this stage. He's just a little more experienced playing out there and it shows a bit. Jackson is a center fielder for me after seeing him play there in the AFL. I think he can play there unless he fills out and loses too much of his slightly above speed. His arm would play in right field, though. Both Jackson and Maybin are more polished than Halman at this stage, both offensively and defensively, but as Jonathan Helfgott reminded me the other day, Halman played first base as an amateur in the Netherlands. In time, he has a good chance to be a better defender than either Jackson or Maybin, though Maybin is the only one I'm sure sticks in center. |
| 15. By: StandinPat on 11-15-2008 18:30:37 Jason, What about Saunders defense in CF? He seems to handle it well currently, and although he too may outgrow the position, couldnt he be a viable option for atleast a couple of years? |
| 16. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 18:34:39 For the record, Andrew McCutchen (Pit), a healthy Colby Rasmus (STL) and Braves' prospect Jordan Schafer, are the two best center field prospects in the game today, followed by Maybin, Fernando Martinez (NYM), Desmond Jennings and Fernando Perez (TB), Dexter Fowler (Col), Gerrardo Parra (AZ), Ben Revere (MIN), Gorkys Hernandez (ATL), Jackson (NYY) and Halman in no particular order. Boston's Ryan Kalish is a kid I really like tools wise and he has am advanced approach at age 20, but his power hasn't shown up in games yet. |
| 17. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 18:38:58 Pat, Saunders can handle it, is very polished defensively and has plenty of arm strength to play there. He's certainly going to grow out of the position as he's muscled up quite a bit over the past three seasons - he was a stick when I talked to him in Everett and this past summer in Tacoma he was a man. He still runs well, but that's not going to last long. But because he's got the above-average reads and routes and gets good jumps, he could take care of center for a year or two, sure. And that's where his bat plays best, too. Thing is, as long as Ichiro is on the Seattle Mariners roster, he should be manning center field day-in and day-out. He has so little value to the club if he's taking up a corner spot, especially considering all the offense the M's have to add in order to become more than just respectable. |
| 18. By: MMjohns195 on 11-15-2008 18:44:29 So Offensively at his peak do you think Halman is buhneresque with more avg? 250 40+ and about 100? |
| 19. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 18:49:14 I think he's Buhner-esque with less actual power numbers, though the tools are there. Buhner had the Kingdome and was surrounded by great hitters. Halman won't have either, most likely. |
| 20. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 19:04:05 I should clarify what I meant when I said "He still runs well, but that's not going to last long," when talking about Saunders. He's a good athlete, but some of his speed isn't going remain as he fills out and gets stronger. The hope is that the strength turns into above-average power or even more. If he can shorten his swing path a little more and make better contact, and continue to progress in pitch recognition and discpline, he's got a chance to be Luis Gonzalez minus the roids. |
| 21. By: Blowgun7 on 11-15-2008 19:23:09 Jason, how would u compare Grant Green to Gordon Beckham? |
| 22. By: Slurve on 11-15-2008 19:23:09 So basically Saunders offensive developed will be around 40 doubles and 20 hr and a 280 AVG? |
| 23. By: Blowgun7 on 11-15-2008 19:29:32 Halman hit a 2 run shot today off Matusz.. then struck out three times.. |
| 24. By: Slurve on 11-15-2008 19:37:45 Wow there is a Luis Gonzalez the pitcher and LF and both look pretty much the same... http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=449451 http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=114935 |
| 25. By: acqb1424 on 11-15-2008 19:54:24 Jason, so if we look ahead into the crystal ball and at the 2011 Mariners, is it even remotely likely that we might be watching an outfield of Saunders (LF), Halman (CF) and Balentien (RF)? If those three were in the outfield together, would they be considered a strong defensive outfield? What are your thoughts? |
| 26. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-15-2008 21:05:47 Blow, I like Beckham better, not by a large margin, but a clear difference for me. acb, Unfortunately, no, Ichiro will probably be in right field. Slurve, That's his high side, I think, yes. |
| 27. By: Jerry on 11-16-2008 13:35:22 Jason, I hope that Jack Z surprises us and makes the right move in putting Ichiro in CF. He is a total waste in RF. I guess it doesn't matter that much in 2009, but going forward, Ichiro in CF makes the M's lineup much much stronger. Actually, I hope that they trade him. But if Ichiro is a Mariner next year, he should be in CF. Anything else is a really poor team construction decision. |
| 28. By: Marlin Man on 11-16-2008 16:03:56 Ichiro ain't going anywhere- in my humble opinion- Have you looked at the maakeup of the crowds- 20% Japanes, everyday- to see the hero of japan- they fly over just to see him play- so thay can say they daw him- ain't gonna change. in my humble opinion Marlin MaN |
| 29. By: jgstecker on 11-16-2008 19:14:28 Smart money says Ichiro is in RF for the M's beyond when his contract expires in 2013. He'll be knocking on the door to 3,000 hits and the franchise will keep him around for that. For better or for worse, RF will be a non-issue for the M's for a while. And it will probably be several years before the leadoff role is under scrutiny as well. I really don't have a problem with Ichiro in RF. We're in rebuilding mode, which means we've got to see what our kids can do. And we've got two possible CF candidates in the upper minors who should be auditioned in CF to see what they've got. I really don't think there's any scenario where Ichiro prevents us from going after a slugging RF in the near future. Its just not high on the team's to do list while they have gaping holes at 1B and DH. All that probably means Matt Tuiasosopo doesn't have much of a future with the club. I don't think his glove is strong enough to play at 3B and his bat is a little weak for 1B/DH. He'd make a fine platoon player in RF, but I'm not sure he has the range for LF in Safeco. Tui's AAA season next year will tell us a lot. A Saunders/Balentien platoon in LF is intriguing to me though. That could be a solid long-term answer. |
| 30. By: Jason A. Churchill on 11-16-2008 19:51:14 I doubt Ichiro is within a season's worth of hits when his contract expires, but I do have a problem with Ichiro in right field. He's among the worst offensive right fielders in baseball, and he's certainly not going to get better as the years pass... and the Mariners can contend far before 2013. If Halman is the center fielder, play Ichiro in right -- better yet, left. I seriously doubt Halman is with the big club for more than half of 2009, however, and the only way Saunders belongs there is if Jack believes he can flip Saunders as a regular center fielder somewhere. But I seriously doubt that, too. |
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