Spring Training Dish

by Chris Kline

March 15, 2006

 

Editor's note: Assistant editor Chris Kline begins three weeks of spring training coverage in Florida's Grapefruit League. First stop: Marlins camp. Coming Thursday: Mets camp in St. Lucie.

 

JUPITER, Fla.--Don't blame Dan Uggla if he sounds a little excited. At this very moment, he's penciled in as the 2006 starting second baseman for the Marlins, since Pokey Reese unexpectedly flew the coop.

 

"It's been going good, man," Uggla said. "I'm real excited to be here, basically. I guess for the way it's started off, I really can't ask for anything more. I know there are no guarantees. The only thing I can do and have control over is how hard I play out there and the effort I put out to get all my other work in.

 

"You never know what's going to happen in this game, I'm telling you."

 

Needless to say, it's a long way from last season, when he spent the summer at Double-A Tennessee.

 

Through Tuesday, Uggla was batting .303/.333/.455 with a homer in 33 at-bats in big league camp. Obtained in the major league phase of the Rule 5 draft last December from the Diamondbacks, Uggla is not only poised to stick with Florida, but appears to be the frontrunner as the Opening Day second baseman when camp breaks in April.

 

"He's a baseball player," vice president of player development and scouting Jim Fleming said. "He's a hard-nosed kid who wants to play and is playing himself onto this team. He's got a determination about him that you really like."

 

An 11th-round pick out of Memphis in 2001, Uggla was always known for his solid bat and defensive versatility in the Diamondbacks' system. But he was viewed as more of a utility player than anything else. Until 2005, that is, when he followed a career season with a breakout Arizona Fall League performance.

 

"I'll tell you what, he's made remarkable strides on defense," a scout with a National League club said. "The bat always seemed to speak enough for him to continue to move up through the minors, but the defense was always a question mark. Not anymore, especially since it looks like he'll have a definitive position. And you've got to love the gamer in him."

 

But don't say anything to Uggla about having a set position. Sure, he feels more comfortable at second base than anywhere else, but he'll play wherever he can to work himself in the order.

 

"I can play them all," Uggla said. "I mean, I'm not an everyday shortstop, but I can play third probably everyday . . . but for me, second is where it's at. Maybe that's just me, but that's where I feel at home."

 

Uggla hit .297/.378/.502 with 21 homers and 87 RBIs at Tennessee last season, and built on that success in the AFL, hitting .304 with seven home runs in 102 at-bats for the Peoria Javelinas.

 

He was the only Diamondback on the Peoria team as a late addition to the league. The remainder of the Arizona prospects all played for AFL champion Phoenix.

 

"I guess that maybe should have told me something from the beginning," Uggla said. "I had a pretty good follow-up to a good season. And that's all the Fall League is anyway--it's just a showcase. But it can be one of the most important showcases in your life and it was for me. Just playing in front of scouts and owners and GMs . . . everybody's there.

 

"It's kind of weird that the Diamondbacks want you out there and you have a good Fall League and they don't protect you. I thought I'd be going out there regardless and then they added me at the last minute. That whole situation, it just really didn't make a lot of sense to me, so I just went out there and tried to have fun."

 

After all the fun, the Marlins stepped in, grabbing Uggla in the Rule 5, and now he finds himself in the middle of an opportunity of a lifetime.

 

"I stood up and did a cartwheel out of bed that morning," Uggla said of finding out he was switching organizations. "I realized right then it was a new start and a great opportunity. I was about as excited as you could be."

 

His defense, however, still needs work if he's going to make the jump from Double-A to the big leagues and stay a Marlin for the foreseeable future. Uggla is taking advantage of one Marlins resource, renowned infield coach Perry Hill.

 

"Dan's worked very hard with Perry Hill and there's no doubt in my mind that he's going to continue to improve defensively," Fleming said. "That's something he needed to do and wanted to do. There's obviously a wide open hole at second, and you can see he's already improved on his defense at second base.

 

"Perry's an asset for us. As good as Luis (Castillo) and (Alex) Gonzalez were, he made them that much better. Dan's one of those guys that's taken the information, applied it to himself and is making himself a much better all-around player."

 

FISH BAIT

 

The BA Matchup of the Day from Marlins camp yesterday was a no-brainer, as Florida lefthander Scott Olsen squared off against Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond twice. Desmond didn't waste any time getting a look at Olsen's fastball or his wipeout slider, however. He fell into an 0-2 hole after two 94 mph fastballs painted both corners before rolling over to second base in his first at-bat. The second time around, Desmond got the better of Olsen with the count 2-1, slapping a bleeder through the left side of the infield past a diving Robert Andino for a base hit.

 

In all, Olsen allowed three earned runs on four hits, striking out four in 4 1/3 innings of work. The 2002 sixth-round pick threw 58 pitches--39 for strikes--and his fastball and breaking ball looked sharp, though he started to wear in the fourth and fifth.

 

"The fastball had good life early and he was really putting it where he wanted to," an NL scout said. "I like the whole package a lot. If there's one area where he needs work, it's obviously holding runners. He can tend to get a little long on the backside out of the stretch, and you'll see guys exploiting that where he's trying to go."

 

Righthander Anibal Sanchez is just getting back on a mound throwing bullpens after being shut down for seven days with minor shoulder tendinitis. Sanchez, who came over from the Red Sox as part of the Josh Beckett deal, has yet to make an appearance in big league camp and is probably another week away.

 

The biggest surprise in Marlins camp so far has been outfielder Reggie Abercrombie. A 23rd-round pick of the Dodgers out of Lake City (Fla.) Community College in 1999, Abercrombie always has enticed scouts with his tools, but has never been able to put it all together. In six minor league seasons, Abercrombie has nearly an 8-1 strikeout-walk ratio (793-to-121) in 2,582 at-bats and has never played above Double-A.

 

But the 25-year-old outfielder has figured some things out through a stint in the AFL and now in big league camp, working both times with roving hitting instructor John Mallee. "As much of a surprise as it might seem, Reggie has been working his tail off," Mallee said. "He's getting consistent extension through the zone, working to his strength and not giving pitchers that out pitch--not chasing a lot like he'd done previously. He's having a breakthrough spring and everyone should be taking notice."

 

Through 26 at-bats in big league camp, Abercrombie is hitting .500/.519/.885 with a pair of homers. But perhaps more importantly, he's being much more selective. Though he has yet to draw a walk, Abercrombie has whiffed just three times.

 

Continuing a move from last fall, 2004 first-round pick Taylor Tankersley has been pitching out of the bullpen. After spending nearly two years as a starter, the Marlins started using Tankersley in relief after a promotion to high Class A Jupiter last season--after he went 2-7, 5.18 in 66 innings in a starting role at low Class A Greensboro. Tankersley thrived in a relief role at Alabama in college and seems destined for the role if he reaches the majors.

 

"There's always some question when you take a guy who's a first-round pick and you move him to the bullpen like there's something wrong," Fleming said. "There wasn't anything wrong. We spent the last two years really trying to find lefthanded bullpen guys, so we felt like we should grow a couple of our own. He's the perfect guy for it. He's firmed up his breaking ball. He had two breaking balls, but we dumped the slow one. Now he's throwing the harder one, which is important. He just needs innings right now because he gets a little overamped at times. He's an emotional guy who takes that emotion to the mound. He just has to learn to channel that and control it, because we're not going to take it away from him."

 

 

Questions With Kline: Jim Fleming

by Chris Kline

March 15, 2006

 

JUPITER, Fla.--Marlins vice president of player development and scouting Jim Fleming has a rich history of signing players dating back to when he was the scouting director of the Expos.

 

From 1998 to 2001, Fleming drafted big leaguers including Brad Wilkerson (first round, 1998), Grady Sizemore (third, 2000), Cliff Lee (fourth, 2000), Jason Bay (22nd, 2000); as well as current Nationals No. 6 prospect lefthander Mike Hinckley.

 

Fleming left the Expos after the 2001 season and was a key part of the Marlins' drafts ever since, drafts that already have produced big leaguers such as Jeremy Hermida (first, 2002), Jason Vargas (second, 2004); Josh Johnson (fourth, 2002); Robert Andino (second, 2002) and Scott Olsen (sixth, 2002.

 

So with that impressive track record in mind, BA sat down with Fleming yesterday morning to get his take on a myriad of topics and players as the Marlins move forward with their second rebuilding process heading into this season.

 

Baseball America: With all the moves in the offseason, how much has camp changed this year in terms of gauging what you already have versus what you need to continue to develop?

 

Jim Fleming: I think we're a development-focused organization anyway, so the only major change is we're a lot deeper. We're having to try to evaluate a lot of new people in camp--most of them are in big league camp, which really helps because it's an extra three weeks of seeing them. And then just fitting them into our system--where they're going to go, where they belong and what we need to do. We're trying to go slow with the new guys in the system and not throw too many new things at them. And as we go along, if we feel there are some things we want to change or adjust, then we can do that.

 

BA: The sheer depth in the system is pretty unreal. But critics are already hammering the club heading into this season. And this is the second time the rebuilding process has followed a fire sale within the organization. What is your response to those critics? Can you point to history and say it's only a matter of time until the Marlins contend again?

 

JF: I think there are some similarities because we've been working real hard over the last three years to add to our system and kind of beef it back up. Because that championship team in 2003--all those guys that came through had left and the system wasn't as potent as it had been, so we started hammering away to build the system up again. Then we had the big draft last year (five of the first 44 overall picks) when we got a lot of people. I think you combine all those things and it makes the system just about as strong as you could ever hope for.

 

Trying to sell it is more for the public--not for players. Players are about their own opportunities. And what they see is a lot of talent and a lot of opportunities for themselves--that's what every good player is looking for. I don't think we really have to sell them much, other than that they know they can get there pretty fast. I think if you're a player in the Marlins organization, you're seeing opportunity and you're seeing a development organization that is good for a young player.

 

Now from a public standpoint, I think it's probably a little more palatable this time because we've done it before and six years later there's a championship. And so I think it's a little easier to get on board to watch the young guys grow. And that's what they need to do--we've got a lot of talented young players. They'll certainly have some bumps in the road, but it should be fun to watch.

 

BA: Joe Borowski and Brian Moehler are the only two pitchers on the 40-man roster who were born in the 1970s. What do these guys bring to the table to help round out some of that inexperience?

 

JF: They bring experience and they bring professionalism. Joe is new to the organization, but Brian was with us last year, and one of the reasons we wanted to bring him back is obviously he's a good player, but he's also the consummate professional. He works very hard, he's come back from a major surgery and rehabilitated the right way. And he's in there every day working at his craft. That's what you want young players to see. You want them to see guys who've been in the big leagues for a while and still have the passion for it and still go about it the right way.

 

And Joe's the same way. He was a closer a couple years ago and is now trying to re-establish himself and is very committed to doing that. I think it's good for young guys to see the older guys still working very hard so they understand it's work for the long haul. It's a continual process. It's not that now you've arrived, so you can sit back and enjoy it. It doesn't work that way and those two guys are perfect examples for the younger guys to follow.

 

BA: The organization took a few gambles in the Rule 5 draft last December as well. Aside from Dan Uggla, who's having a brilliant spring, what are the chances of a guy like Mike Megrew actually sticking?

 

JF: What we saw there is a very talented guy that we liked as an amateur. And because (the Dodgers) are right up the road, we saw a lot of him in spring training. We saw him before the injury and he was very good. And so, yeah, that's a risky one--there's no question about it because he's young and he's coming back from an injury. You're rolling the dice a little bit, but we're in a situation where we can roll the dice a little bit. We can have a roster spot for a guy who's green. So it's about where he is with the injury and at this point it's a little too early to say whether he'll stick or not.

 

BA: Obviously we have to ask about Jeff Allison leaving camp early again this year . . .

 

JF: No comment.

 

BA: OK . . . moving on, another intriguing arm you got back in the deals this winter is Yusmeiro Petit. He's another guy--like all those other guys--who's had a track record of success in the minor leagues. What are your impressions of him?

 

JF: He's a little different, because it's all about putting four pitches where he wants and when he wants. His first couple outings were just OK, but that's pretty common for command and control pitchers this early in camp. You have to go to the mound a while. You can tell he's a real smart pitcher who understands what it takes to get hitters out. He's a lot different than the other guys we got in trades because they're all power pitchers--with maybe (Ricky) Nolasco being a combination of the two.

 

It's one of those things where as a scout you could kind of say his stuff's not flashy, and it isn't flashy. But when he starts painting those corners it becomes a lot better. Every pitch you like and every pitch has quality, so when you look at a guy like that it's a combination of all the things he brings to the table.

 

BA: Do you ever send any top guys to (Triple-A) Albuquerque? It seems like there are a ton of impact guys--Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis, Jeremy Hermida, Jason Vargas to name a few--who all come straight from Zebulon to Miami. Is the Pacific Coast League an environment you'd sometimes rather avoid?

 

JF: It kind of looks like that because we've had so many guys jump from Double-A, but I think that's just been the circumstances. Albuquerque has been pretty much all six-year free agents. We have not had prospect pitching there because all our prospects were at the lower levels of the system. This year, the prospects that don't make this club will go to Albuquerque because now we do have upper level prospects.

 

I think it's a combination of just logistics. When a six-year free agent didn't meet the requirements for the big leagues, we went and got the Double-A guy. Because they did well, some of them are going to Triple-A. Do we want to avoid Albuquerque? It's a little tough on a young guy, and so we don't want to get them there too early--that's for sure. We'll make sure that they've accomplished Double-A and then we'll take them there. But we won't avoid Albuquerque. It's a good experience, because if they can learn to pitch there, then pitching in Miami is that much easier.

 

That whole PCL is a very offensive league and we try to explain to them that it's about pitching well, not so much the numbers. But some guys don't get that. So you have to make sure they're ready to go there. It's just like this year, (Josh) Johnson or (Scott) Olsen, they're ready to go to Triple-A because they've accomplished it, and they've pitched in the big leagues. It's not as big a deal to them now as it would have been if you tried to move them last year when they were just arriving into Double-A.

 

BA: Last question, what did you get back for Josh Beckett in Hanley Ramirez? Will he be the starter when camp breaks or is Robert Andino showing you anything?

 

JF: It's a two-man race between Robert and Hanley and it's fun to watch because they both can really play. And absolutely there's impact with Hanley. A lot of times when guys go through a system fast, the lack of numbers scare some people. He hasn't put up huge numbers like a guy like Cabrera. That doesn't mean anything to me. If you look at the tools, Hanley Ramirez's tools say 'big impact.' And Robert as a shortstop has exceptional defensive tools. He probably doesn't have the offensive ceiling that Hanley has, but both should be very good big leaguers. It's a heck of a race and probably will be until the last day of camp.

Great reads !!! Thanks for posting them :thumbup

 

My favorite line in the whole thing was "Players are about their own opportunities."

 

That says it all.

Nice side step on the Allison question as one of the guys responsible for drafting him.

Good stuff

 

Great to hear that Uggla is improving his D. Perry Hill is a god

Nice side step on the Allison question as one of the guys responsible for drafting him.

 

 

I saw a headline that said he left to go to North Carolina to be with his mother. I believe it was from 2/21....well before he was released by the team.