Future Redbirds

Diving back into part 2 of our little series here. See part 1 for an explanation of how the translations work.

Jose Martinez
Actual line: .300/.337/.472. MLE EqA: .250.
AA Peak translation: .302/.341/.471. EqA .278.

Wow. That’s impressive. I like Jose Martinez, I really do, but if I were a gambling man I’d take the under. The average EqA of a major league SS last season was .255. David Eckstein had a .266, while Jose Reyes and Troy Tulowitzki were at .278 and .272, respectfully. This translation may envision glory for Martinez, but this doesn’t quite pass the laugh test for me. It’s hard for me to see him having a better season as good as those two players, probably ever. But I do think he’s better then the “future utility infielder” label he’s been given.

Mark Hamilton
Actual line: .298/.347/.589 A+, .250/.318/.383 AA.
MLE EqA at A: .253.
High A peak translation: .286/.347/.589 EqA .304.
AA peak translation: .257/.323/.415

The average 1st baseman had a .279 EqA. Davenport’s translations like the AA version of Hamilton a lot less, but note the ISO. Not half bad. I’m not sure what’s been eating Mark Hamilton lately, he hasn’t been able to do much of anything since being called up to AA. Scouts have long liked his power upside. I do think he’s capable of being an above average 1st baseman, but he’s going to have to prove it above A+.

Jarrett Hoffpauir
Actual line: AA: .343/.413/.525. MLE EqA: .294 EqA. AAA: .300/.388/.416 MLE EqA: .256
Peak translation: AA-.316/.385/.483.EqA .297.
AAA- .268/.362/.381, EqA .260.

There’s a steep drop between his AA and AAA peak translation, but even after the drop Hoff is still better offensively then anything else the Cardinals have to offer at the keystone. .259 was the average EqA of a 2B.He’s pegged as average, but average would be an upgrade. Major leaguers to have an identical EqA or a tick below were Luis Castillo, Tadahito Iguchi, and Kaz Matsui. I think his AAA line is probably more accurate then his AA line, and I think he serves as an interesting case study on the difference of difficulty between AAA and AA. We should always look at these equivalents with a healthy dose of skepticism, and should usually put more stock with what’s projected based on the numbers at the higher level.

I still would like to look at Joe Mather and maybe a couple others, so well keep this little series going for at least another round. And we will most certainly look at the pitchers, some of you will like what you hear.