One of baseball’s most popular debates in the past year has involved two players: Mike Trout or Bryce Harper?
Harper is perceived to have more power, Trout more speed. Trout is thought to have more range, Harper the better arm.
But it’s time that the conversation over the sport’s best young player be changed. It must include a third player -- the Orioles’ Manny Machado. In the year that Harper was drafted No. 1 overall, Machado was chosen two picks later, and the 20-year-old has continued to be overshadowed by Harper and Trout. He arrived in the big leagues a few months after the two last season, and hasn’t had the sort of attention that the other two have had.
This season, however, Machado has blossomed, hitting .315 in his first 65 games, with 34 extra-base hits (including 27 doubles) and 41 runs. Already, Machado is regarded as one of baseball’s best defenders on the left side of the infield.
I informally polled a bunch of talent evaluators around the sport about how they would rank the three players, and based on their answers, Machado already is viewed as a player comparable to the other two -- and there already is concern over Harper’s ability to stay healthy.
Total number of votes: 9. Points are based on 3-2-1 system. Here are the results:
Trout: 22
Machado: 17 1/2
Harper: 14 1/2
Some of the comments:
AL evaluator: "I would keep Machado at No. 3 only because the other two guys are center fielders, middle of the diamond capable; so their premium positon value keeps them at the top of the list for me."
NL evaluator: "Over the long haul, I think Trout's body composition could diminish some of his speed and explosiveness. I know this is a small, nitpicky distinction. I actually think Machado is the most skilled of the three. The other two are just such phenomenal strength/speed athletes."
AL official: "I still take Trout first because he just impacts the game at another level on offense, bases and defense (despite this year’s numbers which I think will reverse again). Machado is really good and actually I think is the best bet of the three for the longest and most productive career -- the best bet for the Hall of Fame because of the length of career and numbers he’ll pile up and there are so many directions he can go in as he ages -- right side of infield, outfield, etc. But I think Trout contributes more wins in his best years than Machado in his best years. ... Somebody has to be third and it’s Harper for me (as it would have been last year) because of the effort in his game and long-term durability concerns."
NL official: "It's closer between Harper and Machado than it was in the past, but Harper is still so young and talented it gives me pause to put even Trout ahead of him. However, Trout impacts the game in so many ways and is so good he's the best player in baseball right now and could be for the next 10 years. Harper has a higher upside, if not less certainty than Machado, and given their ages and all the development that remains all this ranking is about at this point is upside."
NL executive: “I’d have Machado at No. 1 because he is more graceful, with flowing athletic skills -- poised and athletic easy-action skills are able to make adjustments as required for longevity, like Jeter and early A-Rod, and like Chipper Jones’ graceful swing.
"Trout and Harper are both physical strength guys who have linebacker mentality. They may go through injuries and also may struggle later (5-7 years from now) like Kirk Gibson, Bo Jackson. Gibson played as a regular from age 26-32 and then his decline started. Bo had a football injury. Grady Sizemore is similar to a Harper. The mentality to be overly physical hurts players, and outfielders have more wear and tear physically."
Notables
• Harper’s knee has been deemed to be structurally sound.
• On Tuesday’s podcast, Atlanta GM Frank Wren talked about the legend that is Evan Gattis, and the forthcoming decision facing the Braves with their rotation: They’ve got six guys for five spots.
• Just before Gerrit Cole was about to throw the first pitch of his major league career, the Pirates threw the ball around the infield, in the usual way, and Pedro Alvarez approached the mound with the baseball. Cole had a question for him.
“He asked me if [Gregor] Blanco was a bunter,” Alvarez wrote in a text message, “and all I said was 'Yes' and that I was going to be playing in on the bunt, and not to worry about covering the third base side.
AP Photo/Keith Srakocic
If Gerrit Cole's command is there, he'll dominate. The stuff isn't a problem.
“I made it a point to not say anything along the lines of, ‘Hey, you got this!’ or ‘Hey, same game!’ I think saying things like that only solidifies that it is a big deal that he’s pitching in the big leagues. ... I wanted him to know that his teammates trusted him and that he belongs here. I was going to treat it as if A.J. Burnett or Wandy Rodriguez or any other pitcher was on the mound.”
Cole struck out Blanco on three pitches, all fastballs -- 96 mph, 97 and 99 -- and then he kept pumping strikes. His command of his secondary stuff was ordinary, but Cole’s fastball served as his equalizer, getting him ahead in the count or allowing him to catch up.
Pirates GM Neal Huntington -- who has so much invested in Cole, in organizational dollars and in hope -- said that watching debuts of all players coming up from the minors is fun. “What was most rewarding was watching how he did things,” Huntington wrote in an email, noting how Cole pounded the strike zone. Cole’s “second pitch of the game was a fastball inside, and his first secondary pitch was a right-hander against right-hander change-up to the reigning MVP,” Buster Posey.
Alvarez’s assessment: “Awesome. ... He competed on the mound and used his defense. He stayed within himself and didn’t try to do too much. Not to mention his great at-bats at the plate, as well.
“I was impressed at how poised and in control he was the entire outing. ... I think a lot of hard throwers with his kind of stuff might get caught up in running up the strikeout total, but he certainly did not.”
From ESPN Stats & Information, how Cole won:
A. He threw 78 percent strikes with his fastball (seven swings-and-misses, 16 called strikes).
B. He averaged 96.2 mph (would be highest average among starting pitchers) and reached 99.4 with his fastball, the hardest fastball thrown by a starting pitcher this season.
C. He stuck with it -- 79 percent fastballs, which kept hitters off his other pitches. Opponents went 0-for-5 in at-bats ending with his changeup and slider.
He is the first Pirates starter to win his MLB debut since 2005 (Paul Maholm). His start also vaguely resembles the first start of fellow No. 1 Stephen Strasburg, who went 7 innings (Cole went 6 1/3), and gave up the same two earned runs. The big difference is Strasburg whiffed 14 batters, whereas Cole struck out two. Neither issued a walk, both got a win.
Cole also drove in the game’s first two runs in his first MLB at-bat, the first pitcher drafted No. 1 overall to get an RBI in his MLB debut (of the 14 to make the majors).
Cole shined, writes Bill Brink. This debut was special for many reasons, writes Ron Cook. Cole’s coronation could come in time, writes Dejan Kovacevic.
The Pirates are 38-26, the first time they’ve won at least 38 of their first 64 since 1992. Seasons in past 50 years that included at least 38 wins in the first 64 games for Pittsburgh show some big gaps. From Justin Havens of ESPN Stats & Info, those years include 1992, 1991, 1990, then 1975, 1972 and 1971.
• The Giants lost, and had concern about Marco Scutaro, who may have suffered tendon damage, as Henry Schulman writes.
• There was a lot of stuff going on even before the Diamondbacks-Dodgers game Tuesday night: Arizona suffered a tough hit to its bullpen, with the loss of Matt Reynolds, and Brandon League was replaced as the Dodgers’ closer.
But then the game started and the two sides started scrapping. Yasiel Puig got hit, somewhere on the shoulder, then in the face; Arizona catcher Miguel Montero got drilled in the back by Zack Greinke, after repeated attempts; and then Ian Kennedy nailed Greinke just below the neck.
There were a lot of violations of baseball’s unwritten rules along the way, and here are a few:
1. As Greinke seemingly attempted retaliation at Montero, he took multiple shots at him, missing before his final pitch. A lot of players feel like a pitcher gets one shot at retaliation and if he misses, well, it’s on him -- and the fact that Greinke kept throwing at Montero is why the Diamondbacks were upset. (As I wrote at the time of the Carlos Quentin-Greinke incident, Zack does not shy away from these situations; he embraces them.)
2. It’s really kind of silly that Greinke wasn’t ejected after hitting Montero, because everybody in the ballpark knew it was on purpose.
3. Kennedy’s response to Greinke -- a fastball near his head -- was really dangerous, in how close it came to hitting him in the noggin.
And there is one more rule that will probably be addressed when discipline comes down (and presumably, Kennedy will get the most significant suspension): Players on the disabled list are not supposed to go on the field during a fight, and some Dodgers violated this.
• Max Scherzer continues to dominate hitters, and he overpowered the Royals Tuesday to run his record to 9-0.
Per the Elias Sports Bureau, that's now 13 straights starts this season with at least six strikeouts. The folks with the most consecutive starts with six or more K's in AL history? "They" are all Pedro Martinez:
2000 Pedro Martinez: 29
1999 Pedro Martinez: 15
2001 Pedro Martinez: 14
2013 Max Scherzer: 13
• Ian Stewart was suspended without pay after he tweeted a bunch of stuff.
From Paul Sullivan’s story:
The saga began late Monday night when Stewart answered a fan’s question about when he would return to the Cubs with two words: “Probably never.”
That quickly escalated into some perceived whining about his status in Iowa: “I meant they might as well release me since I have no shot at a call-up.”
Explaining why he thought the Cubs didn’t want him up, he mentioned manager Dale Sveum: “I think Dale doesn’t like me and he’s running the show.” He also tweeted the Cubs “are done with me” and are “going to let me ROTT (sic) in AAA all season and then non tender me after.” He told one fan it was “more fun” in Triple A, and also re-tweeted someone who wrote the Cubs had “terrible leadership.”
The Cubs were not surprised Stewart vented on Twitter, but the shots at Sveum were particularly galling to Epstein.
“It’s pretty obvious that it’s not appropriate to criticize your manager in your organization on Twitter,” he said.
Sveum said it was “unfortunate that people have to vent their frustrations through social media,” calling it “unprofessional.”
As for whether he disliked Stewart, Sveum responded: “I liked him enough to be in his court to bring him back. Everybody doesn’t (always) like me. That’s the way it is.”
In general: Tweeting about his frustration makes less sense than simply playing well and forcing the hand of the big league team in this situation.
• Encouraged by what they saw Monday, the Rays are speeding up David Price’s timetable.
Moves, deals and decisions
1. Jose Reyes is leaving today for his injury rehab assignment, as mentioned within this notebook.
2. The Mariners called up Mike Zunino.
3. The Nationals traded a pitcher.
4. Alexi Ogando will remain in the Texas rotation if he gets a clean bill of health, says Nolan Ryan.
5. Any improvements for the Yankees will likely come from within.
6. Michael Young continues to hit leadoff for the Phillies.
7. The Royals signed a top pick.
8. The Cardinals are close to a deal with their No. 1 pick.
9. Tyler Colvin was recalled from Triple-A.
Dings and dents
1. Yoenis Cespedes left the game with hamstring tightness, as Susan Slusser writes.
2. The Tigers have no idea when Octavio Dotel will be back, writes George Sipple.
3. Aaron Hicks landed on the disabled list.
4. Charlie Morton is getting the ball Thursday.
5. Clay Buchholz could start Sunday.
6. Chris Coghlan is going to be out a while.
7. An injured Angels reliever has been told to rest.
8. Scott Van Slyke became the latest Dodgers player to go on the disabled list.
Tuesday’s games
1. CC Sabathia struggled near the place he grew up.
2. Michael Wacha picked up his first victory, writes Derrick Goold.
3. Cory Kluber stomped out the Indians’ losing streak, writes Paul Hoynes.
4. Aaron Harang pitched a beauty.
5. CarGo did it again.
AL West
• The Rangers miss Ian Kinsler, writes Evan Grant.
• The Astros have lost six straight.
AL Central
• Justin Morneau came through in the clutch, as Mike Berardino writes.
• The Royals lead the AL in ERA, writes Tod Palmer.
• The White Sox made a lot of mistakes.
AL East
• New father Miguel Gonzalez was outstanding against the Angels, writes Dan Connolly.
• Jon Lester had a bad day.
• The Rays are still angry with John Lackey.
• Matt Joyce has been on a roll.
NL West
• Here’s a look inside the Padres’ draft preparation, from Corey Brock.
NL Central
• Tony Cingrani beat the Cubs, but he may not be around long.
• The Reds have won 11 straight at Wrigley Field. Per Elias: It’s the first time they've won at least 11 straight road games versus one opponent since 1956-57, when they won 12 in a row at Pittsburgh (team record is 15 straight versus Phillies from 1922-24).
• Carlos Beltran has thrived since leaving the Mets, writes Jim Baumbach.
NL East
• Giancarlo Stanton was "the man" for the Marlins.
• Daniel Murphy’s best position continues to be: hitter.
• The Braves are having a frustrating road trip.
• Dan Haren was blasted.
• Stephen Strasburg is set to come back Sunday.
• The upper Midwest continues to wreck the Phillies.
Other stuff
• Robinson Cano says there’s “no chance” he’ll pick Billy Butler for the Home Run Derby.
• The Brewers have a whole lot invested in Ryan Braun, writes Tyler Kepner.
• The debate over the old Tiger Stadium site continues.
• The Rangers and Indians worked around a sinkhole, as T.R. Sullivan writes.
