Confirming some news we heard last week, of Baseball Prospectus has the news that the Nationals have indeed signed Dominican SS Jean Carlos Valdez. According to McDaniel, the deal is for $350-450K.
Here is what Baseball America had on Valdez
“…ability to hit for power, though scouts say his swing gets long and he has trouble translating that power into game situations. He has a strong arm, though he’s a below-average runner and will probably move to third base or the outfield”
He also references another signing over $100K. I’m assuming that is RHP Cleto Cabral
#1 by expo_ram - July 9th, 2009 at 15:50
Nice – looks like they are trying more now. Maybe they can swoop in and get Sano on the cheap? They certainly have the money, especially if you consider Belliard (5), Meat (5), Kearns (7 after 1 buyout), Biemel (2?), Nick (5), maybe Guzman, and even Pena come off the books for next year.
#2 by Chris - July 9th, 2009 at 15:52
Much like the Brandon King signing, this story must be a fabrication! The Nationals don’t do this type of thing!
#3 by An Briosca Mor - July 9th, 2009 at 15:53
I hear he makes a mean cup of coffee too. Oh wait, that was Juan Valdez. Never mind.
#4 by Brian Oliver - July 9th, 2009 at 15:55
ABM – I’m assuming that’s why I see his middle name everywhere I’ve read about him
#5 by expo_ram - July 9th, 2009 at 16:08
Hopefully they are not spending what WOULD HAVE BEEN spent on Strasburg! :^o
#6 by Berndaddy - July 9th, 2009 at 16:08
Hey Brian I was reading the top 25 mid-season prospects list at BA and in the “next” 25 list Derek Norris is about # 45. Pretty cool, eh…
#7 by Brian Oliver - July 9th, 2009 at 16:11
exp – These are the types of signings I’d hope they would have been regularly making. The $2M+ guys seem to flame out more often than not. I like the idea of instead signing 4 guys at $500K and seeing if you get quality from quantity.
Berndaddy – I saw that. Those names are listed alphabetically, so Norris is likely not #45. That being said, it’s nice to see a Nats prospect get some ink
#8 by Ronny - July 9th, 2009 at 16:35
I told you Brian that Norris was going to shoot up BA prospect ranking.
#9 by Pilchard - July 9th, 2009 at 16:38
Definitely a sign that things are changing for the better in the front office.
The Nats learned that they get more bang for their buck in the DR when Jose Rijo, Jim Bowden and their hangers-on are not getting a cut. ;-)
#10 by Andrew F. - July 9th, 2009 at 17:37
John Manuel said Norris is closer to 26 than to 50 in the comments of that article. Here is what he said:
Norris’ defensive stats are actually terrible; he leads the SAL in passed balls and errors by a C. He has average defensive tools but doesn’t focus on defense. He’s a catcher; he needs to focus on defense. It’s at the top of the profile for every team at that position. He also is a 26-50 guy, and closer to 26 than 50, but the defensive questions for me are substantial. Just talked to another scout about that very point today.
#11 by Andrew Stebbins - July 9th, 2009 at 18:30
I don’t think you really had to tell anyone.
#12 by dd - July 9th, 2009 at 18:44
Expos had a guy, Brad Fullmer, who loved to hit and was seen (apparently) talking to his bat, which he took with him all the time (probably exaggerated. He was a 1B-3B, but pretty much a below average fielder, who did not really concentrate or focus on defense. Ended up in the AL as a DH. Hopefully Norris concentrates a little more defense.
#13 by Marcus - July 9th, 2009 at 20:42
Glad to see were making atleast a little bit of noise internationally…Hope we’re doing some investigating on Sano too…
Gr8 to see Norris getting some pub, he’ll most likely be the number 1 prospect on BA’s Hotsheet tomorrow too with his 6 HR’s and he added on 3 BB’s today…
#14 by Sue Dinem - July 10th, 2009 at 05:40
This may explain why Norris is being “held down” in Hagerstown (hey, that rhymes!) but it’s also to be expected from a player that’s been converted to the position, which is the most difficult to play in all of professional sports.
#15 by Steven J. Berke - July 10th, 2009 at 07:27
Also, seems to me that if Norris DOES crack the Nats lineup within the next 2-3 years, it’s just as likely to be at first base as catcher, since I don’t think Flores will be going anywhere unless Norris turns out to be the next Johnny Bench.
#16 by Steve - July 10th, 2009 at 09:37
Sue, I agree with your analysis and I know you follow the minor leagues. My question is having not seen Norris play, it seems he has mastered hitting at low A ball, although he does strikeout more than I like. Won’t he start to be pitched around (don’t they do that in low A) or get used to hitting a steady diet of mostly fastballs. Better competition usually helps improve good players. I’m just saying with the Nationals having a few young catcher in their system (I know you can never have enough) they may want to convert him if he is a power bat. Two catchers I can think of offhand who only spent a short time in the minors, Surhoff, Biggio, were MLB player by 22. Norris may not have that skill set but the kid does know how to hit. Your thoughts please.
#17 by Sue Dinem - July 10th, 2009 at 15:24
Steve – I’ve only seen Norris play twice but it’s been enough for me to agree the kid’s got some decent power. Unfortunately, the comparisons to Biggio and Surhoff are in age only as Norris is definitely less athletic than either of those two, at least as much as I’ve seen. According to this interview Norris only played 3B because he was blocked by an upperclassman, so perhaps his struggles defensively are simply a lack of time behind the plate after reaching his current size and stature.
That said, I would love to have the chance to dissect him further by watching him play in Woodbridge sometime in August, but perhaps the feeling is that the more experienced baserunners would eat him alive, which would damage his defensive confidence. I had previously suggested that perhaps he and Sean Rooney split catching duties, but Rooney’s swoon (an almost rhyme) may be another factor that’s keeping Derek stuck.
#18 by DJ - July 10th, 2009 at 16:42
GCL Nationals defeated GCL Astros today, 24-5.
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_07_10_astrok_natrok_1
Destin Hood’s numbers look like this: .347/.429/.612 with 8 extra base hits (2 HR), 16 RBI, 6 BB/10 K. I think he’s in line for a promotion.
Josh Smoker pitched well, going 4 innings, 5 hits, one walk and 4 k’s.
#19 by Steve - July 10th, 2009 at 19:44
Sue, thanks for the extra info, the kid definitely looks like a prospect on paper. Very few Nationals have had back to back improving years that place them in the elite of their league. I did see last night he got 3 walks not sure if they were pitching around him? You are right that catcher is the most difficult position to play and having a good defensive power hitting catcher is a luxury that can make managers and GM’s drool. That said if he continues to hit and is quick enough to be a corner outfielder or infielder it may be too tempting to leave him in the minors. When he moves to Woodbridge we will know a lot more and if he continues to hit and make adjustments it becomes much more likely that he will hit in any league. I guess its best to let him develop as a catcher now and only convert him if his defensive skills stop improving. Thanks again and I look forward your future dissections.
#20 by Jeff E. - July 11th, 2009 at 18:48
this new SS signee sounds like Jose Uribe now with SF. down the road…. lets make another deal with PITT wintertime once they determine which LH bats they will use and those not…..Doumit??