Let the kids play?

[johndw52]

But at the cost of benching a productive player like Pillar over a totally over matched Moniak?  Is this a front office cost saving decision? Head scratcher for me. Lack of direction for this org.  rears its ugly head.

[tdawg87]

Moniak is done. He's going to get DFA'd. 

Pillar should play for trade value. 

Other than that, let the young guys take their bumps. 

[jsnpritchett]

15 minutes ago, tdawg87 said:

Moniak is done. He's going to get DFA'd. 

Pillar should play for trade value. 

Other than that, let the young guys take their bumps. 

My guess is that they're going to continue to be selective on when Pillar plays to keep his stats propped up a bit.

And, honestly, as terrible as Moniak has been, it's not like there are a ton of great options in the minors waiting to take his place.  Basically comes down to Jordyn Adams (who the org seems meh on at best, at this point, and who's having a bad year at AAA) or Bryce Teodosio, who is great defensively, but whose stats are elevated by a truly lol-worthy .435 BABIP. 

[Blarg]

32 minutes ago, johndw52 said:

But at the cost of benching a productive player like Pillar over a totally over matched Moniak?  Is this a front office cost saving decision? Head scratcher for me. Lack of direction for this org.  rears its ugly head.

John, Pillar is roster filler that is gone at the trade deadline. There is no FV in Pillar, they were hoping to see some in Moniak. Even if the Angels DFA Moniak that position is probably going to another minor league prospect to sink or swim. 

Pillar will get playing time but seriously it is a non issue if he doesn't. This team isn't playoff bound, they have the 4th worst record in baseball so roster shuffling to squeeze a few more wins isn't the focus. 

As far as costs, Pillar is getting paid the same on the bench or in the field. 

[T.G.]

Two year extension incoming for Pillar.

[Stradling]

I don’t think Moniak is any good but unless we value getting at bats for Adams we might as well give him the season to see if he grows at all. 

[Slegnaac]

3 minutes ago, T.G. said:

Two year extension incoming for Pillar.

They do need a backup for Trout.

[BTH]

I’d DFA Moniak and take a chance at Florial.

Odds are neither works out, but we’ve seen enough of Moniak to know.

[Blarg]

There is no reason to DFA Moniak now with Trout about 2 weeks out. It won't give the new guy any time to settle in and then he is the 5th outfielder. 

[jsnpritchett]

4 minutes ago, Blarg said:

There is no reason to DFA Moniak now with Trout about 2 weeks out. It won't give the new guy any time to settle in and then he is the 5th outfielder. 

Trout hasn't even started baseball activities. My guess is it'll be more than two weeks before he's back. 

I agree with your overall point, though. 

[Taylor]

26 minutes ago, T.G. said:

Two year extension incoming for Pillar.

And then he'll either immediately regress or get injured.

[johndw52]

All your points are well taken and make total sense.  Losing is now acceptable.  This season is just a " covert" rebuild. I'm ok with it.  Thanks all.

[Duren, Duren]

Contrast the difference of Pillar and Moniak. Pillar likely on the way to his 10th team in 5 years. Strange, but obviously each team he goes to sees some value. 

He seems to just adjust and adapt wherever he is. A good team or bad. Not great, but with some proven value. At age 35 nearing 4,000 ABs he has a lifetime 709 OPS plus good fielding stats. 

Moniak came in with super high expectations. He couldn't come close in a short Philly window. But it looked like he got on track last year with an 802 OPS in just over 300 ABs. So the expectations were modestly raised again. But for some reason he has badly regressed. 

At age 26 he should be just approaching his best years. But his major league career may be in jeopardy unless there is a serious reversal. 

If he was able to clone Pillar's mindset and block out criticism then it might give him some confidence. Imagine the ups and downs Pillar has had to handle mentally  with constant relocations, new players, different team priorities. 

I'm not sure if it's mechanical issues, mental, or some combination why Moniak has regressed. Maybe last year was a fluke and he won't come close again. But it's still too early to definitely know. Obviously he has little trade value unless as a defensive specialist with some me speed. 

Considering the team status I would still play him hoping something clicks for him. Especially if Pillar is trade bait. But I'd bench him for  a few games and hope for a reset. 

[fan_since79]

If this is truly a 5-10 year rebuild (I hope much shorter) I wonder how many of these 'youngsters' will even be here down the line. The question is how will we create a winning, playoff caliber roster. Will we have to lose 105 games for several years to obtain top draft picks, then make some effective acquisitions, etc? 

I think a player like Rengifo could be a star, maybe O'Hoppe too, but offhand I can't think of any others. Ward, Pillar, Adell? Trade bait. The pitchers all can go except Soriano who I believe has real potential.