Trade Bait or Phillies’ Placeholders
By Tal Venada
While Rupp is demonstrating how hard it is to repeat an excellent season, Knapp has 104 at-bats and has seen his average fluctuate with a good or bad day to .250 currently. But getting offense from a backstop is secondary to game calling, pitch framing, throwing out base runners and blocking balls in the dirt. So, where is tomorrow’s receiver?
Triple-A Comparison:
- Knapp, 24.5 in 2016: 107 Gms., 443 PA, a .266 Avg., 8 HR, 46 RBI, a .719 OPS and a 3.6 WARP.
- Alfaro’s 443-PA Projection: 105 Gms., 10 HR and 59 RBI.
- Alfaro, 24: 62 Gms., 261 PA, a .256 Avg., 6 HR and 35 RBI.
- See plate-discipline percentages and statistical comparison for advanced numbers (last page).
On the IronPigs, Alfaro’s numbers are similar to Knapp’s from 2016. But last September, Alfaro struck out eight times out of 17 plate appearances. That stated, Alfaro has received high marks for his defensive skills. Is he tomorrow’s catcher?
"IN OTHER WORDS: “There’s just not a lot of inventory, and to find a shortstop or a catcher, or a center fielder, that you think that could stay at those positions… they’re very hard to acquire. Sometimes you have to overpay for them, because of that lack of inventory.” – Kevin Towers"