Nieuwenhuis

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Practice spelling the name. It would help though if I could pronounce it. Anywhoo, promoted to AAA, could be replace Francoeur for the '11 Mets?

I was asked multiple times on twitter whether Kirk Nieuwenhuis was ready for AAA. In a word, yes. He really didn�t have much left to prove at AA. Nieuwenhuis, who will be 23 on Saturday, was hitting .289/.337/.510 in the Eastern League which averages .260/.332/.397. He led the EL with 53 extra-base hits. His 201 total bases were tied for third. His 35 doubles were second. At the plate, my only concern with Nieuwenhuis was that he wasn�t drawing a whole lot of walks early in the year. He laid that concern to rest as part of a monster July when he hit .328/.386/.621 with his best walk rate, his lowest strikeout rate and an extra-base hit in 15% of his plate appearances. I think this changes the timetable on Nieuwenhuis. With a big August at AAA, he could well be in line for a September call-up if the Mets want to take a sneak peak at a potential outfield piece in a post-Failcouer world. Nieuwenhuis, who was drafted with Ike Davis, Brad Holt, Reese Havens and Eric Campbell in the fruitful �08 class, would not need to be added to the 40-man roster this winter to be protected from the rule 5 draft which argues against a look in September. However, if the Mets think he�s part of their 2011 big league team, then we�ll see him after Labor Day. Scouts I talked to who saw him early in the year in the Eastern League weren�t convinced at all that he could play centerfield everyday. On a corner, his range would be above average, however. The question is whether he�ll hit enough to play everyday out there. The move to AAA is a pretty exciting step for one of the best performers in the Mets system this year. The Buffalo outfield of Nieuwenhuis in CF, Fernando Martinez in LF and Lucas Duda in LF is a pretty darn good reason to go see the Herd. The three teammates are essentially fighting for the right to go to spring training with a shot at a MLB job, right? That�s cool.

http://www.metsminorleagueblog.com/2010/08/06/on-nieuwenhuis-to-aaa/

[TransMonk]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: ...could be replace Francoeur for the '11 Mets?

And/or Beltran?

It'll be nice to see him with the big club next month.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Above average defense, questions about the bat/patience...

Seems like, apart from the arm, the smile, and knowing where the bathrooms are, he could give you what Francoeur's giving you now.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Unfunny, malicious mis-puns like "Failcouer" make me angry. Like David Banner angry. It makes me angry as a baseball fan and angry as a speaker fo the English language.

I don't anticipate Nieuernal;hfauinassk making the team next spring. Four of five slots seem set with Bay, Pagan, Beltran and Martinez, and one will go to Carter or another veteran pinch-hitter, so he seems like a possible callup if a hole opens up there. But he certainly could jump the line by out-playing Martinez in August, September, and March. He's older.

Is he eligible for Arizona or did he play last year? He wasn't even on most of the team's top ten lists going into the season.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Reminders of "David" Banner make me Bruce Banner angry!

Wouldn't it be just like the Mets to replace Francoeur (whose name most of us have finally learned to spell) with a guy who's name is even trickier than Mientkiewicz! Nieuwenhuis may not be very Schaefer-friendly, but I think he has a shot at being in the 2011 outfield, but for that to happen Beltran or Pagan would also have to exit with Francoeur. (And he'd have to outplay Martinez.) I suspect that Pagan is staying. A move of Beltran seems unlikely, but could be possible.

Maybe Nieuwenhuis will be a mid-season callup in 2011 and take over the job in 2012. At 25, he won't be too old to start a major league career.

[HahnSolo]

Edgy, curious...why do you feel that an OF slot is close to set FMart for 2011. Or are you only considering who we have in the organization right now?

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

You think Martinez is still ahead of Neuwenhuis on said line? The numbers disagree with you; Kirk's stayed healthy and outproduced him over each of the last two seasons.

[Guest Edgy DC]

A slot will be available and he's advanced further.

I certainly don't think he's locked in or anything, but his option years have already started so there's some urgency in getting him back up and seeing if he can hack it. Playing at the same level, Nieuwenheis can certainly outclass him and solidify his case.

Martinez has had a frustrating year, marked my injury and pedestrian production, but he did open the season as the team's number two prospect wtih solid AAA work behind him, while Nieuwenhuis hadn't played above A ball and wasn't typically listed in the team's top ten. That can't all be out the window.

[ashie62]

Nieuwenhuis could equal Jeff Duncan. I hope not.

Francouer tries his hardest. He plays an excellent RF. He just doesn't hit much. He will have an MLB job for many years.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Francoeur is fast-once-he-gets-going, not quick (to use a football analogy-- that I think he might appreciate-- he's Jerome Bettis, not Barry Sanders), which is part of the reason he's an effort guy-- he needs to go all-out to get to a liner or bloop. I'd say-- and I think that most metrics/eyes agree-- that he plays an okay RF glovewise, with a great arm.

If Nieuwenhuis turned out to be Jeff Duncan, it wouldn't be too far of a downgrade, unfortunately.

[Zvon]

So lets decide now what we should go with when making his name a more type able thing.

I suggest Nieu (with an invisable H)

Fan club: The Knights Who Say Nieu

[G-Fafif]

Edgy DC wrote: Unfunny, malicious mis-puns like "Failcouer" make me angry. Like David Banner angry.

And my first thought was, "How angry does David Brenner get? He usually looks pretty happy."



Never mind!

[Guest Edgy DC]

"Kirk" works.

[TransMonk]

I'm gonna go with Newie. Or Kirk.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

I've got an idea for a nice, non-sexist/misogynist rookie-hazing outfit.

[Zvon]

I suggest Nieu (with an invisable H) Fan club: The Knights Who Say Nieu

Edgy DC wrote: "Kirk" works.

TransMonk wrote: I'm gonna go with Newie. Or Kirk.

This demands a poll!
We should all be on the same page here.