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I kind of wondered what Hicks' trade value was. He's a good defender and he made big strides with the bat last year, though the platoon thing is still there. I'm kind of worried about him turning into Michael Brantley and this looking dumb, but the name we haven't tossed around quite as much in the OF situation is Max Kepler, who went .322/.416/.531 at Chattanooga with more walks than strikeouts and has, to some, looked good enough to play center - just not Buxton good.
He could force his way into exactly what we'd hoped Hicks would be doing by July. The hinge point for me here is whether John Ryan Murphy is a starter or a backup. He's stuck in that role in New York, and has aged out of prospecthood despite not seeing the field a lot.
The short answer is that if he's a viable starting catcher who can contribute something with the bat, this could end up nicely. So maybe a NYY blog would be the best swipe:
http://yankees.lhblogs.com/2015/11/11/five-quick-thoughts-john-ryan-murphy-aaron-hicks-trade/
1. Murphy has everyday potential, but maybe not with Yankees Throughout the minor leagues, Murphy made such defensive strides that he wiped out the idea that he was strictly a bat-first catcher who might have to play elsewhere. Given his first Opening Day opportunity, he made further strides at the big league level, finishing the year with a .308/.368/.487 slash line in the second half. He is, at the very least, a good young backup, but he really could become a big league regular kind of like Francisco Cervelli. With the Yankees, though, Murphy was blocked in every direction. He had Brian McCann’s contract in front of him with Gary Sanchez’s bat coming up behind him. Even if Murphy were going to reach his potential, there was always a chance the Yankees would not be able to take advantage of it. They sent Murphy to a team that can give him a better opportunity.
ALSO, this prospect writer Kiley McDaniel's view of Murphy:
9. J.R. Murphy, C Video: Murphy is somewhere around Refsnyder as an upper level position player ready to contribute to the big league team, but scouts are a little more wary of Murphy’s chance to become an everyday player. He’s a 50 hit, 40 power type without a ton of offensive impact, but he’s better defensively, with a plus arm and at least average defensive skills. Some scouts still see some aspects of defense for him to work on, but indications from the analytical folks are that he’s an above average framer, so if that holds up and he reaches his offensive upside, there could be an everyday catcher here.
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"Walleye, a lot of things are going to go wrong in your life that technically aren't your fault. Always remember that this doesn't make you any less of an idiot"
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