Brandon Snyder on his big game and goal to start at 1B for the O's
Not long after he finished up a monster game at the plate in the Arizona Fall League, Brandon Snyder was on the other end of the phone line. He was talking about his 7-RBI day on Wednesday.
But before long the conversation shifted to the 2010 season. If the O's have an open competition for their first base job, Snyder is determined to emerge the winner and first base starter come opening day for the Orioles.
"I never really thought about until as of late," Snyder, who will turn 23 next month, said. "I want to win the job and be the every day first baseman. The home grown guy that's been an Oriole and is going to stay an Oriole. I know those guys that went up this last year and did well in the big leagues. I want to be one of those guys as well.
"I had a good game on offense today, but on defense it was probably one of the best days I've had. My defense at first has improved and those are the things that are going to get me to the big leagues. Putting offense and defense together is what I need and I hope it continues."
Snyder admits he got frustrated at times hitting in that big ball park at Triple-A Norfolk last summer. Maybe he's taking out some of that frustration now.
Playing in the AFL for the second straight season, Snyder went 4 for 5 Wednesday with a double, two homers and 7 RBI leading Phoenix past Peoria, 17-4.
Fellow O's minor leaguers did their part as Josh Bell went 4-5 with a homer and 3 RBI and Matt Angle was 2 for 5 with two runs and an RBI.
Bell is 12 for 20 and leading the AFL batting .600.
As for Snyder, through six AFL games he is batting .481 (13 for 27) with three homers and a league-leading 12 RBI.
Snyder said it was just a special day at the plate.
"It was just a matter of sort of finding my swing. I had been swinging better the last couple of days, after working on some little things in BP. Today my swing was where I need it to be with my timing and hands and everything rolling together."
Snyder actually made an out on a hard one-hopper he hit to short in the first inning.
"I was pretty happy with that at bat. I hit an inside fastball pretty good on a 1-2 pitch. Put pretty good wood on it and that pretty much set the tone for the day."
Snyder hit a two-run homer in the 3rd, had a two-run single in the 4th, a leadoff double in the 6th and three-run homer in the 7th.
He pointed out that both homers went out to center field and were balls that would have been outs at Harbor Park in Norfolk.
After tearing it up in the first half of 2009 at Double-A Bowie (.343-10-45 in 58 games) Snyder's numbers declined in the second half with Norfolk. In 73 games, he batted .248-2-43.
But now he's clearly back on track and has started off on fire for the Phoenix team that has eight Orioles on its roster.
In 2009, in 131 games between Bowie and Norfolk, the right handed batter hit .289 with 12 homers and 88 RBI. He added 37 doubles with 51 walks and 109 strikeouts.
Among all O's minor leaguers he finished 7th in batting average, tied for second in homers and second in RBI to Brandon Waring.
Through repetition and hard work, Snyder has improved on defense at first. He says he's just more comfortable there now and is getting better reads off the bat.
Snyder excelled last year in the AFL. But he already has more RBI than he had in the league last year. Then, in 17 games, he batted .349-4-10.
Coming tomorrow - Snyder talks about his experience with Triple-A Norfolk this season.
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Categories (click for archive)Orioles News | Steve Melewski |
Great coverage, Steve. Makes you really root for these young guys!
Do you recognize a new focus and sense of determination in a lot of these young prospects you've been covering over the last season or so?
It seems the first crop (Wieters, Reimold, Bergesen, etc.) set the tone and demonstrated that if you play well in Bowie and Norfolk, you too can find yourself succeeding in Baltimore. The second crop (Snyder, Arrieta, Johnson, etc.) seems to have taken notice and are using this as fuel. Like they can almost taste it, and are trying to take it to the next level get to Baltimore.
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That's a good point on your part. The second wave has gained confidence seeing the Wieters-Reimold-Bergesen group not only make the Majors but have success there. It makes the guys like Snyder want to get there too. - Steve
Steve,
To put some of these numbers in prospective, I went to the afl website and looked at the statistics of the six teams at:
http://mlb.mlb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=l119&lid=119&t=l_tba
I then calculated the league averages to be ba .302, obp .379 and slg .484. Obviously the afl is a hitters league; however, Bell, whose ba is twice the league average, and Snyder, whose ba is 1.6 times the league average, are still doing exceptionally well.
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Interesting numbers there, Rusty. There seems to be more offense in the league in the early going. But still, batting .600 anytime gets your attention and so does a two-homer, 7 RBI game. The O's have to be delighted so far, especially with their hitters there. - Steve
Hey Steve-
Thanks for feeding my Orioles fix during October. Im skeptical of putting too much stock into Snyder's stats, as I'm not sure what the environment for hitters is like in the AFL, or what the quality of the pitching is like, either.
Likewise, I don't want to get too discouraged about his poor run at AAA, as I know that Norfolk is one of the toughest hitting environments in pro baseball.
Have you talked to any scouts about Snyder? What are baseball people that have seen him play(especially people from outside the organization) saying about the kid?
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That would be a good perspective to get and in the next few weeks I'll look to get a story like that. - Steve
I love this kid's attitude and his desire. He sounds hungry and willing to learn as he goes. At 23, he might be what that lineup needs--a big bopper who can play some defense. Let the kids play!
I also see Josh Bell at 3B before too long. That will give us a bunch of 20-somethings growing up together:
Steve,
We all know that the O's need corner infielders. Do you think the way Bell and Snyder are hitting that might change McPhail's thinking going into the off season for free agent signings or trades? Personally, I don't think Andy would do anything to block the progress and possible promotions of these two prospects. They will probably get a taste of AAA this year but they should be with the O's by May or June as long as they continure to improve.
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I think he'd still like to acquire a "big bat" somehow, becasue you can't gaurantee that Snyder and/or Bell will hit at the ML level. But the two continue to make the argument that they can hit at the ML level with showings like this in the AFL. Matusz and Reimold have both had success in this league that led to later success in the majors. It's a good sign they are playing to well in Arizona. - Steve
What does success in the AFL mean? Does it translate (more often than not)into Major League success like last year with Wieters and Matusz? It seems like it's just an extension of AAA/AA level success and just gives the guys more reps and a chance to improve a specific area of need i.e. Synder's defense. It also appears to be the place for the front office to confirm a prevously held opinion on some of their key prospects. I'm hoping the O's have success like last year and are able to move Bell and Synder up sooner rather than later and focus their free agent dollars on pitching and not a bat altho a big bat hitting behind Markakis is essential (Wieters, Bell, Synder, or a FA). Keep up the great updates.
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Some of the better prospects in the game are there, including pitchers. It's just another sign that Bell and Snyder can hit. Plus they get more reps vs. quality pitching which doesn't hurt at all. - Steve
snyder seems to be a good kid and i really like his attitude. he seems fired up and determined to succeed and make it to the big leagues and produce. to me if these guys want to be the elite they need to dominate at whatever level and league they are playing in, and so far they are showing that. good for snyder and good for bell. keep it up fellas.
Steve,
I had a chance to meet Brandon when Bowie came up to Connecticut for 3 games this year, which turned out to be the last as the team moved out of CT with no replacement. He was a great guy, I had my 7 year old son, yell to him, which, seemed to have caught him by surprise, hearing some little kid in Connecticut yelling his name. Definitely got his attention though, as he had a bat broken by him during the game brought out to my son, and autographed it the next day. He is my son's favorite minor league player, and I always give him updates, hoping he can join the O's with his other favorite Orioles players. Here is a pic of Brandon signing the bat, I love the smirk on Brandon's face, and my son's attention to the signature. My favorite picture ever! Definitely a good guy, and when we saw him in AA he was really hitting well, I think he had at least 3 doubles in the 3 game series.
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Nice story, thanks Chuck. - Steve
In spite of the usual negative whining naysayers on the MASN blogs, everyone has to admit for the first time in a decade the future looks bright for the Orioles. Reimold, Wieters, Begesen, Matusz, Tillman, Adam Jones, Pie already in the Majors and it looks like the second crop could be on the way soon IF progress keeps being made. Do you expect Josh Bell to be invited to camp in the spring? It would be nice to see him with Snyder, Waring, Arietta, et all play together.
I also agree with you about MacPhail still trying to add a bat for the upcoming season. It's going to be a fun off-season I hope.
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I'm sure Bell will be at camp, heck he might enter camp with a chance to leave Florida as the starting 3B. - Steve
It seems Nick Johnson is the perfect guy to go after this Fall. His OBP is fantastic, and he is a very solid ball player when healthy. If hurt it provides a chance for Snyder to come up and see what he could do.
What do you think the chances are of AM going after Johnson?
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To be honest, I'd rather see Snyder get a shot. Steve
Hey Steve, do you know how the O's view Erbe? It seems, when healthy, he has the potential and "stuff" to surpass all the other young, highly touted pitchers. Do they have any projections for him? I would like to see the O's go after a top pitcher but if they have Guts, Bergy, Matusz, Tillman, that leaves one spot. We have Arrieta, Patton, and Erbe possibly ready by midseason, where would they go? I just see Erbe finally breaking through this spring and it will be hard to keep him off the team. He has been pitching in the O's system for awhile now and he seems to have the maturity to handle the bigs, kind of like Bergy last year. What are your thoughts?
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They see him as one of their top pitching prospects for sure. He has a chance to be on the big lg club sometime during 2010. - Steve
Yeah, I think the most likely scenario is that we sign a low-risk high-reward free agent 3B on a 1 year contract, someone like Adrian Beltre or Troy Glaus. Bell and Snyder start at AAA. We'll have 3 trade chips at the corner IF / DH positions: Scott, Wigginton, and the new bat. Any and all of these players can be traded if they're playing well and we need to make a space for Bell / Snyder. Heck, I think if we get a good offer for Scott in the offseason (from the Braves perhaps?), we'll trade him now.
This is why signing a guy like Wigginton was a good deal; we didn't need him last year, but now he gives us some flexibility. It's not like we signed him to a 10 year contract or anything, either.
great update. like i have said before this kid snyder is all baseball. this kid bought an apartment across the street from the orioles minor league complex with part of his signing bonus coming out of highschool. he is determined to succeed and has. he is a prospect with million dollar tools and a million dollar head. give him a chance to prove it, which he will get this spring. he will just add to the chemistry of these young guys who are already on the roster(whom he roomed with in fredrick and bowie). between him bell, erbe, waring, arrietta, i personally think this second wave of youngsters could be every bit as good as that first. this afl is a bloodline to the majors and success there usually means you are ml quality. this will be snyders second season of success there. mind you, snyders stats were on par with wieters at the same age at bowie. they faded when he got called up but he is not much different than matt wieters, he just needs to solidify himself at a defensive position and he is well on his way to contributing to the Os in 2010.
I was having a conversation with my dad the other day comparing Erbe and Arrieta. In your opinion, who do you think has the greater potential to succeed in the majors?
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I have seen them pitch so little it's hard to say. I'll give a slight edge to Arrieta to not cop out completely on your question. Both highly regarded obviously.
Steve
If the success of Snyder and Bell continues does this up the ante on MacPhail to get a bigger name bat for the lineup or does that just mean that we can expect a lesser signing as a stopgap until they can be called up in a midseason Wieters fashion?
I don't see us getting a big bat in the off season. There just isn't anything out there.
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I think they'd like to acquire someone no matter how that pair does. But who is to say one or both of them won't become big bats one day, or at least solid hitters in the Majors. You always want depth and talent, so it's nice to see their hitting in the AFL to date. - Steve
Steve,
I read in your comments section of fans suggesting players like Nick Johnson,Adrian Beltre, and Troy Glauss, all FA's, to go after in the " short term " so as to not block our youngsters, and then have them as valuable trade material for the dead-line when the youngsters come up.
I'm of a different mind set in that I like to always look at the "long term" side of things. I say that we should look at some of our new guys,{ Scott, Wiggington, Pie, Andino, Fiorentino, Aubry, and even some of our young pitchers} as trade material now.
Three players I would love to see the O's get are Derrek Lee/1B CHC, Astrubal Cabrera/SS-3B CLE, and Gavin Floyd/SP CHW.
Most crucial is Derrek Lee, he's still relatively young and already proven all-star quality 1B,a right hand hitter with an above average OBP and slugging percentage and situational awareness at the plate, perfect for a 4 or 5 hitter behind Markakis or Reimhold. But best of all he's an "Orioles Way" type of player and he's on a team that's going into bankruptcy and has a history of being a willing trading partner with Mr. MacPhail. Even if Snyder comes up out of spring training he will have played everyday for 40 of the previous 48 months and would have to have someone to share the workload at this level as well as be a mentor to him while he grows into a number 4 or 5 slot hitter. We would lose no production at all at 1B or DH if these two shared the positions and Snyder hit in the 7 or 8 slot from the get go or at mid season.
Gavin Floyd is next most important, he's a solid number 2 starter for the Sox who gets through the order twice with few problems and knows how to get out of a jam. Instead of blocking another pitchers progression he may just be the answer to our bull pen woes at mid season. But best of all he's a local boy who grew up hearing about the "Oriole Way" and I think he might just be thrilled to live it.
Both of these guys are pretty easy to sell if only because they're proven and known to fans in the area and most likely would sell a few extra tickets. Asdrubal on the other hand has only been in the majors 2yrs. has only played 3B sparingly in his pro career and is the only quality SS in the Indians system and may be hard to pry away from them even if they are in turmoil. But man just look at his tools, he's as smooth a fielder as I have seen in a long time,his reactions seem superb, he has a great arm, had 18 stolen bases on a team that never ran, can bunt, and is the prototypical number 2 hitter. When it's time for Bell or another prospect to move up, and since we would probably have to give up Andino or Wiggington in the trade we would have the best possible switch-hitting utility infielder in the league and insurance should someone get injured.
Even if we traded for all of these players, we could still sign a FA pitcher or power hitting 3B of the second tier quality the O's always seem to be left with, but then when it comes to the mid-season trading dead line we would be trading from a position of strength and be able to restock our system with prospects equal to what we traded to get those three to begin with.
Let me know what you think of this idea or what you might see as an alternative. There seems to be a few fans already jumping on the Lee and Floyd band wagons, we'd like to have you join us.
Thanks Leon
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Leon, you have identified three good players. But no way they get any of them trading from a pool of the players you mentioned. You must trade quality to get quality. If you are willing to part with some of the young talent, especially pitchers, maybe even the top tier guys, then you could make a run at some you mentioned.
Players like Wigginton and Pie and Andino and even Scott, who is too streaky, would not come close to getting that done.
So, sure, who wouldn't want those guys. But what are you willing to give. I would not want to trade any of the top young talent right now. - Steve
Excellent attitude and this is exactly the type of player the Orioles need to move forward.
Good luck Brandon.
Here's hoping you lock down 1B is ST, and have a great rookie year.