Submitted by: Clear Lake Twinsfan
| Name |
Age |
Level |
P1 |
P2 |
Availablility |
Years |
AFV |
Salary |
Surplus |
Low |
Median |
High |
| Kepler |
29 |
Majors |
OF |
|
High |
2 |
26.1 |
18.5 |
7.6 |
6.1 |
7.6 |
9.1 |
| Name |
Age |
Level |
P1 |
P2 |
Availablility |
Years |
AFV |
Salary |
Surplus |
Low |
Median |
High |
| Gaston |
|
Minors |
RHP |
|
|
|
|
|
2.4 |
1.9 |
2.4 |
2.9 |
| Poche |
28 |
Majors |
LHRP |
|
Medium |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Vasquez |
|
Minors |
SS |
|
|
|
|
|
4.7 |
3.7 |
4.7 |
5.7 |
My new response to all Kepler to the Rays trade proposals:
Everyone looks at the Rays and says “They need a lefty bat. Kepler has a lefty bat and the Twins want to move him. Rays should want Kepler.” Well, I don’t see it. Kepler hits below 100 wRC+ with that lefty bat, which he has done in 5 of his 7 year career (not counting his 7 PA cup of coffee in 2015). He’s gonna make $8.5MM this year, which is a big number for the Rays. His splits were almost identical last year, which means there is no platoon advantage with him. Yeah, he plays good defense but so does the Rays’ Manny Margot. In fact, Margot hit RHP last year pretty well (88 wRC+), which was only a few points below Kepler’s 94 wRC+, and Margot crushed LHP to the tune of 160 wRC+ (which was dramatically better than Kepler’s 98 wRC+). So unless the Rays trade Arozarena (who has a much better bat than either Margot or Kepler) or Margot (better player than Kepler and makes less money), there is absolutely positively no chance in hell the Rays are going to trade for Kepler and pay him $8.5MM to be their 4th outfielder.
The logic is to platoon Kepler with Margot. But I don’t think it fits the Rays, because Kepler makes too much money.
Platooning doesn’t make sense with these guys because Kepler has such moderate splits. At least he did in 2022.