2007 Team by Team Preview - Killer Bees

Killer Bees

Starting Pitching:
Mussina, Verlander, Francis, Hudson, Morris, Padilla, Duke - lots of big inning starters; the first three will be very good; the other 4 might factor into trade talks as most of the teams in NASOMA need to add to their rotation

Bullpen:
Wickman, L.Vizcaino, Tomko, Geary, Mota, Billingsley - not as good as the starters; Billingsley is a great prospect and is really a starter, but he will have relief on his card - very handy since he only has 90 innings and this team is loaded with starters.

Catcher:
Ausmus - great arm; can't hit
Piazza - great hitter; can't throw - Piazza is especially good vs lhp

Infield:
Sexson (1b-3) - really good power; better hitter vs rhp; lots of strikeouts
Millar (1b-4) - lots of walks; great vs rhp; didn't play any games in the outfield last year
Shelton (1b-4) - 806 OPS on both sides; hit 10 of his 16 homers in April
Cano (2b-3) - excellent vs rhp; playable vs lhp
A.Ramirez (3b-3) - good balance; excellent power; loses about 50 BA points in the clutch
A.Boone (3b-3) - might not make the team; playable vs lhp so he might
Tejada (ss-2) - easily the best hitter on the team; balanced

Outfield:
Patterson (cf-2) - good vs rhp; excellent speed
J.Jones (rf-3) - also good vs rhp
Hawpe (rf-4) - like Patterson and Jones, he can hit rhp; like Patterson and Jones, he can't hit lefties
Kearns (rf-2, cf-4) - crushes lhp
Delmon Young (rf-2, cf-4) - an outstanding prospect as a power hitter, a strong-armed outfielder, and a bat-tosser. Young faced a 3-ball count only 8 times in 127 plate appearances in the majors last year. In those 8 times, he went 4/7 with a walk. Yes, he walked ONCE in 127 trips to the plate. He did hit .379 vs lhp (with a .379 onbase).

Designated Hitter:
Millar might be the best one here - maybe Hawpe some too.

Uncarded Guys:
None now, but Billingsley, Verlander, and Young were all uncarded last year and all came thru.

Draft Status:
The Bees pick 2nd and have an extra 1st rounder.

Outlook:
The Bees have a lot of starting pitching, but no one on the team plays left field. Sounds like a good situation if they're interested in making a trade, but this team also is in a good place in the draft to fill a couple of holes. Really good infield and some nice platoon hitters in right field. Also an old, but interesting combination at catcher. The Bees won't be able to compete with the powerhouse Snakes in the AWD, but will give the Tweeners and Zaps hell.

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