Hey, Josh Fields is good!

[Inukchuk]

I haven't heard much about him, but I've had him in my Util spot for the past month and he has been a very nice addition. 13 HR and 41 RBI's in 226 AB seem like they could be AL ROY numbers if voters shy away from Dice K like they did Hideki a few years back. Anyone else enjoying having the "other" rookie 3B on their team?

Also, he was a very good base stealer in AAA (44SB/9CS last year). Any chance he starts lighting up the basepaths?

[stepsinsc]

I think you're confusing Fields with someone else. He only has 1 SB this year, and he's never stolen 44 bases at any level. He does have 10SB/year type speed and ability, though. He's likely to be a Crede-like hitter. I.E. .260, 20ish HRs, 70-80ish Rs and RBIs, except with the added steals. In other words, he should be an above-average 3B. Unless your league counts Ks in the batter's favor, in which case he'll be the #1 3B for years to come.

[BillyHallDisciple]

Good power... abysmal against righties, though... needs to figure that out & if he does he'll be solid.

[5]

Fields is pretty good. Those 44 SB are too high...he did run some in the the minors though.

[Inukchuk]

Check out his steals in AAA in 2006: in 766 AB (obviously more than a full season, but still...) he has 44SB with 9CS

http://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.htm?ID=8266

[clarkw267]

Check out his steals in AAA in 2006: in 766 AB (obviously more than a full season, but still...) he has 44SB with 9CS

http://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.htm?ID=8266

Sorry dude... the highest SB total he had in a year was 26 in 2006.

Also through August 12 he has had 1 SB in 71 MLB games..

http://thebaseballcube.com/players/F/Josh-Fields-1.shtml

[stepsinsc]

Check out his steals in AAA in 2006: in 766 AB (obviously more than a full season, but still...) he has 44SB with 9CS

http://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.htm?ID=8266

There's a mistake in those stats. I don't know where the first 2006 stat line came from, but it doesn't belong in his numbers. If it did, he would have played in 202 games in 2006. I don't know exactly how many games they play in AAA, but I don't think it's any more than 162.

The second stat line for his 2006 Charlotte numbers is the correct one.

[Inukchuk]

Check out his steals in AAA in 2006: in 766 AB (obviously more than a full season, but still...) he has 44SB with 9CS

http://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.htm?ID=8266

There's a mistake in those stats. I don't know where the first 2006 stat line came from, but it doesn't belong in his numbers. If it did, he would have played in 202 games in 2006. I don't know exactly how many games they play in AAA, but I don't think it's any more than 162.

The second stat line for his 2006 Charlotte numbers is the correct one.

Ah, so rotowire's been leading me on. Thanks for the explanation. I thought something was up when I got the 766 AB...

Back to the steals. Now, before I get bombarded with the whole "only 1 SB this year" line again, let me clarify. He's obviously shown the ability to run in the past (maybe not 44, but 26 is certainly a nice number, especially considering his power potential); my question is why Ozzie hasn't sent him much this year. Was 06 flukey for him, or is it more a problem of the White Sox not sending him? I'm just trying to figure out the reason for the sizeable drop in his SB...

[StringerBell]

My concern with Fields is that he had a ridiculous amount of Strike Outs in the minors. While in AAA : 136 Strikeouts in 462 ABs. This year he`s got 80 Strikeouts in 232 ABs. Thats a .345 Strikeout average!

According to CBS Sportsline:
"Josh Fields gets Golden Sombrero. Josh Fields had a terrible game at Oakland in Thursday's game, finishing hitless in six at-bats with four strikeouts."
(Updated 08/17/2007).

that being said, Fields does have a lot of upside talent. Its just a question of when he`ll be consistent enough to trust in the line-ip long term.

[stepsinsc]

Check out his steals in AAA in 2006: in 766 AB (obviously more than a full season, but still...) he has 44SB with 9CS

http://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.htm?ID=8266

There's a mistake in those stats. I don't know where the first 2006 stat line came from, but it doesn't belong in his numbers. If it did, he would have played in 202 games in 2006. I don't know exactly how many games they play in AAA, but I don't think it's any more than 162.

The second stat line for his 2006 Charlotte numbers is the correct one.

Ah, so rotowire's been leading me on. Thanks for the explanation. I thought something was up when I got the 766 AB...

Back to the steals. Now, before I get bombarded with the whole "only 1 SB this year" line again, let me clarify. He's obviously shown the ability to run in the past (maybe not 44, but 26 is certainly a nice number, especially considering his power potential); my question is why Ozzie hasn't sent him much this year. Was 06 flukey for him, or is it more a problem of the White Sox not sending him? I'm just trying to figure out the reason for the sizeable drop in his SB...

Well, first off I didn't mean to bombard you so apologies if that's the case. Fields' ceiling for SB in the majors, IMO, is 20/year, but 15 is probably his realistic probable limit. While he has good speed, he's had hamstring problems this year, and I doubt his SB rate will increase anymore this year as a result. He's running tentatively. Apart from that, I think 26 SB in the minors can reasonably equal 15 SB in the majors without being an anomalous drop.