Keston Hiura has a .984 OPS in Nashville

[rickh150]

59 minutes ago, edfunderburk said:

Yes - “another” Hiura thread

He got his chances 2019 to 2022

He regressed 

He strikes out far too often

He doesn’t have a defensive position

He can’t hit LH pitchers

Time to move on

Now that is much better. Good improvement.

a. Disagree.. still playing well. Played pretty well in 2022 too

b. Actually got much better in 2022 from pretty awful 2020 and 2021... and this year is improving by month since injury June- .694, July- .848, August- .929.  Overall OPS .946
c. As others have said, K rate is better at AAA and like I believe…, tough to fault him for his lack of ABs last year and this

d. DH and backup 1B/LF

e. Lefty OPs this season at AAA 1.018 in 71 ABs

f. Brewers disagree with you….kinda. Still in organization batting 3rd at AAA.   Then again we have rotated 19 DH so far and counting, though.

 

[edfunderburk]

7 minutes ago, rickh150 said:

Now that is much better. Good improvement.

a. Disagree.. still playing well. Played pretty well in 2022 too

b. Actually got much better in 2022 from pretty awful 2020 and 2021... and this year is improving by month since injury June- .694, July- .848, August- .929.  Overall OPS .946
c. As others have said, K rate is better at AAA and like I believe…, tough to fault him for his lack of ABs last year and this

d. DH and backup 1B/LF

e. Lefty OPs this season at AAA 1.018 in 71 ABs

f. Brewers disagree with you….kinda. Still in organization batting 3rd at AAA.   Then again we have rotated 19 DH so far and counting, though.

 

I may be wrong but I believe they hope to trade him like they did Naquin before the season ends

I’m not sure he will get another opportunity with Milwaukee - but if he does - I will be his biggest fan every time he steps to the plate 

[rickh150]

4 minutes ago, edfunderburk said:

I may be wrong but I believe they hope to trade him like they did Naquin before the season ends

I’m not sure he will get another opportunity with Milwaukee - but if he does - I will be his biggest fan every time he steps to the plate 

Yep. Let him hit or fail (or trade)…and then we can truly move on.

[torts]

How do you guys have this much time to devote to a circular kestdaddy discussion?  Like, Im impressed, as a former super fan of kd, how you all have this much energy to devote to discussing him, just impressive 

[BrewerFan]

6 hours ago, young guns said:

What is huira contract status for next year?  I'm pretty sure he's less than 6 years, but I don't know how that works after the DFA.  If we do/don't add him to the 40 man this year, is he a FA next year regardless?

@Mass Haas has explained and I'll just cut and paste it since...it doesn't make a ton of sense to me, but I trust the source;

Quote

 

So, initially Keston Hiura appeared on the initial post of this thread as one who would qualify for minor league free agency this fall. He debuted as a pro in 2017 and has played seven pro seasons, so easy-peasy, right?

Not so fast, as it turns out (since verified). Hiura's name has since been removed, with an odd twist. The Brewers actually control Hiura for 2024 as well (if they wish).

Here's why and how:

The one year Hiura spent entirely in the Majors (2020) does not count towards his minor league free agency. As such, the Brewers could retain Hiura on a minor league contract for 2024 at one-half of his $2.2 million salary (so $1.1 million, thanks easy math).

Now clearly, if Hiura is added to the 40-man roster (meaning called up to the 26-man roster in August or the 28-man roster in September), this oddity goes away. Because to send Hiura back to the minors, he'd have to be exposed to waivers, and could leave on his own if not claimed.

If Hiura is not called up by the end of the season, he'd be part of the organization this fall, including the Rule 5 draft in December. A team could claim Hiura and would have to keep him on the active roster for all of 2024. But Keston is out of options, so that's pretty much the case anyway. But Hiura on a $1.1 million salary seems rather appealing.

It seems like it'd be kind of a sneaky thing to do, not sure if Keston and his agent would appreciate it, but Hiura (and his .941 AAA OPS) has value, somewhere, to someone, including the Brewers.

NOTE: The only thing I have not confirmed is whether the $1.1M salary maintains as such if Hiura were to be called up to the big leagues at any point. I also wish I had an example for you of another MLB player who had been maintained this way.

I am hopeful a member of the beat can confirm with the front office, or a real transaction maven can confirm more specifics, but yeah, the drama about Hiura's status could linger.

 

 

So basically, if they keep him in the minors, they get another year of hm and they get him for half the price. I don't know if that is actually impacting their decision or not, but it certainly seems like something outside of Baseball reasons are having an impact. 

[sveumrules]

23 hours ago, rickh150 said:

Putting this to bed for a week or two…

You made it 23 hours.

[wiguy94]

19 minutes ago, sveumrules said:

You made it 23 hours.

I mean how can you not get so excited you just have to post about Hiura's 82 EV, 32 LA bloop double? Incredible hitting from Hiura!

[rickh150]

1 hour ago, sveumrules said:

You made it 23 hours.

I figured it was kind and polite to respond respectfully if something was addressed specifically to me. 

[rickh150]

1 hour ago, wiguy94 said:

I mean how can you not get so excited you just have to post about Hiura's 82 EV, 32 LA bloop double? Incredible hitting from Hiura!

He made contact and delivered. How many times do we have two on and no outs and do not score?
By the way, Huira hit 1.227 OPS in “late and close” games last season in 46 PA. But yes only a few PAs… better blame him for that too. 

He’s getting bashed for an RBI double? 
 

 

[Team Canada]

15 minutes ago, rickh150 said:

He’s getting bashed for an RBI double? 

No, the criticism is you thinking a 2-4 night in AAA with some weakly hit balls has any particular relevance to whether he should be promoted or not.

Ultimately there is very little that's new in the last many pages here. There are clearly reasons why the Brewers decided they don't view him as an option right now for DH. It would be nice if someone actually asked the Brewers what those reasons are so this could be put to bed.

[sveumrules]

6 hours ago, Team Canada said:

No, the criticism is you thinking a 2-4 night in AAA with some weakly hit balls has any particular relevance to whether he should be promoted or not.

Ultimately there is very little that's new in the last many pages here. There are clearly reasons why the Brewers decided they don't view him as an option right now for DH. It would be nice if someone actually asked the Brewers what those reasons are so this could be put to bed.

Not a JS subscriber, but I believe these are the most recent CC quotes on the topic.

[sveumrules]

6 hours ago, rickh150 said:

He made contact and delivered. How many times do we have two on and no outs and do not score?
By the way, Huira hit 1.227 OPS in “late and close” games last season in 46 PA. But yes only a few PAs… better blame him for that too. 

He’s getting bashed for an RBI double? 
 

 

46 PAs of late and close situations has next to zero predictive capabilities. It’s the definition of statistical noise.

If Keston is so good late and close why did he have a 408 OPS in 31 late/close PAs in 2021 and a 523 OPS in 33 late/close PAs in 2020?

There are 335 players who have come to bat with at least 500 RBI opportunities since 2019.

Keston ranks 303rd with a 12.15 RBI percentage (lower than Lorenzo Cain or Ben Gamel), largely on account of his 36% career K rate.

Unsurprisingly, other high K guys like Joey Gallo (37.7 K% vs 11.54 RBI%), Patrick Wisdom (37.4 K% vs 11.66 RBI%) and Mike Zunino (36.4 K% vs 12.32 RBI%) also fare poorly at driving in runners.

If you want someone at bat to drive in a run with men on base, Keston would be one of the last guys you’d want up there.

[Never Outhustled]

Are we sure Keston is healthy? He's been replaced by a pinch runner twice recently, an odd move for a good baserunner, unless that knee is still bothering him. 

A weak knee would also explain why his power is down despite consistent contact and hits since his return.

[Ro Mueller]

6 hours ago, Never Outhustled said:

Are we sure Keston is healthy? He's been replaced by a pinch runner twice recently, an odd move for a good baserunner, unless that knee is still bothering him. 

A weak knee would also explain why his power is down despite consistent contact and hits since his return.

Today’s box score indicates that Hiura played all 9 innings at 1st base, largely struggling along with the rest of the squad. That said, he extended his on-base streak to 12 games.

He’s not actually a good baserunner, so being pinch-run in the 9th inning or later is not unusual.

If the front office thought Keston was worth $2.2m on a guaranteed MLB deal last offseason despite having no remaining options (though we could outright him), then I assume we have to keep him around for 2023 on a $1.1m minor league contract. He’s done nothing in 2023 to diminish his value, in my opinion, though of course my opinion means zilch.

[homer]

On 8/12/2023 at 7:38 AM, sveumrules said:

Not a JS subscriber, but I believe these are the most recent CC quotes on the topic.

That link didn't work for me and I am a subscriber. Try this one:  https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2023/07/19/could-brewers-call-up-keston-hiura-to-help-improve-the-offense/70429307007/

[rickh150]

17 hours ago, Never Outhustled said:

Are we sure Keston is healthy? He's been replaced by a pinch runner twice recently, an odd move for a good baserunner, unless that knee is still bothering him. 

A weak knee would also explain why his power is down despite consistent contact and hits since his return.

Exit velocity probably wasnt high enough on those hits… gotta get him outta there.

[Brewcrew82]

I'll do it for you @rickh150. 2 Hrs tonight, one against a lefty.

With Rowdy sucking, I think you have a real case. 

[Jake McKibbin]

9 hours ago, Brewcrew82 said:

I'll do it for you @rickh150. 2 Hrs tonight, one against a lefty.

With Rowdy sucking, I think you have a real case. 

Might say it's between winker and rowdy but a hot stretch from Hiura could be hard to ignore

Tellez has been hitting the ball hard despite poor stat line but the strikeouts are worrying

 

[Outlander]

One complaint about HIura this year is he never regained the hot bat after coming back from injury. However, now in August he is back to his April/May number again.

[Fear The Chorizo]

1 hour ago, Jake McKibbin said:

Might say it's between winker and rowdy but a hot stretch from Hiura could be hard to ignore

Tellez has been hitting the ball hard despite poor stat line but the strikeouts are worrying

 

It's already mid August...the Brewers appear to be pretty good at ignoring Hiura this season so I don't expect that to change - and even if they do I would expect them to wait until September callups to add Hiura as a bench bat/part time player, not plugging him into the daily lineup as DH.

[shanedog19]

The Brewers aren't winning anything with the present lineup construction. It's going to take a couple of call ups that change the complexion of the lineup to contend for a World Series. Hiura should be on the short list of call ups to potentially catch lightning in a bottle. If Brewers brass maintains the status quo, then they are just dumb.

[rickh150]

Stubborn to a fault.
Sadly a call up now would probably be like September 2022 for Hiura: spot starts, sitting for five and seven days straight, not really committing a position or place in the lineup to him. I have very little hope of the team trying Hiura/Black down the stretch. Par for the course would adding Winker or Rowdy and batting them high in lineup.

[Thurston Fluff]

3 hours ago, shanedog19 said:

The Brewers aren't winning anything with the present lineup construction. It's going to take a couple of call ups that change the complexion of the lineup to contend for a World Series. Hiura should be on the short list of call ups to potentially catch lightning in a bottle. If Brewers brass maintains the status quo, then they are just dumb.

Given they're leading the division with this lineup I think maybe you're wrong.

[shanedog19]

9 minutes ago, Thurston Fluff said:

Given they're leading the division with this lineup I think maybe you're wrong.

I should have clarified, I meant winning a World Series. That should be the goal given Burnes is as good as gone after the season. Hiura had a .765 OPS last year, which would rank him 3rd on this year's club. He should be given another chance for that reason, and the fact he has changed his batting stance and might actually be better than last year.

[Thurston Fluff]

8 hours ago, shanedog19 said:

I should have clarified, I meant winning a World Series. That should be the goal given Burnes is as good as gone after the season. Hiura had a .765 OPS last year, which would rank him 3rd on this year's club. He should be given another chance for that reason, and the fact he has changed his batting stance and might actually be better than last year.

I think history has shown any team that makes the playoffs has a chance to win the World Series. I'm not against them making a few moves but I don't think any of the options available are going to change the odds of winning it all by much. We got here with pitching and defense and are going to have to win it with pitching and defense.