buffs44444 wrote:

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amfox1 wrote:

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He'll be playing LF for us. My only concern is that he is another lefty bat in a lineup that could use a big righty bat.

Hermida has been a favorite of mine for a while, so I love this acquisition......but I'm not sure he's the solution in LF for 2010 or that this discounts a signing of Bay/Holliday (or any other big LF bat acquisition) at all. Hermida looks a lot like a $3-4M lottery ticket for next year, albeit one with pretty good odds (again, I'm biased). Best case is that he does become the on-base machine and offensive power that made him one of the top prospects in the game a few years back, and that he does force his way into a starting job at some point. I just can't see the team relying on him out of the gate and forgoing any opportunity to add a Bay or a Holliday. The team may play that angle with Boras, of course.

Perfect world I think you're looking at Hermida and Bay or Holliday splitting time between LF/DH in 2011 and beyond.

Excerpt of BA's review of Hermida a few years ago:

After he totaled just 16 homers in his first three pro seasons, Hermida's power showed up in 2005. Working with Double-A Carolina hitting coach Steve Phillips and roving instructor John Mallee, Hermida was able to add more lift to his swing and started to pull inside pitches for power. His slight frame continued to fill out. His biggest selling point, though, is a tremendous ability to control the strike zone. As his power increased and his reputation spread, Southern League pitchers routinely avoided throwing him strikes. To his credit, Hermida refused to expand his zone and piled up the third-highest walk total in the minors. For the first time as a pro, he walked more than he struck out. He also runs well and has been caught stealing just 10 times in 77 career chances. His arm is average.