Brad Harman quick hit

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Baseball America does a little feature on the website where they mention who just missed their team’s top 10 list, and Harman was the guy for the Phillies, which means he’ll end up as prospect #11 in their Top 30. Here’s the blurb

Brad Harman, 2b, Phillies. Harman played on Australia’s World Baseball Classic team as a 20-year-old before enduring a trying 2006, but he got back on track last season. He once again looks like a potential .280 hitter with 15 homers per year. With a quicker first step, he might even be able to play shortstop.

As a big Harman fan, this is obviously nice to see. 2008 is going to be a pivotal year for Harman’s baseball career.

24 thoughts on “Brad Harman quick hit”

  2. it seems that this is one more good reason to trade cardenas either in a pitching deal or more likely for an equivalently valuable 3B prospect. this guy can also provide a long-term backup for utley.

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  3. Too early to trade Cardenas. We need to give a chance for his bat to develop more. He should be a significantly better hitter than Harman.

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  4. Trade Cardenas…are you kidding me?
    Harman is an average 2nd baseman at best…he committed almost 100 errors in over 3 seasons at 2nd and short. He does not have the range to play 3rd…Stop the nonsense

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  7. And bat. A 15 HR 3B is below average. A 15 HR 2B is generally above average offensively (There are Nunez/Helms exceptions of course in these stats).

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  8. Unless something happens to Utley, trading Cardenas seems inevitable. He’s too valuable as a second baseman to move to corner outfield. Better moving him for something of more value to the Phillies. The trick is trading him when he’s at his peak value, which doesn’t appear to be now. I too would like to see if Harmon can play third. I’ve never seem him play so I have no idea.

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  10. Why would you want to trade Cardenas? His projected ability clearly makes him a part of the Phillies future. I can’t imagine trading him unless you are getting a Santana like pitcher in return. I doubt that scenario will ever happen so Cardenas is a keeper.

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  11. I’m a little surprised that Jaramillo–the quintessential low-ceiling guy, who looks almost certain to be a decent backup or marginal part-timer in the bigs, beat out the much younger and higher-upside Harman for the last spot on the BA list. Not in keeping with their usual tendencies.

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  12. Trade Cardenas because the core of this team is great and has a short window. They just need a few more pieces. Go for it now.

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  13. andyb – I thought that in recent years, average OPS among 2Bs and 3Bs were roughly the same with 2B a little higher (reversing the past trend).

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  14. This started out as a discussion of Harman and turned into a trading Cardenas discussion. I guess these things happen. I like Brad.. a lot.. but we all know that weird things happen on the way to the show. Cardenas is ahead of Harman at this point. I always feel that you need depth waiting in the minors. If Utley hits the DL for a few weeks, you need someone to come up and take his place. If Howard were to be out a couple of weeks, Utley would probably slide to 1st and again a top prospect @ 2nd base would get called up. Two possible chances to show you can play in the bigs. Once you prove your value, your trade value leaps. I hope Harman and Cardenas push each other to be ready to be that stop-gap.

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  15. I wouldn’t be too surprised if we end up seeing in 3-4 years (when Cardenas is ready) that Howard gets traded, Utley moves to first and Cardenas switches to second. I could see Howard being a guy who doesn’t age that well, and once he gets north of 30, packing on a few extra lbs and becoming enough of a liabilty defensively, on the bases, and possibly with the Ks that a move could or would be justified. (You could also argue that the Phils could cheap out and move him before he gets the mega huge free agent contract, but I hope that isn’t the case).

    Whatever the case, it’s impossible to forecast three years down the road, but it’s fun to speculate

    – Jeff

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  16. Sorry to burst your bubble with a dose of reality, but it is pretty sad that anyone gets excited about a prospect that “might” develop into a utility infielder that hits .280 with 15 homeruns. Not sure why James has a man crush on him, but it shows the weakness in our system that we are even talking about him.

    If Cardenas is the prospect he is projected to be (i.e. making the Futures Game), then we won’t trade him to make room for Harman. Maybe for a pitcher, but not for Harman.

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  17. Andy – Here is a like from a Baseball Prospectus post that looks at stats of the 30 top players at each position.

    http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=6516&mode=print

    Here is the OPS breakdown by defensive positon:

    C – 747
    SS – 749
    2B – 763
    CF – 777
    3B – 805
    RF – 814
    LF – 825

    I think you are right that there might have been a recent blip where the 2B overtook the 3B for a little while, but it was just for a brief period. I think there have also been some periods where SS has outhit 2B. In general, however, the defensive requirements at 2B force better defensive (and lesser offensive) players there as opposed to 3B. That is one reason why the Phillies were never really sold on Polanco as a 3B because he hits like a good 2B. In general the move to 3B for a middle infielder should only be done if the player cannot handle the middle infield defensively any more. That means that if both Harman and Cardenas can play 2B at a major league level they should stay there to retain the most trade value. Sometimes you make a guy like that a utility player, but you could probably do that as a reserve in the majors without too much prep work (assuming someone like Harman was still a regular 2B).

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  18. Hoping for a 20 plus HR season from Harman while he plays 3rd base at least 1/2 of the time…or for all the season.

    Getting an evaluation of him at AA will tell us more.

    He could be just developing his power; ’08 will show us how reality leads the way.

    Of concern at 3rd base: his supposed lack of first step quickness. ..a vital ingredient for a 3rd baseman. Even that might improve in ’08.

    Another guy to closely watch over the season….

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  19. Third base is such a reaction position. You’ve gotta have a very quick first step all while getting a read on the ball, its spin, and how the grass/dirt/playing surface will affect it. That’s a tough task. Obviously, Harman’s got to improve defensively if he has any shot at being a regular starter.

    I’d say you absolutely do NOT trade Adrian Cardenas. Maybe he could move to short and Jimmy Rollins could move to third – that’s the most likely scenario if we keep him, I think. That or moving Utley to RF.

    It’s impossible to say with any certainty what might happen, but it’s a lot of fun to speculate. I’m excited to see what Harman can do, but I’m not holding my breath on him becoming a regular second-baseman in the bigs.

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  20. I like Harman very much. He was #10 in my Phillies top 10.
    I think he’s somewhat underappreciated, and I look for him
    to have a good year at Reading. In that ballpark I think 20
    dingers is a realistic hope for him. IMO he’s an infinitely
    better 3B prospect than Costanzo was.

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  21. I guess we have to throw Jason Donald into the mix as well. He’s invited to Spring Training and Cardenas and Harman aren’t.

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  23. Found this in a story:

    http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071129&content_id=325344&vkey=news_milb&fext=.jsp

    Brad Harman, 2B: Sometimes repeating a level is just what the doctor ordered. Harman opened some eyes as a teenager in the South Atlantic League back in 2005, but struggled when he moved up to the Florida State League in 2006. Back in Clearwater this past season at age 21, the Aussie infielder regained some of the luster that was missing the year prior, showing ability to hit for average and power. After a rough start, he really turned it on, hitting .321 and slugging .557 in the second half of the season. He then hit .344 in the postseason to help the Threshers win the FSL title. He played mostly second in 2007 with a little shortstop thrown in. [b]He also worked on some third base in instructs with a future as a utility man a possibility.[/b]

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  24. In the absence of a better prospect, and with the exceptional hitting in the rest of the IF, I do not mind a Harman or Donald at 3B . . . IF one of them can hit for a high OBP, 10-15 HRs and field consistently well. Bill Mueller made a decent career out of that. Not saying that is an ideal or permeanent solution, but I would rather have that than a desperate overpay for a FA or a trade. Either of those guys supplying that performance for a few years can bridge us to the superstar 3B we draft next June.

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