The San Mateo Oppo Tacos wasted no time upgrading their 2025 Roster as the opening of the Roger Dorn Baseball League Season was greeted by a quick deal with the Lake Merced Goutfish. The Oppo Tacos will acquire first baseman Nolan Schanuel (2/$2) and outfielder Kerry Carpenter (2/$13) from the Goutfish in exhange for right-hander Brandon Pfaadt (Minors) as well as 2025 3rd and 6th Round Picks (44th and 86th Overall).
Schanuel's profile for a first baseman is unusual, much like his batting stance. He's displayed a mastery of the strike zone early on in his big-league career, having put up an 11.2 percent walk rate, 17 percent strikeout rate and 89.5 percent zone contact rate in 2024. On the flip side, Schanuel's 25.4 percent hard-hit rate and 3.5 percent barrel rate is more befitting of a backup middle infielder. It also doesn't help that many of Schanuel's batted balls are hit in the dirt, as his 30.6 percent fly ball rate ranked 119th out of 129 qualifiers. He can still be a useful player for the Angels given his on-base ability, but it's difficult to imagine Schanuel ever becoming a 20-homer hitter without a swing adjustment.
Carpenter was affected by injury in 2024 for the second year in a row, this time missing almost three months of action with a lumbar spine stress fracture. He had collected a .914 OPS before getting hurt and didn't miss a beat after returning, putting up a .954 OPS and 10 home runs over his final 133 plate appearances before adding another homer in the playoffs. Carpenter again stood out for his quality of contact, boasting a 46.4 percent hard-hit rate and 17.7 percent barrel rate. The 27-year-old's big bugaboo is that he can't hit left-handed pitching (.408 OPS in 2024) and rarely gets the opportunity to do so. It certainly limits how much volume he's able to provide, and that's even before factoring in Carpenter's increasing injury concerns. That said, Carpenter's 149 wRC+ versus righties since the start of 2023 is the 11th highest in baseball among players with at least 500 plate appearances. When he's in the lineup, he's going to mash.
For the Goutfish, the addition adds to a bevy of rotation options for GM Ryan Atkinson to start 2025. Don't be discouraged by Pfaadt's bloated 4.71 ERA; all the estimators peg it at least a run better. He was victimized by a low 64.5 percent left on base mark. The righty improved his strikeout and walk rates last season while fixing the gopheritis plaguing him in his rookie year. Pfaadt adjusted his pitch mix, throwing more sinkers at the expense of four-seam fastballs. In 2023, his changeup generated a negative Fangraphs Pitch Value, but last year it rated as Pfaadt's second best offering, though he used it only 11.2 percent of the time. His sweeper sported the highest swinging strike rate of his repertoire. Pfaadt has demonstrated willingness to adjust, and it appears he has the arsenal to fine tune even more.
Comments