They didn't know if Altherr would be physically ready when they made those moves, and how he'd rebound off last season. The other young OFs aren't ready, and I see no point in rushing them, Williams needs to prove the end of last year was no fluke, and Quinn needs to make better contact. Cozens is a complete unknown outside of Reading. So it made sense to bring in a couple veteran OFs, and Kendrick provides flexibility. They also didn't know if Stassi would make the team, much less actually be able to play the OF.
As far as talent, Altherr has as much raw physical talent as Williams or Quinn, but he wasn't a polished prospect, one of those athletic projections that usually fail.
The question is whether Stairs is able to get him to take the next step as a hitter, he can field CF as well as Quinn and RF better, he has more power than Williams, but he struggled making contact with a longer swing for much of his career - if Stairs has made his swing quicker and can get him to wait on pitches - he can make a big jump this year.
Altherr's defense will get him PA, if he starts hitting, his PA will quickly increase, and if he responds, he'll be a fixture in RF.
