2011 MLB Thread

[molson]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Revisiting some fun from the Hot Stove League thread, early December:

Well, if we want to make conclusions about the first 10 days of the season, you were dead wrong about the Baltimore Orioles having no chance be decent.

[samifan24]

Indians go for their 9th straight tonight in Anaheim.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by molson

Well, if we want to make conclusions about the first 10 days of the season, you were dead wrong about the Baltimore Orioles having no chance be decent.

Apparently the starting rotation of Luke Hochevar, Jeff Francis, Bruce Chen, Kyle Davies, and, uh, Vin Mazzaro(?) is better than the Red Sox. I'm sure this trend will hold up.

In no way, shape, or form does the AL Central look a lot more like the inverse of what it will look like after 162.

SI

[cartman]

Ugh. Josh Hamilton out 6-8 weeks with a broken arm.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by molson

Well, if we want to make conclusions about the first 10 days of the season, you were dead wrong about the Baltimore Orioles having no chance be decent.

Not really. I didn't (and still don't) think they'd be great, but I allowed for the possibility that they might even get to .500. The point was that it still wouldn't be worth the money they wasted on Vlad, Lee and whomever else they signed to prop up a bad team to mediocre.

Now, if they're still playing anywhere near .667 ball in July, then I'll admit I underestimated them.

The Red Sox, OTOH, still will have starting pitching problems regardless of whether Lester, Buchholz, and Beckett start to pitch well. Dice-K, Lackey, Wakefield... they don't have a 4 or a 5, which was my point. And that's assuming Beckett can be somewhat consistently good. Otherwise, they've got 2 dependable starters.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by cartman

Ugh. Josh Hamilton out 6-8 weeks with a broken arm.

Speaking of the Rangers, I think the biggest problem with not having Feliz in the starting rotation is that the way Ron Washington uses him makes the difference between his impact on a game as a starter versus a reliever even greater than just the innings pitched. If he threw 175 above-average innings versus, say, 70 great relief innings, you'd rather have the 175 innings - they are worth more to the team. If you take those 70 innings and use the guy 90% of the time only when you've got a lead in the 9th - sometimes as much as a 3-run lead - then he's not even impacting the end of the game as much as he could be.

Yesterday was a perfect example. Tie game, bottom of the 9th, Feliz was sleeping in the pen. Game over. I'm sure Washington was holding onto him to save the game once they got the lead in extra innings...whoops!

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Not really. I didn't (and still don't) think they'd be great, but I allowed for the possibility that they might even get to .500. The point was that it still wouldn't be worth the money they wasted on Vlad, Lee and whomever else they signed to prop up a bad team to mediocre.

Now, if they're still playing anywhere near .667 ball in July, then I'll admit I underestimated them.

The Red Sox, OTOH, still will have starting pitching problems regardless of whether Lester, Buchholz, and Beckett start to pitch well. Dice-K, Lackey, Wakefield... they don't have a 4 or a 5, which was my point. And that's assuming Beckett can be somewhat consistently good. Otherwise, they've got 2 dependable starters.

Well, there aren't a hell of a lot of teams with a good 4/5 in their rotation. (Philly of course)

While everyone is talking about how horrible their pitching is, I think most are forgetting about the hitting. They've scored 2 runs or less 4 times in 11 games. They have scored over 5 runs in a game exactly one time this season. Compare that to a Yankee team who has scored over 5 runs in a game 5 times in 9 outings. The Yankees have scored 2 runs or less a whopping one time this year.

It's really the only thing that makes me think things will turn for the Red Sox. . . the fact that both the pitching and the hitting are so pathetic right now. I feel confident in thinking Ellsbury, Youkalis, Crawford, and Gonzales are going to hit vastly better than what they are hitting now. Not just a little better, but ridiculously better. The only guy in the lineup who is doing anything right now is Pedroia. He'll cool off a little, but the rest of the lineup is going to explode in the next few weeks. If they do, I think the top 3 are going to win a lot of their starts and they'll get enough out of 4/5 to make a run.

They have started off so horribly it might not matter, but there is no way this team isn't going to heat up fairly soon.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Man, I wonder how many millions of people are skipping out of work after lunch today to watch the national telecast of Kyle Davies pitching for the Royals.

Jokes aside, the Royals need some innings out of him today. Bullpen has been used a lot due to half of the Royals games thus far going to extra innings.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

The Red Sox, OTOH, still will have starting pitching problems regardless of whether Lester, Buchholz, and Beckett start to pitch well. Dice-K, Lackey, Wakefield... they don't have a 4 or a 5, which was my point. And that's assuming Beckett can be somewhat consistently good. Otherwise, they've got 2 dependable starters.

But last week, Beckett was considered washed up, and Lackey was at least a dependable #3 type starter that could eat innings. I guess they've flopped those roles for this week, but who knows what next week will bring.

The team bating average is .230 and the team ERA is 6.77 (more than a run worse than any other team.) That's a big 'ole bed crap, that is pretty much everyone sucking, but neither is really helpful in making long-term judgments about any individual player on the team (unless you're willing to do that with Albert Pujols too). And I really don't think its "let's make fun of pre-season prediction time" when it comes to individual players - though we're getting closer to when team predictions are relevant, but I don't recall many predicting the Red Sox start.

At some level I'm kind of enjoying it so far because it does show the unpredictability baseball still has. We can't figure everything out with PECOTA projections. Horrible spring training preparation, a lack of mental toughness, and a pitching coach downgrade can equal disaster.

That being said, nobody in the East has caught fire and the Sox are only 5 out - there were 8 out after 25 games last year and got back to first in a couple of months. They hae a decent enough chance to actually gain ground between now that 25 game mark, and if they can do that, it's a different season already. If they're 10 out by then, it will really start to get ugly - which will provide its own entertainment value.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Well, there aren't a hell of a lot of teams with a good 4/5 in their rotation. (Philly of course)

While everyone is talking about how horrible their pitching is, I think most are forgetting about the hitting. They've scored 2 runs or less 4 times in 11 games. They have scored over 5 runs in a game exactly one time this season. Compare that to a Yankee team who has scored over 5 runs in a game 5 times in 9 outings. The Yankees have scored 2 runs or less a whopping one time this year.

It's really the only thing that makes me think things will turn for the Red Sox. . . the fact that both the pitching and the hitting are so pathetic right now. I feel confident in thinking Ellsbury, Youkalis, Crawford, and Gonzales are going to hit vastly better than what they are hitting now. Not just a little better, but ridiculously better. The only guy in the lineup who is doing anything right now is Pedroia. He'll cool off a little, but the rest of the lineup is going to explode in the next few weeks. If they do, I think the top 3 are going to win a lot of their starts and they'll get enough out of 4/5 to make a run.

They have started off so horribly it might not matter, but there is no way this team isn't going to heat up fairly soon.

I think they've basically pissed away any margin for error that they had this season with this poor start. They have to play very very strong (what's the calculations... .600+ ball?) the rest of the way and not have any other 3+ game losing streaks in order to even have a chance of sneaking into the playoffs.

Not saying it can't be done, but their margin for error has gotten a whole hell of a lot smaller due to this poor start.

[molson]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

I think they've basically pissed away any margin for error that they had this season with this poor start. They have to play very very strong (what's the calculations... .600+ ball?) the rest of the way and not have any other 3+ game losing streaks in order to even have a chance of sneaking into the playoffs.

Not saying it can't be done, but their margin for error has gotten a whole hell of a lot smaller due to this poor start.

It depends on how blah the Yankees keep playing, and/or if a strong wild card contender emerges in another division. Last year, they would have needed 95 to get in, and per those kinds of caclulations you reference - that's going to be pretty tough to do by this point. But the Rays probably aren't winning more than 95 again, and the Yankees might not either. And what other wild card will? There might be a lot of parity in the AL this year.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by molson

It depends on how blah the Yankees keep playing, and/or if a strong wild card contender emerges in another division. Last year, they would have needed 95 to get in, and per those kinds of caclulations you reference - that's going to be pretty tough to do by this point. But the Rays probably aren't winning more than 95 again, and the Yankees might not either. And what other wild card will? There might be a lot of parity in the AL this year.

This is true. And I think 95 wins was what people were expecting/figuring they would need. If the bar to win the division is down to say 92 games then they have a tiny bit more margin for error.

[Butter]

Reds fans have to be heartened by watching the progress of Jonny Gomes this year.

I think there was not much doubt that despite the signing of a couple of alternate options and the development of Chris Heisey, that Gomes was going to be the everyday LF this year. And that drove some Reds fans crazy.

But so far this year, Gomes has 13 BB in 44 PA after having 39 BB in 571 PA last season. From all accounts (and when I have watched), he has been able to lay off the outside slider which caused a lot more K's than BB's in times past. Gomes is OPSing 1.111, leads the NL in walks, and has 3 HR with 10 RBI at this point.

Considering that he is a defensive liability, this changed approach is really surprising and welcoming. I guess we will see if he can do it all year. Ben Lindbergh from Baseball Prospectus is certainly not yet a believer, but I sure hope he's wrong:

Rick (Chicago): Jonny Gomes is hitting .231/.432/.615 despite a .176 BABIP and second only to Youkilis in walks in MLB. He's only swinging at 29% of the pitches he sees (compared to a career 47%). Sure, the sample size is tiny and his results are not predictive. But at what point can you use the stats as reasonable jumping off point for a more qualitative assessment? It's tough to completely ignore something seemingly so drastic!

Ben Lindbergh: Gomes is weird. Last year he suddenly started racking up infield hits, and this year he's turned into the [insert ethnicity here] God of Walks. I wouldn't expect his newfound patience to prove any more enduring than his Ichiro act from 2010. That said, swing rate stabilizes early, around 50 PA. Walk rate takes a little longer (200 PA). There's a large body of evidence to suggest that Gomes isn't this kind of hitter, and free swingers don't generally become big walkers all at once (or at all, really).

[Easy Mac]

I am truly disheartened by the comments section in this article. Some of the arguments don't come close to making any sense.

Move Jason Heyward out of sixth spot - SweetSpot Blog - ESPN

[JPhillips]

What's up with Jonny Gomes? Last year he had 39 walks and has averaged 55 over 162 games for his career. So far in 2011 he has 13 walks in only 44 PAs.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Easy Mac

I am truly disheartened by the comments section in this article. Some of the arguments don't come close to making any sense.

Move Jason Heyward out of sixth spot - SweetSpot Blog - ESPN

I especially like the "he's the greatest .275 hitter we've ever seen" comments. Ummm, go back to the 1980's if you want to use batting average as the way to rate a player.

I continue to be amazed the Braves continue with this idiocy. He's getting on base 50 points higher than the next regular. He's slugging close to .200 points better than anyone on the team. He has close to as many walks (9) as the 5 hitters ahead of him combined. (10)

And what for? So McClouth can get more at bats at the 2 hole? The same McClouth who is crushing the ball at a .609 OPS clip and has struck out the second most on the team?

OK, I see your point. Great idea Fredi.

Or maybe it's so he can drive in Chipper, McCann and Ugla. Well, that's all fine and good, except that he's had 8 chances with men in scoring position and he's been walked in 3 of those instances. The walks are going to start increasing because the guy hitting behind him has had 8 chances with MISP and has produced a 1-8 with 0 BB and 1 RBI. Oh, and the guy ahead of him? He's 0-6 in those situations.

Oh, and scoring position with 2 out? You just don't pitch to Heyward. He's been up 6 times. Walked 3, 1-3 with a single in the other at bats.

I was a Gonzales fan heading into this year. Now you couldn't pay me enough to be thrilled he was managing the team I cheered for.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by TroyF

I especially like the "he's the greatest .275 hitter we've ever seen" comments. Ummm, go back to the 1980's if you want to use batting average as the way to rate a player.

I continue to be amazed the Braves continue with this idiocy. He's getting on base 50 points higher than the next regular. He's slugging close to .200 points better than anyone on the team. He has close to as many walks (9) as the 5 hitters ahead of him combined. (10)

And what for? So McClouth can get more at bats at the 2 hole? The same McClouth who is crushing the ball at a .609 OPS clip and has struck out the second most on the team?

OK, I see your point. Great idea Fredi.

Or maybe it's so he can drive in Chipper, McCann and Ugla. Well, that's all fine and good, except that he's had 8 chances with men in scoring position and he's been walked in 3 of those instances. The walks are going to start increasing because the guy hitting behind him has had 8 chances with MISP and has produced a 1-8 with 0 BB and 1 RBI. Oh, and the guy ahead of him? He's 0-6 in those situations.

Oh, and scoring position with 2 out? You just don't pitch to Heyward. He's been up 6 times. Walked 3, 1-3 with a single in the other at bats.

I was a Gonzales fan heading into this year. Now you couldn't pay me enough to be thrilled he was managing the team I cheered for.

But you have to get McLouth's confidence up!

Ideally, I'd go Chipper (singles hitter now), Heyward, Prado, McCann, Uggla, Freeman, McLouth, Gonzalez. The downside is, you almost have to have Chipper hit somewhere behind Heyward, because Chipper can't run anymore.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I obviously need to badmouth Davies more often judging from his performance today.

[Easy Mac]

Jarrod Dyson has one of the odder seasonal lines I've ever seen:

NAME		GP	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
Jarrod Dyson	4	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	.000	.000	.000	.000

(scroll to see his stolen base stats).

Also, it seems a team made of former Braves is as good/better than a team of current braves:

Wilson Betamit (former SS) - 1.060 OPS
Alex Gonzalez (current SS) - .736

Brayan Pena (former C) - .718
Brian McCann (curr. C) - .806

Melky Cabrera (former CF) - .700
Nate McLouth (curr. CF) - .608

Frenchy (former RF) - .730 (.273 avg.)
Jay-Hey (curr. RF) - 1.065 (.273 avg.)

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Easy Mac

Jarrod Dyson has one of the odder seasonal lines I've ever seen:

NAME        GP    AB    R    H    2B    3B    HR    RBI    TB    BB    SO    SB    CS    BA    OBP    SLG    OPS
Jarrod Dyson    4    0    2    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    3    0    .000    .000    .000    .000

(scroll to see his stolen base stats).

Also, it seems a team made of former Braves is as good/better than a team of current braves:

Wilson Betamit (former SS) - 1.060 OPS
Alex Gonzalez (current SS) - .736

Brayan Pena (former C) - .718
Brian McCann (curr. C) - .806

Melky Cabrera (former CF) - .700
Nate McLouth (curr. CF) - .608

Frenchy (former RF) - .730 (.273 avg.)
Jay-Hey (curr. RF) - 1.065 (.273 avg.)

You could have thrown Yunel Escobar in there as well. He didn't get along with anyone and he's playing way above his head now, but he has an OPS of 1.167 now. That said, I think only SS or CF could you really say former Braves are doing as well as their Atlanta counterparts. I'm fairly certain every team in the league would gladly take Heyward and McCann over the two scrubs being compared to them in your list.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I obviously need to badmouth Davies more often judging from his performance today.

Huh? He was terrible. 10 hits and 5ER in 5 innings. He's not so very good.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Huh? He was terrible. 10 hits and 5ER in 5 innings. He's not so very good.

You obviously missed the post time. I managed to jinx the hell out of him. Thankfully they still managed a win.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by TroyF

I continue to be amazed the Braves continue with this idiocy.

That's okay, I continue to be amazed at anyone gravely worrying about the batting order at this point in the season.

For the Braves to be successful this year, McLouth has to be productive & the best chance of him doing that is where he's at in the order. 1B is a black hole offensively, Uggla is doing exactly what I feared he'd do after getting paid before producing anything.

Oh, and scoring position with 2 out? You just don't pitch to Heyward. He's been up 6 times. Walked 3, 1-3 with a single in the other at bats.

Which is a bad deal only as long as the guy behind him doesn't produce. Thing is, Gonzalez also likely has to be productive if the team is going to do anything notable & it's a little early to declare him a bust for the year after 11 games (although the trend since September is discouraging).

At the bottom line though is this: if Heyward is ultimately an on-base guy instead of a power/RBI guy then this team is FUBAR anyway.

[Ksyrup]

JIMGA is 2 sentences away from declaring that he doesn't want Heyward clogging up the bases.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

JIMGA is 2 sentences away from declaring that he doesn't want Heyward clogging up the bases.

No, that'd be Chipper (and the absurd suggestions about hitting him in the leadoff spot).

[Ksyrup]

OBP is more important than SLG. But even so, Heyward would hit for more power higher in the lineup because they'd have to pitch to him instead of walking him for the deadbeats he's surrounded by at the bottom of the order. One of which should be McLouth (assuming you're even going to play him).

[stevew]

Nate McLouth certainly picked a good era to become a hustling telegenic white guy. Major props to Neal Huntington dumping his ass, even if that meant that I had to see Charlie Morton uber-fail on a regular basis.

[Ksyrup]

Nate McLouth is a poor man's Darrin Erstad.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

That's okay, I continue to be amazed at anyone gravely worrying about the batting order at this point in the season.

For the Braves to be successful this year, McLouth has to be productive & the best chance of him doing that is where he's at in the order. 1B is a black hole offensively, Uggla is doing exactly what I feared he'd do after getting paid before producing anything.

Which is a bad deal only as long as the guy behind him doesn't produce. Thing is, Gonzalez also likely has to be productive if the team is going to do anything notable & it's a little early to declare him a bust for the year after 11 games (although the trend since September is discouraging).

At the bottom line though is this: if Heyward is ultimately an on-base guy instead of a power/RBI guy then this team is FUBAR anyway.

Even if Mclouth is productive, he's not going to be better than Heyward. You are telling me the best option is to give Mclouth more protection than Heyward?

Gonzales is a guy the Braves traded because of clubhouse presence as opposed to actual talent. His career OBP is .294. Any team that decides to pitch to Heyward in a two out situation needs their heads examined.

As for OBP: you must have missed my point about him slugging around 200 points better than the next closest Brave. I don't care what point it is in the season, you hit your best hitters higher up in the order. The Reds shouldn't hit Brandon Phillips 6th because they want to get Jay Bruce going.

this may only mean the difference of a couple of wins this season, but those couple of wins could determine if the Braves make the post season. FWIW, I'm not even saying he should hit 2nd. In my mind, Chipper should hit 2nd and he should hit third. The days of Chipper hitting 25 HR are over IMHO. But he can sure as hell control the bat, avoid k's and help set the table.

Your best OBP and SLG (therefore OPS) should be hitting in the front four. To have him hitting 6th because you want to try to revive a 30 year old mediocre player is silly. And I'm not sure where the "if Gonsalez is what he is and continues to suck, the Braves aren't going anywhere anyway, so lets allow teams to walk our best hitter so they can face him" strategy takes us either. Hell, I could be wrong here, but I think sacrificing even one at bat of Jason Heyward is insanity. Putting him in the bottom third of the order is just nonsensical.

[molson]

Great night for the Red Sox - their game has been rained out!!

And Bonds found guilty of obstruction, but a hung jury on the other counts.

[Crapshoot]

That's a BS verdict, and a judge ought to set that aside - the finding makes no sense whatsoever.

And JIMGA, I'll happily trade you any of the Giants scrappy white guys for Jason Heyward - pretty much any hitter not named Buster Posey.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Crapshoot

That's a BS verdict, and a judge ought to set that aside - the finding makes no sense whatsoever.

And JIMGA, I'll happily trade you any of the Giants scrappy white guys for Jason Heyward - pretty much any hitter not named Buster Posey.

bs? Really? I know your a SF fan, but you really think this guy didn't lie?

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by TroyF

bs? Really? I know your a SF fan, but you really think this guy didn't lie?

I tend to think its an idiotic verdict for reasons outlined by Craig Calcaterra(sp?) here: Deep Thought: Barry Bonds verdict edition | HardballTalk. Its a "we don't have any proof, but we feel something was wrong" here kind of thing.

[molson]

Originally Posted by TroyF

bs? Really? I know your a SF fan, but you really think this guy didn't lie?

I don't know all the elements and jury instructions utilized in this case, but the on the surface, the weird thing appears to be that at least some of the jury found that the government failed to prove that Bonds lied to the grand jury, but all of them found that Bonds obstructed the grand jury by lying to it.

[JediKooter]

Bonds should be banished to the Phantom Zone along with General Zod and his gang.

[Ksyrup]

REALLY RON WASHINGTON???

Two games in a row, you leave your best pitcher in the bullpen and allow someone else to lose the game in the 9th. Is there a higher leverage spot than tie game in the bottom of the 9th?

That guy doesn't deserve to be able to claim his team went to the WS last year.

[dawgfan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

REALLY RON WASHINGTON???

Two games in a row, you leave your best pitcher in the bullpen and allow someone else to lose the game in the 9th. Is there a higher leverage spot than tie game in the bottom of the 9th?

That guy doesn't deserve to be able to claim his team went to the WS last year.

The Save rule continues to warp baseball strategy for the worse. Can we please come up with a better stat that allows closers to still get the money they want and allows managers to use their relievers in a way that maximizes their chances at winning?

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by molson

I don't know all the elements and jury instructions utilized in this case, but the on the surface, the weird thing appears to be that at least some of the jury found that the government failed to prove that Bonds lied to the grand jury, but all of them found that Bonds obstructed the grand jury by lying to it.

Well, one of the perjury counts apparently was something like 11-1 in the government's favor.

So it's possible that that one holdout didn't think Bonds' misconduct rose to the level of perjury, but was still obstructive.

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by dawgfan

The Save rule continues to warp baseball strategy for the worse. Can we please come up with a better stat that allows closers to still get the money they want and allows managers to use their relievers in a way that maximizes their chances at winning?

It would certainly be nice.

It's hard to blame managers when there's millions riding on when a guy enters the game. Even saber-minded people use their closers in bad situations because of the pressure they have to get their closer save. Too much money riding on a terrible stat.

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

REALLY RON WASHINGTON???

Two games in a row, you leave your best pitcher in the bullpen and allow someone else to lose the game in the 9th. Is there a higher leverage spot than tie game in the bottom of the 9th?

That guy doesn't deserve to be able to claim his team went to the WS last year.

Crazy. I remember in the WS him going to Darren O'Day instead of Feliz - we were laughing in the bleachers. This idiotic obsession of saving the closer for a hypothetical situation that may never come is absurd.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by dawgfan

The Save rule continues to warp baseball strategy for the worse. Can we please come up with a better stat that allows closers to still get the money they want and allows managers to use their relievers in a way that maximizes their chances at winning?

FWIW, the Twins and the Royals have both brought in their closers in more than once already this year with a tie game in the 9th inning. There are managers out there that don't hold their closers solely for save opportunities.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Crapshoot

Crazy. I remember in the WS him going to Darren O'Day instead of Feliz - we were laughing in the bleachers. This idiotic obsession of saving the closer for a hypothetical situation that may never come is absurd.

And then when he went several games without being able to use him, he brought him in for a 7-2 game or something - basically mop-up duty for the last guy in the pen.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by TroyF

You could have thrown Yunel Escobar in there as well. He didn't get along with anyone and he's playing way above his head now, but he has an OPS of 1.167 now. That said, I think only SS or CF could you really say former Braves are doing as well as their Atlanta counterparts. I'm fairly certain every team in the league would gladly take Heyward and McCann over the two scrubs being compared to them in your list.

The difference being that the other four are all on the Kansas City Brav- Royals

SI

[MikeVic]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

FWIW, the Twins and the Royals have both brought in their closers in more than once already this year with a tie game in the 9th inning. There are managers out there that don't hold their closers solely for save opportunities.

I don't think the Jays will be using a traditional closer. I read a stat somewhere that something like four pitchers in their bullpen have been closers at some point in their careers.

[MizzouRah]

Nice offense tonight Cardinals.. BIG PUMA!

[JPhillips]

Dusty,

The Reds have four losses. Nick Masset has three losses. Masset is a mess right now, so please stop putting him in high leverage situations.

Thanks.

ps- If you continue to overuse Chapman and kill him I'll never forgive you.

[Butter]

I trust Jordan Smith more than I do Masset right now.

And Ondrusek.

Masset had a similar year last year if I remember, awful in April and most of May, then was pretty good from there on out. Really doesn't help our problems right now though.

[TroyF]

What kills me on the save issue is that every year some high profile team will blow saves early in the year and blame not having a closer on it. It's not that a guy got off to a slow start, it's that they need a better closer and they wouldn't be going through this.

This years example seems to be the White Sox. They blew another one yesterday and Ozzie said it's because they don't have a closer. No Ozzie, actually it's because your bullpen as a whole entity sucks right now. They have a combined ERA over 6 and people are throttling that bullpen for a 868 OPS.

But most regular fans are only going to look at the 6 blown saves in 7 chances and say their problems are all related to a closer.

[JPhillips]

Originally Posted by Butter_of_69

I trust Jordan Smith more than I do Masset right now.

And Ondrusek.

Masset had a similar year last year if I remember, awful in April and most of May, then was pretty good from there on out. Really doesn't help our problems right now though.

I think Masset will turn around, but he needs to be put in low pressure situations for a while until he gets on track. One of my biggest complaints about Dusty is that he preassigns roles to players and sticks with them for too long when they struggle. It's the same mentality that led to Tavarez getting 400+ ABs in the lead-off spot.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Butter_of_69

I trust Jordan Smith more than I do Masset right now.

And Ondrusek.

Masset had a similar year last year if I remember, awful in April and most of May, then was pretty good from there on out. Really doesn't help our problems right now though.

I just looked at the stats, Masset was even worse last year in April, though he only lost 1 game. His ERA in April last year was over 11.