Jammer7

I don’t disagree, he was hinting. I doubt it involves pitchcom hacking. It could be that they are getting feedback from runners or coaches on location. Maybe the hitters are peaking. If the pitch is up, it isn’t off speed, so guessing FB is safe. Someone might wear one today, and it seemed there was a few message pitches yesterday.

Ben did not say the Brewers were cheating, or accuse them of anything. He said it looked like something was off, or something to that effect. I suppose you could take that how you want, but to me it was that Wells was tipping his pitches. Or perhaps our sequences are too predictable. IDK, but he did not accuse anyone of anything IMO. They are a hot team, and they are crushing a lot of cutters mostly. The fastball that Sanchez hit was up in the zone. Mountcastle hit a similar pitch for a long HR last night. We have to pitch better, and Burnes is the right guy.

Goodrum robbed him on another shot to RF. Stays inside the ball very well. For a RH hitter, he’ll have success in Camden Yards because of his RCF approach.

You are probably right, but his bat is really fun to watch. His barrel control and oppo power are impressive. I don’t see an obvious fit defensively, but that bat is going to play.

The issue with them is not their level of talent. It is their ability to be consistent. I agree, pretty much, with the OP. I refrained from saying much about Holliday going down because there was so much whining about it. I will say that I think his offensive approach and swing decisions are something that need some work. He’s an incredible talent, but he is far from where he will be in a year or two. His swing and miss is an issue. I have seen him swing from his heels and miss by a foot on several occasions, including last nights game. The kid doesn’t get cheated, but his swing is a bit wild right now at times. Holliday has thrown “lollipop throws” on several occasions this Spring. Those bug me, honestly. It’s a pet peeve, throw the damn ball. Hit them in the chest. I’m sure he’ll adjust in a little time, but there is work to be done there. Mayo and Kjerstad are more polished in some ways, but still not there yet. I am still not convinced Mayo is a good defender at 3B. Does the bat make up for it? IDK, tough call. I can tell he has worked hard on his body and mobility. Look, these are young men we will be seeing for a long time. They aren’t in an ideal state of readiness right now. No rush, for me anyway. Could they play in MLB right now? Sure. They could play now, and we’d likely lose some games because of mistakes they will make that others may not. Pitchers would have to make more pitches, and we’d have to make more roster moves. I do not want to watch sloppy baseball that leads to our pitchers wearing down sooner than they should. I don’t want to see us lose games that we should be winning with more consistent and efficient play. Elias and Hyde know what they’re doing, as evidenced by how this team and organization have grown steadily and quickly. The executive and manager of the year in 2023. According to some here, they’re terrible morons who are simply trying to game the system to get another year of Holliday. It’s hilarious.

Hey, not my metric. lol

I get what you’re saying, but short-hopping a throw doesn’t mean he “sucks.” Mounty picks that 4 out of 5 times, but that throw was rifled and it was a tough pick. What he did show is he still has a very good arm. Some here were critical of his arm strength. I think he has some work to do at 2B, to smooth some things out there with footwork and such. No one is “just a SS.” Holliday had an error yesterday too, I guess he sucks too?

RIP Mr. Angelos.

Over time, maybe. It depends on the player. Still better than sitting, playing twice a week.

Not every player can play a bench role, and do it well. Young players, especially those with impact upside, should not sit on the bench. It can only delay and/or hamper their development. There are things Mateo and Urias do very well, but they are not first division winner regulars at this point. If you move either or both, who plays the bench role in your line of thinking? It isn’t that they are not replaceable, but then who? I would not want to relegate Westburg to a lesser role. I do not want to move Henderson anywhere. He can play a great 3B, but I want to leave him at SS. Holliday, if he makes the team, has to be at 2B, or SS when Henderson needs a day off. Norby is not a very good defender, limited to 2B. Wong can play 2B and 3B, but is he a better option than Urias or Mateo? Castillo? Maybe another waiver wire guy?

I went back and listened to it again, and it was Ben who stated it. You are correct. O’Hearn was saying he was driven to be successful and never have to go back. And he likely would not willingly leave $3.5 mm on the table. I am very curious to see how they handle these young guys. We’ll soon see, but these young fellas have largely done what they needed to do to make this a tough decision.

I heard Melanie, I think, last night say that O’Hearn stated he would retire as a major leaguer rather than to go to the minors again. That may just be talk, but it might not be. They would trade O’Hearn before they would option him. He really was good in 2024. Now that he has performed like that, do we want to replace him with anyone who we think “might perform,” or we expect them to perform, like O’Hearn did last year? We are supposed to be trying to win a World Series, otherwise why make the Burnes trade? I just do not see the wisdom in moving O’Hearn at this time. Mayo, Holliday, Cowser, Kjerstad and Norby all seem ready, or thereabouts, to begin their major league ascendancy. Most of them are blocked by players that are more experienced and perhaps more likely to get us to a deep playoff run in 2024.

I think they mean a little something, but it is more about the process. Mediocre or poor process can yield good results briefly, but it will be exposed when the season gets rolling. Spring training games are exhibition games to get the players ready for full speed and a regular season workload. You’d rather have good results, but it really doesn’t matter much. The coaches see the work that goes on behind the scenes, and that tells the bigger story.

O’Hearn is on the team. Optioning him for Stowers, yikes. It’s spring training. We are getting carried away with these numbers. Rather have it than not, and his day was impressive yesterday, sure. There is a lot more to it, and I don’t think it would go over very well to option one of your best performers last year, who happens to be a veteran clubhouse leader.

You obviously misunderstood what I was writing. It wasn’t a knock on him. It was an observation. Willie was not known to drive the ball, more of a slap hitter. I remain hopeful he will be more “Lofton-like” and drive the ball more. Today’s game, not sure that a slap hitter has as much success as McGee did playing on green concrete turf fields.