AnythingO's

Please leave him at the 9 spot focused on getting on base and driving pitchers crazy, not home runs. Don't change his mindset before it is cemented in place. He had a long development period being successful but undisciplined until it didn't work in the show. He worked hard last year and off season to change that. Let him settle in his new style.

The Gibson DPs seems like a piece of the puzzle, was Lyles more a flyball pitcher? Does Mateo start more DPs because of his range and arm? That kinda stuff, pieces of the puzzle.

this part: " O’s second basemen have been involved in 25 double plays, most in the league and about 50% more than the average" Is that because of SSS and more appropriate balls in play to all 3 IF positions or that our SS and 3B are starting more DPs because of GG defense.

I vote for 9 because I don't want him feeling the pressure to drive in runs. I want him getting on base and wreaking havoc, dancing off 1st to draw 2 throws and then causing a balk or taking such a lead he can take 2nd without drawing a throw. Please leave him at the bottom so the new found approach can become muscle memory.

I wonder if this was true last year as well? Might it be influenced significantly by defense at 3B and SS making more plays at a GG rate? Could something like that be teased out of the advanced data?

O'Hearn is here to DH and pinch hit, les is worse than Mounty defensively. Diaz is a different story but ME paid O'Hearn more for the bat not the glove.

Could with a rainout that doesn't get played because the outcome doesn't matter. So I vote for plus 12. lol

I wholeheartedly agree with all of this. Hyde doesn't want Stowers to get a fair shot for some reason. He is 1 for 2 tonight and gets pinch hit for by McK against a RH reliever. You don't think KS is better in that spot than freaking McKenna????????? Sorry for the rant but IMHO Hyde hates Stowers like Buck hated Kim.

Sooo, tin foil hat-conspiracy theory time. ME has Stowers and Vavra up, Hyde plays Vavra AND Frazier in starts that should have gone to Stowers. So, ME sends Stowers down to get regular ABs. Vavra isn't producing, Stowers gets hot, ME sends Vavra down and promotes Stowers. Now Mav gets hurt and Hyde wants a 3rd catcher cutting ABs from Stowers and O'Hearn. Stowers gets a start in LF where he has limited experience rather than RF where he is a better option than Santander defensively. Hays (hot bat) sits while Santander (cold bat, poor defense) plays. Ergo: Hyde hates Stowers and is hoping for a DJS performance to cement his opinion. I am only half kidding!!!

Which is why I hate the idea of moving him up to higher stress position in the batting order because he is hot. Leave him at 8th, let this reworked approach become muscle memory, the sky is the limit.

Absolutely, and that a C will get regular ABs at DH forcing Santander to RF so it hurts both these guys who would be better in RF or DH than a C (Adley excepted).

Why is Santander in the field instead of Hays?

I know the 2005 team had other issues but the thing I remember most is Brian Roberts having his arm destroyed by a NYY while covering 1B.

SG may be referring to Super 2 issues for Ortiz???? as a replacement for a failed Mateo ?????

I have been bringing up ERod since last year for that reason. He makes $14M this year and then has 3/$49M remaining. He has an Opt out after this year he would likely exercise so he as a rental he shouldn't cost much. CoC and I couldn't figure out if he can be QO-ed again since he declined the BOS QO. If not, DET has little reason to hold on to him for the rest of the year. If they aren't going to get a pick would they say NO to Irvin and Norby??? It COULD be an opportunity to renegotiate his opt out and add a few option years at basically the cost of Frazier and Gibson. You have you stable inning eater for multiple years (assuming you can extend him) to go with GRod, Bradish, Means, Wells, Kremer, Povitch, Johnson. That should cover the Adley years

He has the ability to take and he has exceptional eye-hand or bat to ball skills. That's what is infuriating with him. He believes he can put a good swing on every pitch he commits to and he is right. However, the farther outside the pitch is, the harder it must be to "direct" the hit ball. I think that is what Hyde is referring to. I believe Mounty can be Beast but he has to change his mindset. Is it possible with advanced metrics to go pitch by pitch and collect the result pitch by pitch? What I am thinking is the pitches say 2-4 inches off the plate, he is barreling but right at the RF so it "looks" like it should have a higher hit probability. If such an analysis could be made I bet he could add 0.50 the AVG, 0.75 to OBP, and 0.100 to OPS by just laying off those farthest away. Bat him higher so he doesn't he has to be THE RUN PRODUCER????? Do SOMETHING!!!

I can agree with all of this, but I don't think ME-Sig value Stowers any more than Vavra so they would give Hyde the option. So since Hyde plays Vavra, they get Stowers more playing time in AAA.

I don't believe ME-Sig are dictating lineups, just providing advanced performance metrics and suggestions based on today's opponent. Most of the decisions are self evident most days and Hyde gets to decide who to use in RF-DH. The Sig-Bot could see equal future value in Vavra and Stowers for different reasons so the 26th man decision would be a tossup. If Hyde is more willing to play Vavra than Stowers, replace Stowers with O'Hearn as 26th man. I just believe Hyde doesn't like Stowers like Buck and Kim. ME-Sig aren't going to force the issue for the 26th man. IMHO

I refuse to believe that the ME-Sig-Bot that drafts and develops so well, thinks Vavra/Frazier are better in RF than Stowers. I put his lack of playing time on Hyde. Stowers should be here over O'Hearn, but that could be a Sig-Bot choice for the 26th man given that Hyde wasn't playing him.

This is the answer for me, play out the year and IF Mateo is an .800 OPS, GG SS then ME and Sig have to decide who is the future SS or CF. Mateo played some CF for SDP and with his speed cover a lot of ground out there. He could be he long term answer IF he can learn the reads and get good jumps, he has the arm.

As usual Frobby says things better than almost all of us and you have good reason to rein in your excitement. This start feels different than last summer and all his advanced stats this year point to definite changes, hence my optimism. I wish Mountcastle would commit to some changes in his approach but that's another story. lol

OK, you and owknows are turning this rain out into a Mateo thread so as one of the few that picked him for the breakout season I need to weigh in. His heater last summer was 6-8 weeks long depending on your choice of metrics. It came after concentrated work with the hitting coaches to refine his approach. Then late in the season they noticed something else to work on (toe tap vs leg lift) and he spent the offseason working on that and it's working. As a prospect he was #1 in NYY system ahead of Judge, traded to Oakland for a pitcher (Sonny Gray??). He had been top 100 for 3 straight years over 3 different lists (9 times total). Oakland moved him up a level and it didn't work. The sent him to SDP where he was behind Tatis-Machado and got 26 ABs in 2020. They cut him and we get him in August 2021. He is a highly talented and toolsy player whose development was hindered by trades and COVID. He has 775 ABs to date, 61 this season. Conventional thinking was it took 1,200 to 1,500 ABs to learn how to hit at MLB level. He has made himself into the player we see now. Will he cool off, of course. Will he revert to old form, at age 27 (B-day 6/23) with probably the best opportunity of his career, I highly doubt that. He has shown the willingness to change and reinvent himself.

I would agree re: Gunnar getting a [ass today but more ABs overall. I still would rather Stowers get ABs over Vavra or Frazier in RF

I think his stamina will lead him back to the BP. Better to be lock down for 75 inn than to struggle to get past 125 inn. Friday he was 95-96 (per the board) to start but settled at 92-93. He needed DPs to get out of Inn 5 and 6 and worked hard in inn 7. IMO 95 pitches is not sustainable for him and this was against a poor offense.

Wells to the BP makes it stronger, Bradish/Kremer have more potential IMHO as SPs.