Buck interview on B More Opinionated podcast

[wildcard]

Interview with Jerry Coleman and Jason LA Canfora on B More Opinionated

Very interesting interview which showed some of the tension that may be between Buck and Dan.

Here is a summary of the items discussed.

1) Buck: I'd rather have a righty that can pitch than a lefty that can't.   However the AL East parks favor lefthanded pitching.

2) Pen was fine last year.

3) Not enough finances is an excuse.  We have enough money to contend.

4) O's must develop their own pitching ( more on this in #15)

5) Must have 8 or 9 pitchers that can start.

6) Hess has been good in the 2nd half. Decision must be made on protecting him from the Rule 5 draft. We will see.

7)Ability to defend in the separator  for the outfielders. Mullins is the best of the young OFer defensively..

8) Going to see Wilkerson in Az Fall league. He can play 2B/3B.  He will be playing SS while Buck is there.  He is a ball player.  (Wilkerson played SS Monday. Made a throwing error.  He played 2B yesterday and made a throwing error.  Steve is 5 for 9 over the two days with a homer and a double.)

9) Buck also wants to see Luis Gonzalez ( Luis pitched 1/3 of an inning yesterday.  Allowed no hits)

10) Buck does not believe in the window closing.  He says the window is always open.

11) Mullins is the best leadoff hitting candidate of the young outfielders.   We will see where that goes.

12) Sisco throwing got better as the season went on.

13) Buck is high on Wynns.  He sounds equally high on both Wynns and Sisco.    (Me - ST could tell who stays in the majors)

14)Davies would have been good in the AL East because on his change up.

15)Buck upset because young pitching has been traded away.

Here is the Podcast. Buck interview starts at 29.00.

http://bmoshow.com/2017/10/31/the-buck-stops-here-orioles-manager-buck-showalter-returns/

Here is what MLBTR had to say about the interview:

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2017/11/orioles-notes-pitching-sisco-wynns-prospects-coaching-staff.html

 

 

[Bahama O's Fan]

I would think whoever they believe has a higher ceiling, Wynns or Cisco, goes to AAA to play everyday rather than two or three days a week, unless they can beat out Joseph for the starting job.

[wildcard]

16 minutes ago, Bahama O's Fan said:

I would think whoever they believe has a higher ceiling, Wynns or Cisco, goes to AAA to play everyday rather than two or three days a week, unless they can beat out Joseph for the starting job.

Sounds to me like the O's will make a determination about who is most ready to play in the majors based on ST performance and management/staff evaluations.  

[Luke-OH]

If Buck thinks Sisco and Wynns are pretty even now overall, I'd be willing to bet he'll change his mind in spring training.

 

Also, Sisco is almost as bad as Hays with the number of people spelling their names wrong.

[wildcard]

11 minutes ago, phillyOs119 said:

If Buck thinks Sisco and Wynns are pretty even now overall, I'd be willing to bet he'll change his mind in spring training.

 

Also, Sisco is almost as bad as Hays with the number of people spelling their names wrong.

Change his mind which way?   Wynns is likely to show better defensive skills and a better arm.   Buck likes defense. Sisco should show he is the better hitter.   Buck likes a catcher that can hit.

[Can_of_corn]

4 minutes ago, wildcard said:

Change his mind which way?   Wynns is likely to show better defensive skills and a better arm.   Buck likely defense. Sisco should show he is the better hitter.   Buck likes a catcher that can hit.

Buck likey defense.

 

Good one.

[Luke-OH]

7 minutes ago, wildcard said:

Change his mind which way?   Wynns is likely to show better defensive skills and a better arm.   Buck likely defense. Sisco should show he is the better hitter.   Buck likes a catcher that can hit.

Well, which player is more likely to improve?

[wildcard]

11 minutes ago, phillyOs119 said:

Well, which player is more likely to improve?

I don't know.  Can Sisco improve his arm strength or is it a case of it is what it is?   Can Wynns hitting improve with exposure to major league pitches?  And if both can improve - when?

[Luke-OH]

Just now, wildcard said:

I don't know.  Can Sisco improve his arm strength or is it a case of it is what it is?   Can Wynns hitting improve with exposure to major league pitches?

Where did you hear that arm strength is Sisco's issue?  Why would facing better pitching make Wynns hit better?

[wildcard]

Wilkerson played SS today.  No error.  He went 0 for 2 with a SF, HBP, run scored and an RBI.

Luis Gonzalez  pitched a  hitless inning.

I think  Buck may have been at the last three games according to what Buck said in the interview.

[POR]

Based on the comments here and based on what is said in spring training, I get the impression Buck is a big Cedric Mullins fan.  Bold prediction -Mullins gets more than 300 ABs with the Orioles in 2018. 

[wildcard]

32 minutes ago, phillyOs119 said:

Where did you hear that arm strength is Sisco's issue?  Why would facing better pitching make Wynns hit better?

Questions about Sisco's arm strength and whether improved mechanics can help him be a major league catcher have been around for years.  Here is what Kendall said in 2016:   

"Kendall points out that while catchers at Sisco's age don't often gain a new level of arm strength all of a sudden, they can make more subtle improvements to their pop time by changing their footwork or release. Graham notes that a catcher's proficiency is increasingly determined by the pitcher at the big league level. And Joseph draws on his own experience of switching to catcher late in the game and learning to call pitches as he developed."

Wynns has shown for the last three years that he can put up a decent OBP.  if he does that in the majors that will be improvement.

[Can_of_corn]

What I heard is mechanics and footwork are the issues, not raw arm strength.

[wildcard]

Just now, Can_of_corn said:

What I heard is mechanics and footwork are the issues, not raw arm strength.

 Read again what Kendal said.   

The O's are trying to improve Sisco mechanics and footwork to overcome his arm strength problems.  

Meanwhile Wynns threw out 38% of basestealler last year.

If you haven't listened to what Buck has to said about Wynns in the podcast you should take the time to listen to it. It gives a prospective on were Buck head is on the subject.    

[wildcard]

From today's SUN:

What will determine the 22-year-old’s role both in 2018 and going forward is his defense, which by all accounts has improved since he took the position up as a senior in high school but is still a question for some. He got control of the running game in the second half of the season, but is still learning the finer points of his throwing mechanics and game-calling as he grows into the position. The Orioles believe being around bench coach John Russell every day will be a big benefit to Sisco when he's in the majors.

Behind him at Double-A was Austin Wynns, who went to the Arizona Fall League last year after a strong season and hit .281 with 10 home runs and a .796 OPS at Bowie in 2017. Wynns, 26, is seen as a strong defender and game-caller who can ride that to a major league bench role alone, and is a candidate to be protected from the Rule 5 draft when the team makes its 40-man roster additions this fall.