Mancini is an average defensive left fielder according to UZR

[Number5]

1 hour ago, Frobby said:

Honestly, Trey may have played 1B in high school because he was tall.   As an OF, he’s not an average major leaguer, but certainly showed enough where he’d be better than most high school players.    Coaches like having a tall 1B, especially when the other infielders are not always on the money with their throws.   

As long as he doesn't go into the stretch before the throw.  A team I played for had a 6'7" first baseman, but he turned himself into a target the size of a breadbox because he would stretch all the way out before the ball was even thrown.  Two feet high and no side-to-side mobility.  We couldn't get him to change.  Frustrated the heck out our SS and me (3B).  

[Tony-OH]

On 12/15/2018 at 11:13 AM, Luke-OH said:

You are missing it's not good practice to just pick and choose the data the supports your opinion and shrug off data to the contrary.

His UZR/150 in LF was -8.1 in 2017 and -17.1 in 2018

His DRS in LF were -1 in 2017 and -12 in 2018

His OOA (statcast) in the OF were -5 in 2017 and -10 in 2018

His rFielding (baseball reference) were -5 in 2017 and -14 in 2018

But besides that? Why?  

[Tony-OH]

On 12/15/2018 at 11:48 AM, Can_of_corn said:

Were you the one that proclaimed that Mancini would be the most improved outfielder in baseball last year?

I remember mocking someone but I'm not sure who it was.

Well, there are many so i can see why you can't remember.

[Tony-OH]

On 12/15/2018 at 2:28 PM, Spy Fox said:

https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/catch_probability_leaderboard

Statcast has him at -10 Outs Above Average in 2018. That was 81st out of 87th qualified outfielders. Catch probability numbers may not be perfect but I'm curious to hear a critique of them that could excuse Mancini all the way up to average. 

I really like the catch probability stats to give you a good idea of how an outfielder really stacks up when it comes to range and catching flyballs, which is 90% of being an outfielder.

[Aristotelian]

4 hours ago, Number5 said:

As long as he doesn't go into the stretch before the throw.  A team I played for had a 6'7" first baseman, but he turned himself into a target the size of a breadbox because he would stretch all the way out before the ball was even thrown.  Two feet high and no side-to-side mobility.  We couldn't get him to change.  Frustrated the heck out our SS and me (3B).  

Well, if you could just throw to the target... :0

[SteveA]

I've read the first page of this thread and I don't think I have it in me to read any further.   If I skip the last 7 pages am I missing anything?

[25 Nuggets]

16 minutes ago, SteveA said:

I've read the first page of this thread and I don't think I have it in me to read any further.   If I skip the last 7 pages am I missing anything?

some jokes; Mark Trumbo.  A Bill Clinton reference.

[Catch 8]

On 12/17/2018 at 5:00 PM, Frobby said:

Coaches like having a tall 1B, especially when the other infielders are not always on the money with their throws.   

Give me a 1B who tags HARD

[Cumberbundy]

On 12/15/2018 at 11:15 AM, Frobby said:

Honestly, I thought in 2018 Mancini might improve enough to be average or slightly below.   Instead, he was worse.    And to my eye, that preceded his knee injury, which IMO didn’t bother him the entire season anyway.    I think he’s said as much.   You certainly can’t say he is an average LF, and you’d really have to be a pretty wild-eyed optimist to think he can become one at this point.   I think the OP makes way too much of his injury.    Mancini doesn’t get a great initial read on fly balls, sometimes gets turned around, and he’s not very fast.   (In fairness to wildcard, Mancini’s average sprint speed was 27.5 in 2017, 27.0 in 2018.    If he wants to blame that on the knee injury, I can’t prove him wrong.)

Mancini in left looks like Gronk as the last line of defense. 

[bobmc]

Trey is interviewed on MLB Network on 12/28 and provides his normal repartee (is up for playing for the Italian Team in the WBC in 2020).  He is a real good guy!

 

[Frobby]

They asked Trey about Manny and he said Manny was a great teammate and had helped Trey when he was slumping based on Manny’s own slump the year before.   

[Just Regular]

This bit of fantasy analysis was quite encouraging to me.

https://www.fangraphs.com/fantasy/2018-barrels-per-true-fly-ball-surgers/

Basically the guy is eliminating "incorrect" batted balls like pop-ups or grounders.  I'm not sure whether that's sound process but Podhorzer is an analyst whose stuff is interesting enough to me to consider, and anyway....

Mancini's 48% at this was second best to Yelich in the table of everyone who improved the most at it last year.  Considering how well he rated in 2017, I'd guess he's the 2-year aggregate leader in it.

Here's hoping the OF distraction ends, and he gets a clean shot at focusing on his hitting.

I think to avoid the DH penalty and to give him every bit of offensive advantage, I'm on Team 1B Mancini/DH Davis even if Mancini is rustier/worse afield.

[DrungoHazewood]

On 1/4/2019 at 9:30 PM, bobmc said:

Trey is interviewed on MLB Network on 12/28 and provides his normal repartee (is up for playing for the Italian Team in the WBC in 2020).  He is a real good guy!

 

I'm sure it would be a lot of fun to participate in the WBC, even if it's for a country that you're only distantly connected to. 

Am I wrong in assuming that he's as Italian as Nick Markakis is Greek?  If they did their Ancestry DNA test somewhere in the list of countries your ancestors is from it says "Southern Europe, 32%".  The WBC will continue to have a credibility problem when many of the participating nations are using very loosely connected non-citizens to even have a viable roster.