Can Mullins have a bad spring .....

[Moose Milligan]

5 hours ago, Il BuonO said:

It’s strange, I was excited to see him last year, not so much this year. He should be given every opportunity to play CF considering the depth. I’m not sure the leash is too long. 

I think we were all excited to see him last year for a number of reasons...first, he was a breath of fresh air, some young excitement on a team that didn't have any.  Second, he pushed Jones to RF, something that was a bit overdue.  Third, he was fun to watch.

But after his hot start, he cooled considerably and so did our expectations.  We know he can't hit from the right side.  We know that despite his tremendous speed, he's not a great outfielder.  He's not adept at stealing bases.

We've done what fans do, which is to pick apart weaknesses and harp on them.  Unfortunately for Mullins, there are some weaknesses here that can't be overlooked as the Orioles transition into a rebuild.  

[wildcard]

15 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

I think we were all excited to see him last year for a number of reasons...first, he was a breath of fresh air, some young excitement on a team that didn't have any.  Second, he pushed Jones to RF, something that was a bit overdue.  Third, he was fun to watch.

But after his hot start, he cooled considerably and so did our expectations.  We know he can't hit from the right side.  We know that despite his tremendous speed, he's not a great outfielder.  He's not adept at stealing bases.

We've done what fans do, which is to pick apart weaknesses and harp on them.  Unfortunately for Mullins, there are some weaknesses here that can't be overlooked as the Orioles transition into a rebuild.  

If he hits, he plays.

[Moose Milligan]

Just now, wildcard said:

If he hits, he plays.

Right, but we know he's not hitting from the right side.  So he's gonna play only part of the time.  

But it's also not like he killed it from the left side.  .264/.319/.432

Of course there's room for improvement, I hope he does.  

[sportsfan8703]

57 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

Right, but we know he's not hitting from the right side.  So he's gonna play only part of the time.  

But it's also not like he killed it from the left side.  .264/.319/.432

Of course there's room for improvement, I hope he does.  

I’ll take a .700 OPS from Mullins as a platoon CF, with added stolen base ability and defensive metric improvements. 

[Just Regular]

I see him as a roster lock but his lineup spot is up in the air.  It will be sad if Alcides Escobar has to hit leadoff because Mullins scuffles.  I would sooner see Stewart or Sisco up there if Mullins has to bat 9th.

If we were a winning team, I would say he's the type to ping pong high/low in the order based on his platoon splits if he can't grow out of them, but I think the first quarter of the season a regular routine will probably benefit all the guys acclimating to the show.

FWIW the fantasy guys love him.  Last night in LABR's AL auction, he was bid up to the same price as Eloy Jimenez, Ramon Laureano and Domingo Santana.  Now for sure some of that is based on the expectation 100-loss teams allow guys like him 600 PA's to accumulate R/HR/RBI/SB, but it gives me a little comfort the wonks scrutinizing swing metrics, exit velocities etc. seem to trust him to keep a job.

[wildcard]

17 minutes ago, OrioleDog said:

I see him as a roster lock but his lineup spot is up in the air.  It will be sad if Alcides Escobar has to hit leadoff because Mullins scuffles.  I would sooner see Stewart or Sisco up there if Mullins has to bat 9th.

If we were a winning team, I would say he's the type to ping pong high/low in the order based on his platoon splits if he can't grow out of them, but I think the first quarter of the season a regular routine will probably benefit all the guys acclimating to the show.

FWIW the fantasy guys love him.  Last night in LABR's AL auction, he was bid up to the same price as Eloy Jimenez, Ramon Laureano and Domingo Santana.  Now for sure some of that is based on the expectation 100-loss teams allow guys like him 600 PA's to accumulate R/HR/RBI/SB, but it gives me a little comfort the wonks scrutinizing swing metrics, exit velocities etc. seem to trust him to keep a job.

Villar can leadoff.

[Can_of_corn]

Just now, wildcard said:

Villar can leadoff.

So can Davis.

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

8 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

So can Davis.

Buck isn’t the manager now.

[scOtt]

I don't think this has been touched on yet, if Mullins has a bad spring, or even just a mediocre spring could he be sent to AAA to make it easier to keep both Rule 5s? 2/3 of a season in Norfolk wouldn't be the worst thing for him, might actually help. And Elias has said over and over it's all about building up talent in the organization. Seems like an easy sacrifice to make to keep two very interesting prospects.

[wildcard]

16 minutes ago, scOtt said:

I don't think this has been touched on yet, if Mullins has a bad spring, or even just a mediocre spring could he be sent to AAA to make it easier to keep both Rule 5s? 2/3 of a season in Norfolk wouldn't be the worst thing for him, might actually help. And Elias has said over and over it's all about building up talent in the organization. Seems like an easy sacrifice to make to keep two very interesting prospects.

I think they can keep all three Rule 5 guys with or without Mullins.

[thezeroes]

Cedric Mullins has had a Grand Total of 487 Plate Appearances as a Right handed Batter over 4 Years.(25% of all his PA's)

He has trended slightly upwards over those four years. .550 OPS to the current .645 OPS from 2015 to 2018.  Now knowing that I guess the assumption is that he can not switch hit when he has such a small sample size per year.  As a comp, the 2018 Orioles had a .681 OPS against LHP as a RHB. 

In my opinion, let him have a year to either "Get It" before we relegate him to a platoon player.

[Natty]

On 3/2/2019 at 9:35 AM, OsFanSinceThe80s said:

I say no.  What other options for CF? 

Rickard seems to be a better hitter, fielder and base runner. Not greatly better, but better. Mullins is not starting off great in spring training. Rickard is. But its early.

[Il BuonO]

4 hours ago, Moose Milligan said:

Right, but we know he's not hitting from the right side.  So he's gonna play only part of the time.  

But it's also not like he killed it from the left side.  .264/.319/.432

Of course there's room for improvement, I hope he does.  

And that’s why I mentioned the leash in regards to depth. What are the options? Hays, Rickard, Diaz? 

Might as well give him some time to let him fail, but not miserably so his confidence is somewhat in tact. If they’re going to be awful it doesn’t make much sense to burn service time for the two other young guys and Rickard is more than capable as a placeholder.

I’d like to see more of Hays in CF and hear some reports on his routes and then see him there as the season progresses if he’s doing well at AAA.

It is early, though, so plenty of time for Mullins to impress. Because of team expectations people are going to have to be patient with the process in many areas.

[Natty]

On 3/2/2019 at 9:35 AM, OsFanSinceThe80s said:

I say no.  What other options for CF? 

Right now we have several outfielders who are hitting way better than Mullins. But its early, maybe he will start hitting.

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

3 minutes ago, Natty said:

Right now we have several outfielders who are hitting way better than Mullins. But its early, maybe he will start hitting.

I think Mullins would have to have a really bad spring to not make the team.