Better Defense

[sportsfan8703]

The bench should offer strong defense.  Severino and Alberto should be plus defenders at key positions.  Jackson is really athletic but has to focus on multiple positions.  Seems like there was an effort made to not kick the ball around on defense.  

[mdbdotcom]

Without good defense it's difficult to evaluate just how bad the pitching is.

[Natty]

1 hour ago, Can_of_corn said:

Anyone got video of that throw hitting him in the chest?

I would love to see it. How often do first basemen get caught off guard and hit in the chest by a throw to first? Is Davis suffering from lack of focus? Last year I saw a couple plays where he did not know what to do with a sharply hit grounder...

[HowAboutThat]

4 hours ago, Bahama O's Fan said:

How much better do you expect it to be compared to last season?

Infinitely.

unless Mancini remains camped out in LF, in which case merely “incredibly.”

 

[HowAboutThat]

1 hour ago, atomic said:

It would be nice to have a contest to guess which players on the opening day roster will be on the roster come last game of the season.  I am guessing less than 50 percent.

That’s a significant question, worthy of quite a discussion.

how many guys who start the season will finish the season?

[Frobby]

21 minutes ago, Philip said:

That’s a significant question, worthy of quite a discussion.

how many guys who start the season will finish the season?

Remembering that rosters expand in September, probably most of them.   A few guys may get traded or released.    I’ll say 15+ will still be here.   

[El Gordo]

Regardless of how good it will be better than last year.

[Babypowder]

2 hours ago, Natty said:

I would love to see it. How often do first basemen get caught off guard and hit in the chest by a throw to first? Is Davis suffering from lack of focus? Last year I saw a couple plays where he did not know what to do with a sharply hit grounder...

I was at the game. He caught the ball, but he got handcuffed by it and it looked like it surprised him and he came off the bag. The sun was behind him so it wasn’t that. It was a really strange play. 

[HowAboutThat]

1 hour ago, Frobby said:

Remembering that rosters expand in September, probably most of them.   A few guys may get traded or released.    I’ll say 15+ will still be here.   

How many guys opening the season are just placeholders? And they’ll either be designated or sent down: Araujo, Nunez, Alberto, Smith, Wright, Sucre/Severino(definitely One or the other, possibly both)

Traded: Cobb, Karns, Givens, Bleier, Villar

limbo: Davis, Trumbo.

That’s 12-14 guys who could be gone, Without focusing on the bullpen, where there’s going to be tremendous turnover.

So you’re Probably within the margin of error.

 

[TheOtherRipken]

I really disagree with all of the Mancini hate in left and most of what's been said in this post.  At a point last year we trotted out OFs that consisted of Mancini, Adam Jones in Center, and Mark Trumbo in right.  Davis and Nunez at corners, Beckham at ... any position.  An OF defense with Mancini, Mullins, and Smith for example is a categorical improvement.   I mean Mancini isn't great in left, but with the other two positions with better range its not really so crazy as everyone says.  

Infield defense is improved with Beckham out and we did a poor job at setting Manny up for success at SS last year if his post trade performance is any indication.  Catcher defense is improved. 

I guess in general, its fun to bash a bad team, but they could easily be an above average defensive team this year and I think they will be, which is good, because they may not score 500 runs this year. 

[Moose Milligan]

It should be better, but I don't know if this is a great defensive team.  There's a lot that remains to be seen.  I think it's probably going to be respectable, especially when Mancini is at DH.

If Mancini spends most of his time in LF, it takes it down a notch.

[HowAboutThat]

16 minutes ago, TheOtherRipken said:

I really disagree with all of the Mancini hate in left and most of what's been said in this post.  At a point last year we trotted out OFs that consisted of Mancini, Adam Jones in Center, and Mark Trumbo in right.  Davis and Nunez at corners, Beckham at ... any position.  An OF defense with Mancini, Mullins, and Smith for example is a categorical improvement.   I mean Mancini isn't great in left, but with the other two positions with better range its not really so crazy as everyone says.  

Infield defense is improved with Beckham out and we did a poor job at setting Manny up for success at SS last year if his post trade performance is any indication.  Catcher defense is improved. 

I guess in general, its fun to bash a bad team, but they could easily be an above average defensive team this year and I think they will be, which is good, because they may not score 500 runs this year. 

Mancini is useless in left. I agree that our defense in general will be worlds better, but there is no planet in the universe on which Mancini should play left field.

[weams]

3 hours ago, Natty said:

I would love to see it. How often do first basemen get caught off guard and hit in the chest by a throw to first? Is Davis suffering from lack of focus? Last year I saw a couple plays where he did not know what to do with a sharply hit grounder...

I have no idea, but he looked/looks lost. 

[weams]

57 minutes ago, Philip said:

Mancini is useless in left. I agree that our defense in general will be worlds better, but there is no planet in the universe on which Mancini should play left field.

Not an outfielder. Great guy, tries hard. 

[Frobby]

58 minutes ago, Philip said:

Mancini is useless in left. I agree that our defense in general will be worlds better, but there is no planet in the universe on which Mancini should play left field.

You know, Mancini is a pretty bad defensive outfielder, but I’ve seen worse.    Just on our own team, I’d rather have him out there than Trumbo.   Saying that, I’d far prefer him at 1B/DH.