Opening Day Impressions

[Sports Guy]

Oh and obviously Frazier is the best signing of the offseason

[Frobby]

6 minutes ago, Spy Fox said:

Baker didn't look great but it wasn't all on him. 

He walked Turner on a 3-2 pitch that both MASN and Gameday thought was a pretty good strike:

And the two run double was an awful read by Santander that every other OF on the team likely would have caught for the 3rd out. 

Agree, but on the other hand, he got a gift third strike on Devers when he was called for not being ready to hit with 8 seconds on the clock.  

[Sports Guy]

The bullpen looks better today if the defense behind them was better.

[DocJJ]

I am very concerned about Gunnar.  I watched a few Spring Training games and he looked lost at the plate.   Today in the first real game he continued to look lost...

[Sports Guy]

Just now, Frobby said:

Agree, but on the other hand, he got a gift third strike on Devers when he was called for not being ready to hit with 8 seconds on the clock.  

He did but he was up in the count 1-2 at least. Doesn’t mean he definitely gets him out but still.  
 

I didn’t see anything from Baker today that would worry me. Bad luck on that strike call and a poor play by Santander made that inning look a lot worse.

[Sports Guy]

The one thing that I wondered about the pitch clock today is does it make pitchers rush. I wonder if we see more hit batters and walks this year. It wouldn’t surprise me if we did.

[Sports Guy]

Btw, while they may hit, I think Boston is going to suck this year and that Devers contract is going to be a problem for them long term.

But that is going to be a poor defensive team and I don’t think their pitching is going to be that good.

Edited March 30, 2023 by Sports Guy

[Since1984]

4 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

The one thing that I wondered about the pitch clock today is does it make pitchers rush. I wonder if we see more hit batters and walks this year. It wouldn’t surprise me if we did.

Did not know the catcher can call one time out for each batter, which may mitigate this a little bit.

[Tony-OH]

8 minutes ago, DocJJ said:

I am very concerned about Gunnar.  I watched a few Spring Training games and he looked lost at the plate.   Today in the first real game he continued to look lost...

He was not swinging at bad pitches and walked twice so he actually had a .400 OBP for the game. 

[Sports Guy]

We also have to acknowledge that, even for the best in the world, those aren’t ideal conditions to pitch in.

[DocJJ]

12 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

He was not swinging at bad pitches and walked twice so he actually had a .400 OBP for the game. 

Good point.  Sometimes, I confuse patience and selectivity with looking lost up there!  

[Ohfan67]

37 minutes ago, DocJJ said:

I am very concerned about Gunnar.  I watched a few Spring Training games and he looked lost at the plate.   Today in the first real game he continued to look lost...

But he walked twice??

 

p.s. Just saw your exchange with Tony. 

Edited March 30, 2023 by Ohfan67

[Ohfan67]

I had a fantastic time today watching the game...until about the 8th inning! I'm happy now, but I was on the verge of losing my mind during the bottom of the ninth. 

[Brooks The Great]

27 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

He was not swinging at bad pitches and walked twice so he actually had a .400 OBP for the game. 

And this is a big part of what separates good/great/elite hitters from average/bad ones. A hitter like Gunnar is going to draw walks and make the pitcher work even when he doesn't record a hit on the day, or when he's in a slump. 

[25 Nuggets]

1.  This lineup is going to score more runs than the national people believe.

2.  I remain generally concerned about the pitching staff, as I always am with this team.