Jorge in Center

[Pickles]

11 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

I mentioned that they should have looked into this in ST and was told that would never happen and it was dumb to consider.

At this point, I’m not sure why they spend so much time trying to find ways to keep him on the team.

I remember that and I agreed with you at the time.

This is Mateo's floor.  But the bat has dictated this role.

Still,  his defense all over the field, and his threat on the bases, keeps him on the roster.  He's an ideal 26th man.   That's his role going forward.

That doesn't mean he'll do it.  He hasn't played as well at SS this year not playing full time.  He will have to improve upon that, and show that he can play CF (or anywhere else) very well.  He has the tools.

[Pickles]

3 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

7 career starts in CF.  3 in RF.   I’d call this an experiment.

That's kind of what I mean.  They've studied it.  They think he can do it based on whatever criteria they have, and it certainly isn't old defensive stats.

[seak05]

Mateo has only gotten fielding practice in cf, mckenna can play all three of positions. They didn’t want to put mateo somewhere he hasn’t had any practice with the angles 

[banks703]

10 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

I think the chemistry argument cuts both ways.

I mean, we all played Little League with a kid who was an automatic out.  I don't think the idea of "Aw, ****, look who's up with two outs and is about to kill our rally," leaves someone's mind just because they're in the Majors.

But by all accounts, he's a great guy.  I just think SigBot and Elias think there's something they can tap into to fix him.  There's no other logical explanation I can think of.

No doubt. I joked that he has compromising pictures of Elias. Even if he could potentially play all seven spots in the IF/OF if he can’t hit, he can only be so valuable. Cowser is hitting .125 right now and his OBP is 26 points higher than Jorge’s OBP. That ain’t good. 

[Orioles0615]

DFA

[banks703]

2 minutes ago, Orioles0615 said:

DFA

LOL 

0615 is ready to sleep Jorge like Jose Ramirez slept Tim Anderson tonight. 

[Orioles0615]

3 minutes ago, banks703 said:

LOL 

0615 is ready to sleep Jorge like Jose Ramirez slept Tim Anderson tonight. 

Man, I am done with him. He can't hit, he has been dog crap in the field. Why are we trying to experiment with him in CF in a pennant race? If we need an all glove no bat outfielder who is fast we have Mckenna, who is hitting better than him. Just get rid of him. 

[Winter]

I think some of overthinking this, it was clearly to get OHearn out of the outfield as Hyde clearly wanted Hays to have a full day off, nothing burger... 

[banks703]

1 minute ago, Orioles0615 said:

Man, I am done with him. He can't hit, he has been dog crap in the field. Why are we trying to experiment with him in CF in a pennant race? If we need an all glove no bat outfielder who is fast we have Mckenna, who is hitting better than him. Just get rid of him. 

Jorge is my second favorite player on the team but I agree with you. I think it’s long past the time to move on from Jorge.

[Chavez Ravine]

This is not a perfect comp, but the Dodgers kept Hanser Alberto all last year primarily because he was an awesome guy and kept everyone happy…well plus he pitched ten games for them. But then they happily left him off the post season roster in favor of the “dynamic rookie” Miguel Vargas. 

[Pickles]

3 minutes ago, Chavez Ravine said:

This is not a perfect comp, but the Dodgers kept Hanser Alberto all last year primarily because he was an awesome guy and kept everyone happy…well plus he pitched ten games for them. But then they happily left him off the post season roster in favor of the “dynamic rookie” Miguel Vargas. 

The next thing will be Jorge converting to the mound.  I'm half-joking.

[24fps]

Clearly somebody is paying Mike Elias more than John Angelos.

[Alasdaire]

 

4 hours ago, ScGO's said:

I've been advocating for awhile to keep Jorge on the roster as a super utility ever since Mullins went down the first time

He has value in this role and only in this role moving forward, and it is a valuable role for this team. This is what keeps him from being DFAd

People wanted to chop my head off when I suggested that, as between Mateo or Frazier, I like Mateo off of the bench. The speed and defense at premium positions are at least discernible skills that could be useful in specific situations come October. What does Adam Frazier do that you want to see in the playoffs? I've been told it's hitting righties, but the .750 OPS against them doesn't particularly inspire confidence.

[Moose Milligan]

25 minutes ago, Alasdaire said:

 

People wanted to chop my head off when I suggested that, as between Mateo or Frazier, I like Mateo off of the bench. The speed and defense at premium positions are at least discernible skills that could be useful in specific situations come October. What does Adam Frazier do that you want to see in the playoffs? I've been told it's hitting righties, but the .750 OPS against them doesn't particularly inspire confidence.

.750 isn't bad.  It's not great...but it's not awful.  That is way better than anything that Mateo is bringing to the batter's box right now.  Frazier has shown that he can occasionally get into one and hit it out of the park. 

Here's where I think you went wrong with your argument about Mateo off the bench vs. Frazier; when I hear "off the bench" (and I don't think I'm alone here) I automatically think pinch hitting.  And if that's the case, I do not want Mateo pinch hitting over anyone currently on the squad.  Unless (and even then, this isn't 100%) he's got some amazing numbers against a certain pitcher in 20 at bats or something.  You can't argue for Mateo hitting over anyone else on the roster and expect to be taken seriously.

But you also can't argue for Mateo's defense anymore.  He's just not been good, he's not near what he was last year.  Sure, when it comes to range he's got better range than Frazier, I won't argue otherwise.  

If you've been watching the games over the past few weeks, you've seen Mateo make some pretty bad errors.  Errors that I don't think he would have made last year.  It looks like he needs to be out there every day and get constant playing time if he's going to be any kind of asset with the glove but due to his noodle for a bat that's not a reality.  

So we're left with the speed and that's nice.  But if he can't hit, he's not getting on base.  He's certainly not a threat to draw a walk.  

Then it really comes down to him being used as a pinch runner.  Is there room on a postseason roster for a guy who's a speed demon pinch runner?  I don't know, I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on the makeup of a postseason roster.  

I will say there isn't a guy on the team that I'd want pinch running over Mateo.  He can probably score from first depending on where the ball is hit, he can definitely score from 2nd.  He's a threat to steal for sure.  But are you really going to carry him on the postseason roster because he might be able to steal a base?  There's some value there I suppose but again, it depends on what you're looking for in the postseason.

 

 

Edited August 6, 2023 by Moose Milligan

[PsychoBird68]

Well we all might change our minds about Mateo if he gets on another heater at the end of September and carries us through the WS.....lol... I can hear the chants of MVP like we heard in the fools month of April....lol.... I surely don't want him on another contending team getting hot against us in the playoffs