Hicks and Mullins back this week…what happens with the roster?

[Frobby]

18 minutes ago, Malike said:

He certainly may be better than Hicks in the future, but I have infinitely more trust in a good AB from Hicks than I do Cowser at this point in both of their careers.

I wouldn’t say “infinitely more.”  Hicks had a .601 OPS in his last 25 games before his injury.  That’s better than Cowser, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Cowser heated up and easily topped that.  I do think the O’s will go with the more established commodity though.  

[Sports Guy]

Just now, Malike said:

I'd rather see Cowser playing the majority of the time, but I'm also in the minority in thinking the O's are not going to win the world series this year and I'd rather get Cowser the time he needs to show he's going to be a real piece next season. I'm not concerned about the wins/losses.

Well they are winning games with him, so that’s being taken care of anyway.

I mean, that’s what all the Frazier fans kept arguing right.,the team is winning, so keep playing him.

[Malike]

3 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Well they are winning games with him, so that’s being taken care of anyway.

I mean, that’s what all the Frazier fans kept arguing right.,the team is winning, so keep playing him.

Yeah but Cowser isn't getting ABs, so he's on the bench and the team is still winning. He's been up over a month and has 56 ABs. Averaging about 2 AB's per game. Frazier hasn't been a negative for us with the bat, though his defense hasn't been great. Compared to other 2B he's not killing the team.

[eddie83]

I don’t get the idea of worrying about a prospects playing time on a team that’s currently the 1 seed with 49 games left.  
 

The GM should be fired if he lost an eligible player for postseason to make sure a prospect stays on the MLB roster. No August trades and no idea what potential injuries pop up between now and end of season. 

[Sports Guy]

16 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

I don’t get the idea of worrying about a prospects playing time on a team that’s currently the 1 seed with 49 games left.  
 

The GM should be fired if he lost an eligible player for postseason to make sure a prospect stays on the MLB roster. No August trades and no idea what potential injuries pop up between now and end of season. 

A GM should also be fired if he keeps a fledgling vet that isn’t as good as a prospect while contending for a title.

[eddie83]

3 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

A GM should also be fired if he keeps a fledgling vet that isn’t as good as a prospect while contending for a title.

The prospect isn’t being released. He is still property of the team. 
 

Remember 2014. Manny rips his knee up. Pearce moves from LF to 1B. Davis to 3rd. At August deadline DD adds De Aza and Kelly Johnson. Then Davis gets suspended. Flaherty is now a starter. If De Aza wasn’t added Lough is the starter. 
 

 

Why in the world would you want to lose an option when you don’t have to? It’s illogical. The season isn’t about the future it’s about the present. 

[Aristotelian]

43 minutes ago, Frobby said:

I wouldn’t say “infinitely more.”  Hicks had a .601 OPS in his last 25 games before his injury.  That’s better than Cowser, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Cowser heated up and easily topped that.  I do think the O’s will go with the more established commodity though.  

I don't think any of us would be surprised if Cowser hit .750 or .800 for a month. He has shown he is capable of hitting for average and power. The question is who is the better bet to do so right now. I don't see how anyone could look at Cowsers recent performance and say he is the first choice right now.

[Sports Guy]

6 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

The prospect isn’t being released. He is still property of the team. 
 

Remember 2014. Manny rips his knee up. Pearce moves from LF to 1B. Davis to 3rd. At August deadline DD adds De Aza and Kelly Johnson. Then Davis gets suspended. Flaherty is now a starter. If De Aza wasn’t added Lough is the starter. 
 

 

Why in the world would you want to lose an option when you don’t have to? It’s illogical. The season isn’t about the future it’s about the present. 

Because the current vet options aren’t good and we don’t need them.

The younger players are the better options. They have the higher upside and give us the higher margin for error.

I would rather them up here taking their lumps and being ready for the playoffs vs a sub 650 bat with questionable defense.

Edited August 9, 2023 by Sports Guy

[ledzepp8]

5 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Because the current vet options aren’t good and we don’t need them.

Probably not but they're most likely better than the .125/.286/.161/.446 that Cowser has hit.  I wouldn't be upset if they kept Cowser up but Hicks is probably going to be able to hit better than he has. In all fairness, Hicks was brought here to replace Mullins when he got hurt. If Mullins is healthy, Hicks should probably be DFAd and McKenna sent down. Of course Mateo should also be DFAd but it doesn't seem like they want to do that.

Edited August 9, 2023 by ledzepp8

[Aristotelian]

1 hour ago, Sports Guy said:

Hicks May be the guy you take in a pinch hitting role or a single key at bat, ala Frazier, but not everyday.

Hicks is 15 for his last 78. He had a sub 640 OPs in July and ended June 2-21.  He was still getting some walks but overall, since he came here and was hot, he hasn’t hit well at all.  He also isn’t a good CFer anymore.

What is Cowsers OPS over his last 78 AB?

[eddie83]

11 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Because the current vet options aren’t good and we don’t need them.

The younger players are the better options. They have the higher upside and give us the higher margin for error.

I would rather them up here taking their lumps and being ready for the playoffs vs a sub 650 bat with questionable defense.

The GM wants options. You want less options so prospects get limited playing time. How many at bats is Cowser going to get when Mullins and Hicks are back? O’Hearn and Mountcastle are playing well. One is 1B and one can DH at times.  You have Hays and Santander. If you include DH with the 3 OF spots that’s 4 positions. You already have 5 players -Mullins/Hays/Santander/Hicks/one of O’Hearn/Mountcastle for 4 spots. That doesn’t even include when Adley DH’s. 
 

It’s not like if Cowser goes back to AAA he isn’t an option. 

[scarey1999]

I think it’s McKenna and Colton going down. 

The fact that they’ve felt compelled to throw Mateo out in CF should tell you what they think of this present day version of Cowser. We were all hoping for a dynamo debut, and while he’s shown some signs of improving, the results simply aren’t there yet. Now that he’s gotten a taste, I think the next time we see him, he’ll be vastly improved. 

[Sports Guy]

16 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

The GM wants options. You want less options so prospects get limited playing time. How many at bats is Cowser going to get when Mullins and Hicks are back? O’Hearn and Mountcastle are playing well. One is 1B and one can DH at times.  You have Hays and Santander. If you include DH with the 3 OF spots that’s 4 positions. You already have 5 players -Mullins/Hays/Santander/Hicks/one of O’Hearn/Mountcastle for 4 spots. That doesn’t even include when Adley DH’s. 
 

It’s not like if Cowser goes back to AAA he isn’t an option. 

We have plenty of options whether Hicks or Mateo are here or not.

And btw, you are wrong.  I don’t want them to get limited playing time. I want them playing all the time. I have said that many times. 

Edited August 9, 2023 by Sports Guy

[Billy F-Face3]

15 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Because the current vet options aren’t good and we don’t need them.

The younger players are the better options. They have the higher upside and give us the higher margin for error.

I would rather them up here taking their lumps and being ready for the playoffs vs a sub 650 bat with questionable defense.

I remember when you were trying to convince me that Anthony Santander and Austin Hays wasn't any good and that Cowser could easily replace them right away. 

I think you over estimate prospects and under estimate the calue of a proven player. You also seems to be stuck in the fame of mind we are in rebuild mode when in fact, we are fighting for the division championship/#1 see in the AL and all that separates us from the #1 seed and a bubble with wildcard teams is 1 game.  Not much room let rookies take their lumps if they aren't helping the team to win. 

Do you know how many prospects actually ever live up to their hype and survive in the Majors? The odds of a baseball player surving to have a long and successful career in MLB is excessively low. Even among just 1st round picks, more 1st round picks fail than the number of those picks who succeeed.

[Sports Guy]

6 minutes ago, Billy F-Face3 said:

I remember when you were trying to convince me that Anthony Santander and Austin Hays wasn't any good and that Cowser could easily replace them right away. 

I think you over estimate prospects and under estimate the calue of a proven player. You also seems to be stuck in the fame of mind we are in rebuild mode when in fact, we are fighting for the division championship/#1 see in the AL and all that separates us from the #1 seed and a bubble with wildcard teams is 1 game.  Not much room let rookies take their lumps if they aren't helping the team to win. 

Do you know how many prospects actually ever live up to their hype and survive in the Majors? The odds of a baseball player surving to have a long and successful career in MLB is excessively low. Even among just 1st round picks, more 1st round picks fail than the number of those picks who succeeed.

Literally never said either of those things. So, you are either a liar or on purposely embellishing what I said.

If you want to have a conversation, I’m all for it but don’t be ignorant or a liar about it.