Hicks activated, Cowser optioned

[SemperFi]

Guys carry over offensive struggles to the field.  That he was so tentative in the outfield leads me to believe there is a confidence issue which is only going to be resolved by PT which he isn't getting now.  The writing was on the wall when Mateo and O'Hearn were getting OF time ahead of him.  

[eddie83]

1 minute ago, Sports Guy said:

The prospect should be playing everyday (or most days) here. 

Not on a first place team. 10 games under .500 go ahead. 

[Billy F-Face3]

10 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

He has a 601 OPs in his last 89 PA. Since that initial time coming up, he has been terrible, both with the glove and the bat.

Even if you cherry pick and try to throw out Hicks good stats this way, .601 is still a bigger number than .434.

[Sports Guy]

Just now, eddie83 said:

Hicks helped the team out in a time of need this year. He isn’t going to be playing everyday. 
 

Somehow the team was able to keep winning when Cowser struggled. 

Yes they did..so why the hurry to replace him?  
 

And yes, Hicks helped out for a few weeks..and then he was a below replacement level player after not being good for several years.

A few good weeks shouldnt just overlook all the bad.

[Sports Guy]

1 minute ago, Billy F-Face3 said:

Even if you cherry pick and try to throw out Hicks good stats this way, .601 is still a bigger number than .434.

The idea that this needs to be further explained to you is both hilarious and sad all at the same time. So, I’m just going to leave it be and go bang my head against the wall instead.  It’s far more productive.

Edited August 14, 2023 by Sports Guy

[Sports Guy]

2 minutes ago, eddie83 said:

Not on a first place team. 10 games under .500 go ahead. 

There are many things that shouldn’t be happening on a first place team and yet the Os are doing it…as are many other teams across the league.

But we will ignore all of that for your little narrative.

[DirtyBird]

5 minutes ago, Hank Scorpio said:

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/colton-cowser/29591/stats?position=OF

Batting avg of balls in play (BABIP) .175 - meaning when he puts the ball in play, it's only a hit 17.5% of the time. 

That's low. 

That said, his K percentage was up near 29% and he was a bit too passive at the plate IMO. He'll be fine with consistent at bats, as Henderson was. It really boils down to who they think provides more over the last 6 weeks and they obviously think the answer to that question is Hicks. 

We'll see. He wasn't exactly trending well 2-3 weeks prior to his IL stint.

But was he hitting the ball hard?

I understand babip is one metric for luck, but if he’s not hitting the ball hard, that stat doesn’t really mean he’s unlucky.

[LA2]

59 minutes ago, Bahama O's Fan said:

Bet Hicks is in tonight's lineup

You're right: batting eighth and playing LF>. Hays and Frazier both sitting, and Henderson, not Mateo, at SS. I'm glad to see Hicks back.

[eddie83]

2 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Yes they did..so why the hurry to replace him?  
 

And yes, Hicks helped out for a few weeks..and then he was a below replacement level player after not being good for several years.

A few good weeks shouldnt just overlook all the bad.

You can’t cherry pick stats to fit your preferred outcome. Nobody is claiming Cowser isn’t talented. He struggled. Why have him be a in a limited role here when he can play everyday at AAA. An injury occurs he is right back. 
 

Most games Santander, Mullins and Hays will play. O’Hearn my guess is will start to lose some time, that said Adley will still DH some. They add another bat in September. It makes sense it will be a OF. It’s not out of the realm of possibility Cowser could be playing a prominent role by the end of the year. 

[MurphDogg]

11 minutes ago, LA2 said:

Having seen Stowers' and Cowser's performances this year--and Henderson's first month this year and Adley's last year, I don't see how we can be so confident that Kjerstad will play well in a late-season call-up, much less deserve a spot on the playoff roster.

I'm not sure whether he will deserve a playoff roster spot. But I know Hicks doesn't. And I know Mateo does because he has a defined role as pinch runner and defensive upgrade. 

Kjerstad could be used as a pinch hitter.

McKenna could be used as a pinch runner or defensive upgrade.

Ortiz could be used as a defensive upgrade.

Hicks was useful when Mullins was hurt, and the deadcat bounce was a pleasant surprise, but he has no role on the bench of a playoff roster and his only use on the bench for the remainder of the season is in allowing Cowser to play every day to see if he can get into a groove and potentially be useful on the playoff roster.

I am only frustrated with this move if it eventually leads to Hicks being on the playoff roster, which I fear it will (someone on this thread already cited his playoff experience!) otherwise I am fairly neutral.

Over his last 800 plate appearances (since the beginning of 2021) Hicks is a sub-.650 OPS hitter who plays a below average centerfield. He served his role filling in for Mullins but it is time to cut bait.

[Sports Guy]

Just now, eddie83 said:

You can’t cherry pick stats to fit your preferred outcome. Nobody is claiming Cowser isn’t talented. He struggled. Why have him be a in a limited role here when he can play everyday at AAA. An injury occurs he is right back. 
 

Most games Santander, Mullins and Hays will play. O’Hearn my guess is will start to lose some time, that said Adley will still DH some. They add another bat in September. It makes sense it will be a OF. It’s not out of the realm of possibility Cowser could be playing a prominent role by the end of the year. 

I’m not cherry picking anything. What he did when he first got here is great but the fact is that when you look at the last several years and the rest of his time this year, that first few weeks here is a clear outlier. Another team is literally paying him millions not to play for them anymore because he was so bad.

And you want to ignore that because of a good 40-50 at bats?  Were you clamoring for him when NY DFA’ed him?

[eddie83]

5 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

There are many things that shouldn’t be happening on a first place team and yet the Os are doing it…as are many other teams across the league.

But we will ignore all of that for your little narrative.

It’s not my narrative it’s yours. You act like they never gave him a chance. 
 

1st place teams don’t hand out at bats. 

[Billy F-Face3]

7 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

The idea that this needs to be further explained to you is both hilarious and sad all at the same time. So, I’m just going to leave it be and go bang my head against the wall instead.  It’s far more productive.

Don't get emotional. buttercup. I thought we were having a good numbers based conversation.

[Sports Guy]

Hicks’ role would be a lefty bat off the bench who can work a count and give you a pro at bat in a big situation.

That role isn’t needed because Frazier can do that but better.

[Hank Scorpio]

2 minutes ago, DirtyBird said:

But was he hitting the ball hard?

I understand babip is one metric for luck, but if he’s not hitting the ball hard, that stat doesn’t really mean he’s unlucky.

I'm not really passionately arguing that Hicks > Cowser is the wrong move. I think Hicks is probably a little better defensively and he certainly has more playoff environment experience than Cowser. Plus he's a switch hitter, slightly better from the left side than the right but not overwhelmingly good from either side over his career. 

I think that over the course of an entire season, Cowser would prove to be the better player. 

But Hicks gives Hyde more flexibility than Cowser does right now, so it's certainly a defensible move. And if Cowser were hitting the ball with the same authority Westburg has, it would be a much more egregious call. 

Keep winning and I don't care if Chito Martinez is our left fielder.