helloimustbegoing said:

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EastCoastAgNc said:

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Not trying to discount his progression or growth, but the higher number of walks could also be explained by Yuli being truly awful offensively and guys pitching around Yordan to get to Yuli.

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Perhaps, but he's still laying off the pitches and not being aggressive thinking he HAS to swing. I'm more excited about his strikeout #s being dramatically down. He's on pace for 45 fewer than last year, that's a big number.

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It does seem like he's recognized that low and way slider this year and is laying off more.

Harry Dunne said:

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All this Bregman personal hitting coach talk reminds me of a funny story:

I got to talk briefly to Lance Berkman when he was coaching high school baseball at Second Baptist. I commented to him that the kids must hang on every word he says to them and he laughed and said, "some do, some don't" and went on to tell me that some of the parents had asked him to back off the hitting advice because they had their own personal hitting coaches and were getting conflicting messages!

So if some little turd high schooler is listening to some used car salesman hitting coach who probably hit .235 in his one season at Weatherford JC over should be in the HOF Lance Berkman...

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I get your point here but often times some of the very best aren't very good technical teachers. Hitting is an Art and some dudes are Michelangelo it was just natural for them so they can't explain it to others. Heck just listen to Bagwell talk about hitting and almost denigrate himself, while I agree he can still break it all down very well as he explained in yesterdays game that stuff isn't based off his personal hitting.

But don't get me confused with someone who thinks it's a good idea to have the used car salesman tell you what to do just because he rented a cage in the local facility.

This 35.1 MPH Frank Schwindel pitch is the slowest (known/measured) MLB pitch to ever get hit for a home run! pic.twitter.com/oSO3sLnUyo

— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) June 12, 2022

Beat40 said:

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helloimustbegoing said:

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EastCoastAgNc said:

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Not trying to discount his progression or growth, but the higher number of walks could also be explained by Yuli being truly awful offensively and guys pitching around Yordan to get to Yuli.

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Perhaps, but he's still laying off the pitches and not being aggressive thinking he HAS to swing. I'm more excited about his strikeout #s being dramatically down. He's on pace for 45 fewer than last year, that's a big number.

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It does seem like he's recognized that low and way slider this year and is laying off more.

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Daryle Ward, aka Pedro Cerrano, has no idea what you're talking about. He can hit that, give him a chance!

The flip flop of career trajectory between Bregman and Swanson is truly bizarre. Considering the money the Braves saved and both helping to produce a ring, I'd say Atlanta has had the better arrangement.

MaxPower said:

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The flip flop of career trajectory between Bregman and Swanson is truly bizarre. Considering the money the Braves saved and both helping to produce a ring, I'd say Atlanta has had the better arrangement.

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That still a big ole nope.

astros4545 said:

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EastCoastAgNc said:

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The best shortstops in MLB this season by average WAR (B-Ref and FanGraphs, minimum 75% of games played at the position):

1. Jeremy Peña: 2.8
2. Dansby Swanson: 2.5
3. Xander Bogaerts: 2.4
4. J.P. Crawford: 2.4
5. Tim Anderson: 2.0

Peña is a rookie, Swanson a free agent to be.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) June 13, 2022

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Pena already better than Jackie Robinson

Incredible!

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Tim Anderson takes offense to that

This is more of an investment in time than I have right now, but I wonder how many teams have had two Rookies of the Year at the same infield position within a fairly short amount of time. Not jinx JP, but he's on course to run away with the award, and Correa won it at SS in 2015.

I'm sure it's happened more frequently in the OF or with pitchers. Also if he wins it, that would give the 'STros three ROYs since 2015. I remember the Dodgers having 4 or 5 straight in the 90s and Oakland having 3 in a row at some point as well, but not bad!

the Rangers are in 2nd place.

and good news...Martin Perez will not pitch in the series. He started on Saturday vs. the White Sox...and was shelled.

also...Glenn Otto is on the COVID list. He might miss the series too

Quote:

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Rosenthal: Astros unlikely trade fit for Cubs' Contreras? Will Judge, Yankees reach arbitration hearing?

By Ken Rosenthal
Jun 13, 2022

It's the time of year when everyone plays general manager, but some potential trades are not as logical as they might appear. Consider the Astros, whose OPS at catcher is the second-lowest in the majors, and the Cubs' Willson Contreras, whose OPS at the position is tied for the highest. An obvious fit, right? Not so fast. And probably not at all.

Astros players and coaches revere the defensive work of Martn Maldonado, who was the alternate catcher to Robinson Chirinos on their 2019 World Series club and the regular during their 2021 Series run. The front office is aware of the sentiment in the clubhouse and in agreement with it, making it unlikely the team would displace Maldonado, according to sources familiar with the team's thinking.
Maldonado, 35, is hitting .153 with a .503 OPS. He has thrown out five of 18 potential base stealers, one of the league's best rates, but his framing ranks only 49th out of 60 catchers, according to Statcast, and only the White Sox's Yasmani Grandal has allowed more passed balls. How is it, then, that Maldonado is so popular among the Astros? It's because of his other attributes. His leadership. His game-planning. His game-calling.

Go back to last year's American League Championship Series, which the Astros won in six games. When asked how the Red Sox were outscored, 22-1, in the final 26 innings, Sox manager Alex Cora told Fox Sports' Tom Verducci, "Brent Strom and Martn Maldonado. Two of the smartest people in baseball. They completely changed their strategy against us midway through Game 4."
Strom, the Astros' former pitching coach, temporarily retired after the season, only to resurface with the Diamondbacks. Maldonado, whom the Astros twice acquired at previous deadlines from the Angels for Patrick Sandoval in 2018 and from the Cubs for Tony Kemp in 2019 has started 43 of the team's 60 games at catcher. The Astros lead the AL West by 8 1/2 games and rank second in the majors in ERA.

The issue with the Astros is their offense, which led the majors in runs last season and ranked third in the sport's previous full season, 2019. The current group ranks 22nd in runs per game, and is batting .228 with runners on base, 27th in the majors. The Nationals, the team with the game's fourth-worst record, are scoring at a higher rate.

Maldonado, though, is hardly the only under-performing hitter. While the offensive dropoff from Carlos Correa to Jeremy Peña at shortstop has not been as great as initially feared, first baseman Yuli Gurriel and third baseman Alex Bregman are not producing to their usual levels. Center field, shared by Chas McCormick and Jose Siri, is a particular problem area.

The beauty of Contreras is that he also could help a team as a designated hitter, a role in which he's batting .333 with a 1.080 OPS in 60 plate appearances this season. But the Astros already have the game's top DH, Yordan lvarez, and use the spot to rest other players on days lvarez is in left field.
The Yankees, who also are getting modest offensive production at catcher, are in somewhat of a similar position. Their catchers, Kyle Higashioka and Jose Trevino, are guiding a pitching staff that leads the majors in ERA. Why would the Yankees want to introduce a new catcher at midseason and disrupt such a successful unit?

Any team that acquires Contreras potentially will run that risk. Still, he will be in demand, even as a rental before he reaches free agency.

Contreras, 30, would make particular sense for the Giants, who recently demoted Joey Bart; Curt Casali has never played 90 games in a major-league season and the team already has plucked two catchers from other clubs' Triple-A rosters. The Padres were not afraid to trade for Austin Nola with a month left in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, and now might be in the market for catching again. The Mets expect James McCann to return from a broken hamate bone later this month or in early July, but could seek more offense at the position. Other possibilities the Rays, perhaps are sure to emerge.

The Astros obviously would prefer Maldonado to raise his OPS to his career mark of .632, but like most teams, they consider the entirety of the player, not just one aspect of his game. For catchers, blocking, throwing and framing can be quantified. But other things the execution of a game plan, the trust of a pitching staff cannot. The Astros are not brazen enough to overlook Maldonado's greatest strengths, even if they are impossible to measure. They know what he means to their team.

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Farmer1906 said:

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Lone Star Series.

🕖: 7:05 PM
📺: @ATTSportsNetSW
📻: @SportsTalk790 | Spanish: 93.3 FM
🗳: https://t.co/R7pz5dD9Mn#LevelUp x @reliantenergy pic.twitter.com/TSm37jOwyd

— Houston Astros (@astros) June 13, 2022

Is Chas hurt? Do we need to put his picture on a milk carton?

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He played the 9th yesterday. Dusty has always seemed to have a vendetta against Chas. Wouldn't play him so they had to trade Straw. Now still refuses to play him.

Farmer1906 said:

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Is Chas hurt? Do we need to put his picture on a milk carton?

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Dubon vs LHP
.291/.335/.488/.824

Chas vs LHP
.261/.338/.504/.842

I would have assumed Dubon was the better hitter vs lefties, but nope.

This was my suspicion and why I don't think an acquisition for a primary catcher is likely. That said, there are still ways to cover up the warts machete presents. You can employ one or both of these moves:


1) The obvious choice is a better, offensive minded backup catcher. That's not easy to find. A guy like Varsho from the D-Bags is ideal because he can play a very good OF as well so might be able to plug two holes.

2) Acquire a big bench bat. A guy like Soler is what I'm thinking. He's due a prorated portion of $6M this year plus next. That's cheap enough to justify as a couple times a week starter and pinch hitter for Machete late when trailing. One of our biggest current issues is not having anyone to pinch hit for Martin, resorting to Castro who is arguably more dreadful. Next year he can share LF and DH with Yordan. This isn't as ideal as 1) but there are more options at cheaper prices.

MaxPower said:

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This was my suspicion and why I don't think an acquisition for a primary catcher is likely. That said, there are still ways to cover up the warts machete presents. You can employ one or both of these moves:


1) The obvious choice is a better, offensive minded backup catcher. That's not easy to find. A guy like Varsho from the D-Bags is ideal because he can play a very good OF as well so might be able to plug two holes.

2) Acquire a big bench bat. A guy like Soler is what I'm thinking. He's due a prorated portion of $6M this year plus next. That's cheap enough to justify as a couple times a week starter and pinch hitter for Machete late when trailing. One of our biggest current issues is not having anyone to pinch hit for Martin, resorting to Castro who is arguably more dreadful. Next year he can share LF and DH with Yordan. This isn't as ideal as 1) but there are more options at cheaper prices.

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Soler stats so far this year:
BA: 0.216
OBP: 0.310
SLG: 0.446
OPS: 0.756
65 Strikeouts in 233 PA (27.9% rate)

Meanwhile Chas:
BA: 0.227
OBP: 0.290
SLG: 0.418
OPS: 0.709
38 Strikeouts in 155 PA (24.5% rate)

Not really a huge difference there.

Dubon has, so far, been a pretty useless acquisition. I'd rather start Siri over him. Chas is clearly the better option.

he has been a bit underwhelming

EastCoastAgNc said:

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redline248 said:

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Dubon has, so far, been a pretty useless acquisition. I'd rather start Siri over him. Chas is clearly the better option.

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He's light-years better than Niko

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Since coming over he's slashing .179/.229/.250.

That's not a light year better.

Mathguy64 said:

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EastCoastAgNc said:

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redline248 said:

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Dubon has, so far, been a pretty useless acquisition. I'd rather start Siri over him. Chas is clearly the better option.

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He's light-years better than Niko

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Since coming over he's slashing .179/.229/.250.

That's not a light year better.

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light years better defender

Soler also had a .587 OPS in April. His xBA, XSLG and XWOBA all say he has been unlucky.

I'd also add Chas really shouldn't be the comparison. He should be your starting CF so it really should be Soler vs Siri, Dubon, Castro and Diaz.

MaxPower said:

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Soler also had a .587 OPS in April. His xBA, XSLG and XWOBA all say he has been unlucky.

I'd also add Chas really shouldn't be the comparison. He should be your starting CF so it really should be Soler vs Siri, Dubon, Castro and Diaz.

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Soler:
xBA: 0.247
xSLG: 0.513
xWOBA: 0.360

Chas:
xBA: 0.239
xSLG: 0.483
xWOBA: 0.332

My point is not that Soler is a bad player. My point is we have Chas on the team with stats / metrics very close to Soler's, but for this small of a difference, it's probably not worth what we would have to give up in a trade. Then again, Chas's stats mean nothing when Dusty refuses to play him.

Like I said, those players shouldn't be compared because they shouldn't be in competition. Regardless, I'd argue a .060 in expected OPS is significant.

Lance Lynn is off the IL for the WhiteSox and starts tonight. If they stay on a 5-man rotation, he'll start vs the Astros Sunday night. IIRC, we do pretty good against him.

He's given up 3 runs through 1.2... Not a great first start back

Didn't Soler just sign a decent deal with MIA?

Why would they trade him and why would he want to leave?

Seems like a pointless conversation.