• Changing RCF's index page, please click on "Forums" to access the forums.

2021 Season | Series #46 | Indians @ Yankees | Sep. 17-19

Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Gardner is a Yankee lifer.

Seldom a star, but always a steady, but over shadowed player. His value to the Yankees goes well beyond his numbers.

But I dont know if it would carry over to a different org.
 
I wonder if anyone has studied this using actual data but I feel like these veteran players from big market teams are more likely to flop when they come over to small market teams as the stakes seem smaller. We tried it with Swisher, Damon, Giambi, Trot Nixon... They combine for -3.6 WAR combined. Do we have some counterexamples where this actually worked?
 
KluberSociety said:
I wonder if anyone has studied this using actual data but I feel like these veteran players from big market teams are more likely to flop when they come over to small market teams as the stakes seem smaller. We tried it with Swisher, Damon, Giambi, Trot Nixon... They combine for -3.6 WAR combined. Do we have some counterexamples where this actually worked?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't bring in Gardner type to be a star, I would bring him in for more of a leadership type of role. I think in 22, we need more production, so he doesn't fit my plans but if he was cheap and available in 21, I would have taken him...
 
sportscoach said:
I wouldn't bring in Gardner type to be a star, I would bring him in for more of a leadership type of role.
Click to expand...
IMO the "leadership" some of these guys need is a smack upside the head. My pet peeve is they chase way too many bad pitches and for some of them it's killing any chance of a long major league career.

I was watching the Yankee broadcast yesterday and at the start of the game they mentioned that their starting pitcher, Gill, walks a lot of hitters. They said that might not be a big problem against the Indians because, in talking to some people "close to the team" they learned that the Indians are not very discriminating at the plate. IOW, they chase a lot of bad pitches.

Hello!

The biggest offender is Harold Ramirez, who swings at 44.7% of pitches out of the zone according to Fangraphs. That was on full display yesterday as he swung at three pitches well out of the zone in one at-bat, fouling them off, before drawing a walk. He did everything he could not to get walked but finally got a 3-2 pitch so wide even he couldn't swing at it.

The guy has amazing bat-to-ball skills; yesterday he swung at a 97 mph fastball at shoulder level and fouled it off. If he was just a little more selective he could hit close to .300 IMO.

Andres Gimenez swings at 43.0% of pitches out of the zone. That's why he's still under .200 in late September and spent much of the season at Columbus after being gifted the starting SS job coming out of spring training. With all the middle infield talent coming up through this organization, Gimenez needs to correct this problem ASAP if he wants to be competitive for a major league roster spot even as a utility infielder.

Josh Naylor hacks at 40% of bad pitches; Austin Hedges 38.3%, and Amed 37.7%. Amed is another guy who could hit .300 or better by being less aggressive, especially early in the count.

The players who are not doing badly in this area are Bradley at 30.8%, Reyes 29.8%, Jose 27.4%, Zimmer 27.3%, Straw 22.5%, and Berto at 19.8%. I think Bradley and Reyes could improve a bit.

I don't know if our hitting coach, who has been around for nine years, is sitting down with some of these guys and looking at their at-bats. I could tell them that any 0-2 or 1-2 pitch that is down and away is never, ever going to be in the strike zone. It's a slider every fucking time. I call it in real time. When Harold or Amed are down 0-2 it's a slider off the outside corner and usually in the dirt every single time. Yet they still chase it.

Like I said, a Come to Jesus talk is what's needed. As in, "If we don't start seeing significant improvement in these last two weeks, your agent will need to start making some phone calls".

Amed is getting away with it because he's still managing to hit .280 and plays decent defense at a key position. But he could be so much better. Hedges is fine because the Indians don't care whether their catchers hit and he has a knack for getting hits at the right times. But Harold and Gimenez are trashing any chance of making a lot of money, IMO.
 
Last edited:
Good insight, Wham.

But the head scratching part is that this team doesn't K much in comparison to other teams.

It ranks 5th in fewest Ks, 6th last season, and has generally ranked better than that.

This year we have been very poor in taking walks, ranking 11th. But this appears to be an anomaly, because we have generally been elite at it.

The addition of so many young players, along with the at bats given to several big swingers who may not be in the org next season, has exacerbated the situation. The FO knows it, and Im sure the problem will be addressed.
 
The lineup we ran out there today is an embarrassment for a MLB team. Six, maybe seven, of them may not be on the 40 man roster by December.

On the other hand, the Yankees should be embarrassed by their performance today, following up yesterday.

The Tribe leads 5-0 in the middle of the third...now 5-1.

But it is very early.
 
Thats a very hard play to make up against the RF wall, and Harold had no chance. But a good RFer might...and a very good one should.
 
The Yankees are beginning to find the range against Morgan in the third.

But they need to add some distance.
 
Nice catch by Mercado....a belly flop on a dying line drive.
 
The Hamster continues to torch the Yankees in the Bronx.

I guess you could call him the Bronx Bomber.
 
Darn it.

Cole picked off Straw, and it wasnt close.
 
There is a simple way to handle the Yankee lineup....but simple does not mean easy.

Don't walk them.

The Yankees OBP is driven by walks...they lead the league. But they don't hit for average.

They are 4th in homers, but if you dont give them free base runners, it doesnt matter that much.

Morgan has done just that thru five innings.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Rubber Rim Job Podcast Video

Episode 3-14: "Time for Playoff Vengeance on Mickey"

Rubber Rim Job Podcast Spotify

Episode 3:14: " Time for Playoff Vengeance on Mickey."
Top