Author Topic: Today's Game 2019  (Read 53472 times)

Ron

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #900 on: April 14, 2019, 05:16:15 pm »
Hasnt Sharma been telling us nothing is all that wrong with bryant for a while now?

I'm not sure what you mean by that. I would hope no one here would suggest that Sharma is deterred from honest, genuinely analytical analysis by either naivete, rose colored glasses or subterfuge. 

Bennett

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #901 on: April 14, 2019, 05:28:03 pm »
He's letting something else get to him.  He's made references to ignoring tweets and posts.  I think he felt a tiny bit betrayed by the lack of action on his friend, Harper.  He's pressing.  Most of his confidence appears to be more bravado than real.  He's swinging because he has to, not because he wants to.  He's tentative.  Is that "eh?" enough?
KB is probably experiencing lack of success for the first time.

yips
pl n
the yips informal (in sport, originally esp golf) nervous twitching or tension that destroys concentration and spoils performance

CurtOne

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #902 on: April 14, 2019, 05:41:45 pm »
I think it's baseball.   :)
Actually I would agree if it was one or maybe two players, but when the whole team looks like crap...

Deeg

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #903 on: April 14, 2019, 06:00:55 pm »
I agree with Curt, the precipitous decline of so many of our young starlets is not just baseball, it’s more than what you’d normally see. The reason(s) are not so easy to pin down, but that doesn’t mean something isn’t going on.

craig

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #904 on: April 14, 2019, 07:36:10 pm »
I wonder if to some degree it isn't modern baseball and Cubs player selection? 
1.  I think high-end guys like Almora, Bryant, Russell, they'd all gotten lots of good coaching prior to joining the Cubs?  Maybe there isn't as much additional intellectual information to learn for guys like that as your average guy their age might have had decades ago in the pre-saber and pre-internet era? Maybe they had nothing left to learn by the time they came up? 
2.  Same for nutrition and stuff, for physical maturation?  Almora had some, yes, but Bryant, Schwarber, Russell, are they any more physically mature and ready than when they were rookies?  Over baseball history that maybe isn't routinely true for young-20's guys.  But maybe there was nothing left to develop physically by the time they came up?
3.  The Cubs have put a priority on smart, motivated, thinking players with their top-8 draft picks.  Again, maybe they were so naturally smart and inquisitive and motivated that they'd kind of already gained whatever head knowledge they could gain by the time they came up?  Maybe smart guys like them don't leave as much left to learn by the time they are rookies? 

Saber history I believe indicates that young hitters tend to get better and improve their power production after their rookie year.  I'm wondering whether for Bryant/Schwarber/Russell/Almora/Happ types, they were already at their physical, mental, and psychological/confidence ceilings when they came up and started fast?  And have had nowhere to go but ideally plateau or else decline subsequently? 

None of those guys have seemed to adjust in any significant positive way. 

CUBluejays

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #905 on: April 14, 2019, 11:11:35 pm »
Bryant was pretty freaking fantastic from the get go. He went from wRC+ of 138 as a rookie to 148 his second year and followed that up with a 146. Before he got hurt in 2018 he was even better than 2016. His walks and strike outs were equal and the K% was below 20%.   That is some serious improvement.

Baez has also improved a ton. Rizzo improved too. I don’t think the Cubs have a hitter development problem, even if some guys don’t reach their ceilings.
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craig

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #906 on: April 15, 2019, 09:44:47 am »
Bryant was pretty freaking fantastic from the get go. ...

Yeah, that was my point.  He was fantastic from the start.  Easier to go down then to go up. 

If your hitting is already pretty much optimized when you come up, or by your 2nd year, you lack margin for further improvement?

craig

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #907 on: April 15, 2019, 09:49:36 am »
Whereas opposing pitchers possibly hadn't optimized their approach to Happ, Russell, and Schwarber during their rookie years?     

CUBluejays

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #908 on: April 15, 2019, 12:14:31 pm »
Yeah, that was my point.  He was fantastic from the start.  Easier to go down then to go up. 

If your hitting is already pretty much optimized when you come up, or by your 2nd year, you lack margin for further improvement?

Whereas opposing pitchers possibly hadn't optimized their approach to Happ, Russell, and Schwarber during their rookie years?     

Bryant has continued to improve though.  His rookie year he had a 30.6% K% and it dropped to 19.6% his third year.

Russell has had injuries that have sapped his offense the past 2 years.  And Schwarber tied for the 63rd best wRC+ in baseball last.  He was a really good hitter last year.  I think he gets caught up in people thinking he was going to be in the Bryant/Rizzo class on offense which would have been a tippy top outcome for him.  Happ and Almora are really the only guys from a pure development stand point that haven't developed.

Bennett

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #909 on: April 15, 2019, 01:42:18 pm »

Bennett

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #910 on: April 15, 2019, 06:06:16 pm »
Len  "Always good to see Starlin Castro".  His photo included news that he is in his 10th MLB season.  Time flies I guess

Bennett

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #911 on: April 15, 2019, 06:21:29 pm »
Bryant hit by a pitch with one out in the top of the first.  Baez singled,  Bryant to second.  Bryant went to third on a bad pickoff throw by the pitcher and Baez to second.  Heyward walked to load the bases.  Contreras went to 3-1, swung and missed to make it 3-2 and walked on a pitch that might have caught the bottom of the zone.


1-0 Cubs

Bennett

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #912 on: April 15, 2019, 06:25:01 pm »
Bote singles in 2, Baez to third.  3-0.

brjones

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #913 on: April 15, 2019, 06:26:17 pm »
Pat and Ron pointed out that the umpire behind the plate tonight was also behind the plate in Darvish’s first start where he walked 7.

CurtOne

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Re: Today's Game 2019
« Reply #914 on: April 15, 2019, 06:28:17 pm »
Miami pitcher grew up in Aviston, Cardinal stronghold.