D

How often do you see a leadoff hitter in the first inning steal second on the very first pitch after he gets to first base? That’s my problem with Kinsler. Shouldn’t he wait a couple pitches to get the pitcher’s move and timing down? I bet that’s normal procedure and had he done that, we win 4-3.

what if their lineup is poorly constructed?

I am a baseball r-tard but I think it is.

can’t see how to edit my post, so:

And why do they have to always rely on unwritten rule type things when their gut and the numbers tell them they shouldn’t?

Like not pinch hitting for a guy just because he’s batting clean up, and not yanking CJ after he gives up one run because you want to show him you believe in him.

IDK.

They’ve got to stop worrying about how the players’ psyche will be affected and sit players who need to sit.

Nice article. Agree with your points except for pinch hitting for HB. AJ should have had a go. You’ve got a typo in the first sentence of #1 btw. “hould” should be “should.”

cheers,
D

I wondered why Jones wasn’t in for Blalock…..righty on lefty…isn’t that what we talked about doing before the season with Jones? Did everyone get amnesia? Blalock on righty and Jones on lefty DH?

We’re just playing like the game plays us rather than us playing the game…..we’re not leading anything and it doesn’t look like there is that winning lust in our dugout….even when we are aggressive it seems like the wrong moment….Did we trade someone after the playoff year that has started this curse?

It’s hard to fault aggressiveness, and Kinsler’s history and instincts are pretty darn good when it comes to swiping a bag. Even Young getting thrown out at the plate last night, I don’t fault the base coach on waving him in. It took two perfect throws, and even in the show that doesn’t always happen. I am guessing that play had more to do with Young’s secondary lead and jump, I thought for sure (even with perfect relays) he could score on that.

Besides the obvious pitching issue, the thing that drives me nuts about this team is their inability to put their foot on the opposing teams throat when they have a lead. If they chase a starter early, it is almost guaranteed some long reliever is coming in and shutting them down (latest example Sarafate). They seem to lose focus pretty darn easy, and quality of at bats sink. That’s OK if you have a shutdown staff that can hold the lead, but these guys need to keep putting runs on the board, because the opposing team is never out of the game.

I agree with several posts that Kinsler should have waited a couple of pitches for timing purposes. I also think the staff should have informed the team that they were facing a rookie pitcher who had been prone to the longball in his last start. Meaning be patient at the plate and on the bases because our lineup will get to him. I don’t care what spot in the order HB is hitting the guy cannot hit left handed pitching better the Marlon Byrd or Andruw Jones. The point of the game is to win not try and make your cleanup hitter feel good about himself by leaving him in against a guy that he has failed against time and time again.

I strongly disagree with point #1, Evan. To me, this underscores the why Ron Washington is a detriment to this team winning. First, Blalock is not this team’s cleanup hitter; he is the team’s cleanup hitter against right-handed pitchers. Ron Washington chooses to play Andruw Jones against LHP and Blalock against RHP presumably because he recognizes that Blalock is not as good of a hitter against LHP as Jones.

Further, Blalock is playing the role of a cleanup hitter only because Ron Washington decided as much. Washington has shown a preference for veterans over young players, often regardless of talent, when constructing lineups. I’m willing to accept this as a measure to lessen stress and ease younger players into the major league lineup.

But that element isn’t even at issue here. Jones and Byrd are both veteran hitters with experience batting in the middle of the order. Jones is the team’s other cleanup hitter (along with Blalock and Cruz) and was waiting on the bench. Byrd has hit cleanup under Ron Washington with some frequency in the past and is a very good hitter against LHP.

Again, all I see is a statistically imprudent decision based upon the questionable principle that a manager shouldn’t pinch hit for a cleanup hitter. But of course not every team has a platoon situation in the cleanup role, so I don’t see how this applies here.

MikeinEuless said it perfectly, Blalock isn’t our everyday cleanup hitter, like a Ryan Howard or ARod, for instance. He is our cleanup hitter when there is a rightie pitching that night. Sure, Blalock hits 4th for a reason, but doesn’t he sit against lefties also for a reason? If you have that little confidence in him to play him every day, isn’t that the same thing as sitting him in lieu of a pinch hitter? You also kept AJ and Bryd on the roster so you had 2 good run producing right-handed hitters to use at your discretion, and when there is a stud leftie on the mound, I can’t think of a better situation to put them in there to see what they can do.

Regardless, we love you Evan, thanks for all the hard work bud.

I disagree with you on pinch hitting for Blalock. Our lineup is at times, especially when he is in the four hole, poorly constructed. Just because he is in the cleanup spot doesn’t make him immune to be pinch hit for.

You don’t pinch hit for Justin Morneau, Ryan Howard, Adrian Gonzalez, or Prince Fielder when they stand in to face a lefty in a tight game with men on.

You do pinch hit for Russell Branyan, Aubrey Huff, Conner Jackson, or any other Blalock type lefty in that situation.

Fire Wash!

Hi Evan. I don’t know. But what is Tom Hicks doing today?

You guys wanted to pinch hit for Hank. He came withing about 5 feet of tying the game. I know he didn’t, but he just missed a pitch. I love Josh Hamilton, but he was more of a problem last night. They are throwing him junk on the first pitch that’s not anywhere near the zone, and he’s swinging at it. He’s got to learn to lay off that 1st pitch when it’s diving into the dirt. The little cue shot he hit to 3rd was almost a double play. Like I say, Josh Hamilton is probably my favorite Ranger, but he’s got to do better late in the game with runners on base…….

@Fred: Kinsler has the green light unless there is a stop put on. There was no stop on yesterday. He just got a bad jump and probably should have just stopped short and headed back to first.

Although a strong P1, I have to change the station when I disagree with Norm. He’s way too stubborn and can’t admit it when someone shoots one of his arguments down.

Anyway, I do agree with Norm on #1, especially considering how well Jones has played to date. I’ll take Evan at #3 and call #2 a draw…

Baseball may be a talking sport, but the rangers are not a talking franchise. How can you do this for another 150 games? It’s like talking NFL in puerto RICO….. We don’t really have a dog in the fight.