That would be 145 games. I doubt Hanny starts THAT much.
But seriously, with all they have invested in Mes, plus the potential he has shown throughout the minors, they owe it to themselves to figure out if he can play at the big league level. That won't happen from the bench.
...the 2-2 to Woodsen and here it comes...and it is swung on and missed! And Tom Browning has pitched a perfect game! Twenty-seven outs in a row, and he is being mobbed by his teammates, just to the thirdbase side of the mound.
I wish him luck. Weren't the collective stats of Mesoraco and Hanigan at all-star levels last year? Now imagine if Mesoraco actually hits this year!
Mes will probably catch Bailey and Leake and nobody else, except if there's injury.
IMO, the Reds should begin the season having Mes catch three times a week. That's about half the games.
I'd do this for two reasons. First to develop Mes. Second to allow Hanigan to take it easy.
As the season goes on, I'd adjust depending on how they both do, their health, etc.
I've got zero problems with it being around a 60-40 split or so. My big problem is this whole catcher-pitcher matchups. Both catchers need to catch ALL of the pitchers. All of the pitchers need to work with BOTH of the catchers. This personal catcher nonsense needs to stop.
bigredmechanism (03-27-2013),dougdirt (03-27-2013),mole44 (03-28-2013),Raisor (03-27-2013),thatcoolguy_22 (03-28-2013),TOBTTReds (03-27-2013),Tommyjohn25 (03-27-2013)
The pitchers don't like pitching to Mez. You can just tell. They love Hanigan. They trust Hanigan.
You can just tell there is something wrong with Mez's relationships with the pitchers.
If he does catch more, I hope he's checked at the door, whatever problems he had last year, such as an attitude.
Seriously? I have not sensed at all for one second that pitchers don't like throwing to Mes because of an attitude problem. There may be other things like he doesn't receive or call a game like Hanigan does.
Also, saying you hope a player rots on the bench, especially one with such potential is extremely shortsighted.
From Fay today....
Reds manager Dusty Baker wouldn’t say what the exact catching rotation will be.
“I’ll let you know,” Baker said. “It will vary. (Ryan) Hanigan caught Cueto seven (innings) last night. It’s Mesoraco’s turn to catch. Day after night. That’s going to happen sometimes. You want to keep them both sharp. You don’t want to pair them up too much. What happens if your guy can’t hit a guy or day after night?
“It’s a long season. You look at that calendar with that schedule. When they fire that gun to go, there ain’t no stopping for a long time.”
I find it interesting that he says this now. Last year it was a strict diet of "you catch your guy and you catch your guy", and that all spring long, I am not sure Mesoraco has caught Cueto or Arroyo (correct me if I am wrong). If you are going to say that, why hasn't Mesoraco caught them in the spring?
No way Mesoraco catches Arroyo. Anyone else is possible.
One thing to keep in mind, I don't think the Reds bring back Hanigan if he has a decent year. On the open market my guess is he makes at least 5 million a year. I don't see the Reds paying Ryan that money, so they really need to get Mesoraco up and going this year.
On the radio today, Kelch stated Mes was going to catch Leake and Bailey as fact. Not sure if he has heard anything or not.
These are my opinions, not facts, from observing during games, reading between the lines from quotes, etc.
I'm hard on young guys. They really need to show me something before I buy in. I was never ever on the Stubbs hype machine bandwagon. Seems like there's a bunch of it for Mez too.
And I like the underappreciated guys like Hanigan. Outside of hitting, he's probably one of the best gamecalling and best defensive catchers in the game, yet he goes somewhat unnoticed and unappreciated. And it's not like he's a bust at the plate either, except for power.
I hope Mez springs to life and earns his place this season. Notice I said "earns".
Too many times I see guys just handed things. I want him to earn it.
Yeah, I'm old school. LOL.
TSJ55 (03-28-2013)
To earn it though you have to get a shot at it.
I suppose what constitutes "a shot" is up for debate.
Is playing 25% of the time "a shot"? Some may say yes, but maybe some players need to play more to really get going. It's tough to say. I really don't have an answer, but I can see both sides on this issue.
Stubbs never had some hype machine bangwagon. Hardly anyone on this board thought he was even going to be a solid major leaguer for a single season. Stubbs was ranked as a Top 100 prospect once in his minor league career and it was at the back half of the list. Mesoraco on the flip side found himself in the top half of the Top 100 several times and compared to Stubbs numbers wise in the minors, was Joey Votto. There is a reason there was a lot of hype with Mesoraco. Guys who can actually remain behind the plate usually can't hit like he hit. Stubbs and Mesoraco were in two entirely different areas as prospects. At his height, Stubbs was seen as a good prospect who hadn't done much with his offensive tools. At Mesoraco's height, he was arguably the best player at his position in the minor leagues who was showing all of his tools off in games.
alwaysawarrior (03-28-2013)
The Reds have apparently acquired Konrad Schmidt, which I am guessing means Olivo is gone.
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