Winker's defense

[NeilHamburger]

Adams hit the home run in the first after a single and a walk.

[NeilHamburger]

But, for the record I think everyone on the board would be in agreement that the Reds need a long-term solution for CF. That isn't Schebler, as his body type won't play well in CF as he ages (I get some don't like it already). Maybe it will be Trammel (is he about 2 years away?). Maybe it will be someone via trade.

But, I think Winker and Schebler on the corners of a good CF is the best long term solution.

[mth123]

Adams hit the home run in the first after a single and a walk.

You're right. I had a brain fart. I edited.

[REDREAD]

I think he could help them win more by bringing back something the team needs elsewhere and letting less one dimensional players play the OF. He's still in the over-valued prospect stage of his career. It won't be long before that value drops just because. .

Agree completely. Although I would have been ok with the Reds deciding Winker was better than Duvall and trading Duvall instead. I preferred to trade Winker over the winter because I thought he had more market value.

When the team is just starving for talent in many other areas, it does not make a whole lot of sense to keep two starting LF. Apparently Duvall is not comfortable enough for RF, so I guess they have to hold Schelber short term.

Oh , BTW, one of the TV guys said in either game 1 or 2 that Schelber had some kind of injury that hindered his ability to hit to the opposite field last year. So maybe we get a big year out of him this year. Was nice, I saw two hits go the other way from him already (may have been more, did not watch every inning this year)

[REDREAD]

never mind.

[M2]

All it takes to be skeptical about Winker's defense is a pair of eyes.

[JME]

Winker needs one spot. Give him right field and keep him there everyday. If he can't hack it by the end of the year then make a move. This is a year for finding out..... let's find out.
Move Schebler to CF everyday as well.
Put Senzel at SS and find out.

[Tony Cloninger]

His defense is passable in LF. Forget RF. I mean Duvall could adjust better over there than Jesse probably. I mean it’s tough enough for him to master LF and not look like Greg Luzinksi or Kal Daniels.

[M2]

Winker needs one spot. Give him right field and keep him there everyday.

Make that LF and I'll agree with you.

[REDREAD]

I wonder.. now that there is a 4 man rotation in the OF.. Why not try Duvall in RF? I know he was initially uncomfortable out there, but why not use this season to make him comfortable?

I guess that would have been a good thing to do in Spring Training.. Give him starts in RF (maybe they did that).
Duvall really does not need reps in LF.
And honestly, it seems like after a week or two, Duvall would be at least adequate in RF.

It made sense to keep Duvall only in LF when he could start every day. Now, I am not sure it makes sense to only play Duvall in LF.

[bucksfan2]

All it takes to be skeptical about Winker's defense is a pair of eyes.

Actually, all it takes is a narrative to be skeptical about Winker's defense. Winker has appeared in a grand total of 30 games in his major league career in the OF. We also have Billy Hamilton out there saying that Winker is faster than Duvall in LF and it will take some getting used to. So we have very few data points based upon what he can actually do in the OF. Unless you have watched all of his minor league innings, your eyes are telling you something based upon about 19% of a regular seasons worth of games.

As for his offensive skill set, if the guy can get on base at a high rate, then you absolutely put in in the order, you live with his "defensive liabilities," because the Reds have few people who can get on base at the clip he can. But what I just don't understand, we can take a small sample size and make absolutes when it fits a narrative, but when that same small sample size shows something that doesn't fit our narrative, its just a small sample size.

[REDREAD]

Here's some links.. Not that they "prove" anything, but it just shows that others have concerns about his defense, especially in RF.
And none of these article (or me) say that he is totally incompetent as an OF.. Just that he might give back some of his value due to below average defense.

http://redsminorleagues.com/2017/11/...-jesse-winker/

Running | He’s a below-average runner.

Arm | While his arm has improved over the years, it’s still a tad below-average.

Defense | He profiles best as a left fielder because of his arm, but the Reds have been splitting his time in both left and right field. He’s a slightly below-average fielder.

https://www.cincinnati.com/story/spo...ense/98966822/

(

Improving defensively was an offseason mission for the Cincinnati Reds prospect, and that mission sent him and other pro ballplayers to Orlando to work with Reds great Barry Larkin at a Coach Tom Shaw camp. [..] Winker worked on his craft from 9 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon.

[snip]

Winker has heard critiques about his defense at every step of his development. He’s an advanced hitter, evaluators say, but doesn’t have much power and nor does he add much impact on the bases or in the field.

[snip]
“I certainly think he has enough arm to play left field,” manager Bryan Price said. “The jury’s out maybe on right field from an arm-strength perspective.”

[snip]

“I don’t think the organization feels that he’s a poor outfielder,” Price said. “I think it’s an area that needed and will continue to need to be addressed"

https://blogredmachine.com/2018/03/2...ker-graduates/

Overall, Winker is who he is. He gets on base at a high clip and has a repeatable swing. His defense is still maturing.

[M2]

Actually, all it takes is a narrative to be skeptical about Winker's defense. Winker has appeared in a grand total of 30 games in his major league career in the OF. We also have Billy Hamilton out there saying that Winker is faster than Duvall in LF and it will take some getting used to. So we have very few data points based upon what he can actually do in the OF. Unless you have watched all of his minor league innings, your eyes are telling you something based upon about 19% of a regular seasons worth of games.

Oh please, the guy's an adventure out there. You don't need data points to see it. It's plain as the nose on your face. And it's not like he just started playing OF, even though he looks like it.

[Tony Cloninger]

Oh please, the guy's an adventure out there. You don't need data points to see it. It's plain as the nose on your face. And it's not like he just started playing OF, even though he looks like it.

If you saw Luzinksi and Daniels who I mentioned earlier along with Pedro Guerrero playing OF and of course Adam Dunn then you know that he can be more than passable out in LF. I think playing RF is a bad idea though.

[maniem]

Oh please, the guy's an adventure out there. You don't need data points to see it. It's plain as the nose on your face. And it's not like he just started playing OF, even though he looks like it.

I haven't watched him much, so I'm not really sure why he struggles. Is he simply too slow? Does he take bad routes? Does he have poor reaction time and struggle reading the ball coming off the bat?

In the few times i've watched him, he seems to make the routine catches, but anything more than routine, it becomes somewhat of an adventure. For example, I remember seeing him make a few diving catches last year that seemed like great catches. However, would a good defender have made them without having to leave their feet?