Dunn OBP means nothing to me if there are guys on 2nd and/or 3rd. Considering he walks so much.
Dunn OBP means nothing to me if there are guys on 2nd and/or 3rd. Considering he walks so much.
I can't belive this needs to be argued any more, but...
(stats are before tonight's 3-3, BB performance)
Dunn with NOBODY on base:
.262 .360 .533 .893
Dunn with RUNNERS on base:
.265 .371 .581 .952
Dunn is a better hitter with runners on base this year. And because of his ability to slug, it really is moot if runners happen to be in scoring position.
What a joke. I think somehow, because baseball's first pro team was in Cincinnati, some of our fans think the game hasn't changed. Well, guess what? The ball has more consistency than a bean bag nowadays and you can hit line drives and home runs to increase the number of RBIs you have. (Such as, say, Adam Dunn, who, if you didn't know, is 7th in the league in RBIs.) He still manages to be 7th in the league in RBIs.
Adam Dunn.
Is.
Seventh (7th) in the league in RBIs.
In spite of the fact that he doesn't hit well with RISP, doesn't hit sac flies, and "strikes out too much". That pretty much destroys your entire argument.
Dunn walks at the same rate with someone on base as he does with no one on base. What the pitcher would rather do has nothing to do with it. Dunn should be looking for a pitch to hit instead of just taking the walk. The best RBI guys in the league find a way to hit with people on base why is it so hard for Dunn?
No, the burden of proof appears to be on you. YOU show ME any evidence that backs up your claim. First, I want to see how Dunn's "solo HRs are replaceable with someone who is much more likely to get a runner in from 2nd" and also how Dunn is the "worst of all" the top RBI men (which seems akin to being the worst Brazilian on the national soccer team, or the worst Quarterback in Hawaii at the Pro Bowl).
My arguement is that even with those bad numbers he is still 7th that acutally supports my case that the RBIs can be replaced. Maybe not all of them but not enough to hurt this teams chances of winning. Better Bullpen = less runs you need to score. Its quite obvious this teams problem is the bullpen. My whole thing is Id rather spend the Dunn money on the reds weaknesses not spend more money on the reds strengths. Scoring more and more runs while your bullpen is giving up more and more doesnt do much for your win loss column. The reds score plenty of runs to win and losing maybe 20 runs over the course of a season isnt goin to hurt them as much as you guys think.
Some how Aramis Ramirez finds balls to hit. Some how Ryan Howard finds balls to hit. Some how Berkman finds balls to hit. Some how Carlos Lee finds balls to hit. Dunn needs to learn how to hit the pitches hes thrown not wait for his pitch. Pitchers are not going to give Dunn his pitch, just like pitchers dont give the other guys pitches they can hit out of the park.
If the conversation is only about the bullpen needing to improve, along with the rest of the pitching, I'm completely on board. That can be argued without trying to convince others that Dunn isn't a run producer.
Can the Reds re-allocate Dunn's money elsewhere and improve the club? Maybe. But what I suspect will happen will be that the Reds find replacing Dunn a whole heck of a lot harder than they thought and therefore, 10-13 million a year for a player of Dunn's ilk really is the right market value. What I think the Reds would be wise to do would involve unloading Jr.'s contract and finding pay flex from that. Also, additional play flex could be gained from moving Hatteberg, Conine, Stanton, and Weathers.
If you want to spend more money on the bullpen all you have to do is spend more money on the bullpen. The cheapskate Lindner years are over. You find a good deal on a pitcher you take it. Dunn doesn't have anything to do with the bullpen.
If you want to be a cheapskate and cut payroll, then you cut the players that are not earning their salaries. You keep the good players. You don't get better by getting rid of your good players. It really is as simple as that.
The Reds are not going to fix the bullpen by spending a bunch of money on free agent relievers. It will not work. What good free agents will be available this offseason and how much will they cost? Until that question is answered I won't buy the argument we should ditch Dunn to spend his salary on the bullpen. It is not feasible and is not going to be successful.
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