Dusty Baker...wow

[Superdude]

"Boy, [Hopper] can hit that ball hard. He's a strong little dude," Baker said. "The ball made a loud sound. I use my ears a lot. I can tell what kind of bat speed [he] has by that sound."

Is he being sarcastic? He's talking about a guy who in the past decade has hit 3 homeruns! This sounds like a jock quarterback sarcastically hitting on the ugly girl at lunch. Dusty Baker officially scares me.

[Spitball]

Hyperbole flowed regularly from Spary like a fountain. I think we can assume these comments come from the same managerial handbook.

[cincrazy]

Nothing wrong with complimenting a player . Hopper isn't a star by any means, but he can be a useful part of this ballclub if used correctly. It's not that he doesn't have a place on a roster, he just has to be utilitzed correctly. Hopefully Dusty can do that.

[fearofpopvol1]

I predict this will be the 1st of many threads regarding "Dusty" and a "wow" comment...

[Highlifeman21]

Dusty's just planting the seed of justification about starting Norris Hopper in CF and batting him leadoff.

[Ravenlord]

Dusty's just planting the seed of justification about starting Norris Hopper in CF and batting him leadoff.

along with creating a reputation of bat speed that'll probably have some influence on other organizations at some point.

[remdog]

Is he being sarcastic? He's talking about a guy who in the past decade has hit 3 homeruns!

Some players hit the ball hard without hitting home runs. It's about striking the ball squarely and knowing your capacity for putting the ball in play or swinging for the fences.

Rem

[Superdude]

Some players hit the ball hard without hitting home runs. It's about striking the ball squarely and knowing your capacity for putting the ball in play or swinging for the fences.

I know what you mean, but I don't think I saw Hopper get the ball out of the infield more than a few times last year. He's like the essence of not hitting the ball hard. I'm not saying he's a bad player, but wouldn't "scrappy" be a more fitting compliment?

[remdog]

I know what you mean, but I don't think I saw Hopper get the ball out of the infield more than a few times last year. He's like the essence of not hitting the ball hard. I'm not saying he's a bad player, but wouldn't "scrappy" be a more fitting compliment?

Please, please, please....no more 'scrappy'....!! :LOL:

'Scrappy' is such a damning term yet there are values to that type of player! Admitedly, these guys aren't going to be HOFer's but they can help a ball club and can play important roles. Ed Armbrister, Billy Bates and others were 'scrappy'. There is no way that they will win you a pennant on their own but, with a base of solid players, these are the type of guys that can get you over the top.

The Reds problem right now is that they don't have that solid core of players where a 'scrappy' guy could make a difference.

Rem

[Ltlabner]

Something tells me this is not the last of the Dusty-isms that will set RZ on fire.

As an offical anti-Dustyite this seems par for the course. He's "old school" so there's going to be lots of mystical voo-doo stuff that he, and only he, as an experienced and trained baseball manager, can decipher.

[lollipopcurve]

Hopper makes a lot of solid contact. And unlike Freel (at least last year), who hits a lot of fly balls, he usually puts it on a line or on the ground, as he should do.
Hopper has proved to be a much better player than many here have given him credit for, beginning with his callup in 06 and continuing to today.

[redsmetz]

Hopper makes a lot of solid contact. And unlike Freel (at least last year), who hits a lot of fly balls, he usually puts it on a line or on the ground, as he should do.
Hopper has proved to be a much better player than many here have given him credit for, beginning with his callup in 06 and continuing to today.

That's what I thought when I was reading these laments. Sadly, I think there will be folks all season who have chosen to dislike Baker and we will, as someone noted, see lots of these types of threads.

I like Hopper alot and I think he's an important cog on this team. I'm not advocating for him to start, but I like having him available.

[bucksfan2]

Hopper makes a lot of solid contact. And unlike Freel (at least last year), who hits a lot of fly balls, he usually puts it on a line or on the ground, as he should do.
Hopper has proved to be a much better player than many here have given him credit for, beginning with his callup in 06 and continuing to today.

A guy like Hopper and his skill set are very important to a team like the reds. Hopper is one of the few reds who consistantly puts the bat on the ball. He uses his greatest asset, his speed, to help his game. He is not going to have a great ops and may be an average defender but on a team that strikes out at an alarming rate a guy like Hopper has value.

[Blitz Dorsey]

Hopper makes a lot of solid contact. And unlike Freel (at least last year), who hits a lot of fly balls, he usually puts it on a line or on the ground, as he should do.
Hopper has proved to be a much better player than many here have given him credit for, beginning with his callup in 06 and continuing to today.

Exactly. And although some blow it off, he is the best base-hit bunter in MLB.

[sonny]

Hopper makes a lot of solid contact. And unlike Freel (at least last year), who hits a lot of fly balls, he usually puts it on a line or on the ground, as he should do.
Hopper has proved to be a much better player than many here have given him credit for, beginning with his callup in 06 and continuing to today.

Solid post. Your words made a lot of noise in this thread. And I should know, I use my ears a lot