I'm trying to imagine Stubbs hitting .268.
Here is the thing, Soriano never abandoned his power in the leadoff spot. From 2006 to 2008, he was the leadoff hitter for WAS and CHI. His power and contact was never a problem. Because he could hit .285+, and as high as .308 added to his power meant he wasn't an easy out. He walked as many as 58 times, but his OBP was heavily hit driven. Truth is, Soriano could flat out hit, something Stubbs has yet to do really at any level. Soriano may have been a hacker, sort of a Vlad-lite, but with immense power. Stubbs so far lacks the skill to put the bat on the ball like that. Or rather he hasn't shown it in the leadoff spot. He is showing it lower in the order. Thats the human part of the game. He just isn't a leadoff hitter, where Soriano could hit anywhere.
Dubito Ergo Cogito Ergo Sum.
He did it in his trial last year.
His "last 28 day" split at Baseball reference reads 264/333/483.
I know you can't cherry pick like that and all the games count. His numbers last year come during a September league and over the last 28 days the reds have had some healthy doses of pirate and astro's....but still it's pretty plain that he CAN do it.
His line against righties is what's holding him back. He hits righties worse than Brandon Phillips does and there is a lot of right handed pitching in the league.
He's miscast as a leadoff hitter, but that's not Stubb's fault any more than it is Phillips fault that he's not a cleanup hitter.
A healthy Chris Dickerson that would take away some of those at bats against tough righties would make Stubbs line look better.
I don't see Eric Davis, but he doesn't have to be Eric Davis in order to be a useful player and that's what he is.
"Even a bad day at the ballpark beats the snot out of most other good days. I'll take my scorecard and pencil and beer and hot dog and rage at the dips and cheer at the highs, but I'm not ever going to stop loving this game and this team and nobody will ever take that away from me." Roy Tucker October 2010
I wasn't trying make any specific point using the Stubbs/Soriano comparison other than to point out that it's an interesting comp.
The issue with Stubbs has always been two-fold:
1) Can he make enough contact?
2) Can he still hit for power if he's making enough contact?
His contact rate has been better in the 7-hole, as evidenced by his lowered strikeout (and walk) rates. However, his BABIP is WAY up in the 7 hole, from .189 to .389 as is his ISO, from .120 to .259. However, I don't know how much of that is due to him actually making better contact and, more importantly, we have no clue if that's a function of moving in the lineup, facing easier pitching, experience, dumb luck or what-have-you.
In any event, I'd like to see him stick in the 7 hole for awhile just to keep the pressure off and take one variable out of the equation. He can succeed striking out as much as he does -- he's right at the edge. But to do so, he's going to need to take a fair share of walks and he's going to have to hit for power when he does make contact. You can not be a productive singles hitter and a poor contact hitter -- they just don't jive.
Games are won on run differential -- scoring more than your opponent. Runs are runs, scored or prevented they all count the same. Worry about scoring more and allowing fewer, not which positions contribute to which side of the equation or how "consistent" you are at your current level of performance.
Exactly. I'm starting to buy into the power. Its the human element of the game that seems screwed up. If he buys into himself as a power guy, it completely changes him as a hitter. All the rest, the speed, SB's, the walks then supplement his game, and are not the focus. I choe Davis as his comp because he was a Red, but I see the Soriano comp, especially if he can get over the contact issue and focus on power over singles. the walks and SB's will take care of themself as he'll be on base more.
simply put... he needs to hit better.
Dubito Ergo Cogito Ergo Sum.
Stubbs' OPS for the season now is almost .700. Not amazing, but not bad either...especially whilst he is batting lower in the lineup. He had a good night last night.
Stubbs is outperforming B.J. Upton this season.
Stubbs has his OPS close to .700, and amonth ago many thought he'd have trouble hitting above .600.
At .700 , with his speed and defense, he's a bona fide major league player.
If he can hit .240-250 (he's about .220 now), his OPS should be in the .750-.760 range, and he's actually be an above average CF for us.
Yes I agree. Stubbs is part of the youth movement/rebuild that everyone has been screaming for. Now that we finally have a decent CF prospect, we need to show a little bit of patience. Maybe Stubbs will stick at the ML level, maybe not. The guy certainly has the tools. Let's give him the entire year at CF and at least give him the opportunity to grow into the job. He's a great defender, that certainly makes it easier to be patient (as opposed to someone like Larson who had fewer tools and could not field worth a darn).
[Phil ] Castellini celebrated the team's farm system and noted the team had promising prospects who would one day be great Reds -- and then joke then they'd be ex-Reds, saying "of course we're going to lose them". #SellTheTeamBob
Nov. 13, 2007: One of the greatest days in Reds history: John Allen gets the boot!
Speed/ Defense were mentioned. He also eats up a lot of pitches...4.2 per plate appearance...tied w/ Dunner for 15th in the NL.
Baseball is like church. Many attend, few understand
Drew Stubbs triple tonight showed just how fast he is. I went back and timed him with my stop watch. From home to third he ran 10.4 seconds. I have timed a bunch of guys in the minor leagues on triples. I have never even had another sub 11 second time on a triple.
I imagine his OPS is over 700 now?
Board Moderators may, at their discretion and judgment, delete and/or edit any messages that violate any of the following guidelines: 1. Explicit references to alleged illegal or unlawful acts. 2. Graphic sexual descriptions. 3. Racial or ethnic slurs. 4. Use of edgy language (including masked profanity). 5. Direct personal attacks, flames, fights, trolling, baiting, name-calling, general nuisance, excessive player criticism or anything along those lines. 6. Posting spam. 7. Each person may have only one user account. It is fine to be critical here - that's what this board is for. But let's not beat a subject or a player to death, please. |