12 replies to this topic

[BSLChrisStoner]

MASN: This, that and the other 5/3

https://www.masnspor...-other-215.html

[BSLSteveBirrer]

The thing that has stuck to me most this year so far is that it seems like the O's hitting coach is a positive influence on the team and has them understanding what their issues are at the plate and working hard to fix them.

[TwentyThirtyFive]

Would love to see Stewart run with this opportunity. Just looks like its unlikely to happen.He just doesnt have enough contact skills.

[dude]

The thing that has stuck to me most this year so far is that it seems like the O's hitting coach is a positive influence on the team and has them understanding what their issues are at the plate and working hard to fix them.

 

So I was going to make a similar comment.  It feels like Long has been a pretty reasonable hitting coach and that's good.

 

...but my other thought is we're still generally terrible.  I understand (I've been the one bringing it up) that all offense is down, but we're still at the bottom of the pool of the teams that are struggling in the struggling environment.

 

Have you even known anyone that wanted to tell you how much weight they had lost?  ...but if you added up all the weight they'd said they lost, they'd weigh -240 lbs.  It's not just about the [incremental] production, it's about the endstate.  Hitting is obviously a little different in that it's more a game of constant adjustment and there's nobody trying to make you gain weight (although tell that to the people that make the Moose Tracks frozen yogurt in my freezer I crush way too often)...but at the end of the day, shouldn't we expect to be a little closer to our weight goal in terms of hitting and not just talking about the improvements?

 

I don't have any specific issues with Don Long, everything seems reasonable, even good at times.

I generally like some of the players we'd actually consider pieces.

I get that we're still doing the minimum (player acquisition) as an Organization to score runs, so maybe the first 2 can't get overblown.

 

Despite our repeated weight loss, we still seem pretty far from our weight goal.

[Mike B]

I think Stewart is going to be one of those guys we are always going to be waiting on.  He gives you some flashes but IMO way to many 0 for streaks.

[Mike B]

The silence on Baumann is concerning!

[dude]

The silence on Baumann is concerning!

 

Odd, right?  Is there any other team in Baseball that has 2 guys in the top 10 whose status is relatively unexplained?

 

There's a lot going on in there and you have HIPPA rules which are going to apply, but these things are part of a very public space regardless which leads to questions the Orioles don't seem fully able to answer.  

[FL O's Fan]

I think Stewart is going to be one of those guys we are always going to be waiting on.  He gives you some flashes but IMO way to many 0 for streaks.

 

His swing does not look conducive to consistent contact. I feel like he could a be decent bench piece. 

[weird-O]

His swing does not look conducive to consistent contact. I feel like he could a be decent bench piece. 

I'm not sure the best use of a bench position would be to dedicate it to a guy that's defensively below avg, can only play an easily filled COF position, and whose bat has failed to earn him consistent playing time. He's 27 yrs old, he's aged out of the "prospect" category. His strongest offensive talent, is that he has plate discipline and coaxes walks. MLB doesn't care about guys who get walked, and not much else.    

[Mackus]

I'm not sure the best use of a bench position would be to dedicate it to a guy that's defensively below avg, can only play an easily filled COF position, and whose bat has failed to earn him consistent playing time. He's 27 yrs old, he's aged out of the "prospect" category. His strongest offensive talent, is that he has plate discipline and coaxes walks. MLB doesn't care about guys who get walked, and not much else.    

 

Agree.  His bat will either play well enough that he's an everyday guy or at least the heavy side of a platoon or he doesn't really have a purpose.  Can continue to roster him on this squad, a well-balanced bench isn't important on a terrible team, and give him as many chances as you can find him but long term he either figures it out entirely or he is gone.  

[FL O's Fan]

I'm not sure the best use of a bench position would be to dedicate it to a guy that's defensively below avg, can only play an easily filled COF position, and whose bat has failed to earn him consistent playing time. He's 27 yrs old, he's aged out of the "prospect" category. His strongest offensive talent, is that he has plate discipline and coaxes walks. MLB doesn't care about guys who get walked, and not much else.    

 

For some reason I thought he was above average defensively? I know he's on the heavier side, but still feels like he can move OK with it.

[weird-O]

For some reason I thought he was above average defensively? I know he's on the heavier side, but still feels like he can move OK with it.

Unfortunately, he's not above avg on D. Here's a snippet of what Baseball Prospectus said about him in 2018 

 

 For someone with 20 stolen bases, Stewart isn’t all that athletic, and it requires a fair amount of wishcasting to get him above detriment level in left field. Only his bat will take him where he wants to go, and the scouts cry danger there as well. 

[Mackus]

For some reason I thought he was above average defensively? I know he's on the heavier side, but still feels like he can move OK with it.

He's worse than Dwight Smith, IMO. Terrible.