154 replies to this topic

[CA-ORIOLE]

OPS over .600. Has been solid at 3b.

[NewMarketSean]

He's been great defensively and now his bat is coming around too. As much as I railed on the guy he's been doing a good job filling in for Hardy. In fact over the last 2 weeks he's been better than JJ.

[SportsGuy]

Hes a solid UTI guy at his salary.  I still think there is an outside chance that he can be a league average-ish second baseman.

[BSLChrisStoner]

He's been great defensively and now his bat is coming around too. As much as I railed on the guy he's been doing a good job filling in for Hardy. In fact over the last 2 weeks he's been better than JJ.

 

His defensive versatility helps a lot as a 25th guy.  He does have some pop.... I wish he would take a more line drive approach vs. the upper cut. He should be a better average hitter imo....  of course when his play is sporadic, I basically understand how difficult that is... but every year he seems to wind-up getting a fair amount of consistent playing time at some point... and that's more what I'm talking about.

 

Of course to be fair to him, when he starts getting regular time... I don't think it's a coincidence that he starts looking better at the plate. Hits in 7 of his last 10 games, hr, and double the last two nights.

 

And most importantly like you said... he really is a solid glove guy.

[RShack]

Hes a solid UTI guy at his salary.  I still think there is an outside chance that he can be a league average-ish second baseman.

 

If he had an everyday job at 2B, I bet he could be... Schoop is keeping his career limited to a UTI job... good for the O's, but not optimal for Flash...

[CA-ORIOLE]

I guess I've been disappointed in the times he has gotten regular time and not taken advantage of it. I agree with Rob about the potential to be an averagish second baseman though. I have thought the same for awhile. He's a pretty good defender there. That said. He just K's too much and has never really adapted to the changeup/splitter very well. Gotta think mid 600 OPS is his landing spot at this point. Too bad. He has a pretty good batting eye imo.

[Mike B]

I think Flaherty's inability to hit anything not a fastball is what limits him.

 

If it breaks he is in trouble.

[aurelius]

It takes him some time to get going... Classic slow starter. His OPS for June is over 800. I realize it's a small sample, but with Ryan, it's always a small sample because he doesn't have the luxury finding a home in the lineup before getting the rug pulled out from under him. So it becomes a catch-22 situation.

 

I firmly believe this infield configuration is better than the one that awaits us when Hardy reappears.

[BSLChrisStoner]

It takes him some time to get going... Classic slow starter. His OPS for June is over 800. I realize it's a small sample, but with Ryan, it's always a small sample because he doesn't have the luxury finding a home in the lineup before getting the rug pulled out from under him. So it becomes a catch-22 situation.

 

I firmly believe this infield configuration is better than the one that awaits us when Hardy reappears.

 

I feel like a Flaherty fan, but I don't agree there.

[Mackus]

Holy shit that's crazy. 

[aurelius]

I'll walk that statement back somewhat. The current configuration is not better than at least having Hardy available. Not that I think this will happen, but I think there should be a way to get Flaherty some regular play at 3B against righties. IMO that would be preferable to having Manny at 3B 100% and Hardy at SS 100%. If Buck could come up with an alignment that works, you might win more ballgames. Looking back to when Hardy went on the DL, the Orioles went 19-8 in the games Flaherty started at 3B. It could be a coincidence or maybe not.

[RShack]

It takes him some time to get going... Classic slow starter. His OPS for June is over 800. I realize it's a small sample, but with Ryan, it's always a small sample because he doesn't have the luxury finding a home in the lineup before getting the rug pulled out from under him. So it becomes a catch-22 situation.

 

I firmly believe this infield configuration is better than the one that awaits us when Hardy reappears.

 

Every time he does something good, I say "That's my boy Flash..."

 

I think if not for Schoop, he could be a perfectly fine everyday Oriole 2B-man... I have no doubt that he would hit a lot better if he had a regular job...  but I can't see how having him in there is better than having Hardy back... that's pushing it too far... even for me  

 

EDIT:  I just saw your follow-up post... and I'm afraid I don't buy that either... when your L side of the IF consists of Manny and Hardy, the last thing you need to do is screw that up by platooning guys, moving Manny back and forth, etc.   When both Manny and Hardy are in there, just pay attention and enjoy it... because when it comes to the L side of the IF, being able to watch those 2 makes for the upcoming good old days...

[Mackus]

Keep walking back much, much further.

 

I really like Flaherty as a solid-glove utility guy.  And if he happens to be going well he's perfectly acceptable as an injury replacement for a few weeks or even a couple months if needed.

 

But there is no way we're better off with him than Hardy, even if it's one of those seasons where Hardy is struggling offensively like last year (he's been fine this year with the bat).  I'm fine with using Flaherty to give Hardy a little more rest than he may need from solely a freshness standpoint in an attempt to keep him injury-free, but I completely disagree with the idea of a partial platoon as a strategic decision.

[aurelius]

The 564 OPS Hardy posted last year was shockingly bad.... not just "struggling". Everyone likes to believe that Hardy is some kind of "anchor" of the infield and that his presence keeps everything intact, at least defensively. But the Orioles have not exactly fallen off a cliff in his absence, in any aspect of the game, most notably wins and losses. I guess this is a wait and see what happens, and I think we'll be re-visiting this at a later time.

[RShack]

The 564 OPS Hardy posted last year was shockingly bad.... not just "struggling".

 

His hurt shoulder meant that last year he couldn't even swing a bat normally...

 

Everyone likes to believe that Hardy is some kind of "anchor" of the infield and that his presence keeps everything intact, at least defensively. But the Orioles have not exactly fallen off a cliff in his absence, in any aspect of the game, most notably wins and losses. I guess this is a wait and see what happens, and I think we'll be re-visiting this at a later time.

 

Saying we're doing fine without Hardy is like saying we're doing fine with only 2 legit ML SP's... it's completely true, we're in 1st place...  

 

So, the question to ask yourself is, "Do I feel lucky?"  

[Mackus]

Flaherty's probably better than Hardy when he's got a 575 OPS.  I think Hardy is better than that the vast majority of the time, though, and I would expect better offensive numbers from Hardy than Flaherty in any given sample.  Hardy's defense is probably worth at least 50 points in OPS over Flaherty's and Flash is about a 625-650 OPS guy.  I don't think Flaherty would put up better offensive numbers than his career averages if he was given a job full-time.  While I do think he'd benefit from everyday opportunities and be more comfortable than when his plate appearances come sporadically, that also gives opposing pitchers more chances to see him and gameplan how to best exploit his weaknesses.

[Nigel Tufnel]

Bill James fielded a couple of O's-related questions (Flaherty and Ubaldo) on his website.  Nothing Earth-shattering, but I thought I'd post them.

 

To me, Ryan Flaherty appears to be a player who gets far more playing time than his ability merits.  He's a career .216/.284/.360 hitter whose main value is he plays all over the field.  I would expect him to be a drag on the team.  And yet, for the last four years, the team has done significantly better when he starts.  In 2016, when he starts, the Orioles are 20-11, when he doesn't they are 18-17.  In 2015 the Orioles were 45-36 when he started, and 36-45 when he didn't.  In 2014, 48-30 when he starts, 48-36 when he doesn't.  In 2013, 38-31 when he starts, and 47-46 when he doesn't.  I don't have a good explanation for this - what do you think?

Asked by: mrbryan

Answered: 6/20/2016

Well. .. the VALUE of the ability to play different spots is very difficult to measure.  The data seems like it could easily be random.

 

[SBTarheel]

Flaherty signs with the Phillies..

 

Good luck to him!

[BobPhelan]

Best move we've made all offseason.

[BSLSteveBirrer]

Best move we've made all offseason.

So you say now. Wait until we see who they replace him with!