ericmvan
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Supposed to be working on something more important
Posts: 8,911
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Post by ericmvan on Sept 8, 2016 2:08:51 GMT -5
I get the distinct impression that Xander is just exhausted - he is stepping up and just going through the motions. Very easy out. He started looking tired long ago. On June 12 he was hitting .359 / .405 / .527 and I believe was -1, 0 , or even +1 DRS. He was on a pace for a 7+ WAR season. He had also had had 1 game off out of 62. He hit .245 / .345 / .330 from then until the ASB, and his defensive numbers started to crater as he botched routine plays. He hit .329 / .365 / .543 in his first 16 G / 74 PA after the ASB, to the end of July. He then hit .159 / .208 / .159 in the first 13 days of August, but finally got two more days off, on the 9th and 14th. After that he hit .283 / .345 / .434 in 13 G / 58 PA, but that was the crazy road trip starting with the 1 game in Cleveland (plus the first 2 games of the subsequent homestand) so that's actually fairly impressive. Since then he's .175 / .283 / .300 in 10 G / 46 PA. Some thoughts: -- It's the manager's job to figure out how much rest each player needs. This is perhaps the least obvious of JF's screw-ups this year, but it should not be underestimated. I think it's 2 or 3 wins. -- He may need some lifestyle adjustment to get better sleep. It's hard to say, though, that a guy his age and in his shape shouldn't wear down playing 158 or 159 games. That's just so rarely done. He may be perfectly fine playing 150. -- I'd plan now to give him an off day against the Yankees on either 9/16 or 9/17, which is a night game followed by a day game and in the middle of 17 games without an off day. And even more importantly, I'd give him the last day of the Rays series, 9/25, off -- a day game after a night game, and before a travel day. Two off days before the crucial last 6 games of the season.
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Post by telluricrook on Sept 8, 2016 2:34:18 GMT -5
I get the distinct impression that Xander is just exhausted - he is stepping up and just going through the motions. Very easy out. He started looking tired long ago. On June 12 he was hitting .359 / .405 / .527 and I believe was -1, 0 , or even +1 DRS. He was on a pace for a 7+ WAR season. He had also had had 1 game off out of 62. He hit .245 / .345 / .330 from then until the ASB, and his defensive numbers started to crater as he botched routine plays. He hit .329 / .365 / .543 in his first 16 G / 74 PA after the ASB, to the end of July. He then hit .159 / .208 / .159 in the first 13 days of August, but finally got two more days off, on the 9th and 14th. After that he hit .283 / .345 / .434 in 13 G / 58 PA, but that was the crazy road trip starting with the 1 game in Cleveland (plus the first 2 games of the subsequent homestand) so that's actually fairly impressive. Since then he's .175 / .283 / .300 in 10 G / 46 PA. Some thoughts: -- It's the manager's job to figure out how much rest each player needs. This is perhaps the least obvious of JF's screw-ups this year, but it should not be underestimated. I think it's 2 or 3 wins. -- He may need some lifestyle adjustment to get better sleep. It's hard to say, though, that a guy his age and in his shape shouldn't wear down playing 158 or 159 games. That's just so rarely done. He may be perfectly fine playing 150. -- I'd plan now to give him an off day against the Yankees on either 9/16 or 9/17, which is a night game followed by a day game and in the middle of 17 games without an off day. And even more importantly, I'd give him the last day of the Rays series, 9/25, off -- a day game after a night game, and before a travel day. Two off days before the crucial last 6 games of the season. They should be taking care of him whatever the problem is. But there is definately something he is doing wrong in terms of taking care of himself wether its workout routine or his diet or like what you said sleep schedule.
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Post by telluricrook on Sept 8, 2016 2:41:16 GMT -5
Halfway through the season we all thought he was the MVP! " Best right handed hitter in baseball". Buster Olney.
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Post by jerrygarciaparra on Sept 8, 2016 3:01:39 GMT -5
Real Happy for the guys to go 4-2 on this last west coast trip. Great feelings going into Toronto. That place should be filled up this weekend, and it will definitely feel like a playoff game. No easy games left in the schedule. The men will be separated from the boys...the way it should be.
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Post by burythehammer on Sept 8, 2016 5:22:01 GMT -5
If the real Koji is back you can write our ticket to the World Series right now, fellas.
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Post by Guidas on Sept 8, 2016 5:42:42 GMT -5
Great win!
Now it's time to play the big boys.
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Post by ancientsoxfogey on Sept 8, 2016 6:18:41 GMT -5
ESPN has him .329 pre-Allstar, .256 post-Allstar. Not the best... That may have been before tonight - so could be close to or under .250 now. With the big roster, a few days off may be a good idea - a fixed Xander is needed for a long run. C The game that Xander SHOULD have been rested was this one.
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ericmvan
Veteran
Supposed to be working on something more important
Posts: 8,911
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Post by ericmvan on Sept 8, 2016 8:44:39 GMT -5
Can the mods start the Blue Jays series thread during this off day? Folks may want to start talking about.
(And in fact I have some Estrada numbers that people will be glad to see.)
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Post by Canseco on Sept 8, 2016 9:15:45 GMT -5
Can the mods start the Blue Jays series thread during this off day? Folks may want to start talking about. (And in fact I have some Estrada numbers that people will be glad to see.) I hope your Estrada numbers make me feel better, as it always feels like that guy is dealing.
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Post by patford on Sept 8, 2016 9:20:48 GMT -5
Unless Bogaerts has said he is exhausted I can't buy that's his problem. Compare his plate appearances to other starting MLB players at this point in the season. I'm sure he's tired and maybe a bit banged up but so is any player with a lot of games played. He'll be fine. Players go through slumps and even have down years.
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Post by FenwayFanatic on Sept 8, 2016 9:45:03 GMT -5
They should take Xander, Pedroia and Mookie out of some of these blowout games they've had for rest.
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Post by sox fan in nc on Sept 8, 2016 10:14:47 GMT -5
Unless Bogaerts has said he is exhausted I can't buy that's his problem. Compare his plate appearances to other starting MLB players at this point in the season. I'm sure he's tired and maybe a bit banged up but so is any player with a lot of games played. He'll be fine. Players go through slumps and even have down years. He hit .320 last year in 156 games. Like Nomar said, some of his swings are looking a bit loose. He's not exactly a frail/slight man. It could be anything from a minor injury to sleep. Today will help to hopefully re-set. Every game from here on out (including last night) is huge. He's not helping the team by going 0-4. Give him a blow tomorrow. Marco @ SS won't kill you for a game, especially against a RHP (Estrada).
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Post by jimed14 on Sept 8, 2016 10:24:36 GMT -5
They should take Xander, Pedroia and Mookie out of some of these blowout games they've had for rest. Yeah, Marrero and Castillo should be defensive replacements in games like this. Holt is fine too.
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Post by bigpupp on Sept 8, 2016 13:39:06 GMT -5
I think it's because neither had pitched in quite a while (at least Ziegler, and Kimbrel for a few days) and the Red Sox have an off-day tomorrow. I hate this line of thinking with all my being. They should be actively looking to get their best 2-3 relievers days off (when they have WE% greater than 95 pct) with the idea that they will be overworked in the postseason. If Kimbrel+Ziegler get 2-3 days off in a row that's a win. If not pitching in 2-3 days is a win, then what is not pitching in 10 days in a row? I would normally agree with you, (and I agree that Kimbrell shouldn't have sniffed the 9th) but Zeigler hadn't pitched since the 27th and he needed the work.
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Post by bosox81 on Sept 8, 2016 13:59:31 GMT -5
If the real Koji is back you can write our ticket to the World Series right now, fellas. Unlike a lot of people I'm still not confident in Price in the postseason based on his past.
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