atzar
Veteran
Posts: 1,880
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Post by atzar on Sept 3, 2014 8:04:07 GMT -5
This is all pretty surprising to me, because I thought the book on him coming up was that he was very coachable. Did he just decide that he had 'made it' and didn't need to do anything else when he reached Boston?
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Post by awall on Sept 3, 2014 8:11:42 GMT -5
i would love to be able to do biometrics work on this stuff. it would be really cool to have the ability to look at JBJ's swing compared to Mookie's and Xander's and look at data to see the time it take from the moment they initiate the swing to when the bathead first enters the hitting zone.
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Post by jmei on Sept 3, 2014 9:19:59 GMT -5
This is all pretty surprising to me, because I thought the book on him coming up was that he was very coachable. Did he just decide that he had 'made it' and didn't need to do anything else when he reached Boston? My wildly speculative read is that he just got fed up after months of everyone and their mother fiddling with his swing. After all, he had hit just fine in the minors with his old swing, and none of the likely coach-suggested tweaks (open stance, eliminating the toe tap) had really helped him hit any better. It's understandable that after incorporating every suggested mechanical tweak and having it not help him at all (and likely even hurt him), he'd want to tune out some of the noise and get back to what he knows has worked for him in the past. Unfortunately, that also comes off as stubborn and having a bad attitude. At this point, you can't count on Bradley to give you anything next year. Stick him in Pawtucket, with the idea that if he figures out his swing, he might figure into the major league equation, but he'll have to earn it first.
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Post by ibsmith85 on Sept 3, 2014 10:43:55 GMT -5
It is speculative, but I agree 100%. I dont like that JBJ let it get to the point where coaches and players viewed him as a problem, but the fact remains that this coaching staff could be the reason he is all screwed up. Its been brought up before, but the hitting instructors this season have left quite a bit to be desired. I hope he can straighten out the "attitude" issues (fed up was a good way to put it) and they dont write him off. His MiLB track record was stellar, and I've never seen a better CF day in and day out.
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Post by gregblossersbelly on Sept 3, 2014 13:01:00 GMT -5
JBJ states how he feels about the situation on his twitter feed; "Say what you want about me as a ball player but trying to tarnish my character or my work ethic isn't going to fly..truth will reveal itself."
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Sept 3, 2014 19:25:33 GMT -5
Given that this all started with a tweet by Bill Burt, having worked at the Tribune, I can say that I'm about 90% sure we've got better connections with the Red Sox than he does. And I'm not bragging about our connections.
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Post by larrycook on Sept 3, 2014 21:21:32 GMT -5
Bradley's glove and arm make for an amazing defender.
But unless we think the bat will get better, I can't see any reason to take him out of Pawtucket next season.
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Post by jimed14 on Sept 4, 2014 21:32:24 GMT -5
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Post by jmei on Sept 15, 2014 8:16:44 GMT -5
Subscription-only, but-- BP gets a bunch of beat writers and other observers to discuss how good Bradley's defense is: www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=24635Of note: Tim Britton and Alex Speier allude to the fact that one of the reasons Bradley starts so many double-plays is that he dekes outfielders with his unique "run-to-the-spot" approach. Baserunners are used to seeing an outfielder turn back to look for the ball, and when they see him in a full-on sprint with his back to the ball, they assume that he knows its going to be over his head. However, Bradley's got such elite reads that he can instead turn his head at the last minute and still make the catch, while having the kind of strong and accurate arm to catch guys on the basepaths if they even hesitate for a moment.
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Post by grandsalami on Oct 23, 2014 12:38:20 GMT -5
Gold glove finalist
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Post by costpet on Oct 24, 2014 7:44:37 GMT -5
Can you think of a better late inning defensive replacement?
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Oct 24, 2014 8:58:01 GMT -5
Can you think of a better late inning defensive replacement? At a position like center or right field, you shouldn't need a defensive replacement though. You're not going to keep a guy like Bradley, who isn't particularly speedy on the bases, on the roster just to replace the left fielder, especially on the Red Sox.
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Post by mattpicard on Oct 24, 2014 9:11:09 GMT -5
Can you think of a better late inning defensive replacement? At a position like center or right field, you shouldn't need a defensive replacement though. You're not going to keep a guy like Bradley, who isn't particularly speedy on the bases, on the roster just to replace the left fielder, especially on the Red Sox. That's a very key limitation of Bradley. Guys like Jarrod Dyson and Peter Bourjos, on the other hand, can be incredibly valuable reserve/part time players. ADD: Speaking of JBJ, here's a new article from Speier this morning on JBJ's tough season, with some comments from the man himself. Excerpt:
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Post by Oregon Norm on Nov 4, 2014 11:04:15 GMT -5
Tough year at bat for a lot of the young players in both leagues, no one more so than Bradley. But there's no doubting the glove. Here's a nice summation of Bradley's defensive cred from David Laurila, writing at FanGraphs. Lots of props from his peers:
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Post by buffs4444 on Nov 27, 2014 3:08:26 GMT -5
He's going to figure it out at the plate and be a big part of this team next year. No doubt in my mind....
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Post by soxfan1615 on Nov 27, 2014 5:46:13 GMT -5
He's going to figure it out at the plate and be a big part of this team next year. No doubt in my mind.... uh, replacing who?
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Post by mgoetze on Nov 27, 2014 7:02:17 GMT -5
He's going to figure it out at the plate and be a big part of this team next year. No doubt in my mind.... uh, replacing who? Rusney "Loafer" Castillo. Injuries happen, I am sure JBJ will get his shot at some point next season. Steamer projects him as a league average player, BTW: 83 wRC+ and 2.0 WAR per 600 PA.
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Post by soxfan1615 on Nov 27, 2014 9:07:38 GMT -5
Rusney "Loafer" Castillo. Injuries happen, I am sure JBJ will get his shot at some point next season. Steamer projects him as a league average player, BTW: 83 wRC+ and 2.0 WAR per 600 PA. He's currently 8th on the outfield depth chart, and even if trades happen, he'll be at best 6th. Sure injuries happen, but there's almost no way he's the injury replacement
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Post by jmei on Nov 27, 2014 9:36:36 GMT -5
Rusney "Loafer" Castillo. Injuries happen, I am sure JBJ will get his shot at some point next season. Steamer projects him as a league average player, BTW: 83 wRC+ and 2.0 WAR per 600 PA. He's currently 8th on the outfield depth chart, and even if trades happen, he'll be at best 6th. Sure injuries happen, but there's almost no way he's the injury replacement At least two of the names ahead of him will be traded before Opening Day. Bradley would be either the first or second guy called up from Pawtucket if an OF was injured (along with Brentz). It is almost certain that he spends some time on the major league roster next year.
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Post by JackieWilsonsaid on Nov 27, 2014 10:49:59 GMT -5
I'm all in on the bucketful of reclamation projects strategy.
I hope it's openly discussed with both jbj and middlebrooks to relax and spend the better part of 2015 trying to hit their way out of aaa.
We have plenty of flexible options ahead of both of them in the short term so this won't hurt the big club.
I'm sure if jbj is hitting 300 July 1 we will find some place for him to play. (And the same goes for middlebrooks, even if that is another city)
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Post by jimed14 on Nov 27, 2014 10:57:28 GMT -5
Rusney "Loafer" Castillo. Injuries happen, I am sure JBJ will get his shot at some point next season. Steamer projects him as a league average player, BTW: 83 wRC+ and 2.0 WAR per 600 PA. He's currently 8th on the outfield depth chart, and even if trades happen, he'll be at best 6th. Sure injuries happen, but there's almost no way he's the injury replacement He's nowhere near 8th on the centerfield depth chart.
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Nov 27, 2014 11:39:09 GMT -5
He's currently 8th on the outfield depth chart, and even if trades happen, he'll be at best 6th. Sure injuries happen, but there's almost no way he's the injury replacement He's nowhere near 8th on the centerfield depth chart. Eh. Betts, Castillo, Cespedes, Shanf, Holt can all man it based on who's already there, so he could be sixth. Same difference.
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Post by JackieWilsonsaid on Nov 27, 2014 12:06:06 GMT -5
While this depth thing is true, it is easy to imagine Castillo struggling then ending up in the doghouse with the perceived hustle issues while jbj hits to his minor league norm at the bucket.
I'm not expecting or rooting for Castillo to fail,, but I'd say there is about a 20% chance that jbj is contributing in Boston august 1.
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Post by jimed14 on Nov 27, 2014 12:18:24 GMT -5
He's nowhere near 8th on the centerfield depth chart. Eh. Betts, Castillo, Cespedes, Shanf, Holt can all man it based on who's already there, so he could be sixth. Same difference. Fair enough, but there's no way in hell that I'd call Cespedes a CF option any more than I'd want to put Nava there.
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Post by soxfan1615 on Nov 27, 2014 12:49:35 GMT -5
Eh. Betts, Castillo, Cespedes, Shanf, Holt can all man it based on who's already there, so he could be sixth. Same difference. Fair enough, but there's no way in hell that I'd call Cespedes a CF option any more than I'd want to put Nava there. Still, if Castillo goes down, we can play Mookie in CF, and play one of our many corner OFs in right
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