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Search for hitting coach (10/19 update: Chilli Davis hired)
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Post by larrycook on Oct 13, 2014 21:31:36 GMT -5
“@peteabe: #RedSox do have an interest in former #Yankees coach Kevin Long.” Why exactly?
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Post by sarasoxer on Oct 14, 2014 10:07:42 GMT -5
“@peteabe: #RedSox do have an interest in former #Yankees coach Kevin Long.” Why exactly? I know that you are being facetious..... but in obvious answer, because he has been a long-time hitting coach, has something of a reputation in the "biz", worked for the Yankees (so he must be good), is a "good-guy", etc. and the Sox may feel that he was made the scapegoat for the Yankee offensive decline. The Yankee team averages have steadily gone down during his tenure but so have averages across baseball. What is clear is that he has not performed any miracles which leads me back to 'what can realistically be expected from a (any) ML hitting coach'? Who were the outstanding ones by consensus historically? I think of Charley Lau and Walt Hriniak. I would like to turn away from the lifer, retread types and get someone very advanced on all levels who doesn't have "to know his place" and is not afraid to interject with a player. I keep going back to golf and the myriad of instructors, articles and videos on the golf swing...how to hit it left or right, eliminating this or that fault. That is the type of guy I want coaching at the ML level.
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Post by grandsalami on Oct 15, 2014 13:27:22 GMT -5
The Red Sox apparently will pick their hitting coach from a group of five due to be interviewed: ex-Red Sox All-Star Rich Gedman, Red Sox hitting coordinator Tim Hyers, Angels hitting coordinator Paul Sorrento, ex-Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long and former batting title winner Bill Mueller, the ex-Cubs hitting coach. The Red Sox may have some interest in Chili Davis, the well-regarded A's hitting coach who's on the Yankees' radar, but at the moment appear to be discouraged by a contract believed to go until Nov. 1. It's possible he could get back into the mix if none of the five currently in the running pans out www.cbssports.com/mlb/writer/jon-heyman/24753371/red-sox-have-five-hitting-coach-candidates-mueller-gedman-on-list
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Post by moonstone2 on Oct 15, 2014 19:49:30 GMT -5
“@peteabe: #RedSox do have an interest in former #Yankees coach Kevin Long.” Why exactly? Long is widely credited from turning Curtis Granderson from a mediocre platoon CF to a 30+ homer powerhouse and for turning around Nick Swisher's career which appeared like it might be over at the time he joined the Yankees. He is the only one of the candidates who has written a book. www.amazon.com/Cage-Rat-Lessons-Baseball-Yankees/dp/0061994995I do wonder why Victor Rodriguez isn't being interviewed after doing everything that was asked of him by the organization for 18 years and being the #2 in 2013 and 2014.
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Post by James Dunne on Oct 15, 2014 20:03:24 GMT -5
The cynic in me can't help but think the only reason Long got a book contract was his association with the Yankees. Had he fixed Granderson while with the Tigers he'd be just another hitting coach.
Really, he's just the most famous recent example of the hitting coach getting too much credit when the team hits and then too much blame when it doesn't. The stuff with fixing Granderson's swing was legit, but mostly he just had a lot of great hitters in 2009 and a bunch of crummy ones in 2014.
EDIT: Just saw this:
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Post by moonstone2 on Oct 15, 2014 20:08:20 GMT -5
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Post by James Dunne on Oct 15, 2014 20:15:16 GMT -5
Interesting stuff, thanks for the link. I think he underplays how much Granderson closing his stance seemed to quicken his load, but the overall case is very compelling.
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Post by grandsalami on Oct 15, 2014 23:13:55 GMT -5
I assume we know our hitting coach by end of WS
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Post by Oregon Norm on Oct 16, 2014 0:19:22 GMT -5
Interesting stuff, thanks for the link. I think he underplays how much Granderson closing his stance seemed to quicken his load, but the overall case is very compelling. Good stuff. There's even more to it. Overlaying the HRs from Yankee stadium onto Comerica misses the point. That's because many of those HRs go farther in NY than they would in Detroit. Not only are those stands nearer, but the winds can catch balls and float them out there, so what might have been a flyball 10' in front of the fence in a different park, makes it over the rightfield wall. This was a hot topic of discussion after the first few years of the park's existence. The current HR factor for the Stadium provides lots of circumstantial evidence.
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Post by grandsalami on Oct 16, 2014 18:17:56 GMT -5
Susan Slusser ?@susanslusser 5s5 seconds ago
Chili Davis tells me he interviewed with the #Yankees today and he will interview for the #RedSox hitting coach job tomorrow. #Athletics
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Post by philsbosoxfan on Oct 19, 2014 3:28:35 GMT -5
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Post by vermontsox1 on Oct 19, 2014 17:15:09 GMT -5
Per Rob Bradford, Chili Davis hired as Sox hitting coach.
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Post by grandsalami on Oct 19, 2014 18:08:37 GMT -5
I'm on my phone. Can the mods edit the title?
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Post by grandsalami on Oct 19, 2014 21:31:09 GMT -5
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Post by moonstone2 on Oct 19, 2014 21:37:17 GMT -5
Isn't that just the typical Nick Cafardo article? Nick starts by assuming his argument cobbling together a few quotes to make his argument and voila. Wouldn't it just be better to have the evidence lead your argument as opposed to trying to have your argument lead your evidence?
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Post by moonstone2 on Oct 19, 2014 21:38:11 GMT -5
I think Victor is getting a raw deal.
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Post by redsox4242 on Oct 20, 2014 8:56:44 GMT -5
Not sure how i feel about this, the Athletics Offense struggled this year. Was Davis our guy?
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Post by cologneredsox on Oct 20, 2014 9:02:55 GMT -5
Not sure how i feel about this, the Athletics Offense struggled this year. Was Davis our guy? They struggled after the break. Before, they were one of the best hitting teams, if I remember it right...
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Post by Chris Hatfield on Oct 20, 2014 9:42:11 GMT -5
Not sure how i feel about this, the Athletics Offense struggled this year. Was Davis our guy? Immaterial. Process, methods, resume, attitude, etc. all far more important than one half season of data.
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Post by redsox4242 on Oct 20, 2014 10:24:49 GMT -5
Not sure how i feel about this, the Athletics Offense struggled this year. Was Davis our guy? They struggled after the break. Before, they were one of the best hitting teams, if I remember it right... Your right, and after they traded their best hitter they were the worst hitting team in the 2nd half. All in all its a solid hire. You can't really blame a hitting coach, its the players who have to produce.
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nomar
Veteran
Posts: 10,824
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Post by nomar on Oct 20, 2014 10:37:45 GMT -5
Cespedes wasn't even close to their best hitter. Moss, Norris, Donaldson, Jaso, and Vogt all had better first halves than Cespedes offensively. It was more the fact that all those guys besides Donaldson hit over their heads in the first half and hit slumps in the second half.
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Post by raftsox on Oct 20, 2014 11:30:06 GMT -5
...I keep going back to golf and the myriad of instructors, articles and videos on the golf swing...how to hit it left or right, eliminating this or that fault. That is the type of guy I want coaching at the ML level. I get what you're trying to say: a hitting coach who understands mechanics, swing path, point of contact, uses a kinesiological training method, etc. But I don't think the golf analogy is appropriate. In golf, the ball is not working against you; it's only your swing, the club and the terrain that work against you. In baseball the pitcher is effecting the ball differently with every single pitch in an effort to make the hitter miss or hit poorly. In golf the ball is stationary whereas in baseball you need to match the velocity of your swing to the velocity of the ball in order to not lead or lag the ball too much. Feet are generally stationary in golf, etc. Like I said: I think I get what your saying, but I'm reading the analogy very literally and I find too many flaws with it for it to make sense.
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Post by James Dunne on Oct 20, 2014 11:56:39 GMT -5
Chili Davis's homer was the only hit off Pedro in that 17 K game at Yankee Stadium in September 1999.
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Post by sarasoxer on Oct 20, 2014 12:41:32 GMT -5
...I keep going back to golf and the myriad of instructors, articles and videos on the golf swing...how to hit it left or right, eliminating this or that fault. That is the type of guy I want coaching at the ML level. I get what you're trying to say: a hitting coach who understands mechanics, swing path, point of contact, uses a kinesiological training method, etc. But I don't think the golf analogy is appropriate. In golf, the ball is not working against you; it's only your swing, the club and the terrain that work against you. In baseball the pitcher is effecting the ball differently with every single pitch in an effort to make the hitter miss or hit poorly. In golf the ball is stationary whereas in baseball you need to match the velocity of your swing to the velocity of the ball in order to not lead or lag the ball too much. Feet are generally stationary in golf, etc. Like I said: I think I get what your saying, but I'm reading the analogy very literally and I find too many flaws with it for it to make sense. Well I don't care if one uses golf, football, tennis on ad infinitum. Baseball has been the last of the major sports to incorporate change .....across the board. It has much nostalgia and a time-honored appeal that has, at least in part, been an anchor to trying new things. Of course now we have sabermetrics to the power of ten. I want the best, most knowledgeable, most technically advanced etc. instructors that I can get. There must be some of those guys, on the periphery perhaps, that can help us gain an advantage.
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steveofbradenton
Veteran
Watching Spring Training, the FCL, and the Florida State League
Posts: 1,826
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Post by steveofbradenton on Oct 20, 2014 13:49:14 GMT -5
I really believe we will see hitters, as early as next season, smarten up. The whole "shift" idea was genius, but as in football a new offensive concept can be impossible to stop well for a year or 2, but defenses eventually figure out how to attack it. Smart baseball people who insist the hitters they employ will start going "the other way". I would not be surprised if our kids in the minors are being pushed to use the opposite field even more than usual now. Everyone has heard the definition of insanity and continually hitting into a shift every time is just that. Now I see it, to some degree, with Ortiz. I don't see it with Xander, Bradley, or Middlebrooks. I don't see it with anyone that is not a potential 30+ homer bat. It will happen. Eventually hitters will get some brains. Because lets face it, free agents who hit .220 with 15 homers don't look that sexy in uniform. Free agents are already feeling the pinch in some ways. Teams are starting to steer away from longer term contracts. This hitters better start putting up better OBP and OPS if they want that long term security. Say no to players who hit below .250, have OBP of less than .320, and create few opportunities for their team to actually score because they are so hard-headed. Yes....Cespedes.....this was partially written for your benefit. We need players who put the ball in play, go the other way (once in a while), and can get on base at a reasonable clip. Oh......and by the way.....watching the Royals and Giants.....we need players who can play D. Now lets see, where can we shop Cespedes?
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