%$#@& Rookies

[devilalum]

These guys may all be stars someday but they're killing us now.

Young, Drew and CoJack are all flirting with the Mendoza line and Young lacks concentration in the field. You just can't have this many young players starting and expect to win a division. If the goal is to let these guys take their lumps fine but they are going to loose us a lot more games than they win this year.

 

[KingLouieLouie]

These guys may all be stars someday but they're killing us now.

Young, Drew and CoJack are all flirting with the Mendoza line and Young lacks concentration in the field. You just can't have this many young players starting and expect to win a division. If the goal is to let these guys take their lumps fine but they are going to loose us a lot more games than they win this year.

I hate to sound like a broken record...broken record.. broken record, however, I wouldn't blame the players at this stage. It's again their inept manager batting all of them out of place.

Stephen Drew isn't suited for the lead-off spot. He's not the type who will take several pitches and does not have the speed. Ideally, Drew should be hitting #3 or perhaps as low as #7. Then, CoJack shouldn't be close to #4 or #5 in the order.

However, it's too premature to judge. I'd rather have these players establish themselves at the ML level rather than having a bunch of rejects/has-beens, but again if anyone can ruin them..that is Melvin and I am afraid we're beginning to witness that firsthand.

 

[Espo]

These guys may all be stars someday but they're killing us now.

Young, Drew and CoJack are all flirting with the Mendoza line and Young lacks concentration in the field. You just can't have this many young players starting and expect to win a division. If the goal is to let these guys take their lumps fine but they are going to loose us a lot more games than they win this year.

Step back from the ledge. This team is 10-7, off to one of its best starts in years and you are freaking out. You can't judge these guys on 40 to 50 at bats when they will finish the year with 500 to 600 abs. They are winning even with the young guys not hitting well just imagine when they do start hitting. Young, and I can say from watching him for a full season, is one of the best defensive center field prospects in years. He can cover more ground and make more plays then any guy I have seen. As for CoJack he led the team in batting average last year and is a great on base percentage guy. Drew is batting in a spot in the lineup he never has before.
Also I would much rather have a young team with lots of potential then a team like the last four years who has a bloated salary full of has been crappy overrated players.
Give these guys sometime, you won't be disappointed.

 

[coyoteshockeyfan]

Way too early to be smashing the panic button, especially since the team has been winning more often than not.

 

[Lefty]

Everyone should of expected a bumpy ride but let's hope they grow up really quick.

 

[Diamondback Jay]

These guys may all be stars someday but they're killing us now.

Young, Drew and CoJack are all flirting with the Mendoza line and Young lacks concentration in the field. You just can't have this many young players starting and expect to win a division. If the goal is to let these guys take their lumps fine but they are going to loose us a lot more games than they win this year.

........... and the team is 10-7, within breathing distance of first, Young and CoJack have started to show signs of life in the last handful of games, and Drew's certain to step it up very soon.

Your making a mountain out of a molehill here. Sorry, but I'd rather see the young kids grow in to their wings and struggle a bit rather than seeing them landblocked by veterans that might help the team win right away, but would do nothing for them long term.

 

[AZZenny]

We're not going past round 1 of the playoffs anyhow -- if that far -- as long as is the manager, so relax. I just hope Kirk Gibson can counteract BM's blase, namby-pamby style so our youngsters don't get ruined. When I heard the fricking batting coach was trying to get Conor to be more aggressive and less selective, I almost had a stroke.

 

[coyoteshockeyfan]

We're not going past round 1 of the playoffs anyhow -- if that far -- as long as is the manager, so relax. I just hope Kirk Gibson can counteract BM's blase, namby-pamby style so our youngsters don't get ruined. When I heard the fricking batting coach was trying to get Conor to be more aggressive and less selective, I almost had a stroke.

Zenny, nice to see you on the Dbacks board again. Stop by more often

 

[green machine]

I'm perfectly fine with the young guys not playing well but gaining valuable experience as long as the team sticks with their current plan.

 

[devilfan02]

I'll echo nealry everyone- it's too early to bag on the young guys. Give them some time, we're only 17 games into a 152 game season.

I do agree that Drew is not leadoff material. He doesn't even really fit the description of a leadoff man. He either needs to bat 2-3 or 6-7 but definitely not lead off.

Mental errors like the ones Chris Young made cannot and should not be tolerated. I don't care how much MLB experience he has, anyone on this board could have caught that ball with ease.

As the year goes on, the young guys should get settled at the plate, their defense should improve, and I really hope their baserunning improves

 

[green machine]

I'll echo nealry everyone- it's too early to bag on the young guys. Give them some time, we're only 17 games into a 152 game season.

I do agree that Drew is not leadoff material. He doesn't even really fit the description of a leadoff man. He either needs to bat 2-3 or 6-7 but definitely not lead off.

Mental errors like the ones Chris Young made cannot and should not be tolerated. I don't care how much MLB experience he has, anyone on this board could have caught that ball with ease.

As the year goes on, the young guys should get settled at the plate, their defense should improve, and I really hope their baserunning improves

Sadly the managing will not improve...

 

[HooverDam]

I was not/am not expecting the Dbacks to finish much above .500, so Im not disappointed at all with how things are going. I dont care if the Dbacks lose a giant amount of games this year, just as long as the young guys get time and learn.

As Adam Corolla always complains, most every baseball team ends up in the neighborhood of .500, so its no big deal.

 

[devilalum]

Take out the Nats series and we're 6-7 which is just about right.

I was just responding to all the hype about us being a contender THIS YEAR. I just don't see it happening with so many young players needing to make major contributions.

 

[BC867]

Drew is batting in a spot in the lineup he never has before.

That's the point. A good Manager recognizes the skills of his ballplayers, uses them wisely and helps them build confidence at the Major League level.

You wouldn't bring up a Catcher and play him at Shortstop. You shouldn't bring up a middle to lower part of the lineup guy and bat him leadoff.

"Drew is batting in a spot in the lineup he never has before" is not a defense of Melvin. It's an example of his incompetence.

 

[diamondbacker]

The point is, even with some dismal starts by key players, we're still 10-7. Once they heat up, you could see an even better team.

 

[coyoteshockeyfan]

Drew does have some experience in batting leadoff from his career in college and the minors. A lot of times it works that way where when a team brings up a stud prospect they don't play him in the same spot in the lineup. The classic case is when a team calls up their top guy who has largely batted 3rd or 4th in his career the team isn't going to supplant their current cleanup guy for a rookie so the prospect ends up batting either much lower or much higher in the lineup than what they are used to. It happens all the time so saying that such an approach ruins prospects is pretty melodramatic.

 

[devilalum]

Still drinkin the koolaide?

Hudson and Byrnes are the only players on this team doing anything.

The rookies were 2-15 against freakin ORTIZ!?!?!?

 

[Diamondback Jay]

It's April.. Relax.

 

[BC867]

... when a team brings up a stud prospect they don't play him in the same spot in the lineup. The classic case is when a team calls up their top guy who has largely batted 3rd or 4th in his career the team isn't going to supplant their current cleanup guy for a rookie ...

A good leadoff hitter can make the rest of the lineup better. Case in point -- Craig Counsell.

Batting leadoff, and its expectations, can put alot of pressure on a young player.

Brynes at leadoff (with the extra benefit of occasional power) and Hudson batting second would seem to be our best combination. It certainly sets a tone for the rest of the game, every game.

 

[coyoteshockeyfan]

So who's batting 3rd and 4th if your (current) two best hitters on the team are batting 1st and 2nd?

 

[BC867]

So who's batting 3rd and 4th if your (current) two best hitters on the team are batting 1st and 2nd?

Without a legitimate power hitter starting, the most balanced lineup would probably be Tracy 3rd (if he adjusts to trying for gappers instead of homers) and, when he's ready, Quenton cleanup.

Until then I would give Tony Clark the 1B job and bat him cleanup. I believe he can do what he did two years ago, and be a very valuable commodity until the Baby-backs come around.

I also believe that Conor Jackson and Chad Tracy are redundant, and one of them should be moved. OBP, or potential OBP, hitters whose fielding are mediocre. OBP does not drive in runs.

One of them should be at 1B, the other should be gone.

It's too bad we didn't make a pitch for A-Rod when he was the least popular player in NY. Now he's on fire.

 

[devilalum]

It's April.. Relax.

I hope they turn it around and every can call me Chicken Little.
Its just that I've never believed that this team could do much this year with so many young players.

Getting smoked by Ortiz turned my stomach.

 

[KingLouieLouie]

This would be the ideal line-up for the Dbacks

1) Young-CF
2) Drew-SS
3) Tracy-3B
4) Quentin-RF
5) Byrnes-RF
6) Jackson-1B
7) Hudson-2B
8) Montero/Snyder-C

Young still to me can be the next Rickey Henderson or Tim "Rock" Raines. He did walk quite a bit in the minors and pitchers are forced to pitch around him because they must respect his power-hitting abilities. He would work the count better than anyone in the line-up.

Drew is being taken out of his element at lead-off. He is very fundamentally sound though w/the bat and would be perfect to have him bat 2nd because they could employ the hit-and-run that I believe Drew could execute with the best of them.

Tracy batting 3rd would understand again to spray the ball. He knows he would be a table-setter for the mid-part of the order. Therefore, he won't attempt to pull as much as he has.

Quentin is the only natural pull-hitter on the team. He doesn't have to force himself to pull, this is what he was born for, to be a pure clean-up ML hitter.

Byrnes is the only other true power source and would force the opposing pitchers to not want to pitch around Quentin. We all know what happened when the Padres intentionally walked Drew to get to Byrnes. It would now be to pick their poison w/the 2 most feared power hitters in the Dbacks line-up.

Jackson shouldn't be anywhere higher than #6 since he can feel more comfortable and wouldn't feel if as though he would have to compromise himself. Batting clean-up, he does develop that pull-only mentality. Batting him higher than clean-up he believes he must take more pitches. #6 doesn't cause any pressure on him. He can approach each AB according to what the situation dictates.

I know Hudson is the hottest hitter on the team, but we all remember his stats at #7 last year? It was staggering. Plus, the Dbacks need someone who can get on base with consistency lower in the order and Hudson would do just that.

Montero could bat higher than #8 with his power potential, but for now he must harness that. Mark Grace is correct on his assessment of Snyder.

Anyways, I still cannot figure out... Montero hits his 1st ML homer... that warranted him a start the following day, but instead of rewarding the player and building some momentum, Melvin insists on starting Snyder instead. Then, when Clark had a 2 HR game, Melvin doesn't ride the hot hand, he places in CoJack who has been pressing more than anyone in the line-up, that doesn't make make sense whatsoever.

Tracy will be dealt some time before the season is over with. They don't necessarily need to get a 3B in exchange. Callaspo could easily become the every day 3B. Plus, what if D'Antona continues to rake the ball in Tucson. The thought of him starting at 3B intrigues me. He still is relatively young and has lots of power. He obviously was equally regarded as Quentin and CoJack, but for some reason his production tapered off. Now though it seems he's reverted back to his former ways... I see him promoted some time in June if he continues to produce at his current clip.

 

[Diamondback Jay]

I hope they turn it around and every can call me Chicken Little.
Its just that I've never believed that this team could do much this year with so many young players.

Getting smoked by Ortiz turned my stomach.

I do get your concern in many cases.

I don't think Drew should be batting Leadoff, whereas I see Young as the leadoff hitter the team needs. He's got that leadoff speed to where he's more than capable of stealing 40.

It'll come though. I HOPE Melvin has enough common sense to eventually realize these things and make neccessary changes.

 

[coyoteshockeyfan]

I have faith he'll eventually turn it around, but its hard to swipe 40 bags if you aren't getting on base.