Originally Posted by DJ's left nut:
Eh - the appear to have finally gotten it through their idiot skulls that extending Goldschmidt is a horrifying idea.
If they're smart, he's playing 1b in Memphis everyday to prepare him for 2025. And if they do that and let him focus on hitting, he'll be a strong player for them.
But they're very stupid. So they'll probably have him playing 3b or something. Maybe CF.
Goldschmidt is a slow starter. When he starts carrying the team in June/July the fears of extending him will subside. Mozeliak will extend him like he did every other 38 year old career Cardinal. Then he'll get a jump on trading Walker and send him to the Mets or some shit for Drew Gilbert. [Reply]
Originally Posted by jd1020:
Goldschmidt is a slow starter. When he starts carrying the team in June/July the fears of extending him with subside. Mozeliak will extend him like he did every other 38 year old career Cardinal. Then he'll get a jump on trading Walker and send him to the Mets or some shit for Drew Gilbert.
Good point. By the time July rolls around and they're already 12 games back in the WC he'll write Goldy a check for his senior years. [Reply]
What should worry you is that this is a statement of how little respect there is for the Cardinals leadership throughout MLB.
So it means that when you're dealing with them, you treat them like your idiot nephew and offer him 3 beads for his Snickers bar because you know there's a chance he might say yes. And because he IS your idiot nephew, he probably will. After he gets that 4th bead out of you and you 'reluctantly' pull the trigger.
But ultimately I can't imagine this is anything DeWitt doesn't already know. He has to see that these guys fucking suck at building a baseball team.
Originally Posted by raybec 4: https://www.baseball-reference.com/b...02404230.shtml
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Start Time: 6:45 p.m. Local
Attendance: 32,875
Venue: Busch Stadium III
Game Duration: 2:37
Night Game, on grass
Announced attendance -32,875 There's no way that's even close.
I'd be surprised if that's 14,000.
The good news, to whatever extent they still care, is that the Cardinals know exactly how many came through the turnstiles.
The message is being delivered. It's just a question as to whether or not DeWitt is willing to listen to it at all. [Reply]
Originally Posted by BigRedChief:
Should have made him stay down last year and not promote him until he changes his swing to get some lift. It’s in his own damn interest's.
Fangraphs has his barrel rate at 11.9%, launch angle at 12.8 and fly ball at 45.2%.
He still hits too many ground balls, but what's sinking his performance is his dismal 4.8% line drive rate that will eventually normalize.
He's only 21 and had a wRC+ of 116 in a meh rookie year. Nobody with any smarts in the industry is writing him off. [Reply]
But also...why is anyone braving that cesspool downtown with a family to see this team? $60 parking to avoid some of it, but then you're paying 60 to park to see this trash team. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Ocotillo:
Fangraphs has his barrel rate at 11.9%, launch angle at 12.8 and fly ball at 45.2%.
He still hits too many ground balls, but what's sinking his performance is his dismal 4.8% line drive rate that will eventually normalize.
He's only 21 and had a wRC+ of 116 in a meh rookie year. Nobody with any smarts in the industry is writing him off.
What's sinking him is he can't hit a single pitch right now. He's got a 42% K rate against 4 seam fastballs.
No one is writing him off, but until he actually listens to some approach advice, he won't amount to shit as a 1B/DH that doesnt hit for power. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Ocotillo:
Fangraphs has his barrel rate at 11.9%, launch angle at 12.8 and fly ball at 45.2%.
He still hits too many ground balls, but what's sinking his performance is his dismal 4.8% line drive rate that will eventually normalize.
He's only 21 and had a wRC+ of 116 in a meh rookie year. Nobody with any smarts in the industry is writing him off.
The poor line drive rate isn't an accident.
He pulls off everything. So his timing has to be perfect to drive a ball and even then he's not getting his lower half into it so it'll be a struck liner into RC field.
He leaves almost his entire pull potential on the table because his mechanics are a damn trainwreck. His top and bottom half couldn't be any more out of whack if he tried.
No, that's not something you just wait on regression to fix.
He had to be sent down. And they HAVE to take a more direct approach with him. If that means burying his ass in AA until he gives you a 100 PA rolling average with a groundball rate below 35% then so be it. You absolutely cannot bring him back up until he demonstrates fundamental changes in his approach.
This isn't tenable long-term. You can't take a guy with truly top 5% raw power, quick hands and a solid batting eye and say "Well...Casey Kotchman wasn't a bad player...."
They've already missed a window to trade him and let someone else do the spadework. The possibility of dealing him for someone like Kirby was last spring when he gave you the bird the first time you asked him to do it. Now you have no choice but to pull out the paddle, try some tough love and go full on 'Checkers or Wreckers' with him. You develop him into a star or you end up non-tendering him in 4 seasons.