Wright State - Opening Weekend

[Squints]

Maxwell was as expected. Wild but effective (effectively wild?), but after today I’m definitely still not sold on him starting. Just seems like his stuff and track record plays much better out of the pen, but we’ll see. Siegal dominated his innings, kept them off balance and pounded the zone with fastballs and off speed. Hill was not great. He was around the zone but was fooling nobody. I had to leave after his inning but caught a few ABs here and there on the stream.

The hitters looked a lot more comfortable the plate today. Even outs had much better swings behind them. Not going to hit 5 homers everyday, but just about everything put in play was hit hard which is about all you can ask for. Not even so much about the run and hit totals, but just the overall approaches at the plate and swinging to do damage is what I will expect out of this lineup all year. There’s going to be games where everything finds a glove, today was not one of those days. Even against a really good staff we would’ve put up some numbers if we hit like we did today.

Defense was solid. Not really any misplays that I saw, but nothing spectacular either.

Win 2 games every weekend and we’ll sit pretty come June. Hoping for a sweep though. Been pretty decent crowds for both games so far, especially considering it’s early and the opponent. Probably the best opening weekend crowds in quite a while. Would really like to be 8-1 going into that UGA series and have a sold out Rusty C rocking as we take out the dawgs. I’ve noticed from the highlights I’ve seen that a lot of places are packing their stadiums out, or at least getting close to it. Mercer sold out their 2,000 seats on Friday. I want us to become intriguing enough again where sell outs aren’t really newsworthy and are just kind of expected.

100% agreed. And tbh I'm not sold on him being on the mound for any kind of high leverage innings. Particularly if the other guys on the staff step up and show to be reliable options. The stuff is absolutely tantalizing but there's been no signs he can harness it. 7 baserunners in 3 innings with 5 of them getting on via BB or HBP seems like more of the same. He'll keep getting opportunities and I really hope he can start locking it down because he could be a major weapon for us. But if this is what we're getting after a few weekends into conference play we gotta move him down the pecking order.

 

[jatchet]

The bunt was executed well but that's a horrendous strategic decision. You willingly give up one of only three outs you have remaining and take the bat out of your best hitter's hands when he would have come up in a RISP situation where that runner is the tying run. We keep making calls that like and it's going to cost us in close games at some point.

Absolutely not a "horrendous" decision. There is always a decent chance Simpson beats out a bunt. Bunt also reduces the chance of a strikeout or double play.

You make valid points, but they are less important than the tying run in the bottom of the 9th only being 90 feet and a routine fly ball away. You can dislike small ball, but being down 1 in the 9th is small ball time. 7th inning of a high scoring game, I would agree with you.

 

[Technicaljacket]

And There are plenty of players who have been part of the program that crow about the nepotism over the past 10 years

 

[Technicaljacket]

S

I'd be happy to roast you again if you'd like. We're doing this **** again after two games which is hysterical. The sample size isn't **** it's non-existent at this point.

Like I said last year if his last name wasn't Hall you wouldn't give a ****. Maybe in a month's time he'll be hitting under .200 and the conversation would make sense. But the way some of y'all are so eager to crow about nepotism before we're through the first weekend of season is ****ing weird.

That’s unreal of a reaponse, if his last name wasn’t XXXX he would not be starting, he would not be give the continued opportunities, game after game, year after year, getting a nod at cape cod for 2 years, Tres G should have started over him, some kids left the program because of him.

where did he get the hit that Ga Tech stats show Vs what Wright st shows?

 

[jatchet]

Hall was voted a team captain, worth noting.

 

[Technicaljacket]

Hall was voted a team captain, worth noting.

Secret ballot or everybody raise your hands either way can be manipulated and peer pressure is funny thing within team dynamics along with assistant coaches influence and very few players that have been there for the 5 + years , senior + players usually get the nod

 

[JacketOff]

S

That’s unreal of a reaponse, if his last name wasn’t XXXX he would not be starting, he would not be give the continued opportunities, game after game, year after year, getting a nod at cape cod for 2 years, Tres G should have started over him, some kids left the program because of him.

where did he get the hit that Ga Tech stats show Vs what Wright st shows?

Literally no one has left the program because of him lmao. What are you even talking about?

 

[New Old Guy]

Secret ballot or everybody raise your hands either way can be manipulated and peer pressure is funny thing within team dynamics along with assistant coaches influence and very few players that have been there for the 5 + years , senior + players usually get the nod

My first baseball forum “ignore”. Don’t know what some posters are trying to accomplish.

 

[FredJacket]

My first baseball forum “ignore”. Don’t know what some posters are trying to accomplish.

2 days in... We're 2-0. 25 runs scored. Tough being so good at baseball.

 

[MWBATL]

I was disappointed in Maxwell because he started the game so wild. BUT, I will admit he got things back under control for a stretch after that and dominated, then lost it again late in the 3rd inning.

Pitching after that was solid except for one guy.

 

[Squints]

I disagree, even with his speed you risk a double play there with a hard Grounder. It’s almost impossible for them to turn 2 with his speed from a bunt though. So even if they tried it would’ve likely been 1st and 3rd 1 out, and then he would’ve been able to steal 2nd. They would’ve let him steal 2nd cause you don’t risk a bad throw and letting runner from 3rd walk home. Parada was likely to bat with 2 on 1 out regardless.

You do run the risk of the double play but I would be comfortable taking that risk with Simpson at the plate. He's never grounded into a double play in his college career to this point so I'd roll the dice (https://www.thebaseballcube.com/page.asp?PT=player&ID=227064). If you end up in a 1st and 3rd situation with one out and Simpson on 1st you give him the red light all day every time. He steals second in that situation and they intentionally walk Parada because Parada scoring doesn't matter. You've taken the bat out of his hands in that situation as well.

But there's also the possibility he walks, gets a hit, or just makes an out. In that instance you've either tied the game or Parada has an opportunity to hit with RISP. That is what you want there with the game on the line every time.

 

[Squints]

Absolutely not a "horrendous" decision. There is always a decent chance Simpson beats out a bunt. Bunt also reduces the chance of a strikeout or double play.

You make valid points, but they are less important than the tying run in the bottom of the 9th only being 90 feet and a routine fly ball away. You can dislike small ball, but being down 1 in the 9th is small ball time. 7th inning of a high scoring game, I would agree with you.

I'm sorry but any time you take the bat out of the hands of your best player with the game on the line it's a horrendous strategic decision in my eyes. Not to mention Simpson is not a zero at the plate and could have gotten the job done himself or moved everyone along without giving himself up via hit or walk. I'm not against small ball as a rule but you can't just look at the score and inning to determine when it's time to employ it. You also have to look at your line up and anticipate what your opponent is going to do in that situation.

We played the what if game a bit earlier about a potential double play by Simpson so let's play here too. If Jenkins and Gonzalez don't get the job done there, which is a possibility, then we lose the game without even giving Parada the chance to affect the outcome there. That's a bad look and a very frustrating turn of events. I'm glad it worked out this time but I want Parada to be a factor there and he was completely neutralized. So we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

 

[jatchet]

"I'm not against small ball as a rule but you can't just look at the score and inning to determine when it's time to employ it."

What? You really mean that?

2 seconds left down 3 points... give it to Shaq down low. Don't take the ball out of his hands.

Final drive of the super bowl, 1/2 yard line, 4 pass plays, don't take the ball out of Brady's hands.

Bottom 9, down 1, 2 on, no out, fast runner at the plate who can bunt apparently... he has to swing cause the next guy might get walked.

 

[gtrower]

I'd be happy to roast you again if you'd like. We're doing this **** again after two games which is hysterical. The sample size isn't **** it's non-existent at this point.

Like I said last year if his last name wasn't Hall you wouldn't give a ****. Maybe in a month's time he'll be hitting under .200 and the conversation would make sense. But the way some of y'all are so eager to crow about nepotism before we're through the first weekend of season is ****ing weird.

.215 since the start of the 2020 season. What is a big enough sample size?

 

[jatchet]

.215 since the start of the 2020 season. What is a big enough sample size?

You know he had less at bats in '20 & '21 combined than in either of the previous 2 seasons on their own?

Those 2 seasons were 21.5% of his at bats.

 

[THWG]

.215 since the start of the 2020 season. What is a big enough sample size?

In his 2 full seasons, he hit .283 and .307. Hall always starts out slow and then gets it going.

 

[thecrowdedbooth]

 

[GTNavyNuke]

In his 2 full seasons, he hit .283 and .307. Hall always starts out slow and then gets it going.

So we should play him later in the season?

I don't have a keyboard and don't like typing with one finger ( I'm old). So I'll keep it brief.

Hall is a good defender. He handles fly balls well, not so much ground balls. But his bat is A liability the last two years. Going back further than that before his injuries is less valid than the past two years.

 

[GTNavyNuke]

Concerning Maxwell, I watched him warm up and pitch. The only time he had consistent control was the second. He didn't in warm ups. The balls in the game were usually way out of the zone.

So imho, he should be in low risk situations like middle reliever. At least till he gets the control which has eluded him in our seasons and Cape Cod.

He'll get drafted based on potential alone. But winning games for GT should come before his development in higher risk situations.

 

[randerto]

No.

And no.