It’s no secret, David Wright is struggling. He’s striking out a ton and has left the population of a small town on base. His at bats have been painful to watch at times. I love him in the field, but I’m not confident when he has the bat in his hands. Now granted, we are still in April but this trend seems to have continued from last year. I’m trying to put my finger on it so I came up with several explanations…hey I could be wrong but  you tell me!
1. David is still feeling the affects of last years Beaning. He won’t dig in.
2. He’s still pressing, especially with men on base. I don’t know why because now he actually has healthy hitters around him but I could swear I see the saw dust being squeezed out of the bat when he’s standing in the box
3. Maybe, just maybe- he isn’t that good to begin with. He might have come down to earth after the his first three seasons. I really hope I’m wrong on this oneÂ
4. David is trying to be something he’s not….like a home run hitter. That home run derby did it to him years ago. He hasn’t been the same since.
5. Citi Field is in his head. I really don’t think so.
6. It’s too early yet, it’s just a slump. I really hope so.Â
Now let me pose another question: Whose job is it to fix Wright? In my opinion, it must be Howard Johnson. He is the Hitting Coach right? If he can’t, what is he doing in the dugout? I think no matter what excuse you can come up with that either I listed above OR you come up with at home it is the job of the Hitting Coach to find out what it is and FIX IT! If Hojo can’t find the flaw in Wright’s swing or stance than the question created is: Has  Howard Johnson lost his ability to coach in the Majors? Â
If you think I’m wrong, what do you think the problem is with David Wright and what do you think can help him?
 Thoughts?
102 comments
njstuckintx
4/27/2010-9:16am at 9:16 am (UTC -4)
Some meat and potatoes to discuss this morning. Nice.
I think it is still residual beaning and the thought that he needs to jack homers to be productive. He needs to have the mantra (in several languages so he can multi-task with some language learning!) HIT THE BALL BACK THROUGH THE BOX OR TAKE IT TO RIGHT FIELD. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO PULL THE BALL EVERY TIME. YOUR DOOR IS A JAR. Well, maybe not that last part, unless, of course, it is.
trs86
4/27/2010-9:28am at 9:28 am (UTC -4)
So a guy who hit .309 with RISP last year with a terrible lineup is still pressing from last year? He hit .317 with runners on last season. .313 with a runner on 3rd, .400 with runners on 1st and 2nd. Hit .331 in high leverage situations, a stat invented by those who preach clutch.
The guy has hit over .300 his entire life, it has not just suddenly became a .200 hitter from now on. Give him time.
njstuckintx
4/27/2010-9:32am at 9:32 am (UTC -4)
Plus his walks are still up there. Not saying he’s Mark Reynolds, but Reynolds stikes out a ton and still puts up fantastic stats. Wright’s OBP is still doing ok last I checked.
Now, I wish he would attempt to get the all time record for doubles by putting that ball into right center time after time. I’ve no issue with Mr. Wright otherwise else.
Kingman 26
4/27/2010-9:42am at 9:42 am (UTC -4)
Like last year, he is pressing in an anemic lineup.
And he had four great years behind him, not three.
And he hit and got on base last year; the HR and Ks were clearly due to trying way too hard to make up for a lineup of second-tier mediocrities.
Wright is being pitched around, as his walks show, and is pressing when he does get that pitch near the strike zone.
stickguy
4/27/2010-9:48am at 9:48 am (UTC -4)
I should stay out of this topic, otherwise TRS will yell at me again.
stickguy
4/27/2010-10:11am at 10:11 am (UTC -4)
OK, I will play.
I think it is a combination of factors. I pick all the tinkering with his stance/swing as a problem, especially since he seems to not have it all worked out, and is making constant sdjustments.
And I bet a lot of that comes from trying to become a HR hitter that he really isn’t (and never was). So, instead of driving pitches all over, he sells out and takes the big uppercut pull hack trying to get it over the LF wall.
I also put stock into the pressing idea. He seems to put a lot of pressure on himself, and that often manifests itself into trying too hard in big spots. Frankly, you are almost better off with a guy like Manny, that doesn’t seem to care all that much!
I don’t particularly care if Wright only hits 20-25 HRs a year, if he is OPSing at .900+, and driving in a ton of runs with long doubles.
I also said that ultimately he might be best suited to hitting in the 2 hole, and I still think that is the case.
I also think at some point he will find something that feels comfortable, and just get into a little groove of a hot streak. And when he does, hopefully he relaxes and it lasts for a while!
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-10:28am at 10:28 am (UTC -4)
IMO, some good points on Wright. I agree with many of them.
Not sure about DWright batting second, or more to the point – how weird would it be having Wright 2nd, Reyes 3rd?
When/if Beltran returns, and especially if Wright is still struggling, I’d like to see what he could do batting 2nd. Problem will be if he still continues to struggle probably can’t wait until Beltran returns to give it a try.
stickguy
4/27/2010-10:53am at 10:53 am (UTC -4)
I honestly don’t think we will see Beltran back. At least not this year.
I know you speculated he had more work done than reported. THere is a thread over at FWICG about Betran being MIA, and a number of posters seem to agree with you, thinking he had microfracture surgery and they just haven’t announced it. I doubt that though.
ceetar
4/27/2010-10:56am at 10:56 am (UTC -4)
I’m tired of the conspiracy (fueled by will carroll), and I’m tired of talking about Beltran. when we know more, we’ll know more. But it really just seems like the orginal cause of the injuries last year has not gone away fully yet, and they feel letting them heal completely is the most prudent thing for his long term health.
stickguy
4/27/2010-11:01am at 11:01 am (UTC -4)
The last sentence is why I don’t think we wil lbe seeing him back this year.
And if he misses the entire year with this kind of chronic injury, hard to expect much time on the field or performance next year either!
Kingman 26
4/27/2010-11:58am at 11:58 am (UTC -4)
Beltran will sit out most or all of the year, as Boras has unquestionably suggested that he do.
He will come back healthy, hustling, and sliding into home next year when he will be playing for another $100 mil contract.
Mark it down.
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-2:51pm at 2:51 pm (UTC -4)
I don’t think he had that extensive a surgery – microfracture…..just speculating that it wasn’t the simple type ‘clean up’ surgery others like Lidge had.
I can’t imagine that type of knee ‘clean up’ would have him not working his way back by now. Either he had a little more extensive work done, or that bone bruise from last year is still a concern. –Is my guess.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-10:13am at 10:13 am (UTC -4)
I believe it’s really a combination of a lot of things. For one I’m pretty sure he’s pressing. How can you not press given the circumstances? I also think he has changed his approach at the plate to be more aggressive and power driven. You can clearly see that when he strikes out with 3-4 pithes rather than a hitter that he was before when his at bat started with two strikes (well.. you know what I mean). Finally I think he’s just not evolving as the pitchers are making adjustments to him. I partly blame HoJo and the coaching staff for it.
oleosmirf
4/27/2010-10:22am at 10:22 am (UTC -4)
i’ve always believed Howard Johnson has been a bad hitting coach. Seems like every since Rick Down left as hitting coach, Beltran, Wright and Reyes haven’t been the same.
While injuries to beltran and Reyes are probably the main reason, I just feel like David would be better with someone else. It could be just coincidence but I think HoJo needs to go
I remember Gary saying like HoJo had problems throwing the ball the 1B too and Keith responded by saying well maybe thats why Wright is having problems…Maybe he’s onto something…
trs86
4/27/2010-11:14am at 11:14 am (UTC -4)
Looking at fangraphs, David Wright can’t hit an offspead pitch to save his live right now. Which most likely speaks to pitch recognition and mechanics. Thus because of this pitchers are throwing him a career high % of off-speed pitches. So far pitchers are throwing him 8% less FB and 4% more each of sliders and curves. He has negative contact numbers on every offspeed pitch but still has a positive on fastballs.
Also, lets stop this myth that he is just going up hacking and seeing less pitches. In 2008 he averaged 3.98 pitches per PA, 2009 4.14, 2010 4.45. So based on that he’s actually seeing more pitches.
GravediggerHebner
4/27/2010-11:17am at 11:17 am (UTC -4)
His best power years occurred when he was at best a secondary, and possibly a tertiary or quaduciary (OK I made that last one up) option for power from the lineup.
He’s a very good player, among the best hitters this organization has developed in it’s history, but he’s not a great player. He needs to be surrounded by hitters who are at worst productive and at best feared. Right now he has neither. Hopefully being the meat in a Bay/Davis sandwich will work out for him, but Bay needs to start holding up his end of that bargain. Currently the sandwich is open-faced and the bottom slice of bread hasn’t had enough time to show whether it will be productive let alone feared. This will take time.
I’m sure the beaning didn’t help. I seem to recall him flinching on some devastating curve balls, which of course appear to be coming right at him before spinning away. Could be lingering effects.
Possibly related, MLB Network did a breakdown of Jake Peavy in trying to discover why he’s stunk so badly so far this season and they concluded that he’s flinching after releasing every pitch after being hit or nearly hit by multiple line drives both last season and this spring training. After the commentators mentioned it then showed video of his motion before and after it was pretty apparent that when he releases a pitch now he basically cowers. So it’s certainly possible Wright is suffering a similar effect.
How to get over that? I don’t know. 15 years ago I had a terrible car accident driving in the rain. I still get a little nervous driving in the rain, prefer not to do it and approach it differently than other driving. Not a great analogy but it allows me to think that Wright may simply be like this for the balance of his career.
trs86
4/27/2010-11:26am at 11:26 am (UTC -4)
I disagree in the fact that he is not (was not if you want to think he’s done) a great player. The kid has averaged .300+ every season with an OPS+ average of 136 while averaging 23 SB a season and playing a good 3B (obviously debatable by some).
Hitting .300 with 40 2B, 27 HR, 107 RBI, and 105 runs on average for your first 5.5 seasons. Must be tough to be great.
GravediggerHebner
4/27/2010-11:40am at 11:40 am (UTC -4)
It is tough to be great, just ask Albert Pujols who for years puts up better numbers surrounded by worse players than Wright has had around him. Great is reserved for a select few, and I’m not including Wright in that category for 2 reasons: 1 because I don’t believe he deserves it, and 2 because I don’t think he needs/can handle the pressure resulting from being included there. The word great is over/mis used in my opinion. Just listen to any major league broadcast and I’m confident you will hear it misused by the broadcasters. I think applying it to Wright is a misuse. Very good is still very good, and nothing to be ashamed of.
Since you’re a teacher maybe I’ll put it this way. Wright gets an A, but not an A+.
trs86
4/27/2010-11:44am at 11:44 am (UTC -4)
So would that be the top 10% are great, maybe top 5%? Those numbers are top 10% but they are for sure not top 5.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:51am at 11:51 am (UTC -4)
If he’s “great”, how did he play with Reyes Beltran and Delgado, with Santana and Glavine, and not as much as make the playoffs?
Kingman 26
4/27/2010-12:01pm at 12:01 pm (UTC -4)
He did not make the playoffs in 2006, that is for sure.
He did not have a great season, and an excellent NLDS against the Dodgers, and I sure remember all of those at bats he DID NOT have in the 2006 NLCS.
GravediggerHebner
4/27/2010-11:59am at 11:59 am (UTC -4)
Suffice it to say we use the word “great” differently.
Part of why I am unwilling to apply it to Wright is he hasn’t been around long enough yet to earn it from me. Should he put up roughly 5-6 more seasons that are similar to his 2005-2008 seasons I will allow myself to call him that. His 2009, and so far his 2010, have not been similar and the current trend down is concerning to me. The strikeouts are alarming. But he has plenty of time to rebound and get back on his track to greatness in my eyes.
trs86
4/27/2010-12:04pm at 12:04 pm (UTC -4)
Understood.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:25am at 11:25 am (UTC -4)
He’s not really getting pitched around, he’s just slow to get around fastballs, and is getting behind in counts fast. He used to be a great 2 strike hitter, but now he just isn’t. He is surrounded by Reyes and Bay, so it’s not like he has nothing, he’s just not hitting. His stance changes every AB, and he has way to much moving parts in his swing. I’m not a hitting coach, but his swing just looks so long and looks like he’s trying to do too much.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:27am at 11:27 am (UTC -4)
Now Bay and Davis, and Francoeur, and while not superstars, good hitters.
trs86
4/27/2010-11:29am at 11:29 am (UTC -4)
Based on stats, not true Whata. He’s still a way above average FB hitter. Problem is he currently can’t hit an off-speed pitch at all and thus is getting a ton of them. Also, 2 strike hitter or not, he’s seeing more pitches this year than he has in the last 3 years.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:32am at 11:32 am (UTC -4)
point beeing, it’s not like he’s getting nothing to hit. He gets plenty of ab’s where he has to be pitched to and he’s coming up short. And I’m telling you, so often he gets a meat ball and simply misses it. You can’t tell me he is the same hitter he was a couple of years ago. He looks different with his stance, he’s not going where the ball is pitched, and his swing is not compact at all.
trs86
4/27/2010-11:34am at 11:34 am (UTC -4)
Obviously he is currently struggling. No one would doubt that.
But as stats show he is not getting many pitches to hit. More pitches thrown outside the strike zone and more off-speed pitches. Pitchers have made that adjustment to him. Time for him to make an adjustment. Early in the season he was content with ‘hell, just walk me’. Now it appears as though he may be trying to make something out of nothing. I am sure a career .300 hitter who even hit .300+ in a “down” year has not forgotten how to hit.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:40am at 11:40 am (UTC -4)
Not saying he forgot how to hit, but he’s coming off a year when he lost his power, and struck out a ton, and is now striking out a ton again, not really hitting for power either, and looking off mechanically. Clearly pitchers have adjusted to him, and I don’t think he’s adjusted well. Sure he hit .300, and that’s fine, but we can’t build a team around a guy who is going to hit 310, drive in 80, and hit 12 hr’s. I think it’s becoming clear that he’s just not good enough the be the focal point of a teams offense. There’s a big difference between hitting between Beltrana and Delgado, and cleaning up Reyes runs when he was doing his thing, and having to carry an offense, and I don’t think he’s succeeded at that.
trs86
4/27/2010-11:43am at 11:43 am (UTC -4)
On pace to hit 25 HR.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:46am at 11:46 am (UTC -4)
He hasn’t hit a HR in 10 games, and that was a useless solo shot in an 8-0 game. C’mon, does the power look like it’s there?
trs86
4/27/2010-11:47am at 11:47 am (UTC -4)
Hmmm, back to useless stats. They either count or they do not. Your point is that he is a 12 HR hitter and the stats do not show that. He has only been that kind of hitter 1 year in 5 and is currently not that this year.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:52am at 11:52 am (UTC -4)
So you think he looks like he’s going to hit 20+ hr this season?
trs86
4/27/2010-11:53am at 11:53 am (UTC -4)
Depends, are you going on the first 10 games or the 2nd 10 games? Or how about going on career averages? Nah…
trs86
4/27/2010-11:55am at 11:55 am (UTC -4)
Right now he looks like he will never be a good baseball player again in his career and never should have made it out of AAA. It’s called a slump. A slump that still has him with an OPS+ of 119 for the season. Ryan Howard’s at 95. Damn the Phillies are stupid for extending him. He will never recover.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:55am at 11:55 am (UTC -4)
I’m going by what I see when I watch him play. He has a slow bat, and isn’t crushing the ball by any means. He strikes out a good 2 times a game too. He doesn’t look good at all. If he doesn’t hit that useless hr in the 8-0 game, his hr pace gets much much lower, so I’m not going to say just because he’s on pace for 25, he’s going to do so. It’ concerning, because we’ve seen how cold Bay can be, and to rely on Wright is a very bad idea.
trs86
4/27/2010-12:01pm at 12:01 pm (UTC -4)
Again, useless ab’s still count. Otherwise we would have to take away all of any other players useless ab’s. All of a sudden Ryan Howard has 20 HR instead of 50. LOL.
He does not look good the last 10 games, hard to argue that. My point is still that based on his career it more than likely is a slump.
trs86
4/27/2010-11:46am at 11:46 am (UTC -4)
Also, not really his fault on the RBI’s? Isn’t that a product of who gets on? He hit .309 with RISP last season, problem is no one was on.
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:50am at 11:50 am (UTC -4)
So then how does anyone else drive in runs? How does Zimmerman drive in runs, heck I think Brandon Phillips hit 100 rbi last season. 4 Marlins hit over 90, Adrian Gonzalez did it. Sandavol had alot of Rbi. It’s a a major league team, if you bat 3 or 4 you can drive in runs.
trs86
4/27/2010-11:52am at 11:52 am (UTC -4)
Not without PA with RISP. Again, should he have hit .400 with RISP?
whataputz
4/27/2010-11:58am at 11:58 am (UTC -4)
My point is, if we have to rely on Wright to be carry our offense this year, we are in trouble. His k’s look like they might not have been an aberration, and his power has been off for a while.
Kingman 26
4/27/2010-12:06pm at 12:06 pm (UTC -4)
LOL! Yeah, Wright is seeing nothing but excellent hittable pitches!
He is surrounded by guys who will all start in the all-star game!
He cannot hit anymore!
His OBP of .405 with a .222 BA and the MOST walks in the league all CLEARLY show that Wright is getting all great pitches, and is not feared at all anymore!
LOL!
—————————————————————
And to Grave-
I agree that Wright might not be “great” at the REALLY great Ruth, Aaron, Mays, Pujols level, but he sure is close.
whataputz
4/27/2010-12:22pm at 12:22 pm (UTC -4)
Ya the team has really gone places with Wright as the focal point. Because Piazza was surrounded by such a phenomenal line-up. If you wanna be the superstar that a NY team builds around, you gotta be better than David Wright. If you wanna tell me that the Mets need to go out and get a star, so that Wright can clean up RBI from said star, Reyes, and Bay, now that is something I could get behind. But when I hear, “lets call up f-mart, re-sign Francour, and hope Beltran is back to himself” it is laughable. If the Mets give him over 100 mil and sign up for him to be the face of our team, we aren’t winning jack. Do you understand how good our line-up has been during the Wright days? We had a guy who could steal 70 baees and hit for some pop, a power slugger that consistently hit in the 30′s in hr’s in Delgado, Beltran who had some phenomenal years, and Floyd wasn’t too shaby either. Then when it finally came Wrights time to step up last year, and take over after ‘Gado went down, he simply failed. He hit 9 hr’s and struck out every other ab. And he didn’t do sh** in the ’06 playoffs. Especially the Cards Series.
trs86
4/27/2010-12:38pm at 12:38 pm (UTC -4)
LOL. Whataputz=whataever.
Your true anti-Wright sentiment shows through with every comment. At least my pro-Wright stance has 5+ years of great stats, yours has AB’s that don’t count and your magic eyes.
whataputz
4/27/2010-12:44pm at 12:44 pm (UTC -4)
mets total playoff series wins in the great holy Wright years= 1…..amazing!
trs86
4/27/2010-1:01pm at 1:01 pm (UTC -4)
Poor Mike Schmidt. His .236 .304 .386 .690 line in the playoffs has made him a terrible player. Perhaps Cal Ripken’s one WS berth in 20 years he could have hit better than .167 .286 .167 .452.
Again, anti-Wright bias showing clearly. Only certain stats count, then uh only certain games count, then only uh certain seasons count, then uh careers don’t count.
trs86
4/27/2010-1:11pm at 1:11 pm (UTC -4)
Hey maybe we can keep playing this game. Lets dismiss all of Ken Griffey JR’s stats. He only played in one LCS series in his 22 year career.
whataputz
4/27/2010-1:21pm at 1:21 pm (UTC -4)
I never said he was bad…he’s a good player. He’s a glorified good player, because he’s charming and white on what was a mostly latino team. He’s a good player. He’s just not a person to build a team around. Why can’t that be possible? Why does he have to be gods gift or a scrub? Why can’t i just say he is a good player and nothing more?
trs86
4/27/2010-2:33pm at 2:33 pm (UTC -4)
Ah the race card. Knew it had to be something.
No one is asking you to crown him anything.
But comments like this “mets total playoff series wins in the great holy Wright years= 1…..amazing!” make you seem very petty. Or perhaps inaccurate comments like the following “If he’s “greatâ€, how did he play with Reyes Beltran and Delgado, with Santana and Glavine, and not as much as make the playoffs??
You comments show a complete biased against Wright.
trs86
4/27/2010-2:34pm at 2:34 pm (UTC -4)
So would that have also applied to Schmidt or Griffey?
whataputz
4/27/2010-3:45pm at 3:45 pm (UTC -4)
Wright is nowhere near as good as either of those eplayers were. Nowhere even near it. They both have mvp trophies. Griffey hit over 55 hr’s and drove in over 140 runs numerous times. Schmidt has more than 1 mvp trophy and has hit 48 hr’s, in a time where people didn’t really do that.
trs86
4/27/2010-5:08pm at 5:08 pm (UTC -4)
Yeah, but those stats are meaningless so at worst they are tied.
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-1:18pm at 1:18 pm (UTC -4)
Hey Putz I have something that you may find interesting that I know no one agrees with. To me Wright is not a winner oh and neither is Reyes or Santana. Why? because they have yet to win a W.S.
That opinion of mine is usually a lightning rod for debate.
KRod though he is a winner because he has a ring.
Stand back now it may get ugly.
metsgirl31
4/27/2010-1:20pm at 1:20 pm (UTC -4)
You don’t really believe all that, do you?
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-1:26pm at 1:26 pm (UTC -4)
Oh yes I do. It’s ok though Metsgirl I know I am alone on an island with that opinion.
metsgirl31
4/27/2010-1:27pm at 1:27 pm (UTC -4)
I respectfully disagree. By that measure the majority of the players to ever play baseball are not “winners”.
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-1:34pm at 1:34 pm (UTC -4)
Exactly.
whataputz
4/27/2010-1:27pm at 1:27 pm (UTC -4)
at least Johan has multiple Cy Young awards. He’s been acknowledged as the best AL pitcher multiple times. But yeah, if you’re not pulling my chain here, I agree with you.
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-1:42pm at 1:42 pm (UTC -4)
Not trying to pull your chain whatsoever.
whataputz
4/27/2010-2:30pm at 2:30 pm (UTC -4)
I mean, isn’t the definition of the word “winner” “somone who wins”? I thought so at least.
whataputz
4/27/2010-2:30pm at 2:30 pm (UTC -4)
someone*
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-2:40pm at 2:40 pm (UTC -4)
Yes your are correct that is the definition. The question then becomes wins what? A game? A Division? A Pennant? A World Series?
I have long held the belief a winner is one that wins it all. The last one standing so to speak.
stickguy
4/27/2010-2:40pm at 2:40 pm (UTC -4)
individual players (and managers) don’t win. Teams win and lose.
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-2:46pm at 2:46 pm (UTC -4)
Yep I agree with Stick that is why when a team wins I give them all credit as being winners not just the stars. Even the guy that hit .200 contributed in some small way.
trs86
4/27/2010-2:47pm at 2:47 pm (UTC -4)
Thus why David Eckencrappy is not suddenly more of a winner than Ty Cobb, Ted Williams, Ernie Banks, McCovey, Yastrzemski, Killebrew….
trs86
4/27/2010-2:47pm at 2:47 pm (UTC -4)
Or even our friend Luis who is more of a winner than TY Cobb.
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-2:52pm at 2:52 pm (UTC -4)
Yep
trs86
4/27/2010-2:53pm at 2:53 pm (UTC -4)
Well then, no point in arguing that opinion. LOL.
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-2:58pm at 2:58 pm (UTC -4)
Agreed especially since we been down this road before and already know the outcome. Which in the end is,
We will agree to disagree.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-2:34pm at 2:34 pm (UTC -4)
Looks like I missed the boat on this discussion. Kingman brings up a point that Wright has .222 BA and .405 OBP. Not sure if he was sarcastic, but most of the OBP comes from the beginning of the season.
Since the St. Louis series, Wright has .171 BA .302 OBP & .531 OPS. That’s pretty bad. In 10 game span, Wright struck out 16 times and walked 6. I still think Wright is a very good player and can be a special player. But he’s clearly struggling and his ballooned K numbers are nothing to sneeze at.
Looking at equally struggling player in Texiera.
his numbers for last 10 games are as follows,
.125/.271/.596 with 6BB/10Ks. Yes, Tex is a different player than Wright and the numbers look similar with less Ks. But the Yankee fans have more faith in Tex because he has put great numbers last year.
Personally, I think Wright will bounce back and put up good numbers, but I think Wright’s K numbers will still be high until he changes his approach at the plate.
trs86
4/27/2010-2:37pm at 2:37 pm (UTC -4)
Not to mention 25M dollar Man Ryan Howard: .265 .299 .458 .757 OPS+ 95 with 4 walks and 15K’s.
trs86
4/27/2010-2:42pm at 2:42 pm (UTC -4)
Oh and 3HR same as Wright. Oh I forgot Wright’s don’t count because they are meaningless. Of course Howard’s are all meaningful, even if he has not hit one in 14 games. Well wait a minute, Howard’s first one came in a 11-1 game so that one does not count so he’s back to 2. Well dang, his 2nd one came off of Jason Marquis so that does not count either. Howard has only hit 1 HR this year and is now on pace for 8. I bet Philly is UPSET!
stickguy
4/27/2010-2:49pm at 2:49 pm (UTC -4)
not as upset as they will be when he is 33/34 and has the bat speed of david ortiz, and they are just getting 3+ years of 25mill+!
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:09pm at 3:09 pm (UTC -4)
And a defensive skills of Ortiz at 1B… but no DH spot..
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-2:50pm at 2:50 pm (UTC -4)
LOL
The Phillies are winning and so are the Yankees. That’s why there’s less crying and bitching about struggles of Tex and Howard. I think Wright’s struggle is more glaring because of 1) his numbers last year, 2)the Mets situation and history since the ’07 season and 3)Bay/Frenchy/Reyes struggles (though they all seem to be coming out of it a little).
But I do think that Wright will still have high K numbers. Probably not at a level of Reynolds or Howard, but right now Wright has more Ks than both of them.
trs86
4/27/2010-2:57pm at 2:57 pm (UTC -4)
Well I guess maybe the carry over from last year but the Phillies have 1 more win than the Mets.
Wright’s struggles are more glaring because we make them that way.
They guy has struggled to an OPS+ of 119. His last 10 games are dreadful yet he still has an OPS+ 25 points higher than Howard and 70 points higher than Tex.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:09pm at 3:09 pm (UTC -4)
fair point.
But I think the worry (at least from me) comes from ballooning of K numbers. Howard has been known as high K hitter since he came up. So when he struggles and has high K numbers, I don’t think it surprises many fans.
Wright on the other hand is not known for his Ks until last season (although not at Howard’s level). And seeing wright strike out every single game makes us worried. It weird, but many of us correlate Wright’s K numbers with his lack of production last season. So, seeing his K numbers balloon this season, we are thinking that Wright will again have less than stellar season. And I think that’s why many of us are making such a big deal out of his struggle.
IMO there would less bitching if Wright is struggling with less Ks.
trs86
4/27/2010-3:23pm at 3:23 pm (UTC -4)
Wright, though even in decent seasons has had some high K months. 2007 he had 48 K’s in the first 2 months.
trs86
4/27/2010-3:23pm at 3:23 pm (UTC -4)
2006 he had 29 K’s in May alone.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:26pm at 3:26 pm (UTC -4)
That is interesting to know. I guess the numbers during ’06 and ’07 seasons didn’t really draw attention to many of us since the team in general was winning.
Like everyone in the game says “winning cures all”
trs86
4/27/2010-3:28pm at 3:28 pm (UTC -4)
Yup and as others, maybe you, have pointed out, those years we had Delgado or Beltran (even Reyes) to carry us when he was down. It’s time for Bay and Reyes to start carrying us and Wright will be just fine.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:32pm at 3:32 pm (UTC -4)
Agreed. Hope Beltran comes back soon.
His ‘no update’ status has me worried. I think there’s more to the story than just ‘no update’
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-2:52pm at 2:52 pm (UTC -4)
Not sure if anyone caught this. But something very interesting.
http://www.bostonherald.com/blogs/sports/red_sox/index.php/2010/04/27/uzr-owes-jason-bay-an-apology/
So… it really seems like Omar knew what he was doing signing Bay. Or he got lucky. But I give credit to Omar and the Mets FO for signing Bay.
trs86
4/27/2010-3:03pm at 3:03 pm (UTC -4)
That’s the damn funniest thing I have ever read. Thanks DND. So like many of us said UZR is very flawed and Jason Bay is a solid defender. So this to me tells you a little more about UZR, the designer goes back and changes a few numbers in the formula and suddenly a “terrible” defender is now an “above average” defender…. LOL> Rich. Suddenly Jason Bay went from one of the worst LF in the game to being the 3rd best and better than Holliday.
prismo
4/27/2010-3:05pm at 3:05 pm (UTC -4)
I can’t remember one play this season so far where I thought “so&so would’ve gotten to that ball” when Bay didn’t. Flawless defense so far, IMO.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:14pm at 3:14 pm (UTC -4)
Agreed. Bay may not be Pagan or Beltran and doesn’t have Frenchy’s arm, but I think he doesn’t hurt the team in the OF either.
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-3:17pm at 3:17 pm (UTC -4)
Keith has commented twice now in the SNY booth where he’s been impressed with Bays speed – both in the OF and on the base paths.
You know Keith….one time he said something like ‘I thought he wasn’t suppose to be this fast’?
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:21pm at 3:21 pm (UTC -4)
I agree that Bay’s speed is sneaky fast kinda like Werth…
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-3:31pm at 3:31 pm (UTC -4)
My eyes tell me he’s faster than Franceour…
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:38pm at 3:38 pm (UTC -4)
Frenchy has that weird long strides like Beltran. When he’s going after ball in the OF, I can’t tell if he’s hustling or not. Sometimes it looks like he’s giving up on some balls that might look like foul balls to right RF, but when you look closer, he’s really hustling.
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-3:16pm at 3:16 pm (UTC -4)
My sentiments exactly.
Modern day stats – sabermetrics – are all good tools, if you apply some common sense when evaluating them and the players/teams/parks they apply to.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:16pm at 3:16 pm (UTC -4)
Didn’t we talk about this during the off season? How Manny’s UZR jumped as soon as he moved out of Boston and Bay’s UZR dropped?
I guess we’re actually smarter than we think… LOL
trs86
4/27/2010-3:18pm at 3:18 pm (UTC -4)
Yup, and even with improvements I still think UZR is a terrible measure for a 1B. Range is only a small part of a 1B’s job.
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-3:33pm at 3:33 pm (UTC -4)
I think this one deserves it’s own post.
Just wow….
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-3:06pm at 3:06 pm (UTC -4)
Well, glad I missed out on this debate when it was going on…
I’m taking a hiatus for making any predictions this year. Last year just took too much out of me. If there was ever a year where the team going in ‘on paper’ looked good, 2009 definitely qualified.
I’ll just go with what I ‘hope’ will take place for awhile.
And no one will ever convince me an individual cannot be a ‘winner’ unless he has a WS ring…..
Someone above echoed my sentiments on this: a team wins a WS, not an individual.
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-3:16pm at 3:16 pm (UTC -4)
I proudly stand all alone on this island of mine.
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-3:30pm at 3:30 pm (UTC -4)
LOL….
And nothing wrong with that, jerz.
That’s why I love this site. We can have all types of debates without basically ripping each other heads off. I got involved in this debate a couple of years ago on metsblog and finally stepped out of it b/c it really became very nasty, name calling and all…..
Mr North Jersey
4/27/2010-3:36pm at 3:36 pm (UTC -4)
I have too much respect for you to ever allow myself to let things get so far as to resort to name calling. Other than your affinity for eating mushrooms in the dugout of course.
metsfan4decades
4/27/2010-3:52pm at 3:52 pm (UTC -4)
HAHAHA – I fear I’m getting a reputation now…
stickguy
4/27/2010-3:41pm at 3:41 pm (UTC -4)
I liked that piece on Bay.
Pretty much what I said (my opinion) of him when they signed him. Maybe not the fastest or “rangies” OF, but he was still a good OF, from the standpoint of knowing how to play the position, and doing it well. Stand in the right spot, play balls off the wall, catch everything you can reach, throw to the right spot, etc.
And those are things that I just don’t beleive an objective statistical model can really capture.
he certainly has made some excellent plays so far, even when he had to go quite far to get the ball.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:46pm at 3:46 pm (UTC -4)
I think Bay is fundamentally sound. He is nothing flashy, but always hustles, has confidence in him AND very solid fundamentally. Hope he has good influence on Ike.
DNDJohan aka kistics
4/27/2010-3:43pm at 3:43 pm (UTC -4)
Just realized that the SF Giants got 5 runs out of Doc with 10 hits. His ERA more than doubles Pelf’s ERA. Doc is overrated.
didn’t realize Huff is SF’s 1B… interesting.