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Jun 10

Jason Bay Says His Problem Is “I haven’t been comfortable,”

Categories:

Mets, Mr. North Jersey, Real Dirty Mets Blog

by Dirtysanchez

Jason Bay in his 1st year as the Mets starting Left fielder has yet to hit the way many hoped he would and while it is widely known that Bay has been prone to his Hot/Cold streaks even Bay himself says this has been more Cold than Hot.
“And it’s kind of been I’ve had stretches, weeks, months before, but usually you have some better ones and then kind of everything equals out, and I haven’t really had any good ones. I’ve had some decent games, but I really haven’t gotten on a roll. I’ve said it since I got here, you try to be consistent. Consistency speaks volumes, and I’ve been anything but consistent.”

In defense of Bay he has given the Mets solid play in LF and reports about his knees being suspect have proven so far to be false. His Batting average is a respectable .286. The biggest problem with Bay is his HR & RBI numbers so far this season. Coming into this season these are the HR/RBI totals that Bay has put up through his 1st 58 games for the last 5 seasons.

  • 11/HR – 27/RBI – 2005
  • 17/HR – 47/RBI – 2006
  • 10/HR – 43/RBI – 2007
  • 13/HR – 29/RBI – 2008
  • 16/HR – 56/RBI – 2009

That averages out to 13.4/HR – 40.4/RBI through 1st 58 games. This 2010 season Bay stands at 3/HR – 24/RBI. That is the worst he has done through his 1st 58 games since he has opened a season on a Major League roster especially his HR’s. Jason Bay believes it’s all about his timing. “I’m missing and fouling off a lot of fastballs, which is my bread and butter,” Bay said. “And then not hitting, that puts me in an even deeper hole. So we’re trying to address the reason why that is. I’m not getting my foot down in time and I’m kind of hovering and then all of a sudden I’m late.” In past seasons Bay has rebounded to finish posting good numbers the worst being in 2007 where he finished with 21 HR’s and 84/RBI’s. Right now you have to be somewhat concerned if he can even reach his 2007 totals. I’d say check back on July 31 to see where he is at. We should know by then if this is nothing more than a cold streak or not. Below are Bay’s stats for the last 5 seasons through his 1st 58 games and what he finished the season with.



2005 Season Tm G GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO SB CS BA OBP SLG OPS
Through 1st 58 Games PIT 58 58 253 219 37 62 15 3 11 27 31 2 57 4 0 .283 .372 .530 0.901
Season Totals PIT 162 162 707 599 110 183 44 6 32 101 95 9 142 21 1 .306 .402 .559 0.961


2006 Season Tm G GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO SB CS BA OBP SLG OPS
Through 1st 58 Games PIT 58 58 256 207 41 63 7 2 17 47 42 2 48 5 1 .304 .426 .604 1.030
Season Totals PIT 159 157 689 570 101 163 29 3 35 109 102 9 156 11 2 .286 .396 .532 0.928


2007 Season Tm G GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO SB CS BA OBP SLG OPS
Through 1st 58 Games PIT 58 58 254 220 36 67 15 2 10 43 27 3 50 1 1 .305 .382 .527 0.909
Season Totals PIT 145 143 614 538 78 133 25 2 21 84 59 3 141 4 1 .247 .327 .418 0.746


2008 Season Tm G GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO SB CS BA OBP SLG OPS
Through 1st 58 Games PIT 58 57 253 210 44 61 10 1 13 29 41 2 42 5 0 .290 .407 .533 0.940
Season Totals P/B 155 153 670 577 111 165 35 4 31 101 81 4 137 10 0 .286 .373 .522 0.895


2009 Season Tm G GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO SB CS BA OBP SLG OPS
Through 1st 58 Games BOS 58 58 254 209 42 58 15 2 16 56 41 2 53 5 1 .278 .402 .598 1.000
Season Totals BOS 151 151 638 531 103 142 29 3 36 119 94 4 162 13 3 .267 .384 .537 0.921


2010 Season Tm G GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO SB CS BA OBP SLG OPS
Through 1st 58 Games NYM 58 56 250 217 34 62 14 4 3 24 27 2 58 8 0 .286 .372 .429 0.801
Season Totals NYM ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ?? ? ?? ?? ?? ?? ??? ?? ?? ??? ??? ??? ???


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23 comments

  1. stickguy

    6/10/2010-5:18pm at 5:18 pm (UTC -4)

    Reply

    this was all just a fancy way of saying that so far offensively he has sucked, right?

    1. Mr North Jersey

      6/10/2010-5:23pm at 5:23 pm (UTC -4)

      Reply

      :-)

      I think everyone will take something different out of it and if that’s what you take from it then that’s fine.

      This is an attempt at me trying to step back and see where Bay is at now compared to years past and where he might end up at.

  2. stickguy

    6/10/2010-5:22pm at 5:22 pm (UTC -4)

    Reply

    well, if Mack from Mack’s mets knows what he is talking aout, don’t expect the recent #4 pick to be the answer. I love the ETA for a 4th round pick. Especialy since the reports on the 3rd rounder aren’t much better.:

    Round 4 – #122 overall – OF – Cory Vaughn – San Diego State

    Mack: Well, it didn’ttake long for the Mets to pull one out of their arse. I have basically nothing on Vaughn, other than a couple of 200+ round picks on some early mocks. It is very hard to find anything positive about this guy, other than the fact that his father was named Greg. He seems to swing at anything that’s thrown his way and has been one of the divisional strikeout leaders, both in school and the Cape Cod League. Had 55-K in 180-AB and 180-K in 592-AB career wise. Multiple scouting services have reported that his hitting mechanics are horrible.

    Projection: Boy, who the heck knows. Personally, I’m pissed that left on the board were RHP Sam Dyson and LHP James Paxton, and, if you wanted a toosy outfielder, what about Cody Hawn or Austin Wilson? Look, I have no problem drafting somoen that shows potential, but save these kind of picks until the 15th round. There is no way of projecting any kind of ETA on this kid. Everything I have read said he is not a potential major leaguer. ETA: never

    Draft Grade: F

    1. trs86

      6/10/2010-5:29pm at 5:29 pm (UTC -4)

      Reply

      Well good, at least we know that one of these kids will work out. I actually feel much better about this pick now for some reason.

  3. Mr North Jersey

    6/10/2010-6:11pm at 6:11 pm (UTC -4)

    Reply

    I came across this site. How many of these techniques do you think HoJo has tried already?

    Physical Solutions to a Slump

    Videotape the hitter in a live game situation. If you can only get batting practice footage, that is ok, but a real game is best.

    1. Pick out any flaws you may see.
    2. Show the hitter so he or she recognizes the problem and then pick out one or two drills to help with this mechanical flaw. (Quite often I see well-meaning coaches have a hitter in a slump doing dozens of different drills. This just further confuses the hitter and makes it difficult to get out of it.)
    3. Get their eyes checked — you’d be surprised how often this fixes slumps!

    The good news about getting out of a slump is all it takes is one good swing. A rope and a ball that finds a hole is good enough for a two-hit game and the slump is history.

    The quickest, yet most difficult, task is getting the player to believe the above is true — A hitting streak is just ONE swing away…

    Mental Solutions to a Slump

    Do whatever it takes to get the hitter some confidence. Some suggestions:

    1. Let them get a feeling for solid contact. Take more batting practice or get to a cage where they have hit well before and feel comfortable. Get them back in their comfort zone and let them get their feel back.
    2. Have someone they respect compliment them. Whether it’s a good player or opposing coach, have that individual tell them their swing looks good and to keep up the good work. More often than not, a “slump” is much bigger in the hitter’s eyes than it is to everyone else. Sometimes all it takes is a compliment for the hitter to see this.
    3. Practice visualization. Studies show that visualization is an effective form of “practice” and does carry over to the real world. All great hitters use visualization of some form. It doesn’t have to be weird and kooky, simply learn to “see and feel” yourself taking a good swing and making solid contact. If you can work up to having the ability to do this on deck then you are really on the right track!

    1. prismo

      6/10/2010-6:14pm at 6:14 pm (UTC -4)

      Reply

      Fantastic. Very informative!

      1. prismo

        6/10/2010-6:15pm at 6:15 pm (UTC -4)

        Reply

        Damn it, you updated it. My sarcasm is lost.

        1. Mr North Jersey

          6/10/2010-6:15pm at 6:15 pm (UTC -4)

          Reply

          lol

  4. oleosmirf

    6/10/2010-6:22pm at 6:22 pm (UTC -4)

    Reply

    well the Mets havent drafted a legit MLB player in the 3rd round since Brook Fordyce in 1989. (they did hit the jackpot in 1982 and 1983 with Roger McDowell and Rick Aguilera.

    In the 4th round they have done even worse having only drafted 1 player to actually make it to the big leagues since 1994; that would be Angel Pagan in 1999.

    1. Mr North Jersey

      6/10/2010-6:25pm at 6:25 pm (UTC -4)

      Reply

      Fordyce? Never heard of him. ;-)

  5. CaseStreet

    6/10/2010-7:04pm at 7:04 pm (UTC -4)

    Reply

    Can we agree that Bay should be moved to the 5th spot in the lineup? He’s just killing the momentum batting 3rd by not driving in runs.

    1. Mr North Jersey

      6/10/2010-7:06pm at 7:06 pm (UTC -4)

      Reply

      Switch him with Wright? Then Davis would have no protection. How about dropping him to the 8-hole?

      I kid, I kid.

      1. CaseStreet

        6/10/2010-7:30pm at 7:30 pm (UTC -4)

        Reply

        Don’t know about that but I’d consider dropping Pagan into an RBI position.

  6. Kingman 26

    6/10/2010-7:46pm at 7:46 pm (UTC -4)

    Reply

    * 11/HR – 27/RBI – 2005
    * 17/HR – 47/RBI – 2006
    * 10/HR – 43/RBI – 2007
    * 13/HR – 29/RBI – 2008
    * 16/HR – 56/RBI – 2009

    Mr North, when I look at this, I do definitely somewhat change my opinion on Bay this year…this is eye-opening.

    Thanks for doing this research.

    1. CaseStreet

      6/10/2010-9:15pm at 9:15 pm (UTC -4)

      Reply

      Actually, I don’t see a problem at all.

      Through the first 58 games Bay has been consistently around 60 hits and between 10-15 doubles. This year he has 62 hits and 14 doubles. That’s right on track.

      The major difference is in the HR and RBI totals. I’d imagine his RISP # are way down this year. Maybe he feels really pressured to hit in the 3 hole and drive in runs.
      Actually, if you look over the past few years, Bay is better hitting in the 5 and 6 hole.

      Like I’ve been harping the past few days. It’s time to switch Bay and Wright.

      1. Mr North Jersey

        6/10/2010-9:42pm at 9:42 pm (UTC -4)

        Reply

        “The major difference is in the HR and RBI totals.”

        Um I think that is the whole point of the post.

        1. CaseStreet

          6/10/2010-9:49pm at 9:49 pm (UTC -4)

          Reply

          Yeah, but he’s still getting hits and doubles.

          It’s like everyone was concerned with Wright only having 10HR last year. Everything else was fine, just we wasn’t cranking them out of the park.

          I’d be concerned if he wasn’t getting hits and doubles.

          Still, I think batting in the 3 hole might be affecting his approach and the pressure might be getting to him where he’s trying to hit HR all the time. Like Wright last year.

          1. Mr North Jersey

            6/10/2010-9:53pm at 9:53 pm (UTC -4)

            I will just say that I am concerned with Bay’s lack of HR & RBI’s.

            If your not that’s ok also.

          2. trs86

            6/10/2010-10:11pm at 10:11 pm (UTC -4)

            No one seems to mention his 4 3B too. Would we be having this same conversation if he had 7 HR and 0 Triples?

          3. Mr North Jersey

            6/10/2010-10:23pm at 10:23 pm (UTC -4)

            I think we can play what if’s till the cows come home. [Boy is that the best saying I could come up with? So Weak:-) ]

            The fact is he is not right so far in regards to his HR and RBI’s but there is plenty of time for him to get righted. There is no reason to panic yet.

      2. Kingman 26

        6/10/2010-9:52pm at 9:52 pm (UTC -4)

        Reply

        Yeah Case I have been saying that all week—EVERY offensive stat of Bay’s is at or above career norms–except HR and RBI….so I think we all have an argument here—Bay IS producing, IS dangerous, and IS valuable, but the other side is quite right that we definitely expected more HR and RBI….but a good 3 week period can render this debate moot.

        1. Mr North Jersey

          6/10/2010-9:54pm at 9:54 pm (UTC -4)

          Reply

          like i said he has always finished good and hopefully he will do so in 2010. I will wait to end of July before I really start to freak out on him.

    2. Mr North Jersey

      6/10/2010-9:43pm at 9:43 pm (UTC -4)

      Reply

      Thanks King you welcome.

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