chasfh

They are at 96 wRC+ (17th) in the last 30 days and 97 wRC+ (tied for 16th) in the last 14 days, so they're moving in the right direction.

Progress! 😉

Just remember: they are all in their 20’s, grew up someplace else, and thus have no connection to our history.

Because they want to keep the issue open to both campaign and demagogue on.

This is the original post Eric Trump was retweeting. What a complete middle finger to families of fallen soldiers. How the red hats can’t see it, I’ll never truly understand.

Not only have I met Libertarians, a close relative of mine is one, and I have asked the very same question of him.

Fire Hinch!

I thought maybe they’d regret Eloy, but everyone knew they’d regret Cease. Trades was the one Achilles heel SuperTheo had.

Jesus, what are these people, fifteen? What a clown show.

So this is what it’s like to have a team that can jack bombs. Huh. I could get used to something like that.

Keith bomb #1!

I’ve gone a third of a season or so and I’ve decided that I can’t listen to Jason Benetti with Craig Monroe anymore. It’s just too much chuckleheadedness for me. Benetti feeds Monroe’s muse and allows him to give in to his worst impulses. I don’t mind Monroe with Dan Dickerson because Dan is all business and keeps Monroe reined in. I get that most people love Benetti and Monroe and they might be the permanent team next year, but I’m pretty much out on them.

Looks like he knows how to control the strike zone! 😁

You can love any staff you want. No judgment here! 👍🏽😉🤣

I don't know if Tork is the best guy to articulate the strategy. In any event, maybe they're taking too many pitches that are good to hit because they are not good hitters. It seems to be working at Lakeland. And I agree that eventually they will get the right players in at the big league level to execute the strategy properly. But don't worry, even after they do, it'll be totally OK if you still hate the staff! 🤣

The way Maeda has pitched this year so far, absolutely not.

Hopefully not the end ...

I hope he tears a rotator cuff while pulling up the ladder.

No thanks. My stomach is doing flip flops just reading what you've posted.

The Hamm what am!

It seems like people are interpreting "control the strike zone" as meaning Harris and Hinch want their hitters to take as many pitches as humanly possible even if it gets them into 0-2 counts they have to fight their way out of, or even taking three pitches down the pipe and walking back to the dugout proud of their part in sticking to the strategy, but I don't think merely taking pitches without thinking is what Harris and Hinch are aiming for. I think what they want is for hitters to focus on swinging on pitches that are in the strike zone to put them in play, versus swinging on balls well outside the strike zone and missing and expanding the zone for the pitcher. It's also about having to plan to attack the strike zone and sticking to the plan even after strike one. If that's what it's about, if it's about attacking the zone and swinging at ball thrown within it, then why are so many guys watching strike one go down the pipe and then struggling to put the barrel on middle-middle? I think the main reasons out players are struggling with that at the big league level is not because the strategy is a steaming pile of freshly-dumped ****, but that they have habits ingrained through the years they're having trouble fighting through; or they have mental lapses and have trouble consistently putting the strategy into practice; or they get frustrated at times and forget the strategy in a bid to change everything with one swing; or they are simply not good hitters and won't be here for the long term anyway; or they are shortstops on the back half of their career who have checked out and can't be reached. Controlling the zone is preached throughout the minors as well. That's why we see most of our farm teams toward the top in walks and OPS, and toward the bottom in strikeouts. Lakeland is a shining example of this, and is really the first team completely put together by the Harris regime. The teams toward the top of the system still have the remnants of the prior regime, with players whose habits are more ingrained and more difficult to iron out. So I can see how the strategy is not going to help us play into November so much this year, not because the strategy is ****ing asinine and everyone connected to it should be catapulted into the sun, but because we just don't have the horses in-house yet to effectively win rings with it. We might do marginally better with some members of this group as the season progresses and the coaches refine the approach, but we're probably not going to have a team epiphany and lead the league in runs from this day forward. Bottom line is, the strategy of controlling the strike zone from the batter's box is not going away, and I don't believe it should go away, anyway.

There are already certain rules that require appeal, meaning the umpire would call it a certain way but the rules don’t allow him to do so unless it’s brought to his attention. I think this is one of those cases.

I believe it’s because there are unionized people in the game who are against that and that counts for something, so much as we’d like to see this, Baseball can’t simply impose their will on them as it relates to this issue.

Next up: arbitration, free agency, and agent-brokered multiyear contracts?

People hate change. Change threatens people because they're not always sure it won't roll over on them and make things for them much worse. I will forego mentioning the political corollary to that here. I can't see where a rounded strike zone makes things better.