Murton = Liability

[BigSlick]

In a perfect world, Murton would be platooning with Jacque against lefties while the Cubs have Cabrera rocking our socks off in LF.

But this is not that world.

 

Yeah, Murton isn't lighting the world on fire, but he gets on base and is incredibly patient. It's his first full year and he has MASSIVE potential...it's not like he's pulling a Corey and going from one good partial season to total suck. I'm willing to give him a shot. Had Hendry done his job and gotten another big hitter to bolster this lineup before the season started, Murton getting into his groove wouldn't be even this big a deal. This is a crappy situation for a rookie to come into his own.

 

Wow, go back about 15 posts, and you almost copied someone's complete statement word-for-word.

 

Kinda funny.

[Sammy Sofa]

Heh, yeah, you're right...though I think "perfect" is more apt if I'm crazily involving Cabrera.

[abuck1220]

i don't know why people had such unrealistic hopes for a guy whose 2005 numbers were driven by a ton of luck. he's got an acceptable OBP, but his SLG just doesn't cut it for a corner OF, especially when you are getting NO pop from 2b, ss, cf, and 1b. i was in favor of trading him for an impact corner OF in the offseason, but oh well.

 

also, at this point, is there anybody who has played well since opening day?

[BigSlick]

i don't know why people had such unrealistic hopes for a guy whose 2005 numbers were driven by a ton of luck. he's got an acceptable OBP, but his SLG just doesn't cut it for a corner OF, especially when you are getting NO pop from 2b, ss, cf, and 1b. i was in favor of trading him for an impact corner OF in the offseason, but oh well.

 

also, at this point, is there anybody who has played well since opening day?

 

Sean Marshall?

[jaydee]

murton actually gets on base though. and how exactly did you come to the conclusion that he is a career platoon player off of 6 weeks of play this year?

[TB_11]

In an ideal world, Murton is platooned with Jones in LF or RF while a very productive corner outfielder takes the other position.

 

This isn't an ideal world. The Cubs overall problem on offense in the majors and even in the minors is a lack of plate discipline. Matt Murton is one of many solutions that are needed to start to bring this ballclub on the right track. There is no suitable replacement and you aren't going to trade anything of value to improve this team for this year. So, you use this as a developmental year and hope he can produce. It is still a small sample size so far and you can see room for improvement. Power develops last, he's still 24. So things look good for a guy who has a good approach to hitting.

 

Also, Pierre seems to be clogging up the top of the order with his presence despite being awful. With Murton's lack of power thus far, but good plate discipline, he'd be an ideal candidate to bat 1-2. I think it would be great to see him put up there and not shove Pie into the leadoff spot.

 

In an ideal world fans would give a 24 year old with barely 300 PAs to show his potential. He's shown flashes of what he can do, and his work ethic has gotten praise from the coaches. Let him use that work ethic to figure out how he can hit right-handers better.

[RynoRules]

Hitting for power was the big concern with Murton. I thought he'd hit a little more than he is right now(I predicted .340/.420 OBP/SLG for him), and maybe he still will with a hot streak and summer days at Wrigley with the wind blowing out. That said, considering his .721 OPS comes with a .356 OBP right now, I'm hesitant to call him a liability all things considered.

 

Fair assessment. I also thought Matty would slug higher than he has.

[bobbyd20]

In my opinion, Murton is the least of the Cubs problems right now. He's a young guy who is going to go through some struggles at the dish. At least he has the right approach at the plate. I like that. I'm not saying he's a future all-star, but the Cubs need more guys that get on base at a .349 clip.

[Illini Iceman]

In an ideal world, Murton is platooned with Jones in LF or RF while a very productive corner outfielder takes the other position.

 

This isn't an ideal world. The Cubs overall problem on offense in the majors and even in the minors is a lack of plate discipline. Matt Murton is one of many solutions that are needed to start to bring this ballclub on the right track. There is no suitable replacement and you aren't going to trade anything of value to improve this team for this year. So, you use this as a developmental year and hope he can produce. It is still a small sample size so far and you can see room for improvement. Power develops last, he's still 24. So things look good for a guy who has a good approach to hitting.

 

Also, Pierre seems to be clogging up the top of the order with his presence despite being awful. With Murton's lack of power thus far, but good plate discipline, he'd be an ideal candidate to bat 1-2. I think it would be great to see him put up there and not shove Pie into the leadoff spot.

 

In an ideal world fans would give a 24 year old with barely 300 PAs to show his potential. He's shown flashes of what he can do, and his work ethic has gotten praise from the coaches. Let him use that work ethic to figure out how he can hit right-handers better.

 

Watching Murton at the plate you can see he will be a good ML hitter once he gets more experience and learns the pitchers better. He does not swing at bad pitches and get himself out, knows how to cut down his swing with 2 strikes and goes the other way when pitchers work him outside. He won't be a super star but can definitely be a nice 6 hitter with a BA of around .300 and OBP of .350 or better.

 

I am more concerned with Cedeno. He has less power than Murton and not nearly as good of a command of the strike zone. I have a feeling his numbers will really start dipping once the book gets out on him. He could still adjust and turn out good, but I get a Rey Sanchez vibe.

[Fro]

A lot of money is going to be freed up after this season, and a corner OF spot is the most sensible place to spend it to upgrade the offense.

 

Lee/Barrett/ARam are fine. The only real upgrade at 2B over Walker would be Soriano, a big waste of money. There's not any stud SSes available as FA and Cedeno is a decent option there.

 

The outfield has been terrible

 

Jones is fine if you platoon him with a cheap guy who destroys lefties (Craig Wilson or Murton in a platoon). Actually either platoon would give you a surprising amount of bang for your buck. Pie will be a big upgrade over Pierre thus far and is cheap.

 

That leaves Murton's OF spot.

[CubfaninCA]

i wish he played 2b or ss or catcher or cf instead. they need better numbers from lf, but give him some time. he's shown flashes of being good. his performance vs. righties is troublesome tho.

[BigSlick]

A lot of money is going to be freed up after this season, and a corner OF spot is the most sensible place to spend it to upgrade the offense.

 

Lee/Barrett/ARam are fine. The only real upgrade at 2B over Walker would be Soriano, a big waste of money. There's not any stud SSes available as FA and Cedeno is a decent option there.

 

The outfield has been terrible

 

Jones is fine if you platoon him with a cheap guy who destroys lefties (Craig Wilson or Murton in a platoon). Actually either platoon would give you a surprising amount of bang for your buck. Pie will be a big upgrade over Pierre thus far and is cheap.

 

That leaves Murton's OF spot.

 

Carlos Lee!