Freddy Bynum

[goonys evil twin]

Unrelated, I saw where Simon is back in the Majors - he would be a pretty good addition to the bench.

 

I doubt that.

[CubColtPacer]

Baker said Bynum played last night because he felt he had a better chance of hitting Lowe. Lowe is going to throw ground balls, that's a given. Bynum is fast. Do the math.

 

The problem is, Theriot is hot. Theriot is not slow either. The way he has been playing ball lately warrants him staying in the lineup. It's justified. It is hard for us to understand why Dusty Baker will sit ONE player, yet allow ANOTHER player a much longer leash. I think it is pretty obvious who should be playing 2nd for the Cubs.

 

It's not that Theriot has lost his job. They have said they are going to split time the rest of the season. Bynum starting does not say anything bad about Theriot-it just means they feel the players are close to equal, and they would like to see them both get time. Theriot was hitting significantly better than Bynum when Bynum came back-has that continued? Here are their stats for September (which is about half the time they have been splitting time-a few of their at-bats in August came when they were a DP combo, and yes, Theriot was much better than Bynum in August)

 

Player A (28 AB's)-.250/.382/.500

Player B (17 AB's)-.294/.455/.588

 

What's the difference between these two players? Who's hotter at the plate? It's hard to tell. It looks like Player B has a good advantage, but the small number of at-bats makes it hard. What can be found is that both players are doing very, very well.

BTW, Player A is Ryan Theriot

Player B is Freddie Bynum

 

There is a distinct difference in hitting styles between Ryan Theriot and Freddie Bynum. Theriot works a count, takes a walk, and has - so far - been pretty good in the clutch (I am sure someone can dig up the stats, I don't have time right now). Bynum has a worse BB/K ratio, but has good speed and is a "Baker type" because he seems to swing as much as possible. To me, in a pinch I want a guy like Bynum (I thought Randall Simon was the ultimate pinch hitter).

 

I would agree with you that Theriot has had a much better BB/K ratio and been better in the clutch this year. Their P/PA don't reveal that Theriot works the count while Bynum swings at anything and everything though-Bynum is seeing 4.04 P/PA, and Theriot is seeing 3.48 P/PA. Plus, Bynum's BB/PA have gotten better every single month of his career. I just don't see much difference in their hitting styles much right now, with the exception that Bynum strikes out more than Theriot.

[CuseCubFan69]

The sad thing in all this is that Bynum's fielding is the focal point when he actually seems to have taken a smart approach to hitting over the past few games. I'm sure it's just a blip in the radar, but he's actually been working the count and using an approach you'd like to see.

 

I agree. Is there a place this guy actually does know how to play?

[YearofDaCubs]

the only thing i can figure is that hendry thinks bynum might be the future 2nd bagger..which is crazy. one week of watching mishandles, bobbles , failure to make turns and plain old errors should tell you..he isn't the answer

 

Agreed...and that is the scary part.

I seriously don't believe that. I think it's just Dusty being a moron.

[biittner77]

For all his speed, Bynum has shown very little range at 2nd base. I don't really mind him getting PT. The more he gets the more chances he has to show that he's not the answer at 2nd base.

 

I would like to see what he could do in CF.