Boy, is this nice to read... (Lou on BBs)

[TruffleShuffle]

What I’d like to see a few of our hitters start doing, though, is start working the pitcher for a base on balls,” Piniella said. “We need to improve that. That’s one area we really, really need to work on. And I’m not talking about going up there to look for a walk. But, boy, when it’s there, just take it.

 

 

 

Imagine reading something like that out of Dusty's mouth? I'd have had a heart attack. But anyway, he's right, and hopefully they have at least a few hitters who can take the coaching to heart and improve their discipline as the season goes on.

[RynoRules]

I've said this before - if you get annoyed by the team's overall lack of patience, look no further then the GM's office. I don't understand why Jim doesn't understand that we need far greater balance in this area. I'd like to see 2 or 3 Lee-types for every Soriano-type.

[ltb]

saying and doing are two different things.

 

lou has proven thusfar that he can say a lot of things that people on this board really like (mostly because it differs from dusty). implementing what he says, however, has been a problem.

[DivineBovine]

I've said this before - if you get annoyed by the team's overall lack of patience, look no further then the GM's office. I don't understand why Jim doesn't understand that we need far greater balance in this area. I'd like to see 2 or 3 Lee-types for every Soriano-type.

 

 

 

 

Agreed. I love the quote, but I put the blame on squarely on Jim Hendry. He's filled the team with players who have a history of not walking. Soriano, Aramis, Barrett, Jones- all good hitters. Never were guys who drew walks before coming to the team, how can we expect them to walk now?

 

Blame Hendry. Regardless of what Dusty said, I just saw it as him sticking up for the players Jim Hendry gave him. After all, Dusty did coach the best walk guy in the history of baseball.

[CubmanPi]

saying and doing are two different things.

 

lou has proven thusfar that he can say a lot of things that people on this board really like (mostly because it differs from dusty). implementing what he says, however, has been a problem.

Dusty=Stupid.

 

If Lou says something that contradicts Dusty, I don't like to hear it because it contradicts dusty. I like to hear it because it's the talk of a competent manager. Dusty just so happens to embody incompetence.

 

And you're right, we haven't seen a lot of Lou's talk come to pass yet, but at the same time, Lou's not out there saying things have gotten better under him, he's saying there are still problems that still need improvement.

[Magnetic Curses]

it seems that our hitters are bent on getting into a pitcher's count and gambling on the fastball. they have no desire to work a walk and will generally swing, no matter the location, at a 3-1 pitch.

[ltb]

If Lou says something that contradicts Dusty, I don't like to hear it because it contradicts dusty. I like to hear it because it's the talk of a competent manager.

 

these are one and the same. that's what i meant when i said most people like to hear things different than what dusty said - because dusty was a moron.

[RynoRules]

saying and doing are two different things.

 

lou has proven thusfar that he can say a lot of things that people on this board really like (mostly because it differs from dusty). implementing what he says, however, has been a problem.

 

Is it Lou's fault if the players don't heed his advice? Is it Lou's fault that we have Izturis? Jones? Blanco? That Pie's idea of the strike zone is similar to my own?

 

Seriously, look closer.

[tkenm356]

I'd hate to use the tired old clichéd phrase "Rome wasn't built in a day", but I just did, because it makes a whole lot of sense regarding this issue.

 

It's like if someone comes up to me and says "You gotta stop drinking beer." That just won't happen any time soon, and will take a long time to get used to

[killthegoat06]

I love lou.

[Vinestal]

Lately there have been a bunch of guys that work the count to 3-1 or 3-2 then swing at ball 4, thats so gut wrenching to watch, especially when the pitch is not even remotely close.

[RegulusBlue]

Lately there have been a bunch of guys that work the count to 3-1 or 3-2 then swing at ball 4, thats so gut wrenching to watch, especially when the pitch is not even remotely close.

 

Murton would take the walk...

 

Nevermind, stupid idea. Leave him on the bench. Does he even get to dress for games all the time?

[jersey cubs fan]

if you get annoyed by the team's overall lack of patience, look no further then the GM's office. I don't understand why Jim doesn't understand that we need far greater balance in this area.

 

I think it comes down to his history in the college game. College baseball is all about rah-rah, tough guy, throw the fastball by him, hit to get on, let your pitchers throw as long as necessary to win, it's called hitting strategy. As bad as "conventional wisdom" in MLB is, it seems to be much worse in college. As a guy who made his way up the ladder via coaching college kids and then scouting them, Jim was bound to be one of the last of the crowd to be introduced to new ideas. College teams play so many fewer games that the results of any one at-bat, or pitch, is so much greater than in the 162 game major league season, and I think that is part of his infatuation with "clutch" and "timely hitting". In college it's harder to brush off one bad at-bat in the clutch or a handful, because they don't have 6 months of back to back games to make up for it and see the numbers even out. So it's just important to get that hit right now every single at-bat.

 

I really think that Jim is still influenced by that past college coaching exposure.

[TruffleShuffle]

yawn

[Danny82]

Murton hasn't exactly had the best pitch selection this year at the plate either.

[inari]

I've said this before - if you get annoyed by the team's overall lack of patience, look no further then the GM's office. I don't understand why Jim doesn't understand that we need far greater balance in this area. I'd like to see 2 or 3 Lee-types for every Soriano-type.

 

 

 

 

Agreed. I love the quote, but I put the blame on squarely on Jim Hendry. He's filled the team with players who have a history of not walking. Soriano, Aramis, Barrett, Jones- all good hitters. Never were guys who drew walks before coming to the team, how can we expect them to walk now?

 

Blame Hendry. Regardless of what Dusty said, I just saw it as him sticking up for the players Jim Hendry gave him. After all, Dusty did coach the best walk guy in the history of baseball.

 

I don't think it's fair to put Aramis in the same category as the others. He's not completely allergic to walks like they are. He's not going to draw as many as Lee, but I he's pretty much "average" when it comes to drawing walks and I'd expect that to get better as he gets older. He had a few monster walk years in the minors.

[Guest]

I've said this before - if you get annoyed by the team's overall lack of patience, look no further then the GM's office. I don't understand why Jim doesn't understand that we need far greater balance in this area. I'd like to see 2 or 3 Lee-types for every Soriano-type.

 

 

 

 

Agreed. I love the quote, but I put the blame on squarely on Jim Hendry. He's filled the team with players who have a history of not walking. Soriano, Aramis, Barrett, Jones- all good hitters. Never were guys who drew walks before coming to the team, how can we expect them to walk now?

 

Blame Hendry. Regardless of what Dusty said, I just saw it as him sticking up for the players Jim Hendry gave him. After all, Dusty did coach the best walk guy in the history of baseball.

 

I don't think it's fair to put Aramis in the same category as the others. He's not completely allergic to walks like they are. He's not going to draw as many as Lee, but I he's pretty much "average" when it comes to drawing walks and I'd expect that to get better as he gets older. He had a few monster walk years in the minors.

 

Actually, I would separate him only because he doesn't strike out and thus maintains a high enough batting average to maintain a decent obp without walking a lot. Does anybody care that Vlad doesn't walk? Also, Ramirez will draw more walks because pitchers are more scared of him.

[RegulusBlue]

Murton hasn't exactly had the best pitch selection this year at the plate either.

 

Murton needs to play regularly to get comfortable, rather than being jerked around with pinch hits and spot starts.

[TruffleShuffle]

Murton hasn't exactly had the best pitch selection this year at the plate either.

 

Murton needs to play regularly to get comfortable, rather than being jerked around with pinch hits and spot starts.

 

and how long do you put a guy in and watch him flail away?

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

Murton hasn't exactly had the best pitch selection this year at the plate either.

 

Murton needs to play regularly to get comfortable, rather than being jerked around with pinch hits and spot starts.

 

and how long do you put a guy in and watch him flail away?

 

How long did we let Izturis start?

[TruffleShuffle]

I like what Lou is saying, but he has to find a way to make the players embrace the idea of improved discipline. Here are the leadoff ABs from each inning last night:

 

1st inning: Soriano, 7 pitches seen, 6 swings, groundout on 1-2 count

2nd inning: Barrett, 6 pitches seen, 1 swing, strikeout on full count

3rd inning: Lee, 1 pitch seen, 1 swing, groundout

4th inning: DeRosa, 2 pitches seen, 1 swing, fly out on 1-0 count

5th inning: Soriano, 4 pitches seen, 3 swings, strikeout on 0-2 count

6th inning: Murton, 2 pitches seen, 2 swings, groundout on 0-1 count

7th inning: Pie, 1 pitch seen, 1 swing, groundout (bunt)

8th inning: Murton, 2 pitches seen, 1 swing, groundout on 0-1 pitch

9th inning: Jock, 5 pitches seen, 2 swings, groundout on 2-2 pitch

 

 

That's horrible. One hitter got into a somewhat favorable hitter's count (Barrett), and five of the ABs were finished with in the first two pitches. Soriano hung in a little longer, but he was flailing away as well. The Cubs left a lot of guys on base last night, and a big reason was because all the good scoring situations were coming with two outs.

 

If they keep using this approach at the plate, they'll lose a lot of games this year. End of story.

[TruffleShuffle]

Murton hasn't exactly had the best pitch selection this year at the plate either.

 

Murton needs to play regularly to get comfortable, rather than being jerked around with pinch hits and spot starts.

 

and how long do you put a guy in and watch him flail away?

 

How long did we let Izturis start?

 

not very long obviously, since he's been benched already

[FergieJ31]

I like what Lou is saying, but he has to find a way to make the players embrace the idea of improved discipline. Here are the leadoff ABs from each inning last night:

 

1st inning: Soriano, 7 pitches seen, 6 swings, groundout on 1-2 count

2nd inning: Barrett, 6 pitches seen, 1 swing, strikeout on full count

3rd inning: Lee, 1 pitch seen, 1 swing, groundout

4th inning: DeRosa, 2 pitches seen, 1 swing, fly out on 1-0 count

5th inning: Soriano, 4 pitches seen, 3 swings, strikeout on 0-2 count

6th inning: Murton, 2 pitches seen, 2 swings, groundout on 0-1 count

7th inning: Pie, 1 pitch seen, 1 swing, groundout (bunt)

8th inning: Murton, 2 pitches seen, 1 swing, groundout on 0-1 pitch

9th inning: Jock, 5 pitches seen, 2 swings, groundout on 2-2 pitch

 

 

That's horrible. One hitter got into a somewhat favorable hitter's count (Barrett), and five of the ABs were finished with in the first two pitches. Soriano hung in a little longer, but he was flailing away as well. The Cubs left a lot of guys on base last night, and a big reason was because all the good scoring situations were coming with two outs.

 

If they keep using this approach at the plate, they'll lose a lot of games this year. End of story.

 

Wow that's pathetic. Absolutely agree that lack of plate discipline is a continuing problem with this team.

 

In Lou's defense, it's only May 1 - work habits are slow to change.

 

The Cubs would strategically be much better off if they weren't so damn afraid to fall behind 0-1 in the count. Pitch identification must improve too. I hope Lou will take the younger guys under his wing and work on this.

[moorecg]

I like what Lou is saying, but he has to find a way to make the players embrace the idea of improved discipline. Here are the leadoff ABs from each inning last night:

 

1st inning: Soriano, 7 pitches seen, 6 swings, groundout on 1-2 count

2nd inning: Barrett, 6 pitches seen, 1 swing, strikeout on full count

3rd inning: Lee, 1 pitch seen, 1 swing, groundout

4th inning: DeRosa, 2 pitches seen, 1 swing, fly out on 1-0 count

5th inning: Soriano, 4 pitches seen, 3 swings, strikeout on 0-2 count

6th inning: Murton, 2 pitches seen, 2 swings, groundout on 0-1 count

7th inning: Pie, 1 pitch seen, 1 swing, groundout (bunt)

8th inning: Murton, 2 pitches seen, 1 swing, groundout on 0-1 pitch

9th inning: Jock, 5 pitches seen, 2 swings, groundout on 2-2 pitch

 

 

That's horrible. One hitter got into a somewhat favorable hitter's count (Barrett), and five of the ABs were finished with in the first two pitches. Soriano hung in a little longer, but he was flailing away as well. The Cubs left a lot of guys on base last night, and a big reason was because all the good scoring situations were coming with two outs.

 

If they keep using this approach at the plate, they'll lose a lot of games this year. End of story.

 

Wow that's pathetic. Absolutely agree that lack of plate discipline is a continuing problem with this team.

 

In Lou's defense, it's only May 1 - work habits are slow to change.

 

The Cubs would strategically be much better off if they weren't so damn afraid to fall behind 0-1 in the count. Pitch identification must improve too. I hope Lou will take the younger guys under his wing and work on this.

 

An entire game w/o a leadoff runner...we need to avoid that.

[frostwyrm]

Murton hasn't exactly had the best pitch selection this year at the plate either.

 

Murton needs to play regularly to get comfortable, rather than being jerked around with pinch hits and spot starts.

 

and how long do you put a guy in and watch him flail away?

 

How long did we let Izturis start?

 

not very long obviously, since he's been benched already

 

15 starts in 2007, and 17 after he came over in 2006, so that's 32 total. This year he picked up right where he left off last year, just stinking up the joint on a regular basis, consistent with his whole stinky career. I can't blame Lou for being down on Izzy. He sucks.