Andruw Jones spring training mean anything?

[Heads22]

Well, at least he's not sucking at the moment.

[Kalapse]

Thats your example huh. Well Beckham and his ST looked great last year and he turned into a stud. Now your turn.

David Ortiz, Josh Hamilton, Alex Rios, Brian Buscher, Coco Crisp, Josh Wilson, Wilson Betemit, Marco Scutaro, Howie Kendrick (.900 OPS last spring), Gary Matthews Jr. (.828 OPS last spring), Robb Quinlan (1.000+ OPS, 5 HR last spring), Brandon Wood (.900+ OPS, 4 HR last spring). That's a few names from the Angels who put up a .910 TEAM OPS last spring.

 

I can name 100 players who's 60 spring AB were the complete opposite of what they gave their team during the season then you can come back and name another 100 who kicked ass during both. All it proves is that you have no idea if a player can match his spring production because all you're getting is a small sample size of glorified batting practice, it would be irresponsible to attempt to derive anything meaningful from such a tainted, tiny sample.

 

I have hope for Andruw Jones, I have ever since we signed him but that has absolutely nothing to do with his 20 or so spring ABs, no, it's because of his talent, re-dedication to conditioning and the promise he showed last season before succumbing to a strained hamstring a little over halfway through the year. There's simply no way I can bring myself to get excited about 20 AB in the thin Arizona air.

[Kalapse]

I don't care what the metrics say. I absolutely refuse to believe this.

He's incredibly fast and had much less ground to cover upon moving from CF to LF, it's certainly conceivable that he'd be among the best.

[Jordan4life_2007]

He's incredibly fast and had much less ground to cover upon moving from CF to LF, it's certainly conceivable that he'd be among the best.

 

I know. I was being silly more than anything. I just don't like Juan Pierre. I used to clown Cubs fans when he was with them. I can't just start liking because he's a White Sock. Now if he sports an OBP over .350, then that might change.

[SoxAce]

I know. I was being silly more than anything. I just don't like Juan Pierre. I used to clown Cubs fans when he was with them. I can't just start liking because he's a White Sock. Now if he sports an OBP over .350, then that might change.

 

Exactly. As long as he's getting on base at a solid rate, you won't hear a peep from me about him this season.

[joeynach]

Well, that's just wrong.

 

Alfonso Soriano and his .975 OPS looked amazing last spring too but then he came north and the breaking balls started breaking as they should and he shutdown.

 

Soriano...dont u mean Pedro Serrano

[Marky Mark]

David Ortiz, Josh Hamilton, Alex Rios, Brian Buscher, Coco Crisp, Josh Wilson, Wilson Betemit, Marco Scutaro, Howie Kendrick (.900 OPS last spring), Gary Matthews Jr. (.828 OPS last spring), Robb Quinlan (1.000+ OPS, 5 HR last spring), Brandon Wood (.900+ OPS, 4 HR last spring). That's a few names from the Angels who put up a .910 TEAM OPS last spring.

 

I can name 100 players who's 60 spring AB were the complete opposite of what they gave their team during the season then you can come back and name another 100 who kicked ass during both. All it proves is that you have no idea if a player can match his spring production because it's all you're getting is a small sample size of glorified batting practice, it would be irresponsible to attempt to derive anything meaningful from such a tainted, tiny sample.

 

I have hope for Andruw Jones, I have ever since we signed him but that has absolutely nothing to do with his 20 or so spring ABs, no, it's because of his talent, re-dedication to conditioning and the promise he showed last season before succumbing to a strained hamstring a little over halfway through the year. There's simply no way I can bring myself to get excited about 20 AB in the thin Arizona air.

 

 

I don't post on Soxtalk that often, but I read it all day, everyday. Kalapse, you are the best this website has. Wear it proudly.

[iamshack]

I don't post on Soxtalk that often, but I read it all day, everyday. Kalapse, you are the best this website has. Wear it proudly.

He's honestly the best or one of the best on any message board I have ever seen.

 

And I don't even want to believe all his damn facts. But he brings it with every post. And I have to grudgingly admit he is almost always correct.

 

That being said, I think Andruw Jones and Marky Teahan are going to have great years for us this year.

Edited March 18, 2010 by iamshack

[JohnCangelosi]

He's honestly the best or one of the best on any message board I have ever seen.

 

And I don't even want to believe all his damn facts. But he brings it with every post. And I have to grudgingly admit he is almost always correct.

 

That being said, I think Andruw Jones and Marky Teahan are going to have great years for us this year.

He's the poster of the year several years running, so he is good, no doubt, but don't you also get a small feeling that he believes he is ALWAYS right, no questions asked and no further debates??? :-). Gotta appreciate the cockiness I guess...

[hogan873]

After reading this thread I came to the conclusion that Jones will be good or he will suck. Seriously, though, I am encouraged from what I've heard about him. He could work his way into playing a lot this year, and if he returns to close to the Andruw-of-old, our DH dilemna may not be as bad as we thought. The best part of him playing well is the money spent on him.

 

I agree with the sentiment that spring training doesn't mean a lot. I personally think ST is way too long (but that's me talking as a fan, not a player). Spring training serves many purposes, including pitchers getting into form and hitters working on their swing. But a major component of ST is checking out the players and seeing who is going to make the team, and of those who will be getting more playing time. If Ozzie puts a lot of stock in what he's seeing from Jones, we will probably see him in the lineup a lot more than we would have thought one month ago.

 

Will Jones hit .290 and smack 30+ HRs? Probably not, but imagine a guy who signed for half a million hitting .265, belting 20+ HRs, and driving in 75+, and most importantly helping to solve your concerns at DH. I like the sound of that.

[Kyyle23]

He's the poster of the year several years running, so he is good, no doubt, but don't you also get a small feeling that he believes he is ALWAYS right, no questions asked and no further debates??? :-). Gotta appreciate the cockiness I guess...

 

Every once in a while you can catch him off guard. I never do it on the board, but I caught him a few times in chat. It is usually followed by a 4 letter expletive aimed at me

[Dick Allen]

Thats your example huh. Well Beckham and his ST looked great last year and he turned into a stud. Now your turn.

You should watch the MLB Network more often. There's one thing they have run a dozen times and it showed last years spring training numbers. Believe me, if you saw it, you would want every White Sox to be hitting about .150 this spring and every pitcher's ERA to be over 10.00. Greinke's ERA last spring was about 9.00. Betemit led the White Sox with 6 homers 18 rbi. Teahen hit 7 homers for KC. Maybe his poor spring will mean breakout.(I'm not kidding). I think Ichiro hit real poorly as well. Lincecum's ERA was over 5.00. I think of the top 10 spring training hitters and pitchers numbers-wise, only 2 or 3 at most were productive players during the regular season. Of course last year was an even longer spring with the WBC, so perhaps it will be a bit different. Jones may have changed his approach, but you cannot tell how that will translate until pitchers start throwing their regular season stuff, and the odds of him not missing time with an injury are pretty slim as well.

 

[Dick Allen]

Well then Konerko and company are insane.

Either that or Alex Rios is very overhyped defensively. Of course this is the team that trotted Carl Everett and a 1000 year old Ken Griffey Jr out to CF.

[GoodAsGould]

I know numbers dont mean much when it comes to spring training but watching a guy you can definitely tell if its clicking for him or not. For example, whenever I have seen Quentin bat this ST he has hit line drives all over the place, sometimes they have been right at defenders but just seeing him hit the ball that hard has me encouraged and expecting a good season from him assuming health.

[RockRaines]

David Ortiz, Josh Hamilton, Alex Rios, Brian Buscher, Coco Crisp, Josh Wilson, Wilson Betemit, Marco Scutaro, Howie Kendrick (.900 OPS last spring), Gary Matthews Jr. (.828 OPS last spring), Robb Quinlan (1.000+ OPS, 5 HR last spring), Brandon Wood (.900+ OPS, 4 HR last spring). That's a few names from the Angels who put up a .910 TEAM OPS last spring.

 

I can name 100 players who's 60 spring AB were the complete opposite of what they gave their team during the season then you can come back and name another 100 who kicked ass during both. All it proves is that you have no idea if a player can match his spring production because all you're getting is a small sample size of glorified batting practice, it would be irresponsible to attempt to derive anything meaningful from such a tainted, tiny sample.

 

I have hope for Andruw Jones, I have ever since we signed him but that has absolutely nothing to do with his 20 or so spring ABs, no, it's because of his talent, re-dedication to conditioning and the promise he showed last season before succumbing to a strained hamstring a little over halfway through the year. There's simply no way I can bring myself to get excited about 20 AB in the thin Arizona air.

Thank you for helping my point. The results and numbers have nothing to do with it. If you havent SEEN Andruw Jones play, you cant make one call or the other on how he looks based on ST numbers. Of course based on how he is hitting the ball to all fields, staying back in his stance instead of the pull happy out in front approach he's been taking the last few years, I would say he is a much improved player and could be in for a good year. You can get excited when you see CLEAR changes in the way a player looks and is approaching the game, which has NOTHING to do with the actual numbers which was my point. If you havent seen the guy, your only negative or positive feeling is going to be based on stats on a sheet, which is irrelevant.

Edited March 18, 2010 by RockRaines

[NorthSideSox72]

I know. I was being silly more than anything. I just don't like Juan Pierre. I used to clown Cubs fans when he was with them. I can't just start liking because he's a White Sock. Now if he sports an OBP over .350, then that might change.

I think right now that TCQ may be the worst defensive OF on the team, all things considered. I actually like the idea of him getting lots of time at DH.

 

[ptatc]

Thank you for helping my point. The results and numbers have nothing to do with it. If you havent SEEN Andruw Jones play, you cant make one call or the other on how he looks based on ST numbers. Of course based on how he is hitting the ball to all fields, staying back in his stance instead of the pull happy out in front approach he's been taking the last few years, I would say he is a much improved player and could be in for a good year. You can get excited when you see CLEAR changes in the way a player looks and is approaching the game, which has NOTHING to do with the actual numbers which was my point. If you havent seen the guy, your only negative or positive feeling is going to be based on stats on a sheet, which is irrelevant.

 

This can't be true. Greg Walker is the hitting coach and he only teaches lift and pull.

 

[Balta1701]

I think right now that TCQ may be the worst defensive OF on the team, all things considered. I actually like the idea of him getting lots of time at DH.

You'd probably be right regardless...worth noting though is that TCQ already seems to be moving a lot better than he was last year, and although he hasn't tested it yet I'm sure, he probably still has the best throwing arm on the team.

[RockRaines]

I think right now that TCQ may be the worst defensive OF on the team, all things considered. I actually like the idea of him getting lots of time at DH.

Speaking of guys that pass the eye test. Everything looks like its GO for Mr Quentin. He looks alot more loose in the batters box this spring than last year.

[soxrwhite]

Without a set Dh Ozzie can rotate players in the outfield. It should help any one who is nursing an injury. Two pretty good outfielders defensively (Pierre and Quentin ) and two very good ones ( Jones and Rios ) works for me. They can all get playing time. Either in the field or at DH.

[hogan873]

I'm trying not to get too excited, but maybe this rotating DH idea might work.

[qwerty]

Hands down rios has the best arm out of our outfielders. He has been terrific in that aspect since he established himself in the league.

[southsider2k5]

Thank you for helping my point. The results and numbers have nothing to do with it. If you havent SEEN Andruw Jones play, you cant make one call or the other on how he looks based on ST numbers. Of course based on how he is hitting the ball to all fields, staying back in his stance instead of the pull happy out in front approach he's been taking the last few years, I would say he is a much improved player and could be in for a good year. You can get excited when you see CLEAR changes in the way a player looks and is approaching the game, which has NOTHING to do with the actual numbers which was my point. If you havent seen the guy, your only negative or positive feeling is going to be based on stats on a sheet, which is irrelevant.

 

This is kind of what I was hoping to see. I can look up to see what he is hitting, but I want to know how he is hitting it. Is he cheating on fastball from crappy AA pitchers, or he is doing something legitimately worth getting excited about. Is he hitting good off-speed stuff, and decent pitchers?

[macsandz]

This is kind of what I was hoping to see. I can look up to see what he is hitting, but I want to know how he is hitting it. Is he cheating on fastball from crappy AA pitchers, or he is doing something legitimately worth getting excited about. Is he hitting good off-speed stuff, and decent pitchers?

 

All of the above. He's working counts and hitting the crap out of the ball when he does make contact. He's got a nice approach and a lot of confidence now. He's sending fastballs away into the gaps and the

3-run HR yesterday was a hanging slider I believe. Hard to tell as the picture was standard def garbage. It was against Ramon Troncoso who has nasty stuff for LA.

 

Jones is having a great camp. He's doing everything he said he'd do when he signed the contract. Ozzie challenged him and he's responding. Something to keep an eye on. I'm impressed.

[RockRaines]

This is kind of what I was hoping to see. I can look up to see what he is hitting, but I want to know how he is hitting it. Is he cheating on fastball from crappy AA pitchers, or he is doing something legitimately worth getting excited about. Is he hitting good off-speed stuff, and decent pitchers?

I really like the arm extension he is getting so far this spring, he looks to be staying back with his hips a bit more than in previous years where he cleared them almost immediately.