BECKHAM IS BACK

[southsider2k5]

There was never anything said about not calling Beckham back up.

 

You send him down until/if he finds his grove then you call him back up. Give 2-4 more weeks and if he doesn't show any signs of improvement vs. MLB pitching after nearly half a season, its time for a change in approach. Vs. MiLB pitching he can possibly find his grove, maybe something can click.

People act as if sending a player down means you are giving up on him.

 

If you send him down, that is exactly what you are telling him.

[BearSox]

If you send him down, that is exactly what you are telling him.

If Beckham is too fragile mentally to handle that situation then, he doesn't deserve to be in the big leagues to begin with.

 

Top prospects are called up and sent down all the time. The only one who would be giving up in a situation like that would be Beckham.

 

Nelson Cruz was acquired from the Brewers and was top prospect for the Rangers. They handed him the started job in 2007 and he sucked ass. He sucked so bad that they had to DFA him, but he passed waivers. They kept him, he dominated the minors in 08, and now he's an all-star.

 

If anything, the Rangers gave up on Cruz but something clicked for Cruz when he was sent down and he came back with a vengeance.

 

But yeah, sending young players down is never the right thing to do. You want them to struggle as much at the major league level as possible, right?

Edited May 31, 2010 by BearSox

[greg775]

Sometimes I think people want Gordon sent down so they simply don't have to deal with his s***ty batting average and struggles.

They'll feel better with Gordon out of their hair and not a daily reminder of how s***ty he has been all season.

 

Well that is stupid. Like somebody on here said, many people want a firesale and to play prospects. Think those prospects aren't going to struggle as well? Let Gordon play up here and work it out.

Our scouts and baseball people think he's ready. Let him play and let him get better.

Sending him down makes absolutely no sense unless he's all depressed and brooding and Ozzie told him that was the only way he'd not play.

Like that commercial where the bartender tells the guy he has a purse. Sack up, people. Man up. Let Beckham play in the f***ing big leagues.

Sending him down would be asinine.

 

Not everything comes easy. Some players have to work through struggles to make it. Team is going nowhere anyway. Keep him up here.

Edited May 31, 2010 by greg775

[WCSox]

If Beckham is too fragile mentally to handle that situation then, he doesn't deserve to be in the big leagues to begin with.

 

Top prospects are called up and sent down all the time. The only one who would be giving up in a situation like that would be Beckham.

 

(1) There's no evidence that Beckham is "mentally fragile."

 

(2) There's currently nobody in-house to replace Beckham (Vizquel has an even lower OPS+)

 

(3) There's no point in wasting Beckham's options if there's no better option to replace hit bat in the lineup.

 

[southsider2k5]

(1) There's no evidence that Beckham is "mentally fragile."

 

(2) There's currently nobody in-house to replace Beckham (Vizquel has an even lower OPS+)

 

(3) There's no point in wasting Beckham's options if there's no better option to replace hit bat in the lineup.

 

3 strikes and you are out.

[BearSox]

(1) There's no evidence that Beckham is "mentally fragile."

 

(2) There's currently nobody in-house to replace Beckham (Vizquel has an even lower OPS+)

 

(3) There's no point in wasting Beckham's options if there's no better option to replace hit bat in the lineup.

(1) I never said he was. But people are using the excuse that it would hurt his confidence or be a sign of the team giving up on him, and thats total BS. If Beckham feels any of that, he would be to weak mentally for this game.

 

(2) I could care less who takes over for him at the MLB level. The whole point in sending him down would be to try something different and see if he can figure stuff out facing inferior pitching.

 

(3) If Beckham reaches his potential, there is no fear in wasting 1 option.

[lostfan]

(1) There's no evidence that Beckham is "mentally fragile."

 

(2) There's currently nobody in-house to replace Beckham (Vizquel has an even lower OPS+)

 

(3) There's no point in wasting Beckham's options if there's no better option to replace hit bat in the lineup.

He didn't say Beckham was mentally fragile.

 

edit: nm he already said it

Edited May 31, 2010 by lostfan

[WCSox]

(2) I could couldn't care less who takes over for him at the MLB level. The whole point in sending him down would be to try something different and see if he can figure stuff out facing inferior pitching.

 

No, the "whole point" is some sort of illogical retribution on your part because Beckham has failed to hit over an 8-week span. There's nothing logical about replacing Beckham's bat in the lineup with Vizquel's, or helping Beckham to hit major-league pitching by putting him up against the same inferior level of minor-league/college pitching that he's absolutely smoked over the past few years.

 

Think of it this way: When you master a video game at the Novice level, you don't improve at the Advanced level by continuing to beat up the CPU at the Novice level.

Edited May 31, 2010 by WCSox

[greg775]

How bout I try again: There is no value to the player or the team in sending Beckham down.

 

Ozzie made it clear: If he broods he is sent down. If he keeps his head up and tries to have fun and all that, he stays.

Those that want Beckham sent down appear to me, to be people who just want to see him automatically hitting .340 again no matter the level.

[iamshack]

No, the "whole point" is some sort of illogical retribution on your part because Beckham has failed to hit over an 8-week span. There's nothing logical about replacing Beckham's bat in the lineup with Vizquel's, or helping Beckham to hit major-league pitching by putting him up against the same inferior level of minor-league/college pitching that he's absolutely smoked over the past few years.

 

Think of it this way: When you master a video game at the Novice level, you don't improve at the Advanced level by continuing to beat up the CPU at the Novice level.

I don't agree with what BearSox is saying, but he does have a point.

 

Look at things this way...imagine Beckham had not been called up last year, and this was his first shot at the big leagues. Keeping him up for the benefit of the team would be viewed as toxic for his development. But because he did have success for 300 PAs last season, it is not.

 

Should the success Beckham experienced last year excuse the organization from being more cognizant of his development as opposed to the needs of the MLB club?

[WCSox]

I don't agree with what BearSox is saying, but he does have a point.

 

Look at things this way...imagine Beckham had not been called up last year, and this was his first shot at the big leagues. Keeping him up for the benefit of the team would be viewed as toxic for his development. But because he did have success for 300 PAs last season, it is not.

 

Should the success Beckham experienced last year excuse the organization from being more cognizant of his development as opposed to the needs of the MLB club?

 

The thing about Beckham, though, is that he's not some 19-year-old a year removed from high school. He set school records in his three years at Georgia, hit well in A-ball after he was drafted, hit .394 in the Arizona Fall League, and then raked in AA and AAA before getting called up the following year. He has no more "developing" to do at that level. And his numbers in Chicago last year reinforce the argument that he belongs in the bigs.

 

At the very least, hitting the panic button 8 weeks into the season is WAY premature.

 

[iamshack]

The thing about Beckham, though, is that he's not some 19-year-old a year removed from high school. He set school records in his three years at Georgia, hit well in A-ball after he was drafted, hit .394 in the Arizona Fall League, and then raked in AA and AAA before getting called up the following year. He has no more "developing" to do at that level. And his numbers in Chicago last year reinforce the argument that he belongs in the bigs.

 

At the very least, hitting the panic button 8 weeks into the season is WAY premature.

He was in Charlotte for a week basically. He was not in Birmingham for that long either, to be honest. Yes, his acension through the minor leagues was fast and easy. As was his rise with the big league club last year. But obviously, it was not something he has been able to sustain.

 

Just to reset the debate here a little bit, I don't think anyone is arguing that Gordon has to go down to Charlotte to necessarily "prove he belongs," but rather he needs to go down to regain confidence, refresh his mental attitude a bit, and tighten up his mechanics against a caliber of pitcher that will allow him to do so perhaps a little more easily.

[WCSox]

He was in Charlotte for a week basically. He was not in Birmingham for that long either, to be honest. Yes, his acension through the minor leagues was fast and easy. As was his rise with the big league club last year. But obviously, it was not something he has been able to sustain.

 

Just to reset the debate here a little bit, I don't think anyone is arguing that Gordon has to go down to Charlotte to necessarily "prove he belongs," but rather he needs to go down to regain confidence, refresh his mental attitude a bit, and tighten up his mechanics against a caliber of pitcher that will allow him to do so perhaps a little more easily.

 

I don't think that confidence is a problem with Beckham. Agreed about working on his mechanics, but I don't necessarily think that a trip to Charlotte is necessary for that (at least not at this point). If he can't get his mechanics straightened out against back-of-the-rotation starters and in batting practice, one has to wonder what kind of instruction he's getting in Chicago. If Beckham is still hitting around the Mendoza Line two months from now, sending him to Charlotte might not be a bad idea - in the sense that he may respond better to a different hitting instructor.

 

 

Edited June 1, 2010 by WCSox

[iamshack]

I don't think that confidence is a problem with Beckham. Agreed about working on his mechanics, but I don't necessarily think that a trip to Charlotte is necessary for that (at least not at this point). If he can't get his mechanics straightened out against back-of-the-rotation starters and in batting practice, one has to wonder what kind of instruction he's getting in Chicago. If Beckham is still hitting around the Mendoza Line two months from now, sending him to Charlotte might not be a bad idea - in the sense that he may respond better to a different hitting instructor.

I watched a kid who was absolutely unshakeable last season. He was struggling defensively at 3b, but it seemed to roll off his back because he was helping the team out offensively.

 

Now, I am watching a kid who is unsure of himself, who is massively frustrated, who is not particularly having a lot of fun out there. He's always screaming and swearing like CQ, throwing his equipment around, and probably just upset that he is not helping the team.

 

I just think being removed from the pressure a bit would reset his focus a bit.

 

Obviously, I may be wrong - really hard to make these sort of guesses without being involved or on the inside. But that is just what my eyes are telling me.

[WCSox]

If Beckham is still hitting like this in August, I won't complain too loudly if he were optioned to Charlotte. But I just don't think that this is the time to do it. Struggling and learning how to overcome adversity is part of becoming a professional in any line of work. I agree that he shouldn't be left hanging indefinitely, but panicking over his mental state after two bad months will arrest his development more than it will help.

 

[iamshack]

If Beckham is still hitting like this in August, I won't complain too loudly if he were optioned to Charlotte. But I just don't think that this is the time to do it. Struggling and learning how to overcome adversity is part of becoming a professional in any line of work. I agree that he shouldn't be left hanging indefinitely, but panicking over his mental state after two bad months will arrest his development more than it will help.

That's a fair point, and I see both sides of the coin. I'm not if I agree with that last statement, but honestly, neither of us can really know.

 

I think from where we're sitting a reasonable argument can be made for either approach.

 

We'll just have to trust that those in charge are balancing the long and short term goals of both Gordon and the team.

[WCSox]

That's a fair point, and I see both sides of the coin. I'm not if I agree with that last statement, but honestly, neither of us can really know.

 

I think from where we're sitting a reasonable argument can be made for either approach.

 

We'll just have to trust that those in charge are balancing the long and short term goals of both Gordon and the team.

 

And I also see your point about Beckham frustrating and embarrassing himself if he were to continue swinging the stick this way for the remaining 2/3 of the season. That would obviously not help him either.

 

Hopefully Bacon goes off this month and this topic becomes a non-issue.

 

[Steve9347]

Gordon Beckham went the entire month of May without an extra base hit.

[AWhiteSoxinNJ]

They brought Beckham up last year as a band aid and now the band aid is falling off. Let him re-build his confidence and find his swings in Triple A. There is nothing wrong was that. If you leave him up in the bigs for to long, you run the risk of ruining him for good, see Fields, Josh; Gordon, Alex.

[Balta1701]

They brought Beckham up last year as a band aid and now the band aid is falling off. Let him re-build his confidence and find his swings in Triple A. There is nothing wrong was that. If you leave him up in the bigs for to long, you run the risk of ruining him for good, see Fields, Josh; Gordon, Alex.

I think that you can say a lot of things went wrong with Josh Fields...but I don't think "Leaving him up in the bigs for too long" was one of them.

[BearSox]

Yeah, Fields was clueless when it came to baseball. Shame to cause he had the tools to be decent.

[Jordan4life_2007]

They brought Beckham up last year as a band aid and now the band aid is falling off. Let him re-build his confidence and find his swings in Triple A. There is nothing wrong was that. If you leave him up in the bigs for to long, you run the risk of ruining him for good, see Fields, Josh; Gordon, Alex.

 

Yeah, that Alex Gordon sure struggles against AAA pitching.

[AWhiteSoxinNJ]

Yeah, that Alex Gordon sure struggles against AAA pitching.

 

What happens when your left in the big leagues for 2 years to struggle.

 

I bet he couldn't hit A-ball at the moment.

[iamshack]

What happens when your left in the big leagues for 2 years to struggle.

 

I bet he couldn't hit A-ball at the moment.

He was player of the week or something just recently. He's hitting it just fine.

[greg775]

Gordon Beckham went the entire month of May without an extra base hit.

 

After last year, can you imagine the Vegas odds on that one?

It would have been 100,000 to one probably if they did odds on such things.