Q&A with Buddy Bell on the farm system

[southsider2k5]

Good stuff in there, a couple of highlights...

 

http://www.csnchicago.com/baseball-chicago...mp;feedID=10338

 

On Simon Castro's outlook:

 

He’s on a good track. He’s another kid that had kind of a dead arm and we shut him down for a while. But he’s on a good track. He’s right where we want him to be. His secondary stuff’s good, his command’s good, he competes. He can be a horse one of these days.

 

On Nestor Molina's issues (4.40 ERA, 149 hits in 116 2/3 IP):

 

He’s healthy now. He had a good game the other night, his command was good. His command hasn’t been great all year. We’re not really sure -- we didn’t do a lot of mechanical changes with him, but we did a few that might’ve set his command back a bit. He was coming up sore because of his mechanics, that was the reason he was coming up sore.

 

So we’re trying to get him in the best possible situation where his delivery is sound and he doesn’t have to worry about being sore. I think that created some command issues. He’s been pretty good since he’s been back here the second time.

 

On how long Molina dealt with an elbow issue this season:

 

It was more of a tired issue early on, and I think that’s probably what it was for the most part. A kid that has that kind of arm, you don’t really want to take any chances. It was never really a serious issue, but it was serious enough to where we felt like he needed to be shut down and [get an MRI] anyway.

 

On Courtney Hawkins' move from rookie ball to Kannapolis and his professional debut:

 

He basically forced us to send him to Kannapolis. There’s a lot of things he has to get better at -- defensively, his routes, setup, things like that -- but he’s really ahead of a lot of college kids that we see go in the upper rounds. He’s got a lot to learn, but he’s a pretty good player. Good looking player, plays hard, good baserunner, he’s got a good arm, he does a lot of really good things. And he’s got tons of personality and energy. And that’s a pretty good combination of stuff.

[Marty34]

On Plate Discipline:

 

Our philosophy is we like these kids to swing the bat. You can’t learn how to hit unless you swing the bat. We have a lot of kids who come out of college who won’t swing until they have to. We like these guys to swing. We feel like the more aggressive they are, the more disciplined they will become, even though it doesn’t look like that now.

 

Not a fan of this philosophy.

 

Bell says Sanchez plays short and second equally as well. Seems if that were the case, he would have started out as a SS.

[NorthSideSox72]

Not a fan of this philosophy.

 

Bell says Sanchez plays short and second equally as well. Seems if that were the case, he would have started out as a SS.

 

He did.

 

Then they have played him at 2B and 3B more recently, which are positions of need for the team. Also that gives an added bonus of flexibility. Makes sense to me.

 

[Marty34]

He did.

 

Then they have played him at 2B and 3B more recently, which are positions of need for the team. Also that gives an added bonus of flexibility. Makes sense to me.

 

My view is if a prospect can play short he should stay there especially when he's only 20.

[NorthSideSox72]

My view is if a prospect can play short he should stay there especially when he's only 20.

Some people see it that way, and I wouldn't argue heavily against it. But from what I have seen of various reports on his defense, his SS grading seems to be OK, but he's better at 2B and 3B. Bell didn't say that though.

 

And of course, everyone here knows the real reason you want him to be playing SS.

 

 

 

[Marty34]

Some people see it that way, and I wouldn't argue heavily against it. But from what I have seen of various reports on his defense, his SS grading seems to be OK, but he's better at 2B and 3B. Bell didn't say that though.

 

And of course, everyone here knows the real reason you want him to be playing SS.

 

It'd be nice to get rid of Ramirez's contract. Dodgers need a SS, right?

[Princess Dye]

Not a fan of this philosophy.

 

 

On some level, you have to make pitchers fear you. Be as discerning as you want, you won't draw walks until there's some reason that has been put forth to make someone not want to pitch to you. I think Flowers' MLB career (versus what he was able to do in the minors) has started to illustrate this. We know he can be judicious - his brain is capable of it. But he wont get walked here until the bat does something over a period of time.

 

 

Obviously it's everyone's preference to have all components present in a hitter from the start, but the vast majority of guys have to go about creating one reputation and then adjusting to that reputation.

Edited August 28, 2012 by Jose Paniagua

[Marty34]

On some level, you have to make pitchers fear you. Be as discerning as you want, you won't draw walks until there's some reason that has been put forth to make someone not want to pitch to you.

 

This is giving the pitcher too much credit. They can't put the ball where they want to at all times. I want hitters who can get favorable counts making pitchers throw them the most hittable pitches they can get.

Edited August 28, 2012 by Marty34

[ChiliIrishHammock24]

Interesting about not teaching the players to walk.

 

Also good to hear Buddy Bell admit that changes they tried to make with Molina may have been his issue. Good to hear accountability and how making it sound like everything is coming up roses.

[Marty34]

Interesting about not teaching the players to walk.

 

I find it troubling.

[oldsox]

It'd be nice to get rid of Ramirez's contract. Dodgers need a SS, right?

Dodgers just got a very expensive SS from Miami a few weeks ago. Same last name.

[Balta1701]

Interesting about not teaching the players to walk

Well, if we think about a number of the guys we've drafted/moved up recently (Mitchell, Walker, TT, Hawkins, D2), taking a walk doesn't seem to be their problem. We're getting guys who know how to work the count deeply, but who also strike out too often. Having them be more aggressive when they get a hittable pitch is a way to help cut down on those strikeouts.

 

This setup obviously wouldn't be the best thing for a guy like Viciedo who would swing at anything, but it might well be a good setup for the type of player we've been drafting the past couple seasons.

[southsider2k5]

Interesting about not teaching the players to walk.

 

Also good to hear Buddy Bell admit that changes they tried to make with Molina may have been his issue. Good to hear accountability and how making it sound like everything is coming up roses.

 

Big difference between taking a pitch just to take a pitch, and not playing for a walk.