I have decided to go from being completely on writing hiatus until April Fools’ Day, to being mostly on hiatus.
Translated, that means a pre-April short missive today for your reading pleasure, and an occasional one to come.
That being said:
Imagine seeing a player who put up the following numbers over the course of a 162 game season:
771 PA’s, .330/.377/.527, with 30 HRs, 320 runs and 321 RBIs.
Ted Williams on steroids?
No, of course, no one will put up those many RBIs over the course of 162 games.
No, my friends, those are Bo Bichette’s actual career numbers with RISP.
How awesome are those numbers, huh? Any of you STILL think it was a good idea not to get him?
(And yes, you can conceivably get up 771 times in a single season. Jimmy Rollins once got up 778 times in a season).
Bo, by the way, was the 66th overall pick in the 2016 draft.
Who was 64th overall, just two picks earlier? Why, Pete Alonso, of course.
Anyway, on to my next, and final, point du jour:
I will throw some numbers at you:
110, 127, 139, 138.
That’s how many games Luis Robert, Marcus Semien, Bo Bichette, and Jorge Polanco were in last year.
Collectively, employing my considerable mathematical skills, that comes out to 134 combined games that they were NOT in.
Or, looked at another way, they missed 27% of the 162 games.
So, for those concerned about where Baty and Vientos will get their ABs, those concerned citizens of Metsville should keep in mind that they no longer have to play on the same roster as Messrs. Nimmo and Alonso who, combined, missed just 7 games last year, or just 2% absence, for the percentage-minded among us.
The Iron Men of 2025 are gone. The Part Timers are here.
I too am, for the time being, a Part Timer in writing, which might make Steve Cohen and David Stearns a tad gleeful.
But, David, I humbly and accurately note that I LIKE the rebuild so far.
I like it a lot, as Forrest Gump, a prodigious intellectual equal of mine, would say.
Thoughts?
10 comments:
You may want to refresh yourself with Ted Williams’ stats. His career line is better than that and he played until 41 years old.
Bichette spoke very proudly about his approach with RISP. He talked about how his dad would talk to him about focusing better in those situations. Wow! Focusing more! What a concept!
One of the things I look forward to when watching Mets games is the new approach of the lineup. No more giving away at bats slapping at the ball or rolling over your wrists. No more being an easy out late in the game with three sliders away. No more striking out on baxk foot sliders and saying “aw shucks” but doing nothing to correct that.
Gus, my cousin Billy watches every single Mets gamegame. Whenever I go over to his house and he’d be talking Mets, he’d be going on and on and on about how bad they were with runners in scoring position. I guess big bad Bo will help change that! HIS R ISP makes this a great signing all by itself. On top of that getting him and keeping him away from the Phillies was priceless.
FYI
Tong working on two way slider to increase his number of pitches from two to four
@TexasGus-- We can only hope that those horrendous numbers in crucial situations improve dramatically.
@Mack -- What is a 2 way slider. Sounds like a cutter that works both ways. Whatever it is, he needs to develop two things -- something with a sharp break and something to work in a horizontal plane. I worry that so many people here have underestimated how limiting working in one plane is.. His motion eliminates a sweeper and it favors a 12/6 curveball that right now is more of a lollipop than one reminiscent of Koufax. Does Koufax still show up at sT.
Yes. Can you imagine if Bo signed his deal a day earlier while they were chasing Tucker? Or the White Sox dont accept Acuna?
Joel Sherman said that the backup plan to Tucker originally was Hays or Loorsbar from St. Louis. And if they don’t get Peralta it was Bassett or Gallen… excited yet?
I was a two way slider while shoveling today. I slid a little left and I slid a little right. Fortunately, Mr Alvarez reminded me, I didn’t slide hands first.
Gus, two smiles instead of 2 frowns right there. Smiling about Peralta and Bo.
So spot on Tom. All the key new players are more clutch. They were a colle to e .473 in “competitive” games last year (.535 & .625 in ‘24 & ‘22 respectively). .439 in 1R games vs .636 & .583 in ‘24 & ‘22 respectively. So unclutch in pressure spots.
What drives me crazy when I read sportswriters and commentators on other sites is they use statistics that are inadequately granular. E.g. when discussing the line-up productivity they discuss total numbers of HR, Runs and RBIs, but the most important numbers are invariably much more granular. All thinking and decision making is made on the basis of marginal increments relative to setbacks. The line-up was incredibly unbalanced. They have put a group together that on paper can generate runs no matter which 3 are due up any particular inning. The Dodger line-up was extremely balanced in just that way. The Yankees scored a million runs but it was more unbalanced and even less clutch than the Mets. These comparisons that take the form of replacing Alonso with X, Nimmo with Y, and so on, are barely relevant. Of course you want productivity, but you would welcome some in late innings, from the back of the line-up an you would be willing to give up a little out of the number 3 spot. etc.
The ability to generate runs in multiple ways is essential. The 1985 St Louis cardinals were one of the best I can reclaim in that regard.
Post a Comment