Baseball thoughts again

[MsStateBaseball]

Yes we have gotten better.

People have argued about the lineup. It should be like game one today. Humphreys should start DH sometimes like Garner. Both must hit every game.

Vickerson Bradford and Henderson is the OF. Armstrong is first off the bench, he is perfect pinch runner. Brown still needs work but I'm not giving up on him. Robson just needs more work too.

If Hudson does well tomorrow then our five starters are pretty darn good and will get better. Woodruff Fitts Bracewell Hudson Sexton. Ross coming in after Woody is money. Keep Lindgren like it is, he could pitch in 3 games on a weekend.

I sorry about Holder BC he just isn't that sharp and who is our backup closer.

[maroonmania]

Right now Woodruff is not a Friday night SEC quality starter. That's our biggest concern on the pitching staff at the moment. We actually might be better to go Bracewell, Fitts and then try Woodruff on Sunday where he isn't matched up against the other ace. Holder is the other concern and let's hope he gets back in the groove. But if not Lindy might be a good substitute. Sexton and Hudson have been up and down in their starts but that is to be expected with true freshmen, unfortunately Woody is not a freshman although I'll cut him some slack given maybe he's still working off the rust from the injury.

[Todd4State]

I wouldn't worry about Holder. He only gave up one hit and then the run scored on a wild pitch. He is still striking people out though- and that's a good sign. Plus, allowing one run in a situation that's not a save situation doesn't worry me all that much right now. If he struggles, I'd go with Lindgren or Will Cox as the closer. I'm probably in the minority, but I was encouraged by Holder's outing.

I think our rotation on the weekend needs to be:

Fri- Lindgren
Sat.- Fitts
Sun.- Woodruff

If we need Lindgren to close, we go with Bracewell. Over the long term, I think Woodruff will be fine- but this is essentially a rehab year for him. Putting him out there on Sundays is going to match him up against the other teams number three guy as opposed to their ace and give Brandon some leeway. Fitts is starting to remind me of Graveman. But Lindgren has been lights out filthy. Ben Bracewell is pitching like a senior. I love Dakota Hudson and his potential- but I think him coming out of the bullpen in SEC play would benefit us more. And he could also potentially close as well.

Right now I think our lineup should be:

C- Collins
1B- Rea
2B- Pirtle
3B- Humphreys, although Detz had a good game two today.
SS- Heck
LF- Vickerson
CF- CT
RF- Demarcus
DH- Garner

That's a solid line-up and the only guy that is somewhat struggling at the plate is Heck- but he has hit some balls hard so he may get some to fall for him before long.

[smootness]

Detz also went 2-5 in game one. He's going to be fine. I just don't know what to do with Garner/Humphreys/Detz. I think it'll work itself out, but as much as I like both Henderson and Vickerson, I think we need to see Humphreys some in the OF to get some more pop in the lineup...at least once per weekend.

[Will James]

Lindy is sitting at 6.2 IP; 2 H; 14 K

Give. Him. Innings.

[Will James]

Detz hits too. Yeah Hump is hitting bad pitching pretty well. Wait till we see SEC arms. Different ball game that Detz has played with extraordinary success. I repeat, Detz stays in the lineup.

[bully99]

South Alabama swept a doubleheader at Arkansas. They come to Starkville this week. That game will be on ESPN 3

[BeardoMSU]

I can't believe people have been talking about replacing Holder as the closer. I know he's struggled a bit to start this season, but he's been about as automatic as any pitcher we've had.

I agree about possibly moving Bracewell to Fridays though. I'd actually like to see Woody start a couple of mid-weeks to get his confidence up. Lindo out of the pen is money right now. Him, Ross, and Miles are gonna win us a lot of games.

[Todd4State]

Detz also went 2-5 in game one. He's going to be fine. I just don't know what to do with Garner/Humphreys/Detz. I think it'll work itself out, but as much as I like both Henderson and Vickerson, I think we need to see Humphreys some in the OF to get some more pop in the lineup...at least once per weekend.

Having good players on the bench is not the worst problem in the world to have.

[Todd4State]

Detz hits too. Yeah Hump is hitting bad pitching pretty well. Wait till we see SEC arms. Different ball game that Detz has played with extraordinary success. I repeat, Detz stays in the lineup.

Isn't Detz hitting against the same pitching? And let's not forget that Humphreys started this week hitting .125. He's now up to .400 and is the only guy on the team not named Wes Rea to have hit a home run.

[Todd4State]

South Alabama swept a doubleheader at Arkansas. They come to Starkville this week. That game will be on ESPN 3

South Alabama is usually pretty good.

[Will James]

Isn't Detz hitting against the same pitching? And let's not forget that Humphreys started this week hitting .125. He's now up to .400 and is the only guy on the team not named Wes Rea to have hit a home run.

Sample sizes.. And I was saying, Detz has proven he can hit good pitching. Hump obviously hasn't.

Detz plays.

[bulldogcountry1]

I definitely think Humphreys need more defensive PT somewhere. He always looks better than Detz in warm-ups at 3rd

Where did he play in HS?

[Schultzy]

Humphreys has earned a spot in the lineup until it's shown he can't hit SEC pitching. He and Detz both need to be in the lineup.

Man on third, tie game, one out, bottom of the ninth, infield in. We bunt!? A pop up to the catcher. Obviously you swing away if it's not a suicide squeeze.

Anyone know what happened here? Did Armstrong miss the sign? Did Bradford decide to bunt on his own? A sac fly wins the game. A ground ball probably gets through for the win. CT sat game two so hopefully this wasn't some more unconventional coaching going on.

[Goat Holder]

The notion of keeping Detz out of the lineup is retarded, Mr. Expert.

[maroonmania]

The notion of keeping Detz out of the lineup is retarded, Mr. Expert.

No doubt he needs to be in the lineup but if he normally has significant dropoff against lefties (don't know the statistics myself) and Humphreys and Garner continue to hit the ball well I could see cases where against LH pitching we put both of those guys in the lineup and sit Detz. Although we certainly did it last year, having the 1 and 2 spots in the order both be left handed hitters when the other team starts a lefty can often put your offense at a disadvantage.

[FFF]

Humphreys has earned a spot in the lineup until it's shown he can't hit SEC pitching. He and Detz both need to be in the lineup.

Man on third, tie game, one out, bottom of the ninth, infield in. We bunt!? A pop up to the catcher. Obviously you swing away if it's not a suicide squeeze.

Anyone know what happened here? Did Armstrong miss the sign? Did Bradford decide to bunt on his own? A sac fly wins the game. A ground ball probably gets through for the win. CT sat game two so hopefully this wasn't some more unconventional coaching going on.

We've been awful with runners at third and less than 2 outs (any of you numbers crunchers, please feel free to prove me wrong... I'm going off my recollection). CT has failed to come through in the same situation in an earlier game, as well as earlier in this game (swinging at the 12th straight breaking ball at his feet). It should be AUTOMATIC or damn near automatic we score that guy ESPECIALLY in games as close as we play.

I'm glad we are winning these games and I'm sure this will come around later in the season, but it's definitely a concern now.

[Goat Holder]

The debate is between Humphreys and Garner. Detz is going to hit no matter what, case closed on that (barring a crazy slump). If Humphreys continues to hit like he did last night, then I'm inclined to play him because he helps us with the bat AND glove. Garner is hurting himself by not being able to catch, and he's already been moved to 1B. So it looks like Humphreys may be the guy.

It comes down to a simple comparison: Detz/Garner bat + Detz glove or Detz/Humphreys bat + Humphreys glove. Last night, it was easily the second. Over the long haul will it be? Who knows.

Still have to figure out what to do with Armstrong. Seems like he should play but where? May end up being a R/L situation for both instances.

[Will James]

I'm not buying Armstrong's bat just yet.. And he has value if we need a SB late in the game.

[Jacksondevildog]

he played at northwest rankin.

[Todd4State]

Sample sizes.. And I was saying, Detz has proven he can hit good pitching. Hump obviously hasn't.

Detz plays.

It's a good thing that the Yankees didn't use sample sizes when they decided to replace Wally Pipp with Lou Gehrig.

CT Bradford- the guy who hate- had a better batting average and OBP against SEC pitching than Detz last year.

I don't need a large sample size to tell me that Reid gives us more power, better defense at third, more range at third, a better arm, and more speed than Detz. The Washington Nationals also apparently agree with me as well.

If you advocate Detz playing, don't complain about us not hitting home runs- because playing him means that we are sitting either Humphreys or Garner.

[Will James]

It's a good thing that the Yankees didn't use sample sizes when they decided to replace Wally Pipp with Lou Gehrig.

CT Bradford- the guy who hate- had a better batting average and OBP against SEC pitching than Detz last year.

I don't need a large sample size to tell me that Reid gives us more power, better defense at third, more range at third, a better arm, and more speed than Detz. The Washington Nationals also apparently agree with me as well.

If you advocate Detz playing, don't complain about us not hitting home runs- because playing him means that we are sitting either Humphreys or Garner.

Shin-Soo Choo- 100 million dollar deal
Nelson Cruz - 8 million dollar deal

[Todd4State]

Shin-Soo Choo- 100 million dollar deal
Nelson Cruz - 8 million dollar deal

If you really just compared Alex Detz to Shin-Soo Choo, you really don't know what you are talking about.

[Esmerelda Villalobos]

If you really just compared Alex Detz to Shin-Soo Choo, you really don't know what you are talking about.

You just figuring this out? WJs literally bats about .050

[Todd4State]

You just figuring this out? WJs literally bats about .050

Yes, but he has a high BABIP.**

I'm just shocked that someone compared Alex Detz to a CF that hit over 20 home runs last year and plays above average defense at a premium position.