Cohen post game

[msstate7]

Anybody listen?

[Todd4State]

I'm not sure if there will be one. Per twitter, he is having a team meeting in the clubhouse.

[Todd4State]

Nevermind about that. He's talking to the media now.

Said we wouldn't have beat a junior high team today. And then said it's clear to him what has to change. When asked by Bonner "what has to change?" Cohen then invited the media to come to practice.

[Will James]

He's the one throwing Lindgren 2 innings per weekend.. He's the one making the lineups.. He's the one supposedly making this slap hit approach messing players swings up..

[maroonmania]

Yep, sad that it took 2 Sundays of getting 10-run ruled for him to realize it, but there is no doubt that a LOT needs to change.

[Todd4State]

He's the one throwing Lindgren 2 innings per weekend.. He's the one making the lineups.. He's the one supposedly making this slap hit approach messing players swings up..

I agree about pitching Lindgren more. Disagree about "messing up swings". Rea doesn't have that approach. Renfroe didn't. We have a line drive hitting approach- and that is what works best given the talents of most of our players in our current lineup, the ball, the bat, and the ballpark. When we struggle is when we go away from that because it leads to pop ups- which are easy outs.

When you are getting 10+ hits and only getting two runs I think the culprit is two things- two automatic outs in the lineup- which goes back to making out a lineup. I'm referring to Rea and Britton. Having a guy who is essentially right now the equivalent of a National League pitching hitting in the 3/4 hole and then another guy in the 9 hole who can't hit- you are just asking for rallies to be killed. We also need to get back to stealing bases. It's like all we do is hit and run.

[Todd4State]

Yep, sad that it took 2 Sundays of getting 10-run ruled for him to realize it, but there is no doubt that a LOT needs to change.

No doubt. Our defense was awful today. Especially Collins. And the pitching gave up 20 hits.

[Jacksondevildog]

At this point in our season, I would start Lindgren. This decision is easier if Brown doesn't come back this year. Bracewell would replace Lindgrens role.

[Will James]

I was going on the first hand from a players mouth quote on here that someone provided saying "I came here an offensive player and he messed up my swing and now I'm a slap hitter"

[Todd4State]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dC6NQaoX-xI

[messageboardsuperhero]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dC6NQaoX-xI

[CadaverDawg]

If Preston Brown is out for the year, we have to gamble and throw Lindgren on Friday night, Ross on Saturday, and Fitts and Johnny Wholestaff on Sunday. Period.

Ross is great, but we don't need to matchup our one most consistent starter with everybody's ace. Let's match up our best overall arm...Lindgren, with their ace, and if we win, we're in great shape with Ross going Saturday. If either Lindgren or Fitts get in trouble, take a shot with Woodruff and then Bracewell. If those guys can't get it done, then it ain't gettin done IMO.

[messageboardsuperhero]

It'll be very interesting to see what the lineup against Alcorn is on Tuesday...

On the weekends, I'd go:

Friday- Lindgren
Saturday- Mitchell
Sunday- Fitts

We desperately need some of the freshman arms to step up and give us quality innings- especially with all the injuries we've had on the mound.

Honestly, I have no clue what the lineup will/should look like, so I won't even try to take a stab at it.

[Jacksondevildog]

Absolutely spot on 100%. Ross is neutralized because our offense is anemic and he is paired up with SEC Friday night aces.
If Preston Brown is out for the year, we have to gamble and throw Lindgren on Friday night, Ross on Saturday, and Fitts and Johnny Wholestaff on Sunday. Period.

Ross is great, but we don't need to matchup our one most consistent starter with everybody's ace. Let's match up our best overall arm...Lindgren, with their ace, and if we win, we're in great shape with Ross going Saturday. If either Lindgren or Fitts get in trouble, take a shot with Woodruff and then Bracewell. If those guys can't get it done, then it ain't gettin done IMO.

[WeWonItAll(Most)]

I was going on the first hand from a players mouth quote on here that someone provided saying "I came here an offensive player and he messed up my swing and now I'm a slap hitter"

I will back Will up on this one and say that a few of the players I've talked to aren't thrilled with Cohen's approach to hitting

[Todd4State]

I was going on the first hand from a players mouth quote on here that someone provided saying "I came here an offensive player and he messed up my swing and now I'm a slap hitter"

Everyone that plays in the SEC was an "offensive player" in high school. Everyone- including every single player in MLB- wants to be Babe Ruth. Heck, I want to be Babe Ruth.

The reality is when you are 5'10" and you are going up against SEC pitching and in this current college baseball environment, trying to be Babe Ruth is not the best idea in the world. And I can guarantee you that after about a month or two of hitting routine fly outs they would be a lot more open about change.

You have to be who you are. Now, you may not like who you are. But if you want to succeed in baseball you have to be who you are and play to your strengths.

[CadaverDawg]

I will back Will up on this one and say that a few of the players I've talked to aren't thrilled with Cohen's approach to hitting

I believe that 100%....however, they probably weren't bitching during last year's run. So it's all relative. When you're losing, everybody wants to blame somebody else.

[Todd4State]

As far as the pitching staff what I would do:

Fri- Fitts/Lindgren
Sat.- Ross
Sun.- Woodruff/Lindgren

That way you pitch Lindgren and probably Holder twice. And then use Bracewell and Gentry in reserve. And of course, I would add in Dakota Hudson for an inning on occasion.

[starkvegasdawg]

So it took Cohen this long into the season to figure out there's a problem? Don't guess his nickname is QuickDraw.

[Todd4State]

I believe that 100%....however, they probably weren't bitching during last year's run. So it's all relative. When you're losing, everybody wants to blame somebody else.

I don't even know who it could be? We're not going to change Collins or Humphreys approach. Rea doesn't have that approach and he's the worst hitter on the team right now. Pirtle, Henderson, Armstrong, and CT are all hitting around .300. Heck has been hitting better lately. If it's Britton he has absolutely no reason to complain when we keep trotting him out there despite being well below the Mendoza line and if he wants to start swinging for the downs, more power to him. Maybe Detz but heck, based on how he has done overall he needs to get back to what Cohen was telling him to do last year.

It might be the Canadians.

[Todd4State]

So it took Cohen this long into the season to figure out there's a problem? Don't guess his nickname is QuickDraw.

This has been a typical year for us under Cohen:

OOC- win a lot but with a few holes and a couple of bad losses unless we are just really talented.

First half of the SEC season- struggle some and have some moments that show glimpses of hope. Some holes and weaknesses are evident.

Second half of the SEC season- finish strong and put ourselves in position to at worst be a 2 seed at a regional.

Postseason- Finish the season strong.

The only thing that frustrates me is when I am Joe Fan and I can see that we should be starting someone like Reid Humphreys and Gavin Collins, but we keep trotting Zach Randolph and Matthew Britton out there.

[Jacksondevildog]

Collins should start nearly every game at catcher. He is a way better hitter than Randolph and defensively, they are equal. Collins may be a little better behind the plate. It's an easy decision to make. Put Detz at 1B and Humphreys at 3B. Spot hit Rea some, but he's killing us. His defense has also been shaky this year. Just not the same guy over there. It's time to infuse some new blood into the program. It's not like we could do any worse right now.

[WeWonItAll(Most)]

I don't even know who it could be? We're not going to change Collins or Humphreys approach. Rea doesn't have that approach and he's the worst hitter on the team right now. Pirtle, Henderson, Armstrong, and CT are all hitting around .300. Heck has been hitting better lately. If it's Britton he has absolutely no reason to complain when we keep trotting him out there despite being well below the Mendoza line and if he wants to start swinging for the downs, more power to him. Maybe Detz but heck, based on how he has done overall he needs to get back to what Cohen was telling him to do last year.

It might be the Canadians.
It wasn't as much him messing with their swings as the way he rates players during BP. A ball that hits the L-screen, regardless of how hard its hit, is supposedly valued higher than a line drive that is not up the middle between the white lines Cohen draws in right and left center field during the fall. This complaint stood out to me, and this was during the fall, before we knew we sucked.

On another note, and speaking of the Canadians, I have heard they are in Cohen's doghouse big time.

[starkvegasdawg]

On another note, and speaking of the Canadians, I have heard they are in Cohen's doghouse big time.

He tried to change their swing and they asked him what all this was aboot, eh.

[Todd4State]

It wasn't as much him messing with their swings as the way he rates players during BP. A ball that hits the L-screen, regardless of how hard its hit, is supposedly valued higher than a line drive that is not up the middle between the white lines Cohen draws in right and left center field during the fall. This complaint stood out to me, and this was during the fall, before we knew we sucked.

On another note, and speaking of the Canadians, I have heard they are in Cohen's doghouse big time.

That's totally different than messing with someone's swing and "Cohen made me a slap hitter".

[Jacksondevildog]

I don't trust Canadians. I dated one college.

[MarketingBully01]

This has been a typical year for us under Cohen:

OOC- win a lot but with a few holes and a couple of bad losses unless we are just really talented.

First half of the SEC season- struggle some and have some moments that show glimpses of hope. Some holes and weaknesses are evident.

Second half of the SEC season- finish strong and put ourselves in position to at worst be a 2 seed at a regional.

Postseason- Finish the season strong.

The only thing that frustrates me is when I am Joe Fan and I can see that we should be starting someone like Reid Humphreys and Gavin Collins, but we keep trotting Zach Randolph and Matthew Britton out there.

Our schedule certainly sets up for us to finish strong. If we can get this thing figured out, we can finish 10-5 and that wouldn't surprise me. We have to take advantage of the fact we don't play Florida USC and Kentucky. Otherwise, what's the point of having one of the easiest SEC schedules we have had in a while.

[cbrunt29]

He tried to change their swing and they asked him what all this was aboot, eh.
I laughed

[WeWonItAll(Most)]

He tried to change their swing and they asked him what all this was aboot, eh.

No, nothing about changing swings, more about not coming to practice

[Jacksondevildog]

If that's the case, pack their stuff on the first moose available and head back to Saskatchewan.

[WeWonItAll(Most)]

That's totally different than messing with someone's swing and "Cohen made me a slap hitter".

Not necessarily, if the coach encourages anything at all up the middle versus driving a pitch to left field or right field then wouldn't you as a player be inclined to try to hit things up the middle rather than driving the ball to all fields?

[I seen it dawg]

No, nothing about changing swings, more about not coming to practice

Not coming to practice?!?!?!?!?!?!? ****ing kidding me? If so a moose is too good to send them home on. Why in the hell do they still have access to the locker room

[Will James]

A ball that hits the L-screen, regardless of how hard its hit, is supposedly valued higher than a line drive

If thats the case.....

[Jacksondevildog]

I think the approach to stay up the middle is fine for batting practice. The Problem is we cannot hit the ball out of the infield.

[Homedawg]

Collins should start nearly every game at catcher. He is a way better hitter than Randolph and defensively, they are equal. Collins may be a little better behind the plate. It's an easy decision to make. Put Detz at 1B and Humphreys at 3B. Spot hit Rea some, but he's killing us. His defense has also been shaky this year. Just not the same guy over there. It's time to infuse some new blood into the program. It's not like we could do any worse right now.

I have no issue w starting Collins every game. But to say he and Randolph are equal defensively is ludicrous. Yes Collins has the better arm. That's it. He's worth at minimum of 3 to the backstop a game. He is clearly the better hitter I get it and on this team maybe that outweighs the defense. But to say they are equal is just plain wrong. Skillet mitt at this point in his career.

[CadaverDawg]

I have no issue w starting Collins every game. But to say he and Randolph are equal defensively is ludicrous. Yes Collins has the better arm. That's it. He's worth at minimum of 3 to the backstop a game. He is clearly the better hitter I get it and on this team maybe that outweighs the defense. But to say they are equal is just plain wrong. Skillet mitt at this point in his career.

If you're implying that Randolph is a great blocker, you've lost it. Randolph is good for a few passed balls, Collins maybe 1-2 more...but Collins' arm puts him above Randolph defensively. And offense is a no doubter.

This isn't like the Britton/Detz thing where one is Clearly better defensively. Randolph is not a good defensive catcher either. We don't have one. So put the best arm and bat out there...Collins.

[Homedawg]

Like I said, I have no issue starting him because he is better offensively. To compare receiving and blocking is not even close. Passed balls at this level are unexceptable, it's like letting a ball go between your legs on the infield. I saw Collins have at least 4 this weekend. Also, I think his lack of blocking ability affected lindgren yesterday, because he was scared to snap off the slider bc it would go to the backstop. Hell, he threw 3 straight sliders w no one on that all went to the bricks and Collins attempted to block all of em. I think he has a bright future, at least I hope bc he can hit and can throw- but he's a poor poor receiver at this point. And I'm being kind.

[BankerDog]

Canadians came to the locker room Friday and everything was cleaned out. They haven't been dressing out at all. Robson has something wrong with his elbow, he went to a doctor about it and missed a few days. Hann hasn't been healthy since he has been here because of allergies. He left a week ago to go back home and didn't tell anyone.

When you have guys like Garner going against Cohen and taking the I'm swinging as hard as I can approach. He doesn't like that. Especially after Cohen begged him to come back after Christmas Break because Garner was transferring to LSU Enuice. Cohen told me he would be the DH this year. Well now he is DHing a .260 guy.

We have guys thinking they're hot stuff because they made it to the National Championship, recruits to. They're living in the past.

There are a lot of internal issues going on with this team that these guys need to figure out. I especially feel bad for Henderson who should be in the lineup and a Garner who shows he can hit.

[HoopsDawg]

Canadians came to the locker room Friday and everything was cleaned out. They haven't been dressing out at all. Robson has something wrong with his elbow, he went to a doctor about it and missed a few days. Hann hasn't been healthy since he has been here because of allergies. He left a week ago to go back home and didn't tell anyone.

When you have guys like Garner going against Cohen and taking the I'm swinging as hard as I can approach. He doesn't like that. Especially after Cohen begged him to come back after Christmas Break because Garner was transferring to LSU Enuice. Cohen told me he would be the DH this year. Well now he is DHing a .260 guy.

We have guys thinking they're hot stuff because they made it to the National Championship, recruits to. They're living in the past.

There are a lot of internal issues going on with this team that these guys need to figure out. I especially feel bad for Henderson who should be in the lineup and a Garner who shows he can hit.

It's absolutely ridiculous that Henderson still sits games out. WTF??

[Todd4State]

Not necessarily, if the coach encourages anything at all up the middle versus driving a pitch to left field or right field then wouldn't you as a player be inclined to try to hit things up the middle rather than driving the ball to all fields?

Actually, hitting the ball up the middle is how you learn to drive the ball to all fields. It's much easier to adjust to a pitch whether it's thrown outside or inside with that approach than it is to try to consciously pull the ball all the time or go opposite field all the time. Plus, if you are a dead pull hitter the other teams are going to pick up on it pretty quickly and exploit that. Ask Wes Rea. Or maybe don't ask him since he apparently has no clue that this is what they are trying to do to him.

Hitting the ball up the middle is not "slap" hitting. Heck, that's the same approach that Albert Pujols uses. And probably many many more great hitters. Slap hitting is what Otis Nixon did.

Sounds to me like the issue is we have a bunch of young hitters who in high school were able to "hit opposite field" because in high school they were a lot better than most of the people that they were facing and they don't understand that you can't do that in the SEC. If you are that much better than your competition and have the bat speed, you can almost use any approach that you want to and it's going to work.

[MsStateBaseball]

I expect to lose a few players. The Canadians have been a mystery. They have stopped vining in January so I knew something was wrong. I expect to sign 15, we have 11 now,

[WeWonItAll(Most)]

Canadians came to the locker room Friday and everything was cleaned out. They haven't been dressing out at all. Robson has something wrong with his elbow, he went to a doctor about it and missed a few days. Hann hasn't been healthy since he has been here because of allergies. He left a week ago to go back home and didn't tell anyone.

When you have guys like Garner going against Cohen and taking the I'm swinging as hard as I can approach. He doesn't like that. Especially after Cohen begged him to come back after Christmas Break because Garner was transferring to LSU Enuice. Cohen told me he would be the DH this year. Well now he is DHing a .260 guy.

We have guys thinking they're hot stuff because they made it to the National Championship, recruits to. They're living in the past.

There are a lot of internal issues going on with this team that these guys need to figure out. I especially feel bad for Henderson who should be in the lineup and a Garner who shows he can hit.
I didn't know what the problem with Hann was, but I knew that Robson was having elbow issues and neither of them went to LSU last weekend by their own choice w/o Cohen's permission then didn't come to practice Monday, so he kicked them off the team, and sometime later in the week Cohen let the team (maybe just seniors) vote on if they stay on the team. And they were in they dugout this weekend, so I assume they voted them back on the team.

On Garner, I would be furious if I was him. He had told some people on the team he was transferring then talked to Cohen and was convinced to stay, just to ride the pine on a team with no power what so ever in the lineup.

You're right that this team seems to have major internal problems, its extremely disappointing.

[Todd4State]

Canadians came to the locker room Friday and everything was cleaned out. They haven't been dressing out at all. Robson has something wrong with his elbow, he went to a doctor about it and missed a few days. Hann hasn't been healthy since he has been here because of allergies. He left a week ago to go back home and didn't tell anyone.

When you have guys like Garner going against Cohen and taking the I'm swinging as hard as I can approach. He doesn't like that. Especially after Cohen begged him to come back after Christmas Break because Garner was transferring to LSU Enuice. Cohen told me he would be the DH this year. Well now he is DHing a .260 guy.

We have guys thinking they're hot stuff because they made it to the National Championship, recruits to. They're living in the past.

There are a lot of internal issues going on with this team that these guys need to figure out. I especially feel bad for Henderson who should be in the lineup and a Garner who shows he can hit.

Garner hasn't looked good in SEC play the few chances that he has gotten and that is EXACTLY what I am talking about. He's 0 for 5 with 4 K's in SEC play.

[Todd4State]

I expect to lose a few players. The Canadians have been a mystery. They have stopped vining in January so I knew something was wrong. I expect to sign 15, we have 11 now,

I don't know how many we will sign, but I hope we sign at least one JUCO outfielder with some power.

If Hann isn't coming back, I think Holland will be a more than capable replacement. That pitcher we just got a commitment from Tyler JUCO has some really good numbers as well.

[WeWonItAll(Most)]

Garner hasn't looked good in SEC play the few chances that he has gotten and that is EXACTLY what I am talking about. He's 0 for 5 with 4 K's in SEC play.
The problem with Garner, in my opinion, is he has no 2 strike approach. He's swinging with 110% effort every swing, which I love for strike 1 and 2. But once you get two strikes on you, you need to shorten up and just try to battle and put something in play. I also feel like its nearly impossible this to be his second year at State and he still doesn't have a better approach with 2 strikes, which makes me wonder if he's feeling pressed to do something during his ABs since he's getting exactly 1 AB per SEC series.

[Homedawg]

Hann is never going to play here anyway, even if burdick doesn't make it to campus. So no big loss.

[MsStateBaseball]

I guarantee the recruiting has picked up, the coaches know what they need. They know who is leaving. Getting Heck was great he is an awesome player, for example. Going to I teresting next two months.

[MarketingBully01]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dC6NQaoX-xI

I like what he was saying. He basically stated he hasn't done a good job coaching these kids this year and stated it was all his fault. It wouldn't surprise me if we saw a completely new lineup moving forward. Players like Humphreys and Garner may earn their chances after all. If we can get things righted, the second half of the season is much easier. I have confidence Cohen will figure it out. He is too good a coach not too.

[CadaverDawg]

I like what he was saying. He basically stated he hasn't done a good job coaching these kids this year and stated it was all his fault. It wouldn't surprise me if we saw a completely new lineup moving forward. Players like Humphreys and Garner may earn their chances after all. If we can get things righted, the second half of the season is much easier. I have confidence Cohen will figure it out. He is too good a coach not too.

I agree 100%.

What Cohen said gives me hope. Not only is he going to try a new approach this week, but he basically gave the entire team a get out of jail free card by taking all of the blame, even though we know it wasn't all Cohen's fault. Now, if he doesn't change anything, we'll know it was just lip service....but hopefully we see some changes.

It's time for Henderson to be in the lineup EVERY day, and Humphreys to get MEANINGFUL at bats every weekend. And we should see more Garner as well. I'm a big Britton fan, but it's time for Cohen to decide if we're playing for defense or offense and stick with it. I'm all in favor of bringing him in late in games as a defensive sub, but for God's sake don't start Detz over there...start Humphreys.

We should have two DH's....Detz vs RHP's, Garner vs LHP's. If he wants Britton to start at 3B vs RHP and Hump vs LHP, fine with me. But decide on a routine that these guys can get used to and comfortable with, and STICK WITH IT.

[engie]

Actually, hitting the ball up the middle is how you learn to drive the ball to all fields. It's much easier to adjust to a pitch whether it's thrown outside or inside with that approach than it is to try to consciously pull the ball all the time or go opposite field all the time. Plus, if you are a dead pull hitter the other teams are going to pick up on it pretty quickly and exploit that. Ask Wes Rea. Or maybe don't ask him since he apparently has no clue that this is what they are trying to do to him.

Hitting the ball up the middle is not "slap" hitting. Heck, that's the same approach that Albert Pujols uses. And probably many many more great hitters. Slap hitting is what Otis Nixon did.

Sounds to me like the issue is we have a bunch of young hitters who in high school were able to "hit opposite field" because in high school they were a lot better than most of the people that they were facing and they don't understand that you can't do that in the SEC. If you are that much better than your competition and have the bat speed, you can almost use any approach that you want to and it's going to work.

Exactly...

And I'll add this -- If our guys are going around whining and assigning blame -- I don't want those guys here anymore. Let them walk -- I don't care how talented they are. That's a bitch ass attitude that the program has tried hard to rid itself of -- and the type of thing that can tear teams apart.

Hopefully, the wake up call was finally gotten to Cohen on some of his personnel decisions -- and we see wholesale changes. I'll be honest -- I don't like the lineup either -- and think it was f'n stupid to redshirt 3 potentially power hitting freshmen -- while barely playing 2 more. But I'm not going to pile on right now. We'll see where we end up...

[Todd4State]

The problem with Garner, in my opinion, is he has no 2 strike approach. He's swinging with 110% effort every swing, which I love for strike 1 and 2. But once you get two strikes on you, you need to shorten up and just try to battle and put something in play. I also feel like its nearly impossible this to be his second year at State and he still doesn't have a better approach with 2 strikes, which makes me wonder if he's feeling pressed to do something during his ABs since he's getting exactly 1 AB per SEC series.

It took the guys that people are jacking off for Ole Miss four years to figure out how to hit. Why is it surprising that Garner who is a redshirt freshman doesn't have a good two strike approach? Hitting is simply not that easy. And it's even more difficult when a hitter tries to do what he did in high school in the SEC.

Based on what I read/seen/heard if he wants to play more, he needs to do what Cohen wants him to do- which will also lead to him having more success. And I don't intend to single Garner out- there's several that this could apply to.

The bottom line is if the players don't want to listen to Cohen and do what he tells them to do- I don't care if he tells them to go up there and hit with a leg broken off of a table in the clubhouse- they either need to A) do what they are told or B) leave. They are going to have to do what the coaches tell them to do at some point. If it's not at MSU and they are fortunate enough to play in the minors they're going to have to listen to the coaches there.

And hopefully Garner will listen and start to change and become a productive player for us.

[messageboardsuperhero]

It took the guys that people are jacking off for Ole Miss four years to figure out how to hit. Why is it surprising that Garner who is a redshirt freshman doesn't have a good two strike approach? Hitting is simply not that easy. And it's even more difficult when a hitter tries to do what he did in high school in the SEC.

Based on what I read/seen/heard if he wants to play more, he needs to do what Cohen wants him to do- which will also lead to him having more success. And I don't intend to single Garner out- there's several that this could apply to.

The bottom line is if the players don't want to listen to Cohen and do what he tells them to do- I don't care if he tells them to go up there and hit with a leg broken off of a table in the clubhouse- they either need to A) do what they are told or B) leave. They are going to have to do what the coaches tell them to do at some point. If it's not at MSU and they are fortunate enough to play in the minors they're going to have to listen to the coaches there.

And hopefully Garner will listen and start to change and become a productive player for us.

Yep. Anderson was a good hitter last year, but most of these same players were very average for UM for the first 2-3 years of their careers. You have to give Godwin a ton of credit- he's an outstanding hitting coach and recruiter.

At the end of the day though, usually upperclassmen are going to be more successful at the plate- and the complete lack of improvement from last year by our upperclassmen is really what's letting us down right now (and in some cases it's been total regression). There's no excuse for some of our guys to be putting up the numbers that they are at this point in their careers.

[Todd4State]

Yep. Anderson was a good hitter last year, but most of these same players were very average for UM for the first 2-3 years of their careers. You have to give Godwin a ton of credit- he's an outstanding hitting coach and recruiter.

At the end of the day though, usually upperclassmen are going to be more successful at the plate- and the complete lack of improvement from last year by our upperclassmen is really what's letting us down right now (and in some cases it's been total regression). There's no excuse for some of our guys to be putting up the numbers that they are at this point in their careers.

If you told me that Rea would be under .200 for SEC play midway through and Detz would be around the Mendoza line for the season I wouldn't have believed you before the season.

[BankerDog]

1) A player directly told me "I came in as a hitter. Look at my stats. They changed me swing now I can't drive it. I can't stand it."

2) The Canadians were in the dugout Friday. They didn't travel to Pearl Tuesday. Friday they came in and their lockers cleaned out. One of them called all the coaches and they all avoided the questions. They finally got hold of one of Cohen and everything is fine.

3) One of them told me he isn't transferring. The other didn't know yet.

4) I feel much more comfortable with Daniel Garner batting who has a chance to drive a ball then Alex Detz who, in my opinion, is either gonna strike out or hit a grounder up the middle.

5) I like Britton at 3rd. I'll give up one good spot offensively for this defensive spot. Heck, I sat in T.D. Ameritrade and saw Britton hit 4 out before game 2 of the NC.


Like I said earlier there is a lot more going on inside the locker room that I will not put out there.

[LC Dawg]

I hope this isn't just lip service and Cohen does make some changes. I hated our player's body language today. I know it's a long season and you can't hang on every play or let one bad play affect you too much as a player but I'm about ready for one of our guys to at least slam a bat, helmet, or glove to the ground or bust a water cooler. They need to be pissed off at the way they are playing.

[preachermatt83]

what I learned from listening to 3 players discussion today...I do not think this is the opinion of the whole team but it is of these 3 players...

1) They have no confidence in Woody. (this conversation began as woody was brought into the game)
2) They are very upset with either Cohen or Butch( I couldn't tell which one they were referring to in the discussion)
3) Will Cox will come back from injury with an opportunity to be a starter and he will go back to his old arm slot or he will be in a different uniform

[CadaverDawg]

what I learned from listening to 3 players discussion today...I do not think this is the opinion of the whole team but it is of these 3 players...

1) They have no confidence in Woody. (this conversation began as woody was brought into the game)

2) They are very upset with either Cohen or Butch( I couldn't tell which one they were referring to in the discussion)

3) Will Cox will come back from injury with an opportunity to be a starter and he will go back to his old arm slot or he will be in a different uniform

1) You probably shouldn't post that even if true
2) If they are pissed at Cohen or Butch! they probably aren't playing well and are looking to place blame. Not saying Cohen and Butch are doing great, but based on what I'm seeing from players right now, they should all STFU and play ball and listen to and obey their coaches. Comments like 1 and 2 are part of our team's problem right now.
3) then he will be wearing a different uniform because he is not a starter over the top OR from 3/4...but he is a much better pitcher overall at 3/4.

[preachermatt83]

1) You probably shouldn't post that even if true
2) If they are pissed at Cohen or Butch! they probably aren't playing well and are looking to place blame. Not saying Cohen and Butch are doing great, but based on what I'm seeing from players right now, they should all STFU and play ball and listen to and obey their coaches. Comments like 1 and 2 are part of our team's problem right now.
3) then he will be wearing a different uniform because he is not a starter over the top OR from 3/4...but he is a much better pitcher overall at 3/4.

1) Why?
2) I agree with you here
3) You are bad off on this one in both areas...

[Todd4State]

1) A player directly told me "I came in as a hitter. Look at my stats. They changed me swing now I can't drive it. I can't stand it."

2) The Canadians were in the dugout Friday. They didn't travel to Pearl Tuesday. Friday they came in and their lockers cleaned out. One of them called all the coaches and they all avoided the questions. They finally got hold of one of Cohen and everything is fine.

3) One of them told me he isn't transferring. The other didn't know yet.

4) I feel much more comfortable with Daniel Garner batting who has a chance to drive a ball then Alex Detz who, in my opinion, is either gonna strike out or hit a grounder up the middle.

5) I like Britton at 3rd. I'll give up one good spot offensively for this defensive spot. Heck, I sat in T.D. Ameritrade and saw Britton hit 4 out before game 2 of the NC.


Like I said earlier there is a lot more going on inside the locker room that I will not put out there.

But can Britton do it in an actual game? There are plenty of people that can put on a show in batting practice- but that's of zero value if he can't do it in game.

[Todd4State]

what I learned from listening to 3 players discussion today...I do not think this is the opinion of the whole team but it is of these 3 players...

1) They have no confidence in Woody. (this conversation began as woody was brought into the game)
2) They are very upset with either Cohen or Butch( I couldn't tell which one they were referring to in the discussion)
3) Will Cox will come back from injury with an opportunity to be a starter and he will go back to his old arm slot or he will be in a different uniform

1) You were talking to a player during the game? Not calling you a liar, and I know that the LFL is all friendly and all of that- but they DO NOT need to be talking to fans during the game PERIOD. Unless it's an emergency situation like a fan is hurt and they need to use the phone to get some medical attention or some exception like that. That's confusing to me since Woodruff had up until today three good outings in a row. Actually he has pitched better than most of our pitchers recently.

2) I have a feeling that's not going to change tomorrow during practice based on Cohen's comments. Oh well. Maybe stop looking like bitches and like you actually give a shit and maybe Cohen and Butch will be a lot happier?

3) Best news all day if you are a Belhaven fan. He can have fun pitching in front of 10's of fans at Smith-Wrigley next year.

[CadaverDawg]

1) Why?
2) I agree with you here
3) You are bad off on this one in both areas...

1) Because he's struggling enough without knowing that his teammates are talking behind his back. Plus, some locker room stuff just doesn't need to get in the public's hands if you know what I mean.

2) Yea, we both know that when the team is losing and you aren't hitting well, you want to have an excuse.

3) I don't think so. Cox got ripped pretty good when throwing over the top. He threw a pretty flat fastball. But since he went 3/4 I thought he would be one of our top relievers. I wish he would stop thinking he knows better than Butch, and just do his job. I guarandamntee you that Cox has zero shot at a pro career as an over the top guy. But he MIGHT have a shot as a side armer. I like him and think he can help the team, so I hope he sticks around and accepts his new throwing angle. I find it hard to believe that he has an issue with it. I'm sure Butch gave him the option. Probably said, "Will, you can either be an over the top guy that is used very rarely, or you can go 3/4 and potentially become a stud and major inning eater for this club.".

Not calling you a liar, preacher....but those 3 comments sounds an awful lot like things you have been saying on here since before the series started. Just sayin. Ha.

[Todd4State]

1) Because he's struggling enough without knowing that his teammates are talking behind his back. Plus, some locker room stuff just doesn't need to get in the public's hands if you know what I mean.

2) Yea, we both know that when the team is losing and you aren't hitting well, you want to have an excuse.

3) I don't think so. Cox got ripped pretty good when throwing over the top. He threw a pretty flat fastball. But since he went 3/4 I thought he would be one of our top relievers. I wish he would stop thinking he knows better than Butch, and just do his job. I guarandamntee you that Cox has zero shot at a pro career as an over the top guy. But he MIGHT have a shot as a side armer. I like him and think he can help the team, so I hope he sticks around and accepts his new throwing angle. I find it hard to believe that he has an issue with it. I'm sure Butch gave him the option. Probably said, "Will, you can either be an over the top guy that is used very rarely, or you can go 3/4 and potentially become a stud and major inning eater for this club.".

Not calling you a liar, preacher....but those 3 comments sounds an awful lot like things you have been saying on here since before the series started. Just sayin. Ha.

And if what he is saying about Cox is true then it proves my point that it's not just the hitters not listening to the coaches. It goes both ways- all hitters want to be a five tool version of Babe Ruth and every pitcher wants to be Sandy Koufax his last six years of his career. And then there is REALITY.

I think Butch wants Will Cox to be like Caleb Reed was essentially. Lower arm slot to RH hitters, and over the top to LH hitters. And that would work IF Cox buys into it once he is healthy. A lot of pitchers don't want to be sidearm/submarine guys because it pretty much relegates them to the bullpen for life. But if a pitcher is good at it, they can make a pretty good living doing it.

The bottom line to all of this is the PLAYERS have to all decide as a group that they are going to do what they are told to do whether they like it or not. Or if they are going to continue to do their own little thing and pretend to be something that they're not and keep losing games. They can either keep pointing fingers at Cohen, Butch, whoever or they can decide to come together and focus on winning and playing baseball.

[Todd4State]

I hope this isn't just lip service and Cohen does make some changes. I hated our player's body language today. I know it's a long season and you can't hang on every play or let one bad play affect you too much as a player but I'm about ready for one of our guys to at least slam a bat, helmet, or glove to the ground or bust a water cooler. They need to be pissed off at the way they are playing.

Cohen will do SOMETHING. He hates losing.

I suspect that Alcorn is going to be pretty much an open scrimmage and whomever plays the hardest is going to play.

[Todd4State]

And to add to that, I wouldn't be surprised to see some roster changes in the off-season if some players don't straighten up.

[I seen it dawg]

This all sounds like what Todd said...post CWS hand me the wins because we are the shit. Our upperclassmen leadership is ****ing garbage if they have allowed this to happen. Our coaching staff didn't just decide to totally change their philosophy on how our program should run over the summer. This def looks like a team that has way too many guys with their own agendas and nobody in the locker room that's driving the team first mentality. Way too much selfishness and you CANNOT win that way no matter what the talent level is. Hopefully if this is the case Cohen overhauls the depth chart and finds out who wants to put the uniform on and do what it takes to lead this team. If that means Rea, Detz, Pirtle, Holder, Fitts, Mitchell, Bradford, Henderson, Bracewell have to carry their ass then so be it.

Lead the ****ing team or get the **** out.

[godlluB]

And Wes Rea can start leading by actually freaking running to 1st when he grounds out instead of trotting.

[Tbonewannabe]

And Wes Rea can start leading by actually freaking running to 1st when he grounds out instead of trotting.

As much as he is striking out, he might just be surprised by actually putting the ball in play.

[TheDogFather]

I was going on the first hand from a players mouth quote on here that someone provided saying "I came here an offensive player and he messed up my swing and now I'm a slap hitter"

Who is the player?

[Will James]

Who is the player?

Someone on here said they heard that from a player

[preachermatt83]

1) You were talking to a player during the game? Not calling you a liar, and I know that the LFL is all friendly and all of that- but they DO NOT need to be talking to fans during the game PERIOD. Unless it's an emergency situation like a fan is hurt and they need to use the phone to get some medical attention or some exception like that. That's confusing to me since Woodruff had up until today three good outings in a row. Actually he has pitched better than most of our pitchers recently.

2) I have a feeling that's not going to change tomorrow during practice based on Cohen's comments. Oh well. Maybe stop looking like bitches and like you actually give a shit and maybe Cohen and Butch will be a lot happier?

3) Best news all day if you are a Belhaven fan. He can have fun pitching in front of 10's of fans at Smith-Wrigley next year.



of course not, I happened to hear a bullpen convo.. that's all. wasn't purposefully eavesdropping just wasn't gonna stop listening when I realized what they were talking about ... haha.

[preachermatt83]

1) Because he's struggling enough without knowing that his teammates are talking behind his back. Plus, some locker room stuff just doesn't need to get in the public's hands if you know what I mean.

2) Yea, we both know that when the team is losing and you aren't hitting well, you want to have an excuse.

3) I don't think so. Cox got ripped pretty good when throwing over the top. He threw a pretty flat fastball. But since he went 3/4 I thought he would be one of our top relievers. I wish he would stop thinking he knows better than Butch, and just do his job. I guarandamntee you that Cox has zero shot at a pro career as an over the top guy. But he MIGHT have a shot as a side armer. I like him and think he can help the team, so I hope he sticks around and accepts his new throwing angle. I find it hard to believe that he has an issue with it. I'm sure Butch gave him the option. Probably said, "Will, you can either be an over the top guy that is used very rarely, or you can go 3/4 and potentially become a stud and major inning eater for this club.".

Not calling you a liar, preacher....but those 3 comments sounds an awful lot like things you have been saying on here since before the series started. Just sayin. Ha.

lol, I understand, but that doesn't prove Im lying, it proves I was right! hahaha!! Seriously though, this is just info I overheard from Players in the pen.

[Todd4State]

of course not, I happened to hear a bullpen convo.. that's all. wasn't purposefully eavesdropping just wasn't gonna stop listening when I realized what they were talking about ... haha.

Right.

[preachermatt83]

Right.

:cool: