Matt Britton

[preachermatt83]

Does anyone have any insight into why he is playing so much 2B and so little 3B. He is the best defensive 3rd baseman in the SEC and has one of the best arms in the country. Him playing anywhere but third is just plain odd.

[msstate7]

Could be a sign of just how much Cohen thinks of Luke Reynolds.

Britton/heck/holland may be the battle

[CadaverDawg]

If Britton isn't our starting 3rd baseman, I will......Do what I do every year and question Cohen's sanity while watching us win games.

On a serious note, maybe Britton has some arm soreness or something, and they don't want him making the longer, stronger throws right now. You never know. I'd be shocked if he didn't trot to 3B for the opening game though.

[preachermatt83]

If Britton isn't our starting 3rd baseman, I will......Do what I do every year and question Cohen's sanity while watching us win games.

On a serious note, maybe Britton has some arm soreness or something, and they don't want him making the longer, stronger throws right now. You never know. I'd be shocked if he didn't trot to 3B for the opening game though.

That's kindof what I was thinking may be the deal... He was a flat out beast at 3rd last yr and his bat is going to surprise a lot of people. He has as much raw power as anyone on the team.

[ShotgunDawg]

Does anyone have any insight into why he is playing so much 2B and so little 3B. He is the best defensive 3rd baseman in the SEC and has one of the best arms in the country. Him playing anywhere but third is just plain odd.

It's about offensive profile and they are actually doing right by the kid to give him a chance at playing 2B.

2B is a tougher position to play, so it stand to reason to that you don't have to hit as much to play there. My guess is by moving Britton to 2B, we are better able to get one of out better bats in the lineup, which makes us a better team.

For example, from 2011-2014 the average MLB 2B, with at least 400 at bats, hit .255-.269 with 8-11 HRs while the average 3B hit .260-.274 with 14-17 HRs.

[War Machine Dawg]

If Britton isn't our starting 3rd baseman, I will......Do what I do every year and question Cohen's sanity while watching us win games.

On a serious note, maybe Britton has some arm soreness or something, and they don't want him making the longer, stronger throws right now. You never know. I'd be shocked if he didn't trot to 3B for the opening game though.

I've pretty much decided Cohen = Les Miles. Recruiting machine and damn good coach who does just enough stupid shit to drive the fans nuts. But the stupid shit usually works for him because he's got elite talent. Now I know why LSU football fans are bi-polar. Cohen makes me bi-polar.

[MsStateBaseball]

He is getting Britton ready for pro ball. Cohen already said Brittons future is at 2B.

[msstate7]

He is getting Britton ready for pro ball. Cohen already said Brittons future is at 2B.

That's cool and I'm all for Britton to do well, but I want Britton where it helps this team the most

[preachermatt83]

That's cool and I'm all for Britton to do well, but I want Britton where it helps this team the most

exactly!

[preachermatt83]

I've pretty much decided Cohen = Les Miles. Recruiting machine and damn good coach who does just enough stupid shit to drive the fans nuts. But the stupid shit usually works for him because he's got elite talent. Now I know why LSU football fans are bi-polar. Cohen makes me bi-polar.
hahaha! You can tell its getting close to baseball season. WMD and I are agreeing on everything.

[smootness]

I've pretty much decided Cohen = Les Miles. Recruiting machine and damn good coach who does just enough stupid shit to drive the fans nuts. But the stupid shit usually works for him because he's got elite talent. Now I know why LSU football fans are bi-polar. Cohen makes me bi-polar.

You think we had elite talent when we finished 2nd? Or really for any year during Cohen's tenure so far?

I think the last couple years we've recruited at an elite level, but I don't think it's fully matured yet. I certainly don't think we've had elite-level talent. We've had very good, competitive talent...but schools like Vandy, UNC, Florida, etc. have elite talent. We're not there yet, though it won't be long.

[messageboardsuperhero]

When has Cohen not done a lot of experimentation with the lineup in these scrimmages? I fully expect Britton to start at 3rd on opening day- and if he doesn't, that means Reynolds passed him, which would probably be a pretty good sign for us. Worrying about what position Britton will start this year out for us in the infield is kind of pointless, because I gaurantee you that he will play both 2nd and 3rd for us during the early part of the season. Whichever one helps us the most is the one he will end up sticking with most of the time.

[messageboardsuperhero]

That's cool and I'm all for Britton to do well, but I want Britton where it helps this team the most

Remember last preseason when Cohen tried to let CT Bradford pitch some for us to help his draft stock? How much of that did we actually see in the games?

Contrary to popular opinion, Cohen isn't running a charity to get guys drafted. He's just giving a rising senior a shot at his future position. That said, Cohen isn't going to jeopardize the team for it. When the games come around, he will play Britton wherever it helps us the most- if that's at 2nd fine, if it's at 3rd that's fine too.

[trob115]

What nobody has really mentioned yet is how great of an arm Luke Reynolds has. Reynolds has a cannon and will surprise people. I won't be shocked if he's won the job. Reynolds has decent pop at the plate as well.

[bulldogcountry1]

Cohen has already said that Britton's future is MIF. He's proven to be an elite defensive 3rd baseman, so Cohen is giving him a shot at 2nd, if for nothing else but to give the scouts a look. He just needs to show he can hit, or he won't be starting anywhere for long.

[Schultzy]

I like going with a bigger bat at the third base position. If it doesn't work out we can always plug Britton back in over there.

[Coach34]

We have 5 IF's worthy of starting but only 4 positions. So Britton is the most likely to multiple positions out of the group. Britton is awesome defensively and has to play- but Reynolds needs some time also. Plus, as others have mentioned, Britton's future is probably at 2B- MLB glove- with a High A bat unfortunately. He hit well in the 2nd half last year- hope he can keep it going

[Smitty]

We have a DH spot for Reynolds. Unless Brittons bat is much worse than the DH behind Reynolds he should start in the field every game.

[Coach34]

you know good and well Cohen isnt going to use just one DH...I still expect the guy from NW Rankin to DH some and Vickerson to play

[engie]

Overreactions to this stuff kills me. Especially under the pretense that anyone in the fanbase "knows better than Cohen"....

He is simply getting Britton time at 2B in front of scouts that are evaluating at our practices almost every day in attempt to help his draft stock and projectability at the next level. And what's it hurting in regards to him being at 3B? It's past the point of reps being strictly trivial at this point -- Britton is what he's going to be at that spot -- and taking a few days off to catch ground balls somewhere else isn't going to hurt him in the least.

[Smitty]

you know good and well Cohen isnt going to use just one DH...I still expect the guy from NW Rankin to DH some and Vickerson to play

Vickerson not being a particularly great fielder, coupled with big time bats we could use out there, make me think he will be more limited concerning PT.