If the person that led the team in OBP last year isn't a regular in the lineup this year, that would be a really good sign unless it was because of injury or as you said, a hatcher type collapse.
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Apparently Dakota Jordan just went oppo with a rocket over the fence. He may be a problem.
His first two at bats Friday he looked naked on breaking pitches. He can make the adjustment though. And will need to bc he won't see much straight.
Hancock won't have the luxury to slump this year. Highfill is 10x the athlete he is already and if the bat continues to progress he'll be pushing Luke to start on weekends. This Freshman class is one of the best we've had in regards to instant impact guys. Cjintje, Dakota, Highfill, Loftin, Mershon.
How did the arms look Saturday and Sunday?
I'm a forsythe guy, but Mershon ain't gonna just rude pine all year. He's legit.
Because we need someone that bats better than .215 and can get clutch when needed.
That's not bad but at this level it's also kind of the issue. OBP matters but despite what baseball stat nerds say AVG also matters. Someone with an OBP like Hancock needs to hit over .300 to hit higher in the lineup.
Otherwise he has value hitting lower in the lineup. But he needs to do more damage in addition to continuing to get on base.
As the Senior Catcher, he can contribute in many non-statistical ways. Settling down pitchers and being influential with Foxhall on proactive pitching changes. Stuff that would be a stretch for a less experienced player. If he can help lower the bullpen ERA from nearly 9 to a typical MSU ERA of 3 to 4, that's already a huge gain. With a non-Chernobyl bullpen, MSU is a lock for Regionals and more.
As a batter, I hope his 4 years in the program give him a new edge. Some think batting 300 is good, I think he could better than that.
Last year, he did lead in OBP, but with an OBP average that would not have lead any other MSU team in the last 10 years. Even in the dead bat seasons, the team had multiple players with +400 OBP. Plus the MSU OBP leader was usually a power guy that hit for average and forced opponents to walk him. The awesome exception to the Power hitters was Adam Frazier, who was near 500 in OBP with a 371 average and he could hit a double into a corner at any moment.
Mershon has struggled with the glove some