Quote Originally Posted by WSOPdawg View Post
Last year when Parker was healthy, he pitched the BEST game we had all year against top-10 Texas Tech with 12 strikeouts to only 3 BBs. If he can get past the mental hurdles and stay healthy, he definitely could be one of the ones we're talking about making the BIG jump. Let's keep our fingers crossed.
His issue went from mental to physical.

Quote Originally Posted by Saltydog View Post
Anybody know the progress on Stone Simmons? Not sure if we're expecting him back this year or not.........
I wouldn't expect a lot from him. Maybe late in the year in some midweek games. That may be optimistic. It's going to be a rehab year for him.

Quote Originally Posted by Saltydog View Post
Yeah I agree. I do think we're going to be pretty decent offensively though. I think the staff could be pretty good in due time once guys settle into roles. There's some decent arms there. IF Stinnett could get his shit together, he can be a game changer. Remember how he pitched against Texas Tech a couple of years ago down in Biloxi. He definitely has Friday night stuff.
Offensively we're going to be different than last year. We're going to have a lot more balance throughout the lineup. Probably will result in less power but also should result in fewer strike outs. Will be more like what we were used to seeing from 2016-2021 which is what I still feel like is the best way to go on offense in baseball. We're still going to have power but we'll also have the ability to manufacture runs as well. We didn't really have a true leadoff guy and now we do with Larry. And I think that Ledbetter will may hit 2 which will allow us to drop down Hancock which is a better spot for all involved.

Quote Originally Posted by Coach34 View Post
I've watched alot of PFS and remain skeptical that he can be consistent on the mound. I view anything positive we get from him as a bonus

Let's not forget that we had pegged Hunt to be our Friday night guy heading into last season. Hunt came back to prove he is that guy. Give me:

Hunt- Friday
Smith- Sat
Gartman- Sun

And honestly- with our LHP we have this year I'm not sure I wouldnt tandem some guys on the weekend. Maybe go Smith/Kohn tandem on Satuday. Gartman/Davis on Sunday. Look to get 4 Innings from each. They are getting work yet staying fresh for June.
Last year Sims was the Friday night guy going into the season. There is a lot of talk in baseball circles in general about pitching staffs going to be more like tandem rotations where the first guy throws like 50 pitches and then you bring in someone else for 50 pitches and then you go to your flamethrowers and shut down guys. And that's not just us- I'm talking about at the MLB level. Part of it is injury prevention related and part of it is strategy. For a MSU example- if we throw a guy like Ethan Small from the left side for three and then go to a guy from the right side like Ginn who is very different and then close it out with Sims- that's tough on hitters.

Quote Originally Posted by Quaoarsking View Post
If both arms are equally good, and he can keep them both lose, he ought to have a lot more stamina than a typical starter. If he can get into our rotation (maybe in a future season) and eat up a whole game each weekend, that would take a lot of pressure off the bullpen.
The thing that a lot of people don't know about pitching is how much you use your whole body and your legs. So no way we would be able to use him twice as a starter on a weekend. Assuming that he is used conventionally and throws 100 pitches. Even using him in relief for an inning later in the weekend or midweek would be dicey at best.