South Alabama baseball thoughts

[Political Hack]

i think JC needs a big thumbs up for Signing Ethan Small who was once a Vandy Commit. Small played on an elite Memphis travel team. He has a BIG arm and He pitches with an attitude. He is the real deal. I am impressed with the win considering our best Hitter had a bad night. If Kruger had been hitting we would have had an early lead. Thanks Collins for stepping up, please keep it up. Collins, Rooker and Kruger playing up to their potential and Our Pitching staff dealing will make for a fun year. Just everyone get off Cohen's ass and let the season play out.

I think Small is the Friday night guy at some point in his future. I would love to see him get more and more reps this year as middle relief, mid-week starter or even closing some. Just get him innings.

[Coach34]

I'm a reps and rhythm guy. I think guys play better when they get into a groove, so if like to see it more stabilized. That said, he's developing a lot of guys right now and that could be huge come tournament time. His system and subs are built towards winning in the post-season. Last year it may have cost us a birth, but if we get in with a decent seed we're going to be a very difficult out.

Subbing right now is fine because we don't have 8 clear cut position players. We have some young talent that needs developing. As I posted a few days ago- Cohen was killing us with the way he had the batting order. He finally put Kruger in the 3-hole, moved Lowe down, and things look a lot better. Shouldn't have taken 10 games to figure that out. I mentioned putting Cody in the 2-hole- Cohen finally does it and he responds just as I thought he would. It just really bothers me that things that are blatantly obvious to me and others Cohen doesn't see

[dawggone]

[QUOTE=beretta;516863]i like how he used a lot of Fr pitchers to get experience, but if you have a Fr pitcher who is finding his groove, let him feed on that groove....im referencing Ethan Small.....he will be a future weekend starter imo.....guy just shows so much confidence and poise on the mound....he should have been left in the game to feed on the momentum and get even better.....

this team is going to lose some games.....bc of cohen, bc of youth.....i think that they will peak for a late season run and get stronger as the season goes on....post season should be fun....I really love our lineup (even with the changes)....i expect Marrero to get better at the plate as the season goes on.....im not as big of a fan of Cody Brown as some of you....i cringe and pray every time he is at the plate...

I agree with you on letting a guy who is dominating hitters stay in the game, we need to win those games because wins in the SEC are gonna be tough. I like Marrero as well but Kruger is very very good behind the plate, saw him play a lot in the fall and he is as good as they come, very high baseball IQ and blocks balls extremely well, don't know about his arm, coaches doctors would know more than anybody on that. Why do you cringe when a .300 hitter with extra base hit power comes to the plate?

[dawgday166]

I'm a reps and rhythm guy. I think guys play better when they get into a groove, so if like to see it more stabilized. That said, he's developing a lot of guys right now and that could be huge come tournament time. His system and subs are built towards winning in the post-season. Last year it may have cost us a birth, but if we get in with a decent seed we're going to be a very difficult out.

You may be right ... we'll see. I said as of now I'm not that optimistic. I didn't follow that closely during the season in 2013 and just looked at the lineups in the post season last night. We also got a good draw in the tournament too.

I think this team is talented but the crispness isn't there yet that you normally see from a good team in the field. I think before too much longer that needs to show up or, with the schedule that I'm reading, postseason will be an optimist's illusion.

[Political Hack]

You may be right ... we'll see. I said as of now I'm not that optimistic. I didn't follow that closely during the season in 2013 and just looked at the lineups in the post season last night. We also got a good draw in the tournament too.

I think this team is talented but the crispness isn't there yet that you normally see from a good team in the field. I think before too much longer that needs to show up or, with the schedule that I'm reading, postseason will be an optimist's illusion.

Yeah. Already in double digit errors this season, which isn't ideal but if the bats stay live and the arms develop it'll help mitigate those. My only concern is the left side of the infield with Collins at 3rd. If that's the case youve got be rock solid at SS. Also, small ball could hurt us but that's something they'll get better with as the season progresses. With so many freshmen P and Collins at 3rd, bunts could give us problems at times.

[Percho]

Cohen is what he is. In recruiting if he tells a kid you will play early, he will, because that is the way he coaches and learns & teaches his players. Might as well accept that and move on.

[Percho]

So, the "consistent" lineup is what it was that made us good in 2013?

This is the dumbest thing ever. The lineup was consistent in 2013 -- because guys did their jobs, earned their roles, put on their big-boy pants in big-boy games, and were the clear-cut best option for their spot. And make no mistake -- there was INCESSANT lineup and position bitching in 2013 as well. Sit Pirtle!11!1 Where is Porter?1?11 Detz to 2B!!!1! Norris to 3B!1! FLAIR to 3B or Dh!11! Pirtle in the 4-hole can't protect Renfroe!11!1 Get CT out of there!11!1 Just among the offensive/defensive stuff that I remember.

Plus, I believe the amount of overall talent today is much better than in 2013. We have a lot more players who can play today than then.

[Percho]

[QUOTE=dawggone;516954]

i like how he used a lot of Fr pitchers to get experience, but if you have a Fr pitcher who is finding his groove, let him feed on that groove....im referencing Ethan Small.....he will be a future weekend starter imo.....guy just shows so much confidence and poise on the mound....he should have been left in the game to feed on the momentum and get even better.....

this team is going to lose some games.....bc of cohen, bc of youth.....i think that they will peak for a late season run and get stronger as the season goes on....post season should be fun....I really love our lineup (even with the changes)....i expect Marrero to get better at the plate as the season goes on.....im not as big of a fan of Cody Brown as some of you....i cringe and pray every time he is at the plate...

I agree with you on letting a guy who is dominating hitters stay in the game, we need to win those games because wins in the SEC are gonna be tough. I like Marrero as well but Kruger is very very good behind the plate, saw him play a lot in the fall and he is as good as they come, very high baseball IQ and blocks balls extremely well, don't know about his arm, coaches doctors would know more than anybody on that. Why do you cringe when a .300 hitter with extra base hit power comes to the plate?

Just watch Cody. He does so many more winning things than losing things. He known how to win, Taking away the hand last night was big. He'll take an extra base. He is a winner. If i didn't know better I would think I was his dad.

[dawggone]

Overall pretty good assessment Todd. While I would love to see as many pitchers as possible, 1st priority is to win games, this is not fall ball anymore these count and we will need as many as possible come tournament selection time. My lineup going forward, tell me your thoughts

CF Robson .300 avg and .400 on base guy
LF Brown .300 avg and another .400 on base guy
C Kruger to early to tell, may hit .400 avg on year and very good pwr
3B Collins power and will get Kruger pitches to hit
1B Lowe some power, inserted here to break all right handers
RF Rooker good pwr hope avg will follow
DH Humphries more power again hope avg will follow
2B Stoval/Gridley whichever is hitting
SS Alexander just feel comfortable with him defensively very smooth

It's good to have a strong bench and I believe we do this year, but this lineup gives us speed, power, gap power, and good hit for avg guys.
Really strong defensively with 3B exception. 2 guys at top who hit for avg and just get on base, 5 power hitters in a row with a lefty in the middle breaking up the righties. Let this lineup play for 3 or 4 series then reevaluate. At some point some or all will have a slump, it happens to ALL hitters even the good ones. My 2 cents worth for whats that worth,Go Dawgs.

[engie]

I didn't follow that closely during the season in 2013 and just looked at the lineups in the post season last night. We also got a good draw in the tournament too.

If by "good draw in the tournament", you mean the single toughest regional that season by far which can be quoted several places online -- and being sent on the road to the #6 national seed -- then having to go through the #3 national seed twice -- qualifies as easy to you -- then yeah.

Please just stop. The veil on your posts are getting really thin.

[dawggone]

Overall pretty good assessment Todd. While I would love to see as many pitchers as possible, 1st priority is to win games, this is not fall ball anymore these count and we will need as many as possible come tournament selection time. My lineup going forward, tell me your thoughts

CF Robson .300 avg and .400 on base guy
LF Brown .300 avg and another .400 on base guy
C Kruger to early to tell, may hit .400 avg on year and very good pwr
3B Collins power and will get Kruger pitches to hit
1B Lowe some power, inserted here to break all right handers
RF Rooker good pwr hope avg will follow
DH Humphries more power again hope avg will follow
2B Stoval/Gridley whichever is hitting
SS Alexander just feel comfortable with him defensively very smooth

It's good to have a strong bench and I believe we do this year, but this lineup gives us speed, power, gap power, and good hit for avg guys.
Really strong defensively with 3B exception. 2 guys at top who hit for avg and just get on base, 5 power hitters in a row with a lefty in the middle breaking up the righties. Let this lineup play for 3 or 4 series then reevaluate. At some point some or all will have a slump, it happens to ALL hitters even the good ones. My 2 cents worth for whats that worth,Go Dawgs.

[dawggone]

Sorry for the double post, I'm a rookie in training posting. Me an cell phones are like oil and water. My apologies.

[Political Hack]

[QUOTE=Percho;516977]

Just watch Cody. He does so many more winning things than losing things. He known how to win, Taking away the hand last night was big. He'll take an extra base. He is a winner. If i didn't know better I would think I was his dad.

I'm with you. We're just a better team when he's on the field. There's only a few guys that are must plays to me. Robson, Cody, and Kruger betting right now are no brainers. Those 3 are every day guys no matter what. There are others that probably belong in that group, but those 3 stand out to me the most because they produce.

[I seen it dawg]

No ... I don't. I want to stick with them, stay with a consistent lineup and see how it works over a decent amount of time. My main thing is I don't want to give up runs due to errors and mental mistakes. I like rock solid D and will trade some to get a really good bat in the lineup maybe. I don't think Collins should be moved all over the place .. play him at 3rd everyday and leave him there.

Like I've said previously, I cannot think of a really good team that has moved people at random all over the infield all the time. I'd also stick with a pretty consistent batting order for a period of time too.

You only have so much "decent time" this isn't a 162 game schedule. Tough shit but you got to produce when given your chance.

[GTHOM]

Best win of the year so far if you ask me.

[I seen it dawg]

Pretty sure Kruger is an elite defender behind the dish as well -- but that is strictly second-hand info.

I'm fine with Marrero back there. What's the problem? All this hand wringing -- to get another bat into a lineup -- that I'm not at all sure will end up being superior to Marrero by the time the season is over.

Marrero is gonna be huge the rest of this year. I could see him and Kruger splitting DH some down the road if Kruger is indeed gonna catch. Leaves Stovall as the backup which is ok. I don't usually like using a catcher as a DH but with Stovall available we are ok.

[I seen it dawg]

I wasn't one of those bitching. I'm new to the board. I'm just saying that I personally cannot think of a really good team that kept the same folks in the lineup and moved their positions all over the place. Alexander, Gridley, Stovall, & Collins have all played multiple infield positions. I think that hurts your defense. I believe ball players like to "own" a position for the most part. I don't know why you'd play Alexander at SS, Gridley at 2nd one day, then Alexander at 3rd, Gridley at SS the next. Hard to develop consistency this way. JMO.

I don't get in the batting order discussions cause there could be many ways to tackle that problem. Some of that depends on a given philosophy too, although dependent on the available personnel. I do think that 1-7 should be fairly consistent tho. I also think that something should be stuck with for a period of time to see how it works. Saying someone is batting .250 now isn't necessarily indicative of how they will bat over the whole season. I'm sorta assuming Cohen has a feel for how each player handle the bat, the type of hitter they are, how much power they have, etc.

Keep observing and learning.

[dawgday166]

If by "good draw in the tournament", you mean the single toughest regional that season by far which can be quoted several places online -- and being sent on the road to the #6 national seed -- then having to go through the #3 national seed twice -- qualifies as easy to you -- then yeah.

Please just stop. The veil on your posts are getting really thin.

Whatever dude. I meant that at no time in the tournament did we have to play LSU or Vandy.

[DistrictDawg92]

Breaux getting pulled after 2 ip could've been to use him this weekend at some point.

Agreed. I think Cohen realized with Oregon's starting arms we are going to have to win this weekend with our arms and not our bats. Fortunately everyone that pitched last night should be good to go at some point this weekend. Also we need as many arms available as possible due to the possibility of in-game rain delays pulling our starters prematurely.

[DistrictDawg92]

Marrero is gonna be huge the rest of this year. I could see him and Kruger splitting DH some down the road if Kruger is indeed gonna catch. Leaves Stovall as the backup which is ok. I don't usually like using a catcher as a DH but with Stovall available we are ok.

I think Marrero has won the starting catcher spot. Leave Kruger at DH where he can continue to focus solely on hitting, also he doesn't ever have to sit games to rest when he is exclusively a DH. No reason to take Krugers bat out of the lineup to rest when we have 3 or 4 other capable catchers on the roster.