Sexson’s Strikeout
Dave · April 2, 2008 at 7:24 am · Filed Under Mariners, Off-topic ranting
Tie game, bases loaded, one out in the 8th inning – this is a situation the Mariners created by having Lopez lay down a sacrifice bunt, knowing the Rangers would walk Ibanez to get to Richie Sexson. This is what Richie Sexson saw:
Six pitches, all of them out of the strike zone. Joaquin Benoit did everything he possibly could to walk in the go-ahead run, and Sexson just wouldn’t let him. If the Mariners continue to hit Sexson cleanup and ask Lopez to bunt Ichiro over every time he gets on base in high leverage situations, we’re going to see this a lot – Ibanez walks and Sexson leaves the man on.
There’s just no reason a team that wants to be a contender should be hitting Richie Sexson cleanup in 2008.
To me Sexson looked as if he was picking up exactly where he left off at the end of last season: flailing and hopeless. In an earlier strikeout they showed his third swing in slow motion from a 1st base side camera angle. My wife was walking through and said, “Jeez, he wasn’t even looking at the ball — does he just close his eyes and swing?”
You don’t want Sexson hitting clean up but where you heck do you want him?
Having said all that, this is painful to watch. A guy with a good career behind him and a lot of pride seems to be going to pieces and aside from the damage it does to the team it’s no fun to watch. Not even a little bit.
Too bad I’m not as smart as the tags. Sorry about that.
How screwed up is it to think “oh, god, not him” when your cleanup hitter comes up with the bases loaded?
I know it’s two games, but given last season I just think he’s completely finished.
It’s not his job to quit, though. We’ve seen this a million times; the vet just can’t let go. That’s what management is for. At this point a random guy off the street couldn’t be much worse.
It was painful to watch. I was at the game and people were booing like it was mid-season! It was only the second game, and even the casual fans have had enough already. What about those defensive errors as well?
How sad is it that teams walk guys to GET to your clean-up hitter…
I’ve been a fan of Sexson his entire career, and was excited when they brought him in (except for the insane ammount of money), but the last two nights have been ugly…and his D last night was atrocious…
They need to stick a fork in him!
This is awesome. I was gonna send an email this morning asking about this very problem.
I’m suprised that his batting eye has gotten this bad. At first I thought ‘maybe the shoulder injury’, but that’d only account for not catching up to anything not the poor selection. It’d be behove the M’s to figure this problem out right fast, especially for the $15M they owe him and if they insist on leaving him in the 4 hole.
I was listening to the game on the radio and when the count got to 1-2 I said to myself, “Richie, don’t swing at that low outside pitch, Richie, don’t swing at that low outside pitch, Richie, don’t…”
But then Dave said the fourth pitch was high and I thought, “High? What’s Benoit thinking? Doesn’t he know???”
And the fifth pitch was also high and I didn’t know what to think.
But then came that fatal low outside pitch and Dave told us the result…
There’s no reason Sexson should be on a major league ballclub.
Absolutely agree. Not time to give up on Sexson yet, but he should not be hitting 4th.
Not time to give up on Sexson? What was it about 2006 and 2007 that gives you any sort of pause?
He isn’t being judged on 2008, FYI…
It is extremely disturbing that Sexson is in the 4 hole. You could literally bat anyone else there and it would be an improvement. If they insist on playing him it should be second cleanup (8th).
Sorry, but I have to correct you:
There’s just no reason a team that wants to be a contender should have Richie Sexson in their roster in 2008.
Dave
I was in a different room, and I hear the bases loaded, and came out to watch just this at bat. It was sad. As the bat was evolving, you could almost feel Sexson think he was going to fail. He was scared he was going to, he thought it was coming, and then he still did it anyways. I had faith in Sexson last year. Hell, I picked him up on the fantasy team last year and had him ride the pine, hoping he would break out and have a huge month or something.
But after the at bat, he looked like Knobloch did after his throws to first. Just confused and thinking he should be in a Southwest Airlines “Need to get away” commercial. This may seem drastic, but what about sending Sexson down to Tacoma for a month, and let him feast, and then bring him back up? Norton is down there, hell, Lehair wouldn’t be horrible. Or you could even move Ibanez over to 1st.
But the way he looked after the at bat, that little personal self hatred, that is not a good thing to have what is supposed to be one of your best hitters.
On the bench.
Or off the team entirely.
#14
I agree. I’m not one to read into a players reaction after failing. But I did not like what I saw out of Sexson as headed to the dugout. He looked hopeless.
I had hopes after that early at-bat on Monday that maybe he’d picked up something about all that preached patience this spring.
It’s time to ride off into the sunset, Richie.
He has lost all his confidence. I really doubt he can recover. His only chance was to start of mediocre or better and it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.
Forget confidence – he’s lost his bat speed. He’s bringing a knife to a gun fight – he has every right to not be confident.
He looks hopeless up there.
Exactly, this doesn’t seem like a technique thing to me. He looks almost as bad as Boone did in his last season here–completely overmatched at the plate. Completely. And the one time where all the stars are aligned for him to take the crucial free pass, he swings at a ball he couldn’t have hit when he was 24.
I’m sick that he’s even still in the lineup. I would rather have the Nats’ backup 1B (Young) than Sexson. By a long margin, too.
I think it’s all of the above…he’s lost his bat speed…which has made him lose his confidence…which has made him angry at himself…
Like one of my other favorite Ms of all time, Boonie, they need to eat the cash and let Richie try to revive his career in the NL…
Before it’s too late…
I think we all see the same thing. Richie can not see the ball leave the pitchers hand. It looks like he is up there guessing. It was that way all last year. His bat speed is gone and any agility he once had, as little as it was is gone. I watched the game in HD on a 42′ plasma. I went back on Tivo with all his at bats. Richie is squinting! I am not shitting you, his face is all pinched arround his eyes. He is actually squinting?… How long the Mariners will alow this absurdity to continue is beyond me.
So, uh, Mike Morse? Princess Willie? Bryan LaHair? Knowing the M’s, we’ve got until August to find a replacement…..
Squinting? So we get him some specs and he turns into Ricky “Wild Thing” Vaughn? I wish!
Mike Morse is too busy parting the Red Sea to bat cleanup for the Mariners.
In the third inning last night Sexson barely got the bat far enough around on a Padilla fastball to foul it off — and the bat wasn’t even close to square over the plate at contact. Blowers (I think) offered the opinion, “Man, he got a piece of that one!” and I was thinking, “Are we watching the same game because from where I sit it looks like he barely got the bat off his shoulder?”
Well, if it is a bat speed issue than perhaps it’s also an injury issue as well. He f***** his shoulder up pretty bad in ’04. Maybe it’s turned into a chronic injury where nothing is going to make it 100%. I’ve been a Richie fan for years now, but I just wish he’d tell Bavasi he’s hurt or his shoulder hurts a lot, go on the DL and figure it out.
But what has to THE most depressing thing is McLaren’s preseason comments that he/they are hoping for a big season out of Richie this year, they are depending on it, counting on it. So that means they are going to ride their cleanup hitter (Hey, he did clear the bases by ending the inning.) all season, down to the division basement if necessary.
I think the team will act prior to the all-star break if there isn’t a turnaround. They seem to be serious (not necessarily competent, but serious) about the “win now” approach and I don’t doubt that the M’s will send him down or even cut him if this doesn’t get better by June. It is a pretty embarrassing black hole in the 4 spot. But at least he USED to hit like a cleanup guy. How embarrassing is it that our DH hits in the 7 hole? It’s not exactly a fearsome lineup, is it?
The way I have managed to watch the games so far, without annoying my spouse by complaning non stop, is to imagine that the M’s are conducting an experiement.
Instead of trying to win it all, the M’s are running a very interesting experiment, in order to see what the win loss record will be for an otherwise decent team that purposely chooses to have the worst first baseman and the worst DH in the league, combined with a LFer with no speed but who could otherwise fill in at first or DH.
It’s providing useful data for baseball analysts everywhere, that they can use to validate models. At least, that is what I’m telling myself.
I agree that Sexson is finished. This isn’t a commentary on his character, heart, drive, grit, determination, or anything else related to his desire to succeed and the hard work he puts in. I have no doubt that he cares deeply about helping the team win and wants to contribute positively in the worst way.
Dave is correct to note the lost bat speed, which makes him start his swing earlier, which, in turn, reduces his effectiveness at recognizing pitch type and location. I do believe that this is the inevitable result of that injury in 2004. He no longer possesses the physical skills that made him a good power hitter the first half of this decade.
A Sexson rebound is part of the plan for the season. They have to give him at least a month.
His stance looks better to me, but I agree with those who detect a loss of bat speed.
I think Sexson is on the way out. I hope I’m wrong.
say, Dave — speaking of Boone — will the Clippers be playing anywhere near you in the near future?
So, does anyone want to start the deadpool on when Sexson is released?
I’ll take June 18th…
As a tall, right-handed guy who used to play first base, I have a soft spot for Richie Sexson. But it’s over. Steve T has it right though, it’s not Sexson’s job to throw in the towel, not at his relatively young age. The team needs to recognize he doesn’t belong in the middle of the lineup any more. They should have recognized that last year.
The start of the game was awful. Ichiro gets a hit, Lopez works a full-count walk, and then our 3 and 4 hitters produce a weak pop-up and a three pitch swing-and-miss strikeout.
The first couple balls he swung at were at least moderately close to the strike zone, although, as said earlier, he had no chance at making contact. The last swing was inexcusable.
So, does anyone want to start the deadpool on when Sexson is released?
I’ll take June 18th…
I’ll take the day after the All-Star break. We can do side action on whether or not he cries like Boone.
I 100% agree that it looks like there is something fundamentally wrong with his swing (other than the fact he uses a bat that at least 2 inches short for him) but from what I heard he worked really hard in the off-season. I think he has just lost it mentally ala ’83 Steve Sax not being able to make the throw to first.
Dave, what are the realistic options the Ms have at 1B…we all know what we wanted them to do (Raul at 1B and Adam Jones in LF), but what would they do?
Wilkerson?
Lahair?
Vidro?
Ibanez?
Morse?
Seems the best would be to platoon Reed in Left with Jimerson and platoon Ibanez with Morse at first…
First base defense would still be pretty bad, but Left would be VASTLY improved…
And the LF combo would probably outhit Richie at this sad point in his career…
There are no internal options good enough to be the answer. LaHair sucks, and you can’t convert Ibanez to first base in the middle of the season. The M’s will probably consider moving Wilkerson to first and sticking Wlad in RF if things get bad enough, but that’s not much of an upgrade at this point.
The M’s should have traded for Nick Johnson as soon as they realized he was healthy enough to play. He’s the obvious answer.
We’re 2 games in and the guy has a lifetime batting average of 263 and is 6 HR shy of hitting his 300th. He’s 2 years younger than Ibanez and has the same batting average, again after 2 games. If we’re judging the season on 8 ab’s then its over anyways.
Last year was an all time low for him, but he was dealing with a hammy injury. Should he be batting 4th? Probably better at the 5 spot, but that could be even more ineffective. I’d imagine that McClaren probably put a little thought into this and isn’t tossing in the towel yet either.
I would say that Putz definitely is done though. He obviously has a tired arm.
Yes, but that would make me happy.
41 – I think Wilkerson’s the most likely candidate, because they’ve certainly got better replacements for RF.
If they wanted to look to the minors, then it’s worth mentioning that they’ve now got Kevin Witt at 1B for Tacoma, the ex-Rays and Cards slugger who hit 36HRs in back-to-back seasons in 2005-6. He’s not a great hitter, has struggled in his MLB call-ups, but he’s certainly got power that LaHair doesn’t and he also doesn’t have such extreme splits. Kills righties. So there’s that.
Wilkerson’s defense at First is probably better than Richie’s and WLAD will play an okay Right and outhit Richie…
Wilkerson has a .000 batting average. I’m glad none of us are GMs.
The M’s will probably consider moving Wilkerson to first and sticking Wlad in RF if things get bad enough, but that’s not much of an upgrade at this point.</I?
Yeah, I’m not thinking Wilkerson is going to be a lot better than Sexson, to tell the truth. The M’s may have two huge lineup holes (three if Vidro slumps, four if Ibanez relives early 2007).
I forgot about Norton…did they tell Norton to just wait in Tacoma until Richie gets released?
Hey, it’s not so bad. Look on the bright side. At least we don’t have Bengie Molina hitting cleanup.
I think “to be the answer” might not be the right question. If we can look at Sexson and see that he’s done (and I don’t know about that) the question becomes “what’s the least damaging patch the M’s can do?”
If they’re going to run out a Sexson that hits .200 with very little punch, you might as well have Bloomquist at first every day to hit that badly but at least play defense. If they can’t find an average first baseman, they can at least move to not have a horrible one.
I know this is all wrong fundamentally, but how long would it take to make Clement a average 1b glove. He seems to have all the athletic ability to do it. And his power bat would be great. Have Beltre bat 4th and Clement 5th. Our righty lefty flip for pitchers would be great 1 through 6.
You mean the Nick Johnson who’s batting .429 with 3 doubles and a walk in the first two games of the season? Sigh.
There’s an opportunity cost involved with replacing Sexson with someone who isn’t good enough to make a difference. If the organization decided to go with Norton/Morse/Wlad/whatever instead, they wouldn’t then continue to look for upgrades; they’d give New Guy a good stretch of time to justify the decision. And, if you agree with me that all those guys don’t represent the type of improvement necessary, then the team doesn’t have that time to waste.
This team isn’t flexible enough to make a short term improvement while looking for a long term improvement. It’d be nice if we were rooting for the Indians or Red Sox, but we’re not – we’re rooting for dyed-in-the-wool old school baseball lifers who cling to their precious chemistry until the beaker blows up in their face. That’s the reality we have to live under.
I guess I’m still madly hoping the lightbulb comes on over their head.
And people say you’re not optimistic.
Anyone know Bavasi’s direct line? Lets put this nightmare to bed. *having flashbacks of Sept 07*
Yeah, as much as I sympathize with the sentiment, let’s not go down that road.
I wonder, though, if Griffey could play 1B…
*runs and hides*
Maybe the rest of the team will do amazing and make up for lack of production from the 4 hole?!! Lets get positive folks! *hugs Dave*
I think Nick Johnson’s price tag is a lot higher than it was four weeks ago.
He’d be perfect for this lineup, though.
Bonds is available, of course. And yes, I have no qualms about getting him.
Just out of curiosity… What kind of package would have lured Johnson away from the Nationals ?
I wonder if Griffey could play LF and Ibanez could play 1B?
Or, if we could trade Sexson and 20% of his remaining salary (paying the other 80%) to Washington for Dmitri Young. He’s not good – and Nick Johnson would have been about 17 times better – …but anything’s better than this horse manure.
61-
Washington’s pitching is dreadful…in fact I read somewhere that there AAA rotation will be better than their MLB rotation…
So I would assume they would be after pitching…
But they won’t trade him…they’d rather part with Young…
Small ball and putting the game in motion is for the birds.
You only need to see Jose Vidro putting the game in motion once to hope to never see the game put in motion again.
Vidro doesn’t put the game in motion.
He puts the game in slow-motion.
(I’m probably not as witty as I think I am, today)
I saw Sexson steal 2nd a couple of years ago. It was wesome seeing that much flesh in desperate motion. Like watching rhinos mate.
Dammit, I will slow down.
[and thanks for the edit in post number 1]
It’s *very* early in the season, so I’m not so down on the situation. That said, Mac putting Richie in the cleanup spot as “showing confidence in your hitter” can be just as easily spun as “giving you enough rope to hang yourself”. Mac is showing support for Richie, but does anyone (including Richie) think he’s going to succeed by batting fourth?
I know he’s a slow starter, but you can see his bat speed is slower. I remember watching that happen to Edgar and Bret. Edgar knew how to manage around it; Bret was unable to adjust. Richie appears to be in the same category as Bret.
Honestly, if Richie didn’t have that big contract, he wouldn’t come close to cracking the lineup right now.
Bonds is a rather obvious fit for the Ms since he has more bat and at least comparable defensive skills to Vidro/Sexson/Ibanez. Bonds is skilled and a source of entertainment, controversy, star power.
Too bad the Ms already sell out every game.
(Yes I know the Ms are already carrying too many defensive pegs.)
Good thing we went and got “professional hitter” Jose Vidro from the Nats instead of insisting in Nick Johnson when he was a “buy low” type guy.
I’m so unbelievably frustrated at this offense and defense that I am not going to buy the online package to watch and get myself even more pissed off.
I will watch from a distance, until this team makes the moves we all saw NEEDING to be made prior to reaching potential.
What about Baek for D. Young. I would think with Johnson back, the Nats would like to be rid of Young’s contract.
He’s a giant whale, and his D is probably Sexsonesque, but Dmitri can hit.
“There’s just no reason a team that wants to be a contender should be hitting Richie Sexson cleanup in 2008.”
There’s just no reason a team should bat Richie Sexson in their lineup period if they want to be a contender. May I suggest Mike Morse for first base?
Watch and see how the M’s do the same thing with [for the love of god, SEXSON] that they did with Cirillo, Boone, and Olerud….talk about how he is coming around, things are getting better, the team needs him…..and the entire time the M’s will be sucking wind…this is not a good start at all.
[for the love of god, SEXSON] is a sunk cost…how soon will the M’s realize that he is just one of many on this roster that will bring them down this season.
I just hope Sexson joins Jay Gibbons and Woody Williams in the rich but out of job club.
If you buy a vacuum(or anything you can purchase, including labor) that doesn’t work, do you keep using it?? Why is a 1st baseman different?
They must have seen those horrific swings in ST are realized then need to start looking for a 1B.
.
I could not possibly agree more.
Why is a 1st baseman different?
You want a vacuum cleaner to suck?
Boy, did you just earn me some weird looks at work.
May I suggest Mike Morse for first base?
You certainly may, but Mike Morse isn’t much better than the spasming corpse of Richie Sexson. Like Dave said, there aren’t a lot of great internal options, since the M’s have managed to clog the 1B/LF/DH side of the roster with low-value players (Raul, Wilkerson, Vidro, Morse, Sexson), and the kids just aren’t ready yet (Wlad, Clement).
As for those of you who think “Gee, it’s too soon”- Richie Sexson has been a horrible player for all but 3 months (the second half of 2006) out of the last 12 (2006-2007) he’s played baseball, and he looks just as horrible now as he has during his horrible stretches. He’s very likely done as a productive everyday player, just like guys like Mo Vaughn, Cecil Fielder and Alvin Davis were done during their careers.
Sexson is like the “Suk’n Cut” -
He both sucks AND blows…
That was harsh, but it’s painful watching him play right now; especially considering how much our offense really needs the power that he used to produce.
I didn’t watch the final at bat but the after game report sounds pretty lousy. The ‘ouch’ moments for me:
1) The 1st 3-pitch strikeout (I think it went fastball, fastball, fastball and please take a seat)
2) Was it the 5th inning or the 6th when he dove for a ball that was a good couple of feet from him still and then booted the grounder on subsequent plays
There was a slow-mo replay on the 1st strikeout when his bat finally crossed the strike zone about the same time that the ball hit Laird’s mitt.
He’s so done and I bet the FO doesn’t give him much of a leash – even they should be able to see it. Sucks they don’t have much in the way of an improvement to go to.
Wayne’s World references are always welcome in my book regardless of harshness.
81- And I feel just like Garth did, “Turn it off man, turn it off! It’s sucking my will to live!” when I watch Richie play now…
At least the Suk’N'Cut could take a timely walk and not cost the M’s 14 million dollars.
…not to mention Richie’s BABIP in the 2nd half of 2006 was .361…
Sexson is a complete disaster and the whole world knows it except, evidently, Mr. McLaren. When the M’s skipper asked Lopez to bunt, he basically placed the entire game in the incapable hands of Richie Sexson. Listen, there’s a reason that McLaren’s been a bench coach for 15 years — he’s strictly a liaison between manager and players. In other words, a buddy to players. In other words, a buddy to Sexson. This foolishness must stop, or make no mistake it will ruin the Mariners season. By the way, this Sims guy on TV actually said Benoit “made a good pitch” on his final fling to the $14-million mistake. Homerism is one thing, but don’t cover up for Sexson. He’s brutal, and everyone knows it. Execept Mr. McLaren.
I recall the excitement of opening day when Sexson hit two bombs in his first game as an M. I thought “what a great move by the M’s FO.” That day seems a very, very long time ago.
Well, I’m not so sure the front office is unaware of his suckitude, they must at least have an inkling.
I think they just fear having to explain why their $14 million dollar man is sitting on the bench, especially since Sexson is the kind of guy who will get a lot of sympathy in the local media (he’s Buhner with hair, as far as a lot of fans are concerned).
Add to that the whole “let’s give the veteran guy some time to heat up” factor and we’ll be seeing 0-4 with 3 K nights from him until the All Star break, at least.
Don’t even start with the homer announcers…they’ve been cramming their crap down our throats for years…that’s what they are paid to do…[SIMS! SIMS!] can’t say, “Sexson sucks.” Blowers can’t say, “The defense is terrible.”
And ours are not even the worse ones…Hudler in LAA (by far the WORST of ALL TIME), the White Sox guys to name a few…
It’s annoying as hell; we know it, and I’m pretty sure they know it…
I’d love to sit in with them when they are off-air to hear what they really think…that would be awesome.
Which is kinda stoopid, IMAO, because benching a non producing vet is one thing the Seattle fanbase will accept…
I’m not so sure he’d get that much sympathy from the media anymore. I think the local press here and elsewhere doesn’t like to get too far out in front of the fan base – they depend on having a steady stream of readers/callers who agree with their opinions. I’m under the impression that the casual fan has long since written off Sexson.
If he’s really as done as he looked yesterday, then I’d kinda be surprised if he makes it to June.
I think they just fear having to explain why their $14 million dollar man is sitting on the bench, especially since Sexson is the kind of guy who will get a lot of sympathy in the local media (he’s Buhner with hair, as far as a lot of fans are concerned).
Based on the boos I’ve heard at the ballpark, no, not so much. I’m pretty sure that if he’s benched for suckitude, the fans will understand. This isn’t Rauuuuuuul or WFB we’re talking about here.
A few years ago, when Bobby Ayala would take the mound, with the M’s in the lead, I’d announce to my wife ” Game over. Mariners lost.” Not being a great fan of the game, she’d look at me quizzically.
Last night, with Richie Sexson at bat, I make the same kind of pronouncement.
This past Sunday, 60 Minutes featured a piece about Bill James, and his statement that there is no such thing as a clutch hitter…Maybe there is, maybe there isn’t, but Richie Sexson sure didn’t look like one last night.
I’m also assuming that Norton = Sexson insurance in the same way that Cairo = Lopez insurance.
I don’t see how they can make it through the season with the bullpen they’ve got – I’m wondering if Lopez & Sexson are both on short leashes and would be dumped fairly early on if they really struggle and replaced by Morrow or Dickey.
87: I always thought the Buhner analogy with Sexson was pretty bang-on, too — though these days, I think I’d almost rather have Bone back to pinch-hit in that situation.
At least the rest of the team is showing some patience and plate management. 12 walks in 2 days, even with Jim Joyce’s retarded strikezone on Monday, is a good sign.
I’d love to be wrong. I’d love to see Sexson cut and/or traded for a bag of baseballs.
I just don’t see the team being willing to admit to a $14 million dollar mistake.
but that guy behind me the other day said he just had one bad year!
well, per Drayer, this spring “at the tail end of batting practice Jay Buhner stepped into the hitting cage and took a round. He reportedly hit a couple out to the delight of the crowd at field 1.”
from Page2:
“Seattle Mariners
Even with the acquisition of former Baltimore Orioles ace Erik Bedard, conventional wisdom is that the key to Seattle’s success this season is a return to form by first baseman Richie Sexson. Last year Sexson hit just .187 with runners in scoring position. But, really, is that Sexson’s fault? I mean, let’s not forget he hit a sweet .212 when runners were not in scoring position. It’s not his fault his teammates didn’t get on base in front of him when he was mashing the ball.”
Aiiieeee! The stupid! It burnsssssss!
Dick Fain is upset at you Pythragorian Theorum freaks. The Mariners just can’t be judged by Run Differential, ’cause they are not that kind of team.
I don’t remember the last time I mentioned the words “pythagorean theorem”. I also don’t remember the last time Dick Fain’s opinion mattered on anything.
There you go, pronouncing it correctly.
Larry Stone is now making things better.
The M’s management and their refusal to recognize sunk costs reminds me of a buddy I had in college. He needed money for college, so he decided to sell the car he had rather foolishly overspent on. Unfortunately, he got severely upside on his car, so rather than realize it, he just tried to sell the car for what he owed on it. Which was thousands more than it was worth. Naturally, no one bought it . . .
The M’s understand sunk costs – they just suck at evaluating talent.
is it time for a new USSM t-shirt?
per KJR, JJ has a mild costochondrital inflammation and has gone on the DL
official press release for Putz.
I still haven’t heard: why not Clement? Is he too far from major ready? Last season in 516 AAA plate appearances (455 AB) he was .275/.370/.497–I don’t know much about AAA translations, but this looks like he should do .250/.350/.450–better than Sexson and above replacement. According to The Hardball times, Sexson’s defense at 1B is among the worst in MLB. If “replacement” means “Sexson”, I think Clement could probably learn the critical ropes of 1B in about 25 AAA starts and be ready to go in Safeco by June 1st.
Wayyyyy more valuable as a catcher.
And if you’re trying to fill a short term need by frustrating a long term need…..well, you got yourself a job with the Mariner front office….
I doubt that. Replacement would probably be a considerable upgrade.
You said it, Jeff. We really have no reason to believe they won’t continue to watch him flail away at the plate for the foreseeable future. Sucks for us.
That is OK. Bavasi has a back up plan. We can just use George Sherrill in that role…
Last season in 516 AAA plate appearances (455 AB) he was .275/.370/.497–I don’t know much about AAA translations, but this looks like he should do .250/.350/.450–better than Sexson and above replacement.
He surged a lot later in the season (read: once the best AAA pitching got called up, his performance improved).
ZiPS has Clement projected at .256/.335/.431, which would be OK at C… except you have to burn his usefulness at C (another year of learning the position) to convert him into a mediocre/bad offensive 1B.
It’s just not THAT hard to find guys who can OPS .775 at 1B for cheap- the problem is the M’s don’t do a good job of it.
Oh, and Putz going down for a couple weeks… ruh-roh. The bullpen didn’t look so hot to start with. I might give serious consideration to using Batista out of the bullpen and starting Baek (who’s really not that bad a SP).
Okay, sounds like a reason to leave Clement down. I had assumed, probably wrongly, that starting at first would be consistent with catching next year.
There’s a good likelihood we’ll need to replace Kenji after this year, too, so I want Clement to be able to continue to develop as a catcher.
There are solutions out there that would let the Mariners replace Sexson with a less sucktastic option, but first they have to realize that he’s sucktastic and commit to solving the problem.