Why Mark Bellhorn is not better than a fork in the eye.
Hey there, y'all. I'm K-rocka and I'll be filling in on this edition of Curse of the Big Papi/ Smellhorn debate forum. So without further ado, let's jump right into the fire.
Ok, so I like Mark Bellhorn. Seems like a great guy. I mean, hell what Red Sox fan wouldn't love to crack a brew with him and just shoot the shizznit? We could play some foosball, maybe discuss some politics, start a canned good drive for the poor or even have an arts and crafts activities day. Those would all be some fun things I think Mark and I could both enjoy and with the exception of foosball could both excel at. But I wouldn't under ANY circumstances EVER EVER EVER talk to him about baseball. Cause then he would start to piss me off.
Let's expound on my main man's post from earlier and take a more in-depth look at Bellhorn through today (may 28th)
.242 BA 2HR 12RBI .353 OBP .409 SLG 13 doubles, and 54 SO through 44 games. Not too good, even if you think a second baseman should be primarily a defensive-type guy. Since the days of Spike Owen we haven't seen such an anemic output from our 2 bagger. It almost makes me long for Jose Awfulhands, er Offerman (just imagine him AND Millar on the right side of our infield shiver). Combine that with (and in my opinion, the deal-breaker) poor range in the field and it makes me wonder what the Sox front office is really doing here. Are they waiting for Hanley "only good prospect less than three years away" Ramirez to come up and play 2nd later on this year or are they hoping to swing a deal for a Junior Spivey-type for the strech run? Do they just not want to pay any more money on an established guy? This, like the 1st baseman issue, must be addressed, either by a dramatic improvment of the existing players at those positions, or the removal of Bellhorn and Millar from the team. I don't like having to be so blunt as to say that because these guys helped Boston win the Series with a combination of goofy antics,timely hitting(interspersed with weeks of ineptitude) and a resilience to criticism heretofore rarely seen in the Boston clubhouse. But that was last year, and even though as a whole the team may have some years to flub up and we won't go crazy that doesnt mean that we won't lose our friggin minds if one guy keeps blowing chance after chance to knock guys in and can hardly put the bat on the ball. Let's face facts here, the Sox are absymal offensively from the right side of the infield. The sole reason we have those two guys in the lineup everyday is to produce with the bat. And they aren't doing it so why are they still there, in the lineup making out after out? For the love of God, I would go 3 for 4 one night if you put me in there 162 times. That doesn't justify my being in there in the first place does it?
My take on the situation is this, let's survive with Olerud and Millar platooning at first, with Olerud starting the majority of the games, leaving Millar to pinch-hit off the bench when we need a little more pop than Olerud can provide. The Bellhorn situation needs to be resolved in a different way. He doesn't provide the clubhouse boost that Millar does and is consistently bad both offensely and defensively in comparison with other 2nd baseman across the league. I don't think he is capable of being an everyday major league ballplayer at this point of his career and we should explore every option to upgrade 2nd, whether solely on the defensive end or someone that can produce day after day at the plate. Move Youk over, Play more Mueller at 2nd, bring back Pesky, anything. The Sox have established themselves under this administration as being proactive when it comes to solving problems in the field, and while Francona's willingness to stand by his guys is admirable, it is certain in my mind, that the Sox are in dire need of a change.
posted by the rook at 2:51 PM
10 Comments:
Remember how many of us were calling for his head in the ALCS? Mark Bellhorn is an instinctive fielder. His bat approach can be a bit frustrating, but even when he strikes out (which yes, is far too frequently, I agree) he makes the pitcher throw a lot of pitches, which has other benefits.
I'm all for getting KY in the lineup more regularly, but I'm not sure I'm comfortable with Billy at 2nd all the time, and I sure as hell would rather have Markie-Mark's bat than Ramon Vazquez's.
8:18 AM
Sure he makes the pitcher throw a lot, but having Youk in there ( who took grounders at 2nd recently from what I heard) at least gives a better chance of putting the bat on the ball. Over the last season or two he has had ample time to prove himself as a everyday guy, and at this point i think there is a sample large enough to show that he, apart from flashes of brlillance in three and four game streches is not capable of handling a full season's worth of AB's -K
2:17 PM
I'm at work, so I won't be able to put all of my responses into one message.
I believe Mueller has played almost a full season worth of starts at 2nd, and from the ties have seen him there, he has decent range and just as quick of a pivot to 2nd to start the double play as Bellhorn.
Another note about taking lots of pitches, that is great when you bat early in the order, one to make the pitcher throw more so that the rest of the big guys behind him can see his pitches and two to see how well he is locating those pitches. But batting ninth in the order you want someone that can consistently get on base and move runners along with solid hitting. Not striking out and leaving a man on 1st with 2 out for Johnny. What made the team so good last year offensively was production up and down the lineup and the ability to keep rallies going. Even though striking out sometimes is better than grounding into a DP, when you see him up there with 2 out, you just KNOW that he isn't going to get the job done.
Now if we can just get Manny whatever pills he needs to hit everyday we'll be fine.
2:54 PM
so WHO just basically started this rally, Rook, by breaking up the no-hitter?
I love KY and I see that they're trying him at 2nd here
just remember that Bellhorn has been hot before, and you never know when he's going to get hot again, and you'll have to eat your words. I'll give you an example in a minute.
5:57 PM
look! another hit!
6:04 PM
Case in point: look what Rally cuff said here
and now she's beentrying to make up for it.
6:15 PM
shit. forgot the space. there's two links there; make sure you see them both.
6:16 PM
Hey Rook, you should just add K-rocka as a member to your site, and you can each write your own comments.
I'm a new zillionth sox blogger, too. I didn't even know what a blog WAS a few months ago.
Listen, what I mean about Bellhorn IS: I've seen signs of life from him lately. I have a hunch you might get burned on this theory. At the same time, I know theo and his boys (including Bill James) are onto these stats, too. They will explore their options, and I'm sure if they find a better one, they'll do it.
In the meantime, let's root for the kid. He's cute. He seems like he'd be cool to hang out with. He really is a great fielder. And since I am pretty much resigned to it probably being a strikeout when he's up, it's cool when he hits a double or walks, and it really seems like that's been happening more often lately.
Rook, hiking up the pitch count is a benefit to overall game strategy no matter what slot you're in. The only huge problem Bell seems to have is this: He swings and misses more than anyone I've ever seen. He needs to get better at getting a piece of the ball, so he can stay alive. I don't know a major league batter gets fooled like that so often.
9:22 PM
LOL, I mean he hardly ever blows a play. He turns a double play quickly, regardless of his footing. When he does make a misread, the ball is in front of him, and he gets the out anyway.
and as I mentioned, he had a pretty good night last night:
"BOSTON -- The Red Sox were getting no-hit entering the bottom of the fifth. Then, one hit -- a one-out single by Mark Bellhorn -- seemed to change everything."
The experiment at 2nd is just as much an attempt to get KY in the game more often than anything else.
have y'all checked out my site yet? Joy of Sox linked to me in a post last night, so my stats are a little out of control right now (I can't tell.)
6:27 AM
You know...they look bad, and subjectively they make everyone all annoyed... but strikeouts are no worse than any other kind of out. Yes, balls in pla can move runners over,but theycan also kill them in double plays - which are generally much oe damaging to a teams chance of scoring than moving a guy from 2nd to third with an out is.
I have my problem with Bellhorn this year, but by the best offensive stat that's readily available - OPS, he was the single best offensive 2B in the AL last year. Better than Soriano, better than Roberts, btter than everyone. This year he's beenworse, but only because he's not slugging the ball. His OBP is pretty close to where it was last year. Bellhorn is a much better layer than heseems to be just looking at BA and K's.
Oh, and Hanley is definitely not the only Sox prospect less than three years away - Papelbon, Alvarez, Pedroia, and Cla Meredith could all be contributing next year, and Shoppach is already doing so.
8:21 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home