
byoung
Jul 04, 2009 Dec 08, 2009 3 5
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HITTING: Thru 88 Games
STAT # NL RANK MLB RANK
Runs 406 4 / 16 12 / 30
Home runs 86 7 / 16 17 / 30
Batting avg .257 10 / 16 22 / 30
On-base % .328 12 / 16 18 / 30
Slugging % .405 6 / 16 17 / 30
Strikeouts 676 16 / 16 30 / 30
Walks 294 11 / 16 17 / 30
BA vs LHP .253 10 / 16 22 / 30
OBP vs LHP .318 12 / 16 24 / 30
BA vs RHP .259 8 / 16 18 / 30
OBP vs RHP .330 9 / 16 17 / 30
NOTES
- team strikes out 20% of total plate appearances; difficult to play 'small ball' & employ situational hitting
- team BA / OBP splits actually slightly favorably against RHP
- lead off & #2 lineup spots rank 30th in 27th in total strikeouts (179 total Ks: 24% of ABs); lead off & #2 spots rank 26th & 22nd in OBP% in MLB
- Hanley's arguably top #3 hitter in the game right now (him or Pujols)
How each lineup spot ranks on the team according to its OBP %; from high to low:
#3 .408 #4 .325
#8 .361 #2 .323
#6 .340 #1 .313
#5 .330 #7 .298
OPTIONS
SWITCH THE BATTING ORDER
- get less K's in front of Hanley; arguably worse 1-2 combo in MLB in front of him
- the top OBP % spots other than Hanley on the team are the EIGHT, SIX, & FIVE spots; 1 & 2 are at the bottom
RELY ON CALL-UPS / CURRENT TEAM
- we always do so why not this year
TRADE FOR A BAT ...
- with decent avg or slugging numbers at any of the 4 corner spots; this gives team ability to PLATOON Coghlan & Bonifacio
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#1 Trade Priority?
For now, the Marlins are buyers and believe upgrading the Bullpen is the #1 priority before the trade deadline.
This appears to be questionable considering the current bullpen.
Marlins' Bullpen: ~ 4.03 ERA Matt Lindstrom: 6.52 ERA (29 IN / 21 ER)
Marlins' Bullpen Core (Meyer, Nunez, Sanches, Badenhop, Pinto, Calero): ~ 2.72 ERA
Trading or demoting Lindstrom after his DL stint may help the bullpen the most. We've already demoted the Opening Day Starter; why not Lindstrom.
No reason to think Nunez, Meyer, Calero, or even Sanches wouldn't do just as good closing as Lindstrom.
So, getting a reliever while Calero/Lindstrom are on the DL does make sense, should it be the #1 priority? What should our priority be if not the bullpen? This is my take:
Jorge Cantu: hasn't gone deep since June 3rd & has only one HR since May 7th (1 HR last 49 games / 193 AB)
Emilio Bonifacio: .292 OBP; lowest of ALL Marlins hitters except Wes Helms; though bats lead off/2nd
Dan Uggla: .222 BA; probably finishes season at .250, but for now, one can only get so many RBIs batting .222
I believe the Marlins have two trade options to remedy these problems:
1. High OBP leadoff guy - giving Hanley / Cantu more RBI opportunities
2. Big LH bat - protect Hanley, take pressure off Cantu, & help against RHP
OR Leave line up alone & rely on current team / call-ups for offense like they normally have
The front office will presumably keep payroll under a certain number and that will control the Marlins' trade options above all. Almost automatically taking Dunn ($8 mil), Pierre ($10 mil), and Holliday ($12.5 mil) out of the mix.
With salary in mind, these are the bats who I would like to see the Marlins go after: Shin-Soo Choo ($400k), Brad Hawpe ($5.5 mil) or Luke Scott ($2.4 mil)
What do you all think?
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