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Post by rizzuto on Jul 21, 2021 16:42:27 GMT -5
Good info, still not gonna say our pitchers are going away from their best offerings due to Sanchez is back there. If it were that big of an issue, Sanchez woulda been gone by now. With men in scoring position, they certainly are and it isn’t new. Sabathia and Betances were definitely hampered by Sanchez in those situations. When was the last time one of our pitchers intentionally buried a slider or knucklecurve in the dirt with two strikes with Sanchez behind the plate and men on base? Before the mound visitation limits, Sabathia would often call Sanchez to the mound, essentially telegraphing that the ball in the dirt was coming. Twice in two years, Sanchez lost his starting position temporarily (and then in the playoffs last season) to Higashioka, who is not exactly lethal with the bat. If Sanchez weren’t problematic defensively, that wouldn’t happen, and Cole with his stuff would not prefer Higgy catching him. Watch Willson Contreras and Yadier Molina. The difference is stark. Ron Guidry could unleash filthy sliders in those situations because of his confidence in Thurman Munson. Throwing those pitches, in those locations, in those situations take confidence, and that is not something Sanchez engenders defensively, which is why Tanaka adjusted his splitter location and frequency, and all but eliminated the wipeout splitter with RISP in favor of the slider, before, during, and after 2019. And, if Sanchez would not have rekindled his power during the first half, he probably would have been gone, and Robinson Chirinos would not now be with the Cubs. |
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Post by maizeyanks on Jul 21, 2021 17:00:59 GMT -5
Not buying it, nobody said Sanchez is Yadi Molina back there defensively, no way our pitchers were intentionally not throwing their best offerings bc of him repeatedly. That'd be malpractice on many levels and the front office would all be fired for not getting better talent behind the dish the last five years. This isn't HS baseball, now more than ever the pitching plan is scripted.
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Post by rizzuto on Jul 21, 2021 17:27:00 GMT -5
Not buying it, nobody said Sanchez is Yadi Molina back there defensively, no way our pitchers were intentionally not throwing their best offerings bc of him repeatedly. That'd be malpractice on many levels and the front office would all be fired for not getting better talent behind the dish the last five years. This isn't HS baseball, now more than ever the pitching plan is scripted. So, how do you explain the charts showing the changes in location of the splitter for Tanaka once Sanchez became the regular catcher? How do you explain Cole and Kluber preferring Higashioka behind the plate if every “pitching plan is scripted,” irrespective of the catcher? How do you explain that with Sanchez, we don’t bury out pitches with two strikes with RISP? Why did Sabathia have to telegraph that very pitch with a mound visit with Sanchez and not Romine? You don’t have to buy my explanation, but there has to be an answer to those questions beyond happenstance or coincidence when Sanchez is catching. And, while Sanchez isn’t Yadier Molina, neither is Higashioka, which also much be explained. |
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Post by maizeyanks on Jul 21, 2021 17:45:12 GMT -5
There could be a myriad of explanations, just dont think the organization is shying away from certain pitches in big situations bc of who's behind the dish.
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Post by inger on Jul 21, 2021 18:52:16 GMT -5
I could understand not only the pitcher not wanting to throw a certain pitch to a catcher who has proven incapable of receiving it, but also that catcher not wanting to call that pitch. I don’t think that is what one would call an organizational decision. It’s a field decision based on what the pitcher and catcher want to do to avoid allowing runs at a given moment in the situation at hand…
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Post by rizzuto on Jul 22, 2021 1:37:32 GMT -5
There could be a myriad of explanations, just dont think the organization is shying away from certain pitches in big situations bc of who's behind the dish. Organization? |
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