Howie to start in LF tonight
From Mike DiGiovanna on Twitter:
"Howie Kendrick has never played OF in pro ball but is unfazed about start in LF for #Angels tonight: 'I'm not going to stress about it.'"
Tonight's lineup:
Aybar SS/Abreu DH/Izzy 2B/Hunter RF/Kendrick LF/Callapso 3B/Trumbo 1B/Mathis C/Bourjos CF
about 1 year ago
linkbruin
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booooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
NA, #34 SP, LAA
Light up the Halo for Nick!
More Howie please...
Then it's a damn good thing we never tried Mice Tits in LF,
playing LF might kill Izzy.
YOU DON'T KNOW THE POWER OF THE DARKSIDE.....
by halofolife on May 10, 2011 5:37 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
I just don't get it.
I also don’t understand this move.
My response to your letter of February 19, 1976, is - kiss my ass.
Sincerely,
Bill Baxley, Attorney General
by sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher on May 10, 2011 5:33 PM PDT reply actions
To get Howie, Amarista, Trumbo and Abreu's bats in the lineup.
"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base." ~Dave Barry
I kind of like it
But, yeah, cue the Twilight Zone music.
"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base." ~Dave Barry
Amarista ain't playing
It’s actually to get the best offensive lineup out there, without playing Abreu in LF. If it works, it’s genius.
Yep, should have looked
instead of assuming Amarista would be at 2B.
I don’t hate it. It seems very un-Scioscia-like though.
"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base." ~Dave Barry
Jeff Mathis will get 48% of the starts for Mike Scioscia behind the plate until he is wheeled off the field
Has nothing to do with this move, obviously.
Makes no sense.
Abreu LF
Howie 1B
Trumbo DH
Does the exact same thing with less risk and more defensive continuity.
I have a very hard time believing Howie in LF is better than Abreu there.
I love how a guy who steals 20-30 bags every year...
…stays healthy, continues to hit, and is comparatively agile on the basepaths, suddenly becomes James Belushi in this pic.
With Bourjos in CF, Bobby has comparatively less zone to cover — the aggregate OF defense in 2010 was net positive with Bobby in left and Pete in CF.
Bobby is a below average fielder, but it just doesn’t matter that much with Pete on the field.
Never forget Juan Rivera out there last year
Dude was a statue, and he was much better than Abreu. Count me among those who would rather have Kendrick out there.
Defending maligned chants since 2009
Bobby is worse than a "below average fielder"
He is, consistently, one of the worst defensive outfielders in the game. He is also at an age where defense tends to deteriorate even more rapidly. I would put the chances of him being better than Kendrick out there at near zero.
Eh
Just about any athletic infielder should be able to shag fly balls better than Abreu. The only special qualification is raw arm strength.
Then why not put trumbo in LF- where he has played before- and kendrick at 1st, where he has played before.
by Balls and Strikes on May 10, 2011 8:18 PM PDT up reply actions
Trumbo's not much better than Abreu in terms of range
Howie can at least move around. Give me athletic guys in the outfield any day, as long as they have some ability to judge a fly ball (which most do at this level).
Defending maligned chants since 2009
I love it
You could get the same bats in the lineup with Howie at 1B, Trumbo in left, Abreu at DH. Or Abreu in left, Trumbo at 1st, Howie in left.
But Howie’s a lot faster than the Trumbo and Abreu. And speed is the key skill for outfield defense. I applaud Scioscia for giving it a try.
"That boy is our last hope" - Obi Wan Scioscia, as Francisco Rodriguez left for the Mets. "No, there is another" - Yoda Reagins.
by RallyMonkey5 on May 11, 2011 9:33 AM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
I guess Sosh is thinking that with the sinkeball of Pineiro, Howie's not gonna get a lot of action anyway.
My response to your letter of February 19, 1976, is - kiss my ass.
Sincerely,
Bill Baxley, Attorney General
by sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher on May 10, 2011 5:39 PM PDT reply actions
Judging by some comments passed on by reporters, it sounds like Scioscia is considering Howie playing there quite a bit
Not just because of Pineiro
I personally really like tonight's lineup (minus Mathis)
Aybar SS
Abreu DH
Izzy 2B
Hunter RF
Kendrick LF
Callapso 3B
Trumbo 1B
Mathis C
Bourjos CF
Yeah, except for that Vortex Of Suck at 'C' it's, umm... "Innovative"
"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base." ~Dave Barry
by LAASurfin on May 10, 2011 5:45 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
In fact, if Conger was in,
that’d be a lineup you could look for some real fireworks out of.
"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base." ~Dave Barry
rec, for the "vortex of suck" reference
NA, #34 SP, LAA
Light up the Halo for Nick!
More Howie please...
Hey Varitek takes offense to that reference
by Bozo's1000son on May 10, 2011 6:30 PM PDT up reply actions
According to Angelskid2210's link to BTBS
Miguel Olivo and AJ Pure-shit-ski takes offense to that.
Angels baseball. We do what we must, because we can -- HaloDutch
Um, this is a guy who FINALLY looks like he might be ready to become
what everyone thought he could be. Maybe Sosh could pick a spot for him to play???
"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base." ~Dave Barry
I'm with you.
It’s pretty clear that Sosh dosen’t see Howie as the everyday 2B.
My response to your letter of February 19, 1976, is - kiss my ass.
Sincerely,
Bill Baxley, Attorney General
by sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher on May 10, 2011 5:47 PM PDT up reply actions
The hell?
Howie started 140 games at 2B last year, on a team with Maicer Izturis. What’s “pretty clear” is that Howie is this year’s trusted rover, on a team otherwise deep with middle infielders, and that he’ll get more starts than anyone else on the team who can turn a double play.
by mattwelch on May 10, 2011 6:04 PM PDT up reply actions 2 recs
This is how I see it
Howie is the spark plug this year, and Sosh wants to maximize his starts. Last night was first game he didn’t start, and he still came in (VW did get hurt to make it happen though).
Yeah, I don't agree with the "He's not loved @ 2B" thinking
Though, I do think giving him a bunch of new defensive assignments to concentrate on might be a really good way to throw ice water on a hot bat.
"If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base." ~Dave Barry
But why not Howie at 1st, Abreu in LF?
The guy hasn’t played a day of pro ball in left — even if Abreu is below average, he’s likely to be better than someone completely inexperienced.
I don't agree
Abreu is one of the worst outfielders in baseball, and has been for some time. Howie is a good athlete in his prime who plays a more challenging position.
Unconvinced -- I'll continue to disagree here.
There’s no data on Howie in LF, and he has no experience there, so the counterargument is basically that any good athlete should be able to improvise.
I think a below average fielder with a lot of experience at the position is still better than someone who has never played the position before. Not to say that Kendrick couldn’t improve over time, but he won’t likely get that chance.
There IS data on Abreu in left
And it’s awful. As I said above, give me the athletic guy. I think experience is a good tiebreaker when the physical skills are roughly on par. But they’re not. Howie is MUCH more athletic. I like this move a lot.
Defending maligned chants since 2009
That's pretty hard to figure when Howie's never played the outfield before.
Play him one time, fine. If he’s there more often, then I don’t see this working.
My response to your letter of February 19, 1976, is - kiss my ass.
Sincerely,
Bill Baxley, Attorney General
by sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher on May 10, 2011 5:49 PM PDT up reply actions
Or that
the combination of Trumbo/1B + HK/LF + Amarista/2B > Amarista/LF + HK/2B + Trumbo/1B or Trumbo/LF + Amarista/2B + HK/1B, if we’re going through all of the defensive permutations.
you made my brain hurt.
My response to your letter of February 19, 1976, is - kiss my ass.
Sincerely,
Bill Baxley, Attorney General
by sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher on May 10, 2011 6:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Even if Kendrick doesn't perform that well in left...
It’s not a critical defensive position, especially with Pineiro going. He’ll probably be fine out there.
He travels fastest who travels alone.
Not remotely
It implies that this is a way to keep the best possible offense in the lineup without putting Abreu in LF.
Agree.
Besides…Howie is a pretty good 2nd baseman.
Mathis
it simply disgusts me every time I see his name in the lineup. By now, I accept (though I do not understand or agree) that the Soth thinks Mathis is a good defensive catcher (he isn’t ), and thinks that Mathis’ bad defense somehow overcomes his offensive ineptitude (when, if anything, it actually magnifies it).
Throw enough shit at the wall, and something is bound to stick
The problem isn’t in the lineup ordering or defensive positioning, it’s in the overall construction of the roster. This move is crazy, but why the hell not? Howie is the best all-around hitter on the team right now, so might as well stick his bat in left field and leave the middle-infield for the slap-hitters, of which the Angels have plenty.
This has been Scioscia's ballsiest season managing yet
Boot Kazmir, switch out Rodney for Walden, give Conger a little more than half the starts after the first week, promote Chatwood, cut Wood and Bulger, demote Reggie for Amarista, and now throw Howie out in LF. It’s seriously aggressive, at least half weird (who here predicted this as even a remote possibility?), and it frankly geeks me out a little bit. I know there are some people invested in flinging poo at this season, but I’m really starting to enjoy it.
by mattwelch on May 10, 2011 6:20 PM PDT reply actions 2 recs
Do you guys think?
This could all be related to another story I read here that said the Angels are using advanced stats in the front office? I would think they would run reports on their current roster first and make appropriate changes from this new source of information.
We take serious...comedically.
They must have started that the day after the VW trade to see what all the fuss was about.
Pollyanna is dead. But don't get mad at me, I didn't kill her. Tony Reagins did.
This is nuts
What is the a beer league softball game? This is a poor reflection onthis franchise. We are rolling a guy out to left who hasn’t played there since High School!!! I find it hard to believe abreu is worse than an unproven converted infielder, no matter how much I love Howie. Can’t wait to watch tonight
by Dfresh on May 10, 2011 6:23 PM PDT via mobile reply actions
Hope it works but
things always seem to against the Angels. I fear an injury because Howie is not expierienced on when to call off other players out there.
Hey why doesn't somebody that lives in Anaheim find Mathis and break his foot or something
That will keep Conger at C…..
Be a Angel Fan till I die... The only good team to come out of Texas is my Dallas Cowboys Baby
Then we'll just hear about how Mathis's "struggles" were due to injury
And the Angels will sign him to a five-year deal.
looking forward to seeing Mathis in CF in the foreseeable future
Don’t know, don’t care. People that criticize can kiss my ass. I don’t give a shit
-Kobe Bryant
You want to make history you have to do historic things- Kobe Bryant
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