Bob Wickman
-Thickman, or Fatty McFatty, or Blob, or whatever you called him went from a guy I didn't like as a player to a guy I didn't like as a player and a person in one short week. Wickman, who has had a few good runs, but struggled at times to get outs in 2007, was pissed in August when used in a non-save chance. Truth was, the guy didn't deserve to close anymore than Oscar Villarreal, but hey, that's why I don't manage, right? The decision made him blow a fuse, or at least get pretty angry, and he spoke up. Soon after, he was gone and the Braves saved a lot on fuel from lugging his big ass to places. He finished up with Arizona and had a barely noticable eight games in middle relief. Whispers are that he may have played his last game.
2008 Outlook: See 2007 write-up. If he returns, he will have to work his way onto some team and hope to prolong his career with middle inning work, something that bothered him so much in Atlanta. Otherwise, he's headed to the retirement line.
Craig Wilson
-Sometimes, things just don't work out. Craig Wilson's signing last offseason was a great move at the time for the Braves. Wilson was a strikeout machine, sure, but he had solid numbers across the board as a Pirate. However, the platoon with Scott Thorman worked against him and he never got started. In 24 games, he hit .172 with just one homer. His struggles eventually ended with a release from the Braves system. He hooked up with Charlotte, the White Sox AAA team, and was horrible for them in 15 games.
2008 Outlook: Wilson can still hit, I feel. Things snowballed on him. He may have to take an independent league contract, but I would be surprised if he never got another major league chance. But stranger things have happened, I guess.
Chris Woodward
-Woody somehow parlayed his lack of skills into a full season in which he played in over half of the Braves games. In 92 insertions to the lineup, he hit .199/.252/.279 with a homer. His best offensive production was four sacbunts, but he was horrible at bunting too. Yet, he stuck around. Like a bad visitor.
2008 Outlook: On the positive side, Cox stopped even playing Woody in September, showing that yes, Woody has no place in the plans for this team. With Brent Lillibridge, Martin Prado, Willy Aybar, and a possible veteran middle infielder for some backup in the mix, Woody can ruin another team's bench next year.
Showing posts with label Woody. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Woody. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Monday, October 15, 2007
Tangotiger's Defensive Rankings
Tangotiger is one of the most well-respected figures in the stats/sabermetrics scene. In August of 2007, he put the ballots out for fan-scounting reports on defensive players. Here is the result.
My thoughts...the league average in agreement level is .71. Of the 16 players who were looked at, 11 were given a reasonable agreement level. I'm going to look at the handful that weren't.
Ryan Langerhans - .64 aggreement - Langer is an interesting case. Defensively, he looks extremely solid, but his defensive metrics have never been that wonderful. Of criticism seems to be his throws - every step of them. Range-wise, he seems to have it down pat and has great instincts, but while he doesn't have a Juan Pierre noodle arm, he doesn't have a great one either.
Chipper Jones - .59 agreement - For Chipper, it's always been the old debate that we see with our own eyes. He does one thing particularly well, or so it seems. He can charge the bouncer and make an accurate throw. This much appears true. And his instincts, possibly the reason he started at shortstop and stayed there for so long, are solid. He just has slow reaction time. I've heard anywhere between "horrible" to "Gold Glove calibar" defense when describing Chipper this year. I think he's a bit below-average, but he was as good this year as he has been in some time. Still believe he's more of a Vinny Castilla type, though.
Chris Woodward - .53 agreement - Talk about a guy who doesn't really do anything well. They grade Woody at third, but you can essentially grade him the same at any position. I have never seen a former shortstop turned utility man who can't play any position with any sort of talent. Usually, they were playing short for a reason. Not Woody. He was horrid. What was there not to agree with? Maybe some felt he sucked even more.
Julio Franco - .62 agreement - Juliold is the kind of guy who is well valued by his manager and talked up too much. If you ever watch Julio attempt to field, one thought goes through your head. "This is why they invented the DH." When I heard people talk up his defense on his return, I was flatout shocked. Did they actually believe Julio was going to provide much of a defensive lift? Seriously, this is where the disconnect between Bobby and the fans needs to be. I'm not sure whether Cox actually believes Franco is so good defensively or he was dire need of something good to say when asked about the old man, but he sucks.
Scott Thorman - .60 agreement - In truth, I think Thor is as defensively inept as Franco. I think he displays better instincts, though I agree Franco is a better thrower and does the 3-1 throw better. Too many times, Thor was throwing it at the pitcher, not leading the pitcher.
When looking back at 2006's scouting reports, a player who saw a good amount of change was Matt Diaz. In '06, he was graded a 28. This year, a 34. While not a massive improvement, I admit, the one big thing is that his instincts were graded much higher. This allows him to take much better routes. If defense was keeping him out of the lineup, at least he is closing in the gap.
Anyway, I'll be likely working till the end of the week so I'll continue my reviews and such then.
My thoughts...the league average in agreement level is .71. Of the 16 players who were looked at, 11 were given a reasonable agreement level. I'm going to look at the handful that weren't.
Ryan Langerhans - .64 aggreement - Langer is an interesting case. Defensively, he looks extremely solid, but his defensive metrics have never been that wonderful. Of criticism seems to be his throws - every step of them. Range-wise, he seems to have it down pat and has great instincts, but while he doesn't have a Juan Pierre noodle arm, he doesn't have a great one either.
Chipper Jones - .59 agreement - For Chipper, it's always been the old debate that we see with our own eyes. He does one thing particularly well, or so it seems. He can charge the bouncer and make an accurate throw. This much appears true. And his instincts, possibly the reason he started at shortstop and stayed there for so long, are solid. He just has slow reaction time. I've heard anywhere between "horrible" to "Gold Glove calibar" defense when describing Chipper this year. I think he's a bit below-average, but he was as good this year as he has been in some time. Still believe he's more of a Vinny Castilla type, though.
Chris Woodward - .53 agreement - Talk about a guy who doesn't really do anything well. They grade Woody at third, but you can essentially grade him the same at any position. I have never seen a former shortstop turned utility man who can't play any position with any sort of talent. Usually, they were playing short for a reason. Not Woody. He was horrid. What was there not to agree with? Maybe some felt he sucked even more.
Julio Franco - .62 agreement - Juliold is the kind of guy who is well valued by his manager and talked up too much. If you ever watch Julio attempt to field, one thought goes through your head. "This is why they invented the DH." When I heard people talk up his defense on his return, I was flatout shocked. Did they actually believe Julio was going to provide much of a defensive lift? Seriously, this is where the disconnect between Bobby and the fans needs to be. I'm not sure whether Cox actually believes Franco is so good defensively or he was dire need of something good to say when asked about the old man, but he sucks.
Scott Thorman - .60 agreement - In truth, I think Thor is as defensively inept as Franco. I think he displays better instincts, though I agree Franco is a better thrower and does the 3-1 throw better. Too many times, Thor was throwing it at the pitcher, not leading the pitcher.
When looking back at 2006's scouting reports, a player who saw a good amount of change was Matt Diaz. In '06, he was graded a 28. This year, a 34. While not a massive improvement, I admit, the one big thing is that his instincts were graded much higher. This allows him to take much better routes. If defense was keeping him out of the lineup, at least he is closing in the gap.
Anyway, I'll be likely working till the end of the week so I'll continue my reviews and such then.
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