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Had Enough

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Posts posted by Had Enough

  1. Somebody else made the assessment my response was if you really believe that someone is much better than the starter than why would you leave spring practice having the better player think he is a backup. Read the post I responded too before making a comment that does not apply to the context of the conversation.


    My initial comment wasn’t specific to you and only you but was in fact a response to the context of that conversation and not simply your post. I simply did not requote what you quoted. Apologies.

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  2. I rather they give the better projected starter the spring reps because the other side of the coin is that we lose a great player to the portal because the better player knows he should have overtaken the player in front of him on the depth chart. Just like losing coaches is a good thing losing players because they lost their starting position will be a good thing.  It will hurt depth but I rather not risk the better player.

    Its thoughts like these that crack me up yet have me shaking my head.

    First, I’d assume the spring will get lots of reps to lots of guys. I’m pretty certain we’ve read references that Flood will move guys around for those reps too.

    Then we’re talking about a better projected starter. Based on what? Are we talking about Neto and/or Hudson that have never proven they are better in game? And they’re only one year apart, right? Here’s a thought - how about the incumbent up their level of play.

    It’s also entirely possible the staff values a bit more reliability in pass protection at that spot since that’s where Campbell struggles. We’re playing to win so playing time will be made with that in mind whether that looks like you think it should or not.
  3. ERA is 4.34 this year compared to 4.18 last year. No idea why I referred to the hits allowed increase as small. I just saw the WHIPs were almost identical and it made sense since we had decreased our walk rate but our hits allowed rate had increased.
    I don't really have a strong preference for how a college baseball offense needs to operate. I do think with the wildness and inconsistencies on the mound at this level, it is smart to force pitchers and teams to prove they can throw the ball in the zone. But if you can hit the ball out of the ballpark, you can score runs in bunches, making life easier. Our 2022 offense walked 4.62 times per game, so less than last year. Not even sure what conclusions to draw from that other than it's an interesting data point and discussion.

    That’s where hitting hasn’t changed. Make the pitcher bring it to you as the hitter. If you can make that happen, your success rate should go up. Obviously the reverse is true for a pitcher.

    From what I’ve seen this far, it feels like last year our pitchers got ahead then struggled to finish batters. This year a bit more of getting behind.

    Lots of runs scored in the SEC this weekend. Less so it seemed in the Big 12. May need to switch up philosophy based on opponent.
  4. Looking at some stats relative to last year 
    -Walks per 9 down from 4.34 last year to 3.97 this year
    -Strikeouts per 9 down from 8.90 to 8.47 this year
    -Hits allowed per 9 up from 8.25 last year to 8.94 this year
    -WHIP is basically the same between both years (1.44 vs 1.40). Makes sense considering the drop in walks but small increase in hits allowed
    -Slugging % up from .495 last year to .532 this year
    -On pace for 98 homers vs 91 last year
    -Offensive walks taken per game down from 4.71 last year to 4.31 this year
    -Offensive strikeouts up from 7.84 last year to 9.10 this year 
     

    Thanks for the comparison. Seriously.

    But to get after you a bit, how come you refer to a “small” increase in hits allowed when it’s actually greater than the decrease in walks? Then no reference to ERA or runs allowed.

    Generally it’s the walks that’ll annoy you, but the hits that’ll kill you.

    With your affinity for walks killing you, what do you prefer from our offense? The increase in slugging and decrease in walks from our offense this year as compared to last or more walks/less slugging.

    Obviously our WHIP this year is similar to last and maybe our opponents against us is too
  5. The Wake Forest Deacons are 2-4 in conference and have given up double digit runs in 3 of those losses. But at least they only lost to Coastal Carolina 17-9 in between those series.

    A bumpy ride it is.

  6. So we went from we have no catcher and certainly no 3rd catcher to our 3rd being the best catcher in two days.

    I’d be willing to wager that Texas has never had a #3 catcher throw out 3 dudes in two games though.

  7. I agree with you but I would challenge anyone to name 10 coaches that are “better”. You gotta have skins on the wall.

    So our facilities are mediocre, our conference is mediocre.

    Just 3 years ago, we lost a 2 of 3 series to the national champs. Losing by 1 twice. Went to the CWS the year after then lost in an attempt last year on a ball lost in the sun. All following a team that lost the season to Covid with a dude who has the most impact at the MLB level since what Huston Street and two other high draft picks.

    Putting himself at pitching coach seems to be an issue, but the dude has a career saying he does have a clue.

    There aren’t 10 with clearly better resumes at this point. I’d wager someone like Sark is the best solution to manage the roster and the landscape. At the same, he had a final 4 shot and missed as well.
  8. Pitching and defense will always be important, but it’s also notable that teams are hitting like never before at this level. Strike zones have shrunk, walks are up, less small ball and giving up outs, more homers. It’s probably a conversation for another day/time, but building this team for the SEC is going to be different. You have to be able to hit up and down the lineup in that league. Every team outside of Tennessee had a ERA north of 5 in SEC play last year. The average team ERA in the SEC has increased every year for I believe 8 or 9 years in a row. You just don’t see many 3-2 type games outside of the occasional Friday night pitchers duel.
    Even in the NIL age, the odds of you having 3 high caliber starting pitchers on the same staff is pretty rare. Arkansas is the exception this year. LSU won it all last year with Paul Skenes, two good relievers (Cooper and Ackenhausen) and a good offense. Couldn’t even tell you who their 2nd and 3rd starters were. Their team ERA in SEC play was 6.17.

    This is it. The instruction and reps is massively increased and better than when I was a kid. It’s also brings about more depth and competition to more teams. And you can’t leave them on the field all day to outwork your opponents either.

    People here struggle to understand baseball as it is today. Kids are repping the hell out of it like never before. They have technology and infinitely better training backing the hitting. But the smaller strike zone is big too. You see it on occasion with that wide strike call. Totally screws with the hitter. One it’s a bogus strike and two it screws with the head and opens up chasing pitches.

    The staff has taken a step back, but the biggest issue is Witt. Is that Pierces fault this far removed from his surgery? What about Duplantier? He came on strong but has not returned to that level. I have a question there.

    You jackwagons are too willing to give up on guys and talk yourself into shit you want to believe. If the skills are there, you have to allow a player to work through those issues. That doesn’t mean they start every game, that doesn’t mean the leash is infinitely long, but baseball at every level since the beginning of time has ups and downs and fits of streaks. More than any sport.

    Wake had the great staff last year. It didn’t get them a title or a CWS finals appearance. I was thinking they lost a top pitcher to the portal this year. One of Tennessee’s biggest arms last year was relegated to the pen but had some nice post season moments. Hit the portal. In the end, Skenes had the biggest performance of the year for LSU. Top MLB draft pick. LSU bought right.

    It’s frustrating to play like this. But we could have skipped the opening tourney and notched 3 more wins. Our RPI and SOS entering this weekend were pretty strong. Everything for this team is on the table. Witt needs to progress. LBJ needs to go deeper in games. Hurley needs to not be given up on. There’s nothing wrong with a bullpen guy starting game 3 then Hurley taking you 5/6. That’s where he was best last year.

    There’s quite a bit of ability in the lineup. We will see about the consistency and growth. Belyeu and Flores have trended up this year. Thomas has started strong. You need to win games like yesterday at a very high clip.

    I’m still on the limit of this team is likely on LBJ, Witt and Hurley. To do what they’ve done in their individual pasts. Perhaps even improve over that since they’ve got a years maturity.
  9. It wasn’t just CC, and bunt call was his MO he was rarely going to deviate. But your last point is 100% true.  

    Oh I know. Sometimes it works and sometimes not. I am not anti-bunt, but I’m pro situational usage. That example was not situational. I think Hollimon was hitting lefty too with decent speed. He had the hole due to first being held, hitting well that game, harder to double up on a pulled grounder and we simply weren’t hitting well overall.

    It was a philosophy that he held to often.
  10. You coach that long and you will. That Chris Carmichael homer was a very long time before he retired.

    One somewhat memorable moment for me was in a low scoring CWS game. He bunts Michael Holiimon with a runner on first. Hollimon had some of the best ABs of the day. Needless to say we strand the runner and lose the game.

    Augie was better pre and post game than in game. And it’s probably not even close.

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  11. Agree.  Augie teams were so resilient and his knack for playing the right player at the right time was epic.

    Augies teams did play to the end, but the last half of your statement is pretty much made up feel good stuff.
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  12. Well, I hope you are right...  and I'm fine with the globe life/minute maid/arizona tourneys. 

    I could easily see us getting sent to a Lubbock regional/super.

    Why would we want to lose to Tech at Minute Maid or globe life?
  13. There's no way Blackshire sees the field at that weight. He'd be in the 97th percentile of all NFL combine LBs since 1999, and nearly everyone around that weight are from pre-2012.

    If Malcolm Roach can do it, so can Blackshire.
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  14. Not seeing that. 

    I was throwing Witt in there. Then LBJ. Witt is not there now, but the upside is there. It’s not a given, but we’ll compete if those two have successful seasons. Few teams run very deep with consistent starters. Wake was different last year and look where it got em. Tennessee had some big arms, but they were not great last year.

    Any teams season comes down to 2 or 3 games series essentially. Every week in conference then the regionals and supers are that way too. You can lump the CWS in that. That changes a bit if you get in the losers bracket. Our best and reasonable hope is to get those where we want them to be.
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