...like the guys in the booth said, he's pulling off everything...that left shoulder is flying wide open.
It's so blatant too. It's not like it's a slight thing. Add in the fact that he over swings at everything.
I'd agree with that anyday, anytime.... add to all this the insulting MLB-TV commercial yesterday: (Quote)- "Tomorrow on MLB TV, watch Alfonso Soriano and the Yankees versus the Oakland A's" ..... say what the F....? Did the gaffer write the commercial, while everyone else went to lunch....? Or as Vic said, one would of thought a commercial for the Yanx Broadcast, a given, to hear, "watch Derek Jeter and the Yanx".....where's the respect for The Captain, given his farewell season. Regardless of performance, IMHO, Derek deserves the same Farewell send off, from the media and fans, we all saw in Ripken's final year... Hell, even last year with Mo'...oh well, screw MLB-TV....and Sorry-ano too...!
I heard from Pineda's clubhouse chat, Alfonso uses super glue on his hands, so why can't Pineda use pine tar on his neck....
...Morales will probably sign with someone Friday. ...and IMO, the Yanx don't need a DH per se ...they need the current DHs to pull their weight.
I thought I saw him sleeping in the bullpen, writing his sequel to "Cage Rat".... This one titled: "Self Pro-Claimed Hitting Guru" - insult courtesy of McClendon...!
If he does ever retire, I would think Ichiro could easily become a great hitting coach. Or like Carew did, open his own Hitting Academy with private lessons to any kid, and the public, who wanted to spend but $50 for a 1 on 1 hour long lesson, once a week for 8 weeks in a row. (That was prior to his Daughter's death, prior to becoming the Halos Hitting Coach, and then Brewers). Besides, each kid definitely showing a big improvement in their hitting abilities, each kid got a nice 8X10 picture of themselves with Rod, autographed too, a Certificate of Completion, also signed by Carew, no doubt one of the greatest pure hitters of our era. (both Carew and Ichiro, tho' I preferred watching Carew, Suzuki has been no slouch either, and both had great careers).
Maybe its just me but for the most part I find that hitting coaches are generally guys you never really heard of (yes there are exceptions) but mostly its like that old adage, "Those that can do, those that can't teach" which makes absolutely no sense to me at all. I mean how do you take advice from a guy who either never played at the major league level or was a career 230 hitter without laughing under your breath? This I also find true with pitching coaches. " Really you had a career mark of 50-100 & you want to give me advice on how to pitch?" It just boggles the mind.
Hitting coaches study the mechanics of a swing and things of that nature. They study hours and hours of video and compare what a guy is doing when he's hitting well and what changes are seen when he's in a slump. The career batting average has nothing to do with it. Just because a guy hits .240 in the majors doesn't mean he knows nothing about hitting. What do you think the guy did in high school, college and the minors? A career .330 is not going to be able to teach you how to hit just like him. Ichiro for example has one of the oddest approaches and swings the game has ever seen. I wouldn't see him as being a good hitting coach as far as the mechanics of a swing goes. He does everything you were taught not to do while growing up.
Vic I agree about Ichiro being a bad example as a coach but my point is this, if what you say is true of what a hitting coaches job is, watching hours of video to find floors in a players swing or approach then why couldn't he do it for himself & be a better hitter. Look I know I often put a lot of blame on various coaches (pitching & hitting) and maybe I'm looking at this with blinders on but here's the thing, If I'm in a slump & I have Tony Gwynn & Kevin Long standing in front of me, guess which one I'm going to ask for help? The career 300 hitter or the guy who couldn't even practiced what he preached to make himself better?
...Ichiro is a contact hitter, always has been...doesn't strike out much. ...and during batting practice before the game can put on a helluva HR display.
