Spring Training 2018 Thread

[moonslav59]

I don't recall him having even one hot streak in 2017. Some reasons this could be his last year with the Sox:

It was one of his most consistent season. Too bad it was not very good offensively. However, he did have clear good months and clear bad ones, once again.
.596 APR
.808 May
1.009 June
.596 July
.770 Aug
.517 Sept

Yes, he seems to have 1 good/great month per season, but he usually has 1-2 good to decent ones mixed in as well;

2017: 1.009 in June, but also .808 and .770. (That's half the months over .770)

2016: 1.175 in May, but also .839, .807, .805 and .731 (hardly a one good month season, as 4 months were over .805!)

2015: He only played more than 6 games in 2 months- 1.163 and .739 (both not bad to great)

[moonslav59]

Agreed. The only reason I track the stats that way is to show how hot he gets over a period of 30 days or so. If he OPS'd about 800, no one would complain about him.

3 months over .770 last year.

4 months over .805 in 2016.

1 of 2 months over 1.000 in 2015.

That's 8 of 14 his last 14 months over .770 and 7 of 14 over .805.

Yes, maybe just one "great 30-day period" a year, but it's not like he always sucks the rest of the year.

He's only been under .731 in 4 of the last 14 months.

[kenmeister]

It was one of his most consistent season. Too bad it was not very good offensively. However, he did have clear good months and clear bad ones, once again.
.596 APR
.808 May
1.009 June
.596 July
.770 Aug
.517 Sept

Yes, he seems to have 1 good/great month per season, but he usually has 1-2 good to decent ones mixed in as well;

2017: 1.009 in June, but also .808 and .770. (That's half the months over .770)

2016: 1.175 in May, but also .839, .807, .805 and .731 (hardly a one good month season, as 4 months were over .805!)

2015: He only played more than 6 games in 2 months- 1.163 and .739 (both not bad to great)

Wow that is interesting when you break it down by month like that.

[moonslav59]

Wow that is interesting when you break it down by month like that.

Monthly stats can be deceiving, but yes, they are interesting.

[mvp 78]

Monthly stats can be deceiving, but yes, they are interesting.

Monthly stats are more deceiving when your starting points are exactly the first and last of a month.

[S5Dewey]

Once again I get how some of you view spring training results but really did that box score today tell me that Travis just hit his 5th home run of the spring? Now it is starting to get interesting.

Yes, he hit #5 today and it was a monster shot over everything. It looked like the Instant Replay of #4.

I keep hearing that he adjusted his swing some last season to get more of an uppercut and if so it worked. He's squaring up the ball better now and every AB has become an adventure for opposing pitchers.

[Spudboy]

I'm watching the other Sox play Texas.

So far today Moncada has struck out looking on 3 pitches, singled to center to score a run, and doubled to left scoring three.

Of course he pulled a Moncada by falling asleep off the 3rd base bag and got picked-off to end a rally.

Doug Fister started for Texas and while I can't say that he got shelled, he did get beat up by a bunch of singles.

[moonslav59]

Monthly stats are more deceiving when your starting points are exactly the first and last of a month.

Is it any more deceiving than cherry-picking start and stop signs to make your point?

Your point is well-taken. JBJ clearly has one 30 day very hot streak every year since becoming a regular.

However, he's had decent to good stretches outside that 30-day stretch that you link to his cold stretches to make it look like he sucks 150 days a year and is great for just 30.

[Bellhorn04]

Once again I get how some of you view spring training results but really did that box score today tell me that Travis just hit his 5th home run of the spring? Now it is starting to get interesting.

I think spring training stats mean a lot more for guys like Travis and Swihart than they do for proven players.

[cp176]

I think spring training stats mean a lot more for guys like Travis and Swihart than they do for proven players.

I agree. It just kind of looks like we have a small surplus of pretty talented players here. It does make it a little tougher for guys like Travis and Swihart to get the opportunities they need to showcase what they can do. Have to admit - I'm anxious to see guys like these two play. they will get their chances - hope they are ready. Oh and for what it's worth, Moreland continues to plod along doing what he has always done. I like his game and I like the player.

[Kimmi]

I don't see much point in sweating the Hanley option at this point. If he stays healthy, fields his position competently, and can be the same type of offensive force he was in 2016, he's going to play, the option will likely vest, and I doubt very many will find grounds to complain about it; if those things don't happen, we have a competent safety net in place (Moreland) plus an interesting prospect option waiting in the wings (Travis), and Ramirez will deservedly find himself playing a lot less. Guessing from his comments at the beginning of the spring, Hanley probably understands this better than anyone and should be highly motivated to succeed.

Benching him for purely financial reasons when he's producing on the field would sit wrong with me, but it's difficult to see that happening. This is a team that's built to win now, and if he's the best option any given day, he needs to play -- and we'll figure out 2019 later.

Once again, very well said. I agree completely.

[Kimmi]

remind me when HanRam has ever made a fuss whilst wearing a Red Sox uniform?

Exactly. The guy has done everything the Sox have asked him to do, and has done so without complaining.

Personally, I hope he has a monster year.

[Kimmi]

I'm not saying he hasn't, I'm just saying that there's a possibility of him making a fuss if the Sox do some fuckery with his ab's towards the end of the year.

Anything is possible, but by all accounts, Hanley knows exactly what the situation is. He realizes that if he isn't hitting, he's not getting the at bats. I don't see him making a fuss if he is being treated fairly in terms of the # of at bats he gets.

Now if he's killing the ball and the Sox bench him with the sole intent of not letting his option vest, I think Hanley would have a reason to fuss, no?

[moonslav59]

I don't see much point in sweating the Hanley option at this point. If he stays healthy, fields his position competently, and can be the same type of offensive force he was in 2016, he's going to play, the option will likely vest, and I doubt very many will find grounds to complain about it..

I'll be complaining, because I'll have very little confidence he will have back-to-back good+ seasons.

The second reason will be that, even after a hypothetical good+ season this year, he still won'tbe worth close to $22M in 2019, a year where our budget will be even tighter than this year.

[Bellhorn04]

I am also of the mind that if Hanley is having an excellent season, you forget the option and let the chips fall where they may. In a small window, every year is huge, and you have to take your shot when it's there.