IST: Cubs @ Rockies

[CSF77]

Don't matter. Most players playing at that level for that much should get benched. He has been catered to all season long and it is about time they gave him a sense of urgency to fix the problem.

 

[anotheridiot]

I heard a thought on this on MLB Radio this weekend. Their take was that since it is an easy park to hit in they might not wanted him to go in there, hit well, and not continue to work on adjustments because he felt good in an unusual environment. I don't have any idea if that's true but it made some sense.

I kind of understand that, but when Lester laid down that game winning bunt, Maddon said how the season can turn on one play like that. Its hard to believe that his thought process is not a few good at bats would be a turning point for Heyward.

 

[brett05]

I heard a thought on this on MLB Radio this weekend. Their take was that since it is an easy park to hit in they might not wanted him to go in there, hit well, and not continue to work on adjustments because he felt good in an unusual environment. I don't have any idea if that's true but it made some sense.

If he's still doing the same old same old then there are coaches that need major reprimanding.

 

[beckdawg]

You can get rest at any other point, but this is arguably the easiest park to hit in.

Well sure but that's assuming any boost from that would actually make him play better. Think a far more likely case is his mechanics are out of wack even more so than usual this year. By sitting him, you give him the chance to slow down a bit vs having him learn in the line of fire with live pitching. I think your approach makes more sense for a guy who's just slumping. The prototypical guy who is hitting balls right at people and can't buy a hit even though he's hitting it hard. In my view anyways that's different than someone who's not right mechanically. I don't think a few hits really changes anything there unless they are also accompanied by mechanical fixes.

I'm never going to proclaim to be someone who can talk intelligently about what may or may not be wrong with a swing so I'll leave that to others but I've heard mention that people who know what they are talking about saying that's his issue right now.

 

[anotheridiot]

But we also had the experience with Soriano with him not accepting any criticism over his swing or tree trunk of a bat. Its hard to argue with Heywards hand movement since Zobrist basically does the same thing and does not look completely lost up there. So the real question is he making adjustments they are suggesting or is this another 184 million dollar man that thinks he knows his swing best?

The other thing that had me scratching my head was pulling Russell, the only guy hitting. Did something happen to him or was it just a chance to let Zobrist play shortstop. Pretty much gave up on the game when it happened so I wondered if anyone explained the move. To me it was a double shot, one to Russell for getting pulled the game of his career, and Baez for not letting him go to shortstop.

 

[Raskolnikov]

IMo, just a bad call to bench Heyward playing in Colorado. Best chance to get confidence as a hitter.

The point may be that if you are going to need 10 runs to win a game, Heyward shouldn't be in your lineup.

 

[brett05]

Well sure but that's assuming any boost from that would actually make him play better. Think a far more likely case is his mechanics are out of wack even more so than usual this year. By sitting him, you give him the chance to slow down a bit vs having him learn in the line of fire with live pitching. I think your approach makes more sense for a guy who's just slumping. The prototypical guy who is hitting balls right at people and can't buy a hit even though he's hitting it hard. In my view anyways that's different than someone who's not right mechanically. I don't think a few hits really changes anything there unless they are also accompanied by mechanical fixes.

I'm never going to proclaim to be someone who can talk intelligently about what may or may not be wrong with a swing so I'll leave that to others but I've heard mention that people who know what they are talking about saying that's his issue right now.

If his mechanics "are out of wack" the coaches need to be stepping up.
The rest should have come before the Colorado series so that he could gain some sort of confidence in Denver.

 

[beckdawg]

If his mechanics "are out of wack" the coaches need to be stepping up.
The rest should have come before the Colorado series so that he could gain some sort of confidence in Denver.

I can give you reasons that are logical but at the end of the day you either trust that Maddon and co. know what they are doing or you don't. If you do then I don't really see a point second guessing their decision. He's not shown much of a arbitrary decision streak so I choose to assume he has a well thought out reason.

 

[chibears55]

Think it was as simple as the Rockies started 2 lefties in series
So
Maddon decided that was perfect time to rest him and let him get himself mentally and physically right.
Plus
It gave Soler an opportunity to start and get ABs in

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I527 using Tapatalk

 

[Omeletpants]

One of the beat writers was on the radio today and he says Maddon is getting fed up with Heyward and beleives he will sit him in the playoff if necessary. This was a little shocking as I see Maddon as the kind of guy that rarely gives up on someone, especially a guy that came in with so much notoriety as Heyward

 

[brett05]

I can give you reasons that are logical but at the end of the day you either trust that Maddon and co. know what they are doing or you don't. If you do then I don't really see a point second guessing their decision. He's not shown much of a arbitrary decision streak so I choose to assume he has a well thought out reason.

With all due respect, You can either believe Joe and Company make no mistakes or realize that they make less than most managers. For me and I am guessing many others this seems like a mistake. I wish a reporter would ask a few hard questions to them about this.

 

[Spunky Porkstacker]

If his mechanics "are out of wack" the coaches need to be stepping up.
The rest should have come before the Colorado series so that he could gain some sort of confidence in Denver.

How do we know they havn't done extensive video analaisis and batting cage time with him and he's just not grasping it for what ever reason.

 

[chibears55]

If his mechanics "are out of wack" the coaches need to be stepping up.
The rest should have come before the Colorado series so that he could gain some sort of confidence in Denver.

I still dont get if he changed mechanics or whatever, why doesn't he just go back to what he was doing last year and previous years...

What makes you so sure he'd hit well in Colorado

Contreras Soler and Baez didn't really have much success there, so why would you think Heyward would have, especially going up against 2 lefty starters.


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I527 using Tapatalk

 

[Parade_Rain]

How do we know they havn't done extensive video analaisis and batting cage time with him and he's just not grasping it for what ever reason.

They could have and he may not. Also, as with most professionals, they trust what got them to the dance and aren't going to be as teachable or as moldable as someone may like. Or again, it could be that the Cubs don't have an instructor in the organization who has the know-how of improving JH. There are all kinds of possibilities here, but we're down to the stretch of the season. No one is going to make major changes right now.

 

[Diehardfan]

They could have and he may not. Also, as with most professionals, they trust what got them to the dance and aren't going to be as teachable or as moldable as someone may like. Or again, it could be that the Cubs don't have an instructor in the organization who has the know-how of improving JH. There are all kinds of possibilities here, but we're down to the stretch of the season. No one is going to make major changes right now.

I think you'll remember my whining about Mallee last year but then they suddenly got hot and I figured I was just way off base. Maybe I wasn't after all. I'll admit that it's ultimately up to the individual player to turn things around....but the long stretches both last year and this year when they leaned so hard on their pitching was very surprising to me. There's a lot of good hitters on this team....too good to be suffocated by some of the really bad pitchers that they've been beaten by.

 

[beckdawg]

With all due respect, You can either believe Joe and Company make no mistakes or realize that they make less than most managers. For me and I am guessing many others this seems like a mistake. I wish a reporter would ask a few hard questions to them about this.

Whether or not it is a mistake is open to opinion sure. My point though is that Maddon rarely makes decisions without well thought out reasons behind them. It's certainly true that a hot couple of games in COL could make Heyward get right just as it's possible he could not hit and be in the same spot. I'm really not worried about the outcomes because often times those are out of your control. I am worried more about the decision making process because generally if you take the right process more often than not you'll end up with the right outcomes.

And as I said, Maddon almost always has a good though process behind moves even ones we second guess.

 

[brett05]

I still dont get if he changed mechanics or whatever, why doesn't he just go back to what he was doing last year and previous years...

What makes you so sure he'd hit well in Colorado

Contreras Soler and Baez didn't really have much success there, so why would you think Heyward would have, especially going up against 2 lefty starters.


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I527 using Tapatalk

First off Jason is not a righty only player. His lefty splits is ahead of what he is doing in 2016 against any pitcher.
Most friendly hitting park in all of baseball so you play the odds. All decisions are based on it or should be.

 

[brett05]

Whether or not it is a mistake is open to opinion sure. My point though is that Maddon rarely makes decisions without well thought out reasons behind them. It's certainly true that a hot couple of games in COL could make Heyward get right just as it's possible he could not hit and be in the same spot. I'm really not worried about the outcomes because often times those are out of your control. I am worried more about the decision making process because generally if you take the right process more often than not you'll end up with the right outcomes.

And as I said, Maddon almost always has a good though process behind moves even ones we second guess.

Which is why we need good reporters to actually question Maddon.

 

[Diehardfan]

Which is why we need good reporters to actually question Maddon.

How much can you really question of a guy who's won about 62% of the games he's managed since he got here?

 

[brett05]

How much can you really question of a guy who's won about 62% of the games he's managed since he got here?

It's called good reporting.