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ElJimador
Keepin it Real
A bit of research this morning from Posey's game log on baseball-reference. It was my impression that the more days in a row Posey caught the more his hitting suffered, presumably from fatigue. Sure enough the numbers seem to bear that out.
Consecutive days of catching (beginning after an off day or game at 1B):
Days 1-2: .394/.440/.576 (1.016 ops) in 25 G, 109 PA
Days 3+: .260/.318/.429 (.747 ops) in 20 G, 85 PA
Now of course its possible these numbers have nothing to do w/fatigue and this is just random SSS. But I think we have to be aware of the fact that Posey is still fairly new to catching so it wouldn't be that surprising if the grind of being in the squat several days in a row was still something he was adapting to. And from the perspective of Posey's development, if catching him more would help him build up his endurance, I'm all for that, even if it hurts his numbers in the short term. The problem is that the Giants are fighting for a playoff spot and need as much production as they can get from everyone right now. So how do you balance those things?
It's not as easy as just breaking up Posey's starts at C by giving him a few more at 1B instead, because even a dog tired Posey is still a better hitter than Eli Whiteside. But I'm afraid if they don't give him more days of behind the plate that he might get really worn down and we could see his numbers tail off badly towads the end of the season. So I'm not sure there really is any better solution but that we're going to have to see more of Whiteside.
I think for next season the Giants should think seriously about bringing Sandoval back behind the plate to catch maybe 1/4 of the games when Posey needs a day off. I'm just skeptical that would be an option for the rest of this season if Sandoval hasn't been preparing for it.
What do you guys think?
Consecutive days of catching (beginning after an off day or game at 1B):
Days 1-2: .394/.440/.576 (1.016 ops) in 25 G, 109 PA
Days 3+: .260/.318/.429 (.747 ops) in 20 G, 85 PA
Now of course its possible these numbers have nothing to do w/fatigue and this is just random SSS. But I think we have to be aware of the fact that Posey is still fairly new to catching so it wouldn't be that surprising if the grind of being in the squat several days in a row was still something he was adapting to. And from the perspective of Posey's development, if catching him more would help him build up his endurance, I'm all for that, even if it hurts his numbers in the short term. The problem is that the Giants are fighting for a playoff spot and need as much production as they can get from everyone right now. So how do you balance those things?
It's not as easy as just breaking up Posey's starts at C by giving him a few more at 1B instead, because even a dog tired Posey is still a better hitter than Eli Whiteside. But I'm afraid if they don't give him more days of behind the plate that he might get really worn down and we could see his numbers tail off badly towads the end of the season. So I'm not sure there really is any better solution but that we're going to have to see more of Whiteside.
I think for next season the Giants should think seriously about bringing Sandoval back behind the plate to catch maybe 1/4 of the games when Posey needs a day off. I'm just skeptical that would be an option for the rest of this season if Sandoval hasn't been preparing for it.
What do you guys think?