How do we solve our K/BB epidemic?

[Greg Hibbard]

Yeah I probably could have left him off. Really depends on how the outfield shakes up along with the DH spot when it's all said and done.

I really like him and hope he works out

[witesoxfan]

Yes. Franco. Watch a tape of Anderson and that huge bat. It's like Franco waving that huge piece of lumber. Anderson needs to use a smaller, lighter bat and he'll see the results of Moncada since he switched bats.

 

Over his last 210 plate appearances, since his OPS cratered at .601, Anderson has hit .312/.329/.522/.851. There is likely a lack of sustainability in that line, but the size of his bat isn't the problem.

[Greg Hibbard]

Over his last 210 plate appearances, since his OPS cratered at .601, Anderson has hit .312/.329/.522/.851. There is likely a lack of sustainability in that line, but the size of his bat isn't the problem.

 

The lack of sustainability is severely tied to the the lack of walks

[OmarComing25]

What do we think of the sample size though? Is it large enough to draw those conclusions?

In ~1600 PA between Cuba and the minors he walked at a 13% clip, I think it's pretty safe to say that he's a guy who's going to take his fair share of walks.

[witesoxfan]

The lack of sustainability is severely tied to the the lack of walks

 

I actually disagree. Walks help stimulate production, but do not signify production. Rather, it's his .392 BABIP and his 25.7% K% over that time that is causing the unsustainability. If he were hitting .310/.330/.520 with a strikeout rate around 15% or even 20%, I'd feel a hell of a lot better about it.

 

All the same, Austin Jackson was a good player early in his career with a K% around 26%, so it's not unreasonable to think that he could succeed striking out that much.

 

This isn't to say that Anderson shouldn't draw more walks - we're in agreement on that.

[chitownsportsfan]

How to fix the problem? Get better players. Like Eloy Jimenez. Problem solved.

[Dizzy Sox]

One of the most encouraging developments over the last two years has been the Sox finally putting a premium on players who can take a walk (or at least have some track record of controlling the strike zone). Just off the top of my head...Collins, Call, Fischer, Burger, Sheets, Gonzalez, Yurchak, plus as a previous poster wrote maybe you can include Robert...that's a dramatic shift from the Jared Mitchell/Trayce Thompson/Tim Anderson athlete-first, ballplayer second model that reigned since the mid-to-late 2000s.

 

Obviously not all of these players will find it as easy to control the zone as they did in amateur ball, but the simple fact that the ability to take a walk is now apparently valued by the club...eventually you have to think that will pay off. I have to think this is linked to Hahn establishing himself over Kenny '5:1 K/BB ratio' Williams (in an era of reduced strikeouts no less!) Regardless, it's a very welcome development and I'm hoping we'll see the fruits of that at the big league level as these players mature and, presumably, controlling the zone is stressed for everyone in the Sox minor league chain.

Edited September 27, 2017 by Dizzy Sox

[Squirmin' for Yermin]

One of the most encouraging developments over the last two years has been the Sox finally putting a premium on players who can take a walk (or at least have some track record of controlling the strike zone). Just off the top of my head...Collins, Call, Fischer, Burger, Sheets, Gonzalez, Yurchak, plus as a previous poster wrote maybe you can include Robert...that's a dramatic shift from the Jared Mitchell/Trayce Thompson/Tim Anderson athlete-first, ballplayer second model that reigned since the mid-to-late 2000s.

 

Obviously not all of these players will find it as easy to control the zone as they did in amateur ball, but the simple fact that the ability to take a walk is now apparently valued by the club...eventually you have to think that will pay off. I have to think this is linked to Hahn establishing himself over Kenny '5:1 K/BB ratio' Williams (in an era of reduced strikeouts no less!) Regardless, it's a very welcome development and I'm hoping we'll see the fruits of that at the big league level as these players mature and, presumably, controlling the zone is stressed for everyone in the Sox minor league chain.

 

Even many of the players we traded for seem to have a good handle on the zone. Moncada, Eloy, Basabe can draw walks. It definetely seems like there was a significant direction switch and I love it. Grab the ball player, not the athlete

[Chisoxfn]

One of the most encouraging developments over the last two years has been the Sox finally putting a premium on players who can take a walk (or at least have some track record of controlling the strike zone). Just off the top of my head...Collins, Call, Fischer, Burger, Sheets, Gonzalez, Yurchak, plus as a previous poster wrote maybe you can include Robert...that's a dramatic shift from the Jared Mitchell/Trayce Thompson/Tim Anderson athlete-first, ballplayer second model that reigned since the mid-to-late 2000s.

 

Obviously not all of these players will find it as easy to control the zone as they did in amateur ball, but the simple fact that the ability to take a walk is now apparently valued by the club...eventually you have to think that will pay off. I have to think this is linked to Hahn establishing himself over Kenny '5:1 K/BB ratio' Williams (in an era of reduced strikeouts no less!) Regardless, it's a very welcome development and I'm hoping we'll see the fruits of that at the big league level as these players mature and, presumably, controlling the zone is stressed for everyone in the Sox minor league chain.

Technically, Jared Mitchell and Trayce Thompson had good understandings of the strike zone and had pretty solid walk rates. They were athlete first players who had longer swings and other issues, but they knew the strike zone well (especially for players at their respected levels).

[Chisoxmb35]

What do we think of the sample size though? Is it large enough to draw those conclusions?

Yes of course it is. It's like you aren't even aware of who Moncada is or projects to be as a player.

[chitownsportsfan]

Yes of course it is. It's like you aren't even aware of who Moncada is or projects to be as a player.

 

Walk rate doesn't really vary that much. It's hard to teach a guy to take more walks and it's not a skill that erodes very much with age either. If there is one thing I'm sure about WRT to Moncada it's that he's always going to carry a 10-12% walk rate. So even if he's only hitting 230 he's going to have an OBP around 330. That is very valuable. If he hits 280, that makes him an elite OBP at the top of the order. If he hits 25 HR on top of that and steals 30 bases, he's an elite run producer period. At 2B.

 

Get excited about the rebuild folks, many good players, with good strike zone command and overall well rounded games, are coming through the pipeline.

[witesoxfan]

Walk rate doesn't really vary that much. It's hard to teach a guy to take more walks and it's not a skill that erodes very much with age either. If there is one thing I'm sure about WRT to Moncada it's that he's always going to carry a 10-12% walk rate. So even if he's only hitting 230 he's going to have an OBP around 330. That is very valuable. If he hits 280, that makes him an elite OBP at the top of the order. If he hits 25 HR on top of that and steals 30 bases, he's an elite run producer period. At 2B.

 

Get excited about the rebuild folks, many good players, with good strike zone command and overall well rounded games, are coming through the pipeline.

 

This is important and I think people still skim over it. Even if Moncada's contact skills never improve a ton, if he maintains a 10% walk rate and about a 25-28% strikeout rate, he only has to hit about .230 to be a valuable player. This is why I keep bringing up BJ Upton (because he wasn't yet Melvin Upton). He hit about .250 for Tampa for 6 years and still accumulated like 25 WAR. He was a very good player, even if it was frustrating being teased by the obviously tantalizing talent.

[ron883]

How to fix the problem? Get better players. Like Eloy Jimenez. Problem solved.

this post got me pumped up about Eloy, not gonna lie

[chitownsportsfan]

this post got me pumped up about Eloy, not gonna lie

 

Can't wait to see him in spring.