August 7, 20205 yr Author I am 100% for Robert batting in the 1st inning every game for the rest of his career. No disrespect to TA but Robert IMO should lead off going forward.
August 7, 20205 yr I’m not one to reflexively criticize RR, but Robert is the prototypical leadoff hitter. He has the look of a 40/40 guy.
August 7, 20205 yr Author 6 minutes ago, Yearnin' for Yermin said: Let's be real, Ricky is going to put TA back there. Oh I believe it. But let’s be real, who has more impact on this team going forward, Robert or TA? Robert should be getting more ABs than anyone on this roster not named Moncada. Edited August 7, 20205 yr by SouthWallace
August 7, 20205 yr 6 minutes ago, SouthWallace said: Oh I believe it. But let’s be real, who has more impact on this team going forward, Robert or TA? Robert should be getting more ABs than anyone on this roster not named Moncada. No doubt. Robert will have a higher OBP than Timmy and is a better base stealer. You gotta give him as many ABs as possible. Robert should lead off.
August 7, 20205 yr 10 minutes ago, asindc said: I’m not one to reflexively criticize RR, but Robert is the prototypical leadoff hitter. He has the look of a 40/40 guy. Or is Robert better in 3 spot where he has more opportunity to drive in runs?
August 7, 20205 yr Just now, Chisoxfn said: Or is Robert better in 3 spot where he has more opportunity to drive in runs? Ricky isn't going to move Abreu or Grandal down anytime soon.
August 7, 20205 yr Robert as a rookie is going to swing and miss and strike out a ton; Anderson has batter bat skills at this point and should lead off which is why he will.
August 7, 20205 yr 12 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said: Robert as a rookie is going to swing and miss and strike out a ton; Anderson has batter bat skills at this point and should lead off which is why he will. He'll lead off because Ricky is a dope that endorses veteran privilege. Edited August 7, 20205 yr by Yearnin' for Yermin
August 7, 20205 yr I am a huge TA fan but I'd like to see Robert there because he will walk more once he gets a better feel for the pitchers imho.
August 7, 20205 yr 1 hour ago, Chisoxfn said: Or is Robert better in 3 spot where he has more opportunity to drive in runs? I agree. I would move Abreu to 4th or if they are in love w the righty/lefty Grandal in the 4 and Abreu in the 5.
August 7, 20205 yr 11 hours ago, Chisoxfn said: Or is Robert better in 3 spot where he has more opportunity to drive in runs? I much rather see Eloy there to be honest. I think he's going to be a monster run producer down the road.
August 7, 20205 yr 11 hours ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said: Robert as a rookie is going to swing and miss and strike out a ton; Anderson has batter bat skills at this point and should lead off which is why he will. 4k's for Robert yesterday with more swinging strikes than Anderson had for entire months last year. Robert is going to be unstoppable but he's gotta figure some things out to be complete.
August 7, 20205 yr I think long term it is madrigal. Tim didn't have great K to BB rates in his career but robert didn't have good ones either and was mostly like 4 to 1 in the minors. He obviously has more room for growth than tim but I think madrigal should be a better bet to get on base a lot. Robert should be a 30+ homer guy even if it is a 320 obp so that would fit better in the middle of the lineup.
August 7, 20205 yr 1 hour ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said: 4k's for Robert yesterday with more swinging strikes than Anderson had for entire months last year. Robert is going to be unstoppable but he's gotta figure some things out to be complete. I was going to say, I think I want Anderson leading off, at least for the rest of this year.
August 7, 20205 yr Anderson, Moncada, Robert, Eloy, Grandal, Abreu, Encarnacion, Mazara, Leury/Madrigal is fine with me. So long as Robert is moved to third if he's not leadoff, I don't really care. Batting him outside the top 3 is insanely stupid. But we all know Ricky isn't moving Abreu off the 3 hole.
August 7, 20205 yr Luis has cooled off but he ultimately should be the lead off in the future. If he moves him out temporarily while he struggles that is fine. Tim can bat 2nd or 6th when Luis leads off. Eloy should also be moved to bat ahead of Grandal. It could be 1. Robert 2. Anderson 3. Moncada 4. Abreu 5 Jimenez. I would prefer Eloy batting 4th but I don't think Rick would move Abreu to 5th.
August 7, 20205 yr Neither are good leadoff hitters. They don't take enough pitches. Robert will eventually be there, but he gives away way too many of his at bats at this point in his career. You can't really have your leadoff guy striking out 25-30% of the time. As much as I hate to agree with Ricky, I think Anderson should hit there for now until Robert finds ways to have more competitive at bats on a consistent basis. Edited August 7, 20205 yr by chw42
August 7, 20205 yr If Madrigal can put up high OBP numbers, this would work. In 2019, the average leadoff hitter OBP was .335 league wide. The best couple of leadoff OBPs were guys like Springer, LeMahieu, and Betts, who were in the .370-380 range. Can Madrigal get that to .360? I don't know. If not, then Robert.
August 7, 20205 yr Robert swings and misses WAY too much right now for me to be comfortable with just handing him the spot. He's doing damage in spite of that but that is probably going to change and he'll have to correct for it. I don't think it's the right spot for TA either, but I'm by no means going to be upset with him over robert. Long story short, put either of them there idc, they're both not right for the spot right now anyway.
August 7, 20205 yr Actually wrote about this today: https://www.ecopolibbling.com/post/the-1-spot-is-reserved-for-7 "It’s nothing against Robert - who is a generational talent and the most exciting young player I have had the privilege to watch in my 33 years on this planet – as much as it’s a testament to all the hard work Tim Anderson has put in since he was an unpolished slightly bowlegged state champion point guard from Alabama, who played short stop in his spare time." I think Anderson is the clear choice despite people's constant doubt. As long as he's dropping .350+ OBP I'm good with Tim doing the job. I'd even take a 340ish sink.
August 7, 20205 yr 1 hour ago, chw42 said: Neither are good leadoff hitters. They don't take enough pitches. Robert will eventually be there, but he gives away way too many of his at bats at this point in his career. You can't really have your leadoff guy striking out 25-30% of the time. As much as I hate to agree with Ricky, I think Anderson should hit there for now until Robert finds ways to have more competitive at bats on a consistent basis. In the modern game, there may be nothing more overrated about leading off than working counts. Guys just don't throw their entire arsenal the first time through the order anymore so you're only seeing the same 2ish pitches over and over again. OBP and run scoring skills are really all that matter at this point in time. If TA can maintain a high BA which puts his OBP north of 350 he's a very good option to lead off. Moncada is going to work counts in the 2 hole.
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