RME JICO Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 (edited) Moving up in the world Uribe must adjust to 2nd spot in order By Mark Gonzales Tribune staff reporter February 25, 2006, 11:25 PM CST TUCSON, Ariz. -- Juan Uribe insisted he was happy and ready for Cactus League play to begin Wednesday. That brought a five-second laugh from White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, who watched his shortstop labor through his first workout after arriving two days late because of paperwork problems in his native Dominican Republic. "That's one of my rules—don't lie," Guillen joked Saturday. "He said he was in shape. Look at him. He was dying when [third-base coach] Joey Cora was hitting fungoes." Seriously, Guillen wasn't worried about the condition of Uribe, who will need much of the spring to work on the nuances of batting in the second spot in the order after hitting at the bottom last season. Uribe played eight games for Escogido in the Dominican Winter League, batting .321 with two home runs and six RBIs. He was happy to learn Guillen planned to move him up in the order. "I'm so happy hitting ninth or eighth," Uribe said. "They put me second to help the team. I'll be happy [there] too." Uribe took live batting practice, resuming his front leg kick, and worked on his bunting against Dustin Hermanson and Augstin Montero after fielding grounders from Cora. "I'm going to talk to him in the next couple of days about the job we want from him, what he needs to do to get us better," Guillen said. "We're better off when he makes things happen in the second spot. He feels comfortable and knows what he's supposed to do from the second spot." Uribe batted only .174 there last season and drew no walks in 31 at-bats in the second and sixth spots. But from 2003 through 2004, Uribe batted .286 in 311 at-bats with 22 walks in the second spot. Uribe drew all of his 34 walks from the bottom three spots in the order last season. http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sp...tesox-headlines Edited February 26, 2006 by RME JICO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatScott82 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 Uribe was awesome in the 2 hole in 2004, but it was his poor june and july that year that worries. He was red hot in April and May but then when summer hit, he cooled down drastically. I hope he learned alot from Gooch last year. He will be the 'giving himself up guy', I think he can handle that. I'm pretty sure he tied the team with sacrifices last year, so we know he's very much capable. Should be fun watching him there and Gooch hit 6th! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RME JICO Posted February 26, 2006 Author Share Posted February 26, 2006 This seems to be a double positive. Uribe having more patience at the plate, using the leg kick, and getting on base for the meat of the order. Then allowing Gooch to swing away and use his speed more down in the order. The worst case scenario is moving Gooch back to the 2 slot and getting similar production from last year, which didn't turn out too bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RME JICO Posted February 26, 2006 Author Share Posted February 26, 2006 (edited) Uribe gets shot at No. 2 slot as Sox mix it up By RICK GANO Associated Press Sports Updated: 4:16 p.m. ET Feb. 25, 2006 TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - Juan Uribe came bouncing into the White Sox clubhouse on Saturday, his visa problems that made him a late arrival cleared up and his role with the defending World Series winners about to change. He'll still be the starting shortstop. That's for sure. Consider his great catch of a pop foul while falling into the stands in the ninth inning of Game 4 last October. Or his nice play on a slow roller that ended the game in Houston and gave the White Sox their first World Series winner in 88 years. But his role and position in the batting order will be drastically different. He won't be at the bottom of the lineup, batting eighth or ninth. He'll be near the top at No. 2. It's one of several tweaks the White Sox will attempt this spring. "I'm so happy, hitting eighth or ninth. If they put me second to help the team, I'm happy, too,'' Uribe said. This might seem like a minor detail, but it points to something bigger: The White Sox haven't followed the theory of don't mess with what works. They didn't make sweeping changes in the offseason, but they didn't exactly stand still, either. "We'll continue to push the envelope,'' general manager Ken Williams said. While Uribe is moving to second in the order, Tadahito Iguchi - manager Ozzie Guillen called him the team MVP at times last season for his unselfish play - is headed to the sixth or seventh spot in an attempt to get more RBI opportunities. He batted .278 with 15 homers and 71 RBIs as a rookie last season after eight years playing in Japan. "If Uribe feels comfortable and does what he is supposed to do in the second spot in the lineup, I think our ball club will be better offensively,'' Guillen said. That would be laying down bunts - he tied with Iguchi for the team lead with 11 sacrifices last season - taking pitches so leadoff hitter Scott Podsednik can steal and being more disciplined at the plate. Uribe batted .252 with 16 homers last season, but could see more good pitches higher in the order. "The reason why I say Iguchi was my MVP last year because I took his bat away a lot,'' Guillen said. "And I'm going to do the same with Uribe. I hope he understands that.'' ..... http://msnbc.msn.com/id/11565164/ Edited February 26, 2006 by RME JICO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSH2005 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 http://msnbc.msn.com/id/11565164/ <{POST_SNAPBACK}> "If Uribe feels comfortable and does what he is supposed to do in the second spot in the lineup, I think our ball club will be better offensively,'' Guillen said. That would be laying down bunts - he tied with Iguchi for the team lead with 11 sacrifices last season - taking pitches so leadoff hitter Scott Podsednik can steal and being more disciplined at the plate. Uribe batted .252 with 16 homers last season, but could see more good pitches higher in the order. Uribe is one of the best bunters on the team so we shouldn't lose much if anything in that aspect. But the bolded part above is the key. If Uribe is actually forced to take more pitches to allow Podsednik a chance to steal, he may end up drawing more walks. Hopefully, that factor and his new leg kick stance will help raise his OBP. If Uribe does end up staying at #2, I just hope that Ozzie doesn't make Uribe attempt to steal bases. He's a horrible base stealer. Uribe shouldn't need to steal second base to score anyways with Thome, Konerko, and Dye behind him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AbeFroman Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 I think Uribe has a quicker bat speed than Iguchi.... and I think thats helpful cause he'll see more fastballs when Podsednik is on base. actually, i'm not sure too many guys in the league have quicker bat speed than uribe... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSH2005 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 (edited) I think Uribe has a quicker bat speed than Iguchi.... and I think thats helpful cause he'll see more fastballs when Podsednik is on base. actually, i'm not sure too many guys in the league have quicker bat speed than uribe... <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yep, Uribe may have the fastest bat speed of any player on the team. His problem is obviously making contact. He swings at too many offspeed and breaking pitches away but his new leg kick seemed to help him a lot. He started taking a lot more pitches in the second half of last season. It was like night and day for Uribe before and after the All-Star break last season... Juan Uribe (2005 stats Pre All-Star): 240 AB | .246 AVG | .276 OBP | .379 SLG | .655 OPS | 13 BB | 41 K Juan Uribe (2005 stats Post All-Star): 241 AB | .257 AVG | .325 OBP | .444 SLG | .769 OPS | 21 BB | 36 K Edited February 26, 2006 by SSH2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sayitaintso Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 QUOTE(AbeFroman @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 09:16 AM) I think Uribe has a quicker bat speed than Iguchi.... and I think thats helpful cause he'll see more fastballs when Podsednik is on base. actually, i'm not sure too many guys in the league have quicker bat speed than uribe... He swings at nothing half of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WilliamTell Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 QUOTE(sayitaintso @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 11:05 AM) He swings at nothing half of the time. I noticed he improved through out the year though which gives me a little confidence. I just don't want to see him swing at those pitches in the dirt anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan4life_2007 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 I'm really starting to believe Uribe can handle the 2 slot. As already mentioned, he's an excellent bunter. He just needs to be more patient and work the count. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulokis Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 QUOTE(Jordan4life_2006 @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 03:14 PM) I'm really starting to believe Uribe can handle the 2 slot. As already mentioned, he's an excellent bunter. He just needs to be more patient and work the count. I heard Walker on one of the radio shows and he said Uribe had a lot of walks during the post-season. I think Uribe can handle the job and I hope he steals more bases though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSH2005 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 I heard Walker on one of the radio shows and he said Uribe had a lot of walks during the post-season. I think Uribe can handle the job and I hope he steals more bases though. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Juan Uribe (2005 Postseason stats): 42 AB | .286 AVG | .362 OBP | .476 SLG | .838 OPS | 5 BB | 8 SO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rventura23 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 QUOTE(SSH2005 @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 04:33 PM) Juan Uribe (2005 Postseason stats): 42 AB | .286 AVG | .362 OBP | .476 SLG | .838 OPS | 5 BB | 8 SO Thats good, he needs to be patient in the 2 hole Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pale_hose Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 Uribe would be great in the two spot. He is a good base runner and has a real quick bat. But, if he works on his discipline, then he will produce. He swung wildly at times last season, but i think he will be patient and more disciplined. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwerty Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 QUOTE(pale_hose @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 03:55 PM) Uribe would be great in the two spot. He is a good base runner and has a real quick bat. But, if he works on his discipline, then he will produce. He swung wildly at times last season, but i think he will be patient and more disciplined. Uribe is the worst base runner on the team... far and away in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowand44 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 QUOTE(q\/\/3r+y @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 03:58 PM) Uribe is the worst base runner on the team... far and away in my opinion. Seconded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSH2005 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 Thirded. If Uribe gets on base he should hug the bag and wait for a homer by Thome, Konerko, or Dye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LosMediasBlancas Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 Uribe consistently showing discipline at the plate in the 2 slot will be an interesting challenge. I'm cautiously optimistic. Who knows, maybe it is better to take the bat out of his hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan4life_2007 Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 QUOTE(q\/\/3r+y @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 03:58 PM) Uribe is the worst base runner on the team... far and away in my opinion. Now that Rowand is gone, you're correct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BamaDoc Posted February 26, 2006 Share Posted February 26, 2006 In the two hole he may be forced to comply to the situation and be more focused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockRaines Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 QUOTE(Jordan4life_2006 @ Feb 26, 2006 -> 04:53 PM) Now that Rowand is gone, you're correct. ^^^^^^^^ I was going to say that. A-row was the worst. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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