Tagged: Cameron

What More Does A Guy Have To Do?

Although the starting lineups for tonight’s game in Colorado have yet to be revealed, I’m going assume the worst…

Why on Earth is Mike Cameron starting ahead of Gabe Kapler?  Ever?

Gabe Kapler has been nothing but brilliant on basically every game he’s played in this year.  No easy feat considering that includes MANY  single AB pinch hit appearances.  My quasi-man crush on Gabe goes back to before Mike Cameron finished his suspension.  It was boggling even then when Ned decided to give Gabe Gross more appearances just because he was lefthanded.  That was typical Mr. “Match-ups”.  You’d get a quote like, “Well, lefties hit better off of so-and-so, even though Gross is hitting under .100.”  One flippin’ hundred!  Kapler finally got the attention of his manager when after limited playing time was leading the team in dingers.  Unfortuneately his hustle got him injured in BP right after he got the nod for the fill-in role.

Now, again, Gabe is stuck in the backseat while a guy who’s struck out 17 times in his last 26 at bats continually starts ahead of him.

Gabe Kapler should be starting 5 games a week, while Cameron gets to pinch hit and start on Sunday afternoon games.

If only Ks were Hs

My apologies for the second post coming so soon, but it has to be said…

Mike Cameron, Bill Hall, and Rickie Weeks, affectionately known as the .200 Club, (coined by Travis from Who’s in Right Field?), have at least as many strikeouts as they do hits.

These three men, are placed in run scoring/producing spots in the lineup by manager Ned Yost everyday.  Here’s a breakdown on how they’d be doing if their hits and strikeouts were magically reversed…

Mike Cameron: 66 At Bats; 12 Hits; .182 Batting Average; 23 Ks

If “The Swiss Army Knife” had 23 hits, he’d be batting .348, which is higher than Albert Pujols.  Not even Jose Hernandez, Adam Dunn, or Russel Branyan had an almost 2 to 1 ratio of strikouts to hits.  Oh, but he hit great in spring training?  Well, I hit .435 in high school, and I’m still waiting for my call.

Bill Hall: 157 ABs; 31 Hs; .197 BA; 44 Ks

If Billy were hitting as much as he was trying to pull an outside pitch, he’d be striking the ball at a .280 clip.  That would be in the top 5 of the team.  Hall’s strength is his freakishly perfect opposite field swing.  It just doesn’t work trying to take it down the left field line.  Oh, I know he has 9 dingers.  But at the cost of someone who walks back to the dugout 28% of the time, I don’t think it’s worth it.

Rickie Weeks: 163 ABs; 31 Hs; .190 BA; 31 Ks

OK, for Rickie it’s the same number.  And I’ve heard the excuses about how he’s not a prototypical leadoff hitter, and he scores when he gets on…  I don’t care.  If he’s only on base 32% of the time as a table setter on a “playoff calibur” team, he shouldn’t be employed.  Uncle Ned continually makes excuses for the guy and keeps playing him hoping he’ll break out of “slump.”  When your career average is .242, it’s not a slump, you’re a bad hitter.  You know you’re terrible when the manager says this about you, “I would have thought Rickie was hitting .280 or .290.”  Or how about this?  “He’s really hitting into some hard outs.”  Hard outs?  Isn’t that what you said about the kid in Little League that only got his mandated 1 AB per game?  “Good cut Jimmy, you’re gonna get ahold of one of these!”

Something has to be done about these guys.  6 weeks was long enough to snap a slump.  Last place is inexcusable.