Wes Rea is 5 for his last 38.
- Thread starter rugbdawg
- Start date
I thought he sucked with a bat , but 5 for 38 dayummm, that's beyond suck. Ray Charles could probably put up those numbers. He is one hell of a first baseman though.
You don't play 1st basemen for their defense. Defense is just a plus. 1b has to hit
So, you sit a team captain and leader.
and put someone in that may or may not be a better bat, but could very well be a defensive liability. Somebody with no 1b experience and disrupt the continuity of the infield.
Not sure you'd want to do that.
and put someone in that may or may not be a better bat, but could very well be a defensive liability. Somebody with no 1b experience and disrupt the continuity of the infield.
Not sure you'd want to do that.
The thing you have to remember is he is in a slump... he's not being lazy... he's just not seeing the ball (his defense is just fine). The best thing to break hitting slumps, IMO is not sitting him on the bench... it's forcing him to swing the bat and make contact. Called hit and runs... called swings, even bunting... force him to make contact with the ball. It helps him to see it and it helps him to use his hands to make contact.
I told everyone last year his approach to hitting is wrong and quite a few people strongly disagreed with me. He stands way too close to the plate. He constantly jams himself and has to manipulate his hands way too much to try and get the barrel of the bat on the ball. He also probably hits alot of his most solid contact foul.
To be honest
other than a (relatively) short time at State, last year, he's struggled with hitting since he's gotten here.
other than a (relatively) short time at State, last year, he's struggled with hitting since he's gotten here.
Yep. He was raking the end of last year, but not a lot before or after. I agree with Bruce. Rea needs some adjustments whatever they are
Funny that you mentioned the foul contact. I started noticing last year that most of his foul balls are relatively weak contact over the first base dugout area. Nothing has changed. You just don't see him ripping foul balls to the left side or even deep to the right side like you typically do from a RH power hitter. His bat speed looks so poor now, it's almost as if he's got some injury.
Nobody called him lazy but the guy is hurting the team. It's not a 162 game season and we can't afford to keep the coldest bat in the lineup. He needs to sit 2-3 games and maybe get in as a PH or if we have a comfortable lead.
Before spring training began, Hunter Renfroe was on the radio with Jim during one of our games, and he continuously said that Wes was standing too close to the plate. I have a good friend who is a former big leaguer and is now a minor league hitting instructor, and he loves Coach Cohen but strongly disagrees with the way the coaches teach our hitters to approach their at bats. Crowding the plate is probably a smart option for the smaller guys who lack pop, but if you have ever seen Wes take BP, then you know that he certainly does not lack power. Every team is pounding him inside now. He is either going to have to make an adjustment or he will only be successful hitting mistake pitches or pitches away where he can get extended. His arms are plenty long enough where he could easily cover the outer third of the plate and then some.
This team's overall lack of power is very troublesome. I think there were 10 hits last night and all were singles. You don't have to be a big guy to hit a gap or one down the line. It is not a fluke. The coaches preach using the middle of the field continuously, which is the certainly the right approach in certain situations. Every now and then you have to try and turn on one and run it out of the yard. This is one thing that I think Collins will excell at as long as they don't try to mess with him too much.
This team's overall lack of power is very troublesome. I think there were 10 hits last night and all were singles. You don't have to be a big guy to hit a gap or one down the line. It is not a fluke. The coaches preach using the middle of the field continuously, which is the certainly the right approach in certain situations. Every now and then you have to try and turn on one and run it out of the yard. This is one thing that I think Collins will excell at as long as they don't try to mess with him too much.
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If you've watched our hitters since Cohen has been here, almost none of them use their lower body to generate power and torque. They are all upper body hitters and have weak swings. And Cohen several times this year has said his players are taking softball swings. Cohen's hitting philosophy has turned our hitters into slap hitters. Reas hitting approach is just terrible. Polk allowed great hitters like Bruce and palmeiro and clark to use their natural ability and not try to mold everyone into the same hole.
Opponents are probably pitching him differently than they were at the end of last year when he started to figure things out. He hasn't adjusted to their adjustments. Is he not being coached, or not not listening to the coaches?
Does it not drive anyone else crazy that e slings the bat towards the dugout on what he thinks is a ball four and is halfway to first base and the ump rings him up on strike three? I think since he does that if its anywhere close the ump is striking him out because of the confident bat sling. Just my observations at home games this year. You'd think he'd stop doing it after one or two times.