Thursday, July 29, 2004
Expos 4 wins Other Teams 0 - Battling
While I was out traipsing about the Northwest and in airports the Expos have gone on a tear winning 4 out of the 5 games, and 6 out of their last 7.
The good:
The "other two" are finally hitting. I've talked about how Johnson and Vidro were carrying the team, but were showing limited power this year. Runs can't come from back to back singles. So how are they scoring? Take a look at the pre and post All-Star OPSs for Cabrera and Batista
Cabrera : .612/.731
Batista : .634/.910
That's a lot of doubles mixed in there. Cabrera should keep this up. He has it in him and was in a "trade me" funk all the first half. I don't expect Batista to continue this pace, but it's not crazy to think he could hit around .800 for the second half - given he's more of a .750 guy than .650.
Endy might have turned a corner. His splits are .685/.968 pre and post. He showed in the past he could hit lefties, so the very low stats this year were probably an aberration. This is the time where he should develop a bit more power. I'm optimistic for him hitting .750/.800 in this half.
The fantastic 4 remain so. Doesn't anyone listen to me? These guys are great. (and cordero should be traded for pop at third or first...sure wish the Twins needed a closer, they are loaded with 1B type guys.)
The Bad:
Patterson is not stepping it up. Keep the ball down and in the strike zone. Those are two of the most basic pitching rules. Patterson really isn't doing either well. He's got ok stuff, but not nasty enough to straight out fool anyone.
Vargas. Ah. We need that 5th guy in the pen, I guess. To give the guys rest but Vargas is giving up a couple hits every time out. He's still young but there is little progression. I wouldn't use him in pressure situations.
Catcher remains a void. Schnieder is most likely not the answer and Diaz is nothing but a fill in.
Today: Let's see if Biddle truly is getting it done as a starter. He hasn't been impressive starting (short innings - some hits, some walks) but it seems like he's getting K's and outs when he needs them. He's gotten marginally better with control since starting with the White Sox three years back so I expect him to be ok. But today I get to see it live. Yeah MLBTV!
The good:
The "other two" are finally hitting. I've talked about how Johnson and Vidro were carrying the team, but were showing limited power this year. Runs can't come from back to back singles. So how are they scoring? Take a look at the pre and post All-Star OPSs for Cabrera and Batista
Cabrera : .612/.731
Batista : .634/.910
That's a lot of doubles mixed in there. Cabrera should keep this up. He has it in him and was in a "trade me" funk all the first half. I don't expect Batista to continue this pace, but it's not crazy to think he could hit around .800 for the second half - given he's more of a .750 guy than .650.
Endy might have turned a corner. His splits are .685/.968 pre and post. He showed in the past he could hit lefties, so the very low stats this year were probably an aberration. This is the time where he should develop a bit more power. I'm optimistic for him hitting .750/.800 in this half.
The fantastic 4 remain so. Doesn't anyone listen to me? These guys are great. (and cordero should be traded for pop at third or first...sure wish the Twins needed a closer, they are loaded with 1B type guys.)
The Bad:
Patterson is not stepping it up. Keep the ball down and in the strike zone. Those are two of the most basic pitching rules. Patterson really isn't doing either well. He's got ok stuff, but not nasty enough to straight out fool anyone.
Vargas. Ah. We need that 5th guy in the pen, I guess. To give the guys rest but Vargas is giving up a couple hits every time out. He's still young but there is little progression. I wouldn't use him in pressure situations.
Catcher remains a void. Schnieder is most likely not the answer and Diaz is nothing but a fill in.
Today: Let's see if Biddle truly is getting it done as a starter. He hasn't been impressive starting (short innings - some hits, some walks) but it seems like he's getting K's and outs when he needs them. He's gotten marginally better with control since starting with the White Sox three years back so I expect him to be ok. But today I get to see it live. Yeah MLBTV!
