Watching prospects (3/7)

[rdivaldi]

Don't know how many of you guys watched the game yesterday, but with all of the ST games on this is a great opportunity to see our youngsters play.

I continue to be unimpressed by Sean Tracey after yesterday's performance. Still has brutal mechanics that betray him, couldn't get his breaking stuff over, all which led to bouts of wildness. He still has nice pop on his 4 seamer and was able to get his 2 seamer over as well, but that still makes him a future reliever at best. Why BA (Phil Rogers) hypes this guy is beyond me.

The guy who made the best impression on me was Casey Rogowski (again). Has great plate presence, a smooth swing, and has great athletic ability for such a big man. I believe he could be a backup in the majors now.

Also, even though Sweeney made an out, he still has that beautiful left handed swing and made solid contact with the ball driving the CF back. Get some more strength on that kid and he could be a star.

[Randar68]

Originally Posted by rdivaldi

Don't know how many of you guys watched the game yesterday, but with all of the ST games on this is a great opportunity to see our youngsters play.

I continue to be unimpressed by Sean Tracey after yesterday's performance. Still has brutal mechanics that betray him, couldn't get his breaking stuff over, all which led to bouts of wildness. He still has nice pop on his 4 seamer and was able to get his 2 seamer over as well, but that still makes him a future reliever at best. Why BA (Phil Rogers) hypes this guy is beyond me.

The guy who made the best impression on me was Casey Rogowski (again). Has great plate presence, a smooth swing, and has great athletic ability for such a big man. I believe he could be a backup in the majors now.

Also, even though Sweeney made an out, he still has that beautiful left handed swing and made solid contact with the ball driving the CF back. Get some more strength on that kid and he could be a star.

I agree on Tracey. IMO Borch's swing looked much shorter than I remembered. I've always been a big Rogo fan, and Hawk seemed to think he was in for a big breakout year (isn't everyone with Hawk, though). If Casey can put up numbers in the .290-.300 range this year at AA and hit ~20 HR's, I'd consider that a very successful season.

[rdivaldi]

Originally Posted by Randar68

IMO Borch's swing looked much shorter than I remembered.

I agree wholeheartedly. That's the first thing I thought in his first at bat.

[rdivaldi]

Originally Posted by Randar68

If Casey can put up numbers in the .290-.300 range this year at AA and hit ~20 HR's, I'd consider that a very successful season.

For sure, and I also would hope that they'd consider calling him up when the roster expands. I've seen little from Casey that suggests that he couldn't be at least a good utility player (1B + LF/RF). Kinda like Gload with a better eye and more power.

[maurice]

Got to see Rogo in person for the first time this past weekend. He's got a HUGE barrel chest. Real nice guy, too. We talked a little Big Ten basketball.

[SoxxoS]

Hey guys...plain and simple...how hard is it to shorten a swing? Is it something more mental or is it just a lot of practice during certain drills?

[rdivaldi]

Originally Posted by SoxxoS

Hey guys...plain and simple...how hard is it to shorten a swing? Is it something more mental or is it just a lot of practice during certain drills?

IMO it's a little bit of both. I think in any sport you get into habits with your motions, whether it be a baseball swing, a tennis serve, or throwing a football. You can always learn how to do something differently, but unless you concentrate on it, you can easily slip back into your old way of doing things.

[Randar68]

Originally Posted by SoxxoS

Hey guys...plain and simple...how hard is it to shorten a swing? Is it something more mental or is it just a lot of practice during certain drills?

A swing is generally "long" because of excess motion. The swing being 3-dimensional, identifying/correcting the weak-spots in the mechanics of a swing is an art form. When guys get to the majors, their mechanics are much more ingrained and for the most part, pretty refined to the point that any swing flaws are difficult to pick up on.

Each swing I saw from Borch looked like his swing was more level and the barrel stayed in the hitting zone longer. This is also similar to the correction they've tried to make with Crede, although a lot of his problems were related to his lower body and a break-down in his drive-leg, IIRC.

[hose]

Originally Posted by maurice

Got to see Rogo in person for the first time this past weekend. He's got a HUGE barrel chest. Real nice guy, too. We talked a little Big Ten basketball.

yeah and a 20' neck

[Randar68]

Originally Posted by hose

yeah and a 20' neck

I'm 6'3" 200, and I felt like an umpa-lumpa next to the guy. If he's a hair under 250 I'd be shocked, and not much of that is fat, that's for sure.

[Rex Hudler]

Originally Posted by rdivaldi

IMO it's a little bit of both. I think in any sport you get into habits with your motions, whether it be a baseball swing, a tennis serve, or throwing a football. You can always learn how to do something differently, but unless you concentrate on it, you can easily slip back into your old way of doing things.

Just to expand on what you said...... basically, players develop muscle memory over the years. In a nutshell, a swing has to be crafted so that once a hitter decides to swing, then he does so immediately without any thought. A hitter has about three-tenths of one second to decide whether to swing, where to swing and at what speed the ball is coming at him. The swing itself once started is finished by simple muscle memory. Its similar to many things we do daily that we never thing about, just because we have trained our body to do them. They become 2nd nature.

To change that is easier for some than others. That is where the mental aspect comes in. That doesn't mean someone that can't change as easily as another is dumb. People are "wired" differently. I used to teach hitting lessons to kids and some kids can pick up on changes you make or on trying to do something new almost immediately. Others struggle and seem stiff while trying to change what they have always done. It is less exaggerated but similar at a professional level.

Once you try to make a change, until it becomes second nature, you are thinking about it. The one thing that is true in the batters box is there is no time to think about the mechanics of your swing. If that is in the back of your mind at all, then it will slow down the process, often making the swing longer or awkward, especially on breaking balls.

[Hangar18]

Originally Posted by Randar68

I'm 6'3" 200, and I felt like an umpa-lumpa next to the guy. If he's a hair under 250 I'd be shocked, and not much of that is fat, that's for sure.

Cool, so you actually met the guy? Pictures of the Rookies would be
nice ..........

[SoxFanTillDeath]

Originally Posted by Rex Hudler

Just to expand on what you said...... basically, players develop muscle memory over the years. In a nutshell, a swing has to be crafted so that once a hitter decides to swing, then he does so immediately without any thought. A hitter has about three-tenths of one second to decide whether to swing, where to swing and at what speed the ball is coming at him. The swing itself once started is finished by simple muscle memory. Its similar to many things we do daily that we never thing about, just because we have trained our body to do them. They become 2nd nature.

To change that is easier for some than others. That is where the mental aspect comes in. That doesn't mean someone that can't change as easily as another is dumb. People are "wired" differently. I used to teach hitting lessons to kids and some kids can pick up on changes you make or on trying to do something new almost immediately. Others struggle and seem stiff while trying to change what they have always done. It is less exaggerated but similar at a professional level.

Once you try to make a change, until it becomes second nature, you are thinking about it. The one thing that is true in the batters box is there is no time to think about the mechanics of your swing. If that is in the back of your mind at all, then it will slow down the process, often making the swing longer or awkward, especially on breaking balls.

Good stuff. On a much lesser scale, think of trying to change your swing like trying to change which finger you use to type certain keys when you are typing. It seems like a very simple thing to do, but if you have been typing your entire life one way, changing it is very difficult, and you will be thinking about it every time you try and hit that key/key combo (Shift+" ") You will be typing much slower and meticulously for a while until you get the hang of it.

Once you get used to it you may still end up reverting back to the old form if you don't keep tabs on yourself and make sure you are doing it the "new way".

I know the analogy doesn't fit really good, but it's the best, down to earth analogy I could come up with.

[Randar68]

Originally Posted by Hangar18

Cool, so you actually met the guy? Pictures of the Rookies would be
nice ..........

Yep. One of the most articulate baseball players at that level you'll find. Kinda caught me by surprise being a former wrestler/football/baseball player... You look at him and think he's a meat-head (plus he's a bit of a joker), but he's very thoughtful and well-spoken...LOL!

[Hangar18]

Originally Posted by Randar68

Yep. One of the most articulate baseball players at that level you'll find. Kinda caught me by surprise being a former wrestler/football/baseball player... You look at him and think he's a meat-head (plus he's a bit of a joker), but he's very thoughtful and well-spoken...LOL!

OK, to anyone at Spring Training, can someone please take
Pics of our ROOKIES in action? Guys Like Rogowski, Sweeney, Honel,
BMac for example ......... The only info I get on our rookies
is what I read here at WSI (thanks Cubune/CubTimes) , so thanks for the tidbits .......