When will Hicks pass Mauer?

[KScott]

At the moment I don't understand why people are taking a comparison to Hicks to be a horrible thing. League BA at time of this post is .251,  which Hicks is exceeding (.254). 

No only that but Hicks is within .010 of everyone else not named Rosario or Hunter on our starting roster. Yes, that includes: Plouffe, Dozier, and Mauer.

So while yes Mauer is having a down year. I look at this as growth by Hicks more than anything.

[drjim]

 

Pay has zero to do with the fact he can't hit compared to other 1B for the past year+. Nothing.

 

And, no one on this entire thread is suggesting he catch, not sure why people are arguing against that.....since no one is arguing for it.

 

Perhaps the more important question is why does it matter what Mauer hits compared to other 1B?  He's not going anywhere and there's not a clear replacement at this moment anyways. Best everyone can hope for is that he figures something out.

[Mike Sixel]

 

Perhaps the more important question is why does it matter what Mauer hits compared to other 1B?  He's not going anywhere and there's not a clear replacement at this moment anyways. Best everyone can hope for is that he figures something out.

 

Sano could be your 1B by July. That might make this team a lot better. Kepler or Sano next year could be ready. Off the top of your head, if his name wasn't Mauer, would you rather have him or Sano at 1B the second half of this year, and then next year?

 

I agree, he's probably not going anywhere, which is what makes it a problem, imo.

[Mike Sixel]

 

At the moment I don't understand why people are taking a comparison to Hicks to be a horrible thing. League BA at time of this post is .251,  which Hicks is exceeding (.254). 

No only that but Hicks is within .010 of everyone else not named Rosario or Hunter on our starting roster. Yes, that includes: Plouffe, Dozier, and Mauer.

So while yes Mauer is having a down year. I look at this as growth by Hicks more than anything.

 

One is a CF, one is a 1B. Also.....why would one only look at BA?

[KScott]

 

One is a CF, one is a 1B. Also.....why would one only look at BA?

Its more that I am choosing to be excited over the growth of a player who could barely hang around .195 bringing their BA up almost 60 points.

Instead of being down about a player that is playing the worst among all qualified 1B (based on WAR)

[drjim]

 

Sano could be your 1B by July. That might make this team a lot better. Kepler or Sano next year could be ready. Off the top of your head, if his name wasn't Mauer, would you rather have him or Sano at 1B the second half of this year, and then next year?

 

I agree, he's probably not going anywhere, which is what makes it a problem, imo.

 

He could also be the DH or a corner OF, and he could also not be ready. Or Mauer could rebound. I'd worry when the Twins have too many bats instead of one-two short.

[sane]

"And, no one on this entire thread is suggesting he catch, not sure why people are arguing against that.....since no one is arguing for it".

Some ARE arguing for it, but not here. It is part of the territory-wide Mauer-bashing.

If I got off-topic, I will shut up and go outside to play.

[Minniman]

 

I apologize for my (since deleted) post which was an overreaction to (what I mistakenly perceived as)another Joe Mauer bashing. Joe has take so many catcher's shots to the head and body that he may never regain his hitting skills. If I were asked to sacrifice my frontal lobe for my baseball team, I'm guessing $23 million would not be enough

 

He could retire and be fine.

 

It isn't like he is getting hit on every few plays like football players.

[Craig Arko]

"And, no one on this entire thread is suggesting he catch, not sure why people are arguing against that.....since no one is arguing for it".Some ARE arguing for it, but not here. It is part of the territory-wide Mauer-bashing.If I got off-topic, I will shut up and go outside to play.

I think everything is straightened out now. Most of these threads are off-topic by about the fifth post.

[Craig Arko]

He could retire and be fine.

 

It isn't like he is getting hit on every few plays like football players.

Or Wile E. Coyote.

[spinowner]

 

Sano could be your 1B by July. That might make this team a lot better. Kepler or Sano next year could be ready. Off the top of your head, if his name wasn't Mauer, would you rather have him or Sano at 1B the second half of this year, and then next year?

 

I agree, he's probably not going anywhere, which is what makes it a problem, imo.

Has Sano played even one game at 1B in his professional career? If he has I'm not aware of it. Before you pencil him in there he needs a lot of time at that position.

[Minniman]

 

 

He could retire and be fine.

It isn't like he is getting hit on every few plays like football players.

 

 

 

Or Wile E. Coyote.

 

That is true, but my point was that football has much higher risk of head trauma, and not many players in the NFL make $23 million per season.

 

http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2011/090/0/9/wile_e_coyote_at_the_bat_by_bjnix248-d3cx80c.jpg

[Craig Arko]

Apparently not today.

[ashbury]

Has Sano played even one game at 1B in his professional career?

Yes.

 

_{^{/ exactly one}}

[Mike Sixel]

Has Sano played even one game at 1B in his professional career? If he has I'm not aware of it. Before you pencil him in there he needs a lot of time at that position.

Who penciled him in? He should be getting reps at RF and 1B, if they are serious about this year imo. Since he isn't, not sure where he plays this year, maybe DH. Or the minors all year.

[twinsnorth49]

Whatever the reason, his inability to pull the ball with any authority has reached epic proportions. Boston was literally playing their RFER all the way over into the right center gap, and shallow, even against RH pitching. It's shocking to see.

That pull shot he hammered tonight was pretty...well, epic.

[SwainZag]

 

Who penciled him in? He should be getting reps at RF and 1B, if they are serious about this year imo. Since he isn't, not sure where he plays this year, maybe DH. Or the minors all year.

 

I think the Twins are still serious about him playing 3B, hence the reps every day at 3B.  I am also guessing they see the larger picture.....like can he stick at 3B, rather than switching positions mid season in order to rush him to majors and try to pass him off as a RF or 1B this season.

[Mike Sixel]

I think the Twins are still serious about him playing 3B, hence the reps every day at 3B. I am also guessing they see the larger picture.....like can he stick at 3B, rather than switching positions mid season in order to rush him to majors and try to pass him off as a RF or 1B this season.

And what to do with Plouffe then? And rush is a loaded word, if he is ready and can help a contender.....how is that rushing? They are going to have to decide soon if they want Plouffe and Sano on the same roster. I do. No idea why someone would not.

[spinowner]

 

And what to do with Plouffe then? And rush is a loaded word, if he is ready and can help a contender.....how is that rushing? They are going to have to decide soon if they want Plouffe and Sano on the same roster. I do. No idea why someone would not.

The reason someone would not want them on the same roster is because Plouffe is good enough be the everyday third baseman on a major league team and Sano needs to play third base every day. Keep in mind Sano is barely 22 years old. Playing him once or twice a week in the majors at this stage would hinder his development. Not good.

[jimmer]

 

I think the Twins are still serious about him playing 3B, hence the reps every day at 3B.  I am also guessing they see the larger picture.....like can he stick at 3B, rather than switching positions mid season in order to rush him to majors and try to pass him off as a RF or 1B this season.

If you change that to shortstop and go back a few years, you could be talking about the plan used for Plouffe (except the rush part) :-)

[DaveW]

Once Sano is ready I still think the best plan is: 3B once a week, 1B once a week, and DH 3-4 times a week.

[jimmer]

In regards to whether or not Sano should play 3B or move to another position, 

 

Some want the Twins to be move proactive.  See problems ahead of time and then adjust so the problem gets minimized.  These people see Plouffe's progression at 3B and Sano's challenges at the position already not to mention his size.  

 

Some want the Twins to just go with it (be re-active instead of proactive) and see how Sano plays 3B at the major league level while trading away a guy who has finally come into his own at his fairly new position. They point to a couple of examples of big 3Bs in history that were that good and don't see why Sano can't do it to and they aren't worried about what kind of hole while be created if Sano can't play 3B at the major league level and Plouffe is gone.

 

Then there are some who want some mixture of both.

[sane]

He could retire and be fine.

It isn't like he is getting hit on every few plays like football players.

Thank you for that prognosis, Doctor, but no examination nor medical degree, it has no credibility.

[Mike Sixel]

So keep Sano down for 2 or 3 years while Plouffe is a top 10 3B? Makes no sense. No one on this thread is arguing he should not play if he is up. I am arguing he should be in RF or 1B or DH, because his value is his bat. Imo, waiting for Plouffe to not be good ..... why not try to get them on the field together. And the only 22 part? Elite players are up at 22 or 23.....not 25.

[Squirrel]

 

So keep Sano down for 2 or 3 years while Plouffe is a top 10 3B? Makes no sense. No one on this thread is arguing he should not play if he is up. I am arguing he should be in RF or 1B or DH, because his value is his bat. Imo, waiting for Plouffe to not be good ..... why not try to get them on the field together. And the only 22 part? Elite players are up at 22 or 23.....not 25.

I'm not sure anyone has said keep Sano down for 2-3 yrs … but as for right now, I don't think he's ready to be on the major team yet, even as a DH. Saying that isn't saying 2-3 years. And if they do move him from 3B, yes, that could delay things. Whether or not he should be moved from 3B, that's another debate. But bringing him up just to DH, then what? Is that all he'll be? And a back up to Mauer and Plouffe? I guess that's what you see him as for right now? Until the Twins see him as nothing other than a DH, then we might see him sooner, but until he's no longer declared a position player, I think he needs to play every day. I won't sacrifice that for a bat now. We have other options … not being utilized, imho with Vargas, Pinto or Arcia … hopefully. But not Sano now.

[TheLeviathan]

If you're going to move Sano off of third, on the list of reasons why, his "size" better be somewhere between "guys named Miguel only play first" and "we want to show mercy on the all-star chances of other AL third basemen".

 

In other words....a total non-factor.

[SwainZag]

After Joe's 2-4 day and Hick's 0-3 day, Mauer leads HIcks by 29 points in batting average, 50 points in OBP and 80 points in SLG.

[old nurse]

A bad couple of days. Maybe Joe can be a relief pitcher and Hicks be the backup catcher and be Mauer's personal catcher.

[spinowner]

 

So keep Sano down for 2 or 3 years while Plouffe is a top 10 3B? Makes no sense. No one on this thread is arguing he should not play if he is up. I am arguing he should be in RF or 1B or DH, because his value is his bat. Imo, waiting for Plouffe to not be good ..... why not try to get them on the field together. And the only 22 part? Elite players are up at 22 or 23.....not 25.

He'll be ready when he's ready. Not only is he barely 22 but he didn't play in 2014. That means he's probably close to a year behind where he would have been. And very few players, even elite players, play well in the majors at age 22.

[stringer bell]

I don't want to kick Hicks when he's down, but after about 80 PAs, his OPS is under .600 and hasn't driven in a run before or since his 2-run homer. His defense has been great, but I still remain skeptical of his bat.

 

In almost the same number of plate appearances, Rosario has outhit him and played good corner defense. I still want Rosario as a corner guy, not Hicks.