Brian Dozier: I feel great

[Loosey]

I remember watching the first Televised Spring Training Game this year and Dozier hit a double and I think a HR to right field.  So he is capable of hitting the ball to the right side.  Now, he needs to recognize that he can't be a one dimensional pull hitter if he wants a chance to get a 2nd contract.  If he doesn't understand that he may end up being a very expensive minor league 2nd baseman in the future.

[BHtwins]

Brian Dozier = Lew Ford.

 

All Star caliber until pitchers have him pegged.  God-awful until he is released.  Never makes the adjustment to prolong his career.

 

Eerily similar plate styles, neither proved willing or able to adjust their approach.  Lew never got *this* bad but I suspect if defensive shifts were around 12 years ago he would have.

 

 

[Otto von Ballpark]

I think Lew Ford's MLB power was of the line-drive HR to left variety.  Dozier has him beat there.  And Ford's only lasted about a calendar year -- even before the end of 2004, any threat of power was pretty well neutralized, although his speed and approach kept him going a little longer.  Say what you will about pitchers adjusting to Dozier, but his power lasted for over 2 calendar years until this recent dry spell.

 

Ford is still going for the Long Island Ducks, and he will turn 40 in August.  I wish he re-appeared with the Twins in the last 5 years over some of the suspect outfielders we've run out there.

[Kwak]

Demote Dozier to AAA--that'll certainly improve his trade value!  Then again maybe Dozier wants to be traded and is in a Catch-22 situation?

[S.]

Brian Dozier: "it's a mere flesh wound. I feel great."

[alarp33]

 

Demote Dozier to AAA--that'll certainly improve his trade value!  Then again maybe Dozier wants to be traded and is in a Catch-22 situation?

 

Do you think a .204/.278/.351 line he's putting up in the Majors over the past ~120 games is improving his trade value?  

 

Fixing whatever issues hes currently got going on is the only way to improve trade value, whether that needs to be done in AAA or MLB, who knows.  

 

 

[Mr. Brooks]

LENIII stated, in his live chat today, that he doesn't get the feeling sending Dozier to AAA is being considered.

[Seth Stohs]

 

LENIII stated, in his live chat today, that he doesn't get the feeling sending Dozier to AAA is being considered.

 

I'm certain it's not at this point, and I don't think it should be at this point. 

 

On the other note, I don't worry about what a player says. Dozier is a smart guy. He knows he's not hitting well. He's trying to say the positive things and doesn't want to think differently. He knows he's got to figure out something. Hopefully he does.

[S.]

Ah yes, the ol' 'don't change anything until it fixes itself' approach. Since day 1 of the season, every time he comes to plate he's trying the exact same thing and it isn't working. Either he isn't smart, he doesn't care, or he's simply a bad player. None of these is acceptable. If he was anyone else not named Joe Mauer or Trevor Plouffe, he would've been sent down to triple A weeks ago, or at the very least moved to the bottom of the batting order.

[Platoon]

I'm certain it's not at this point, and I don't think it should be at this point. 

 

On the other note, I don't worry about what a player says. Dozier is a smart guy. He knows he's not hitting well. He's trying to say the positive things and doesn't want to think differently. He knows he's got to figure out something. Hopefully he does.

Knowing it, and doing it are often not the same thing.

[Seth Stohs]

 

Knowing it, and doing it are often not the same thing.

 

Correct...

 

I'm just saying... what he says to a reporter may not necessarily be how he feels inside. In other words, he may say he feels great and inside he's thinking, "Man I'd give anything for a bloop single right now."

[laloesch]

Not sure why everyone is shocked by this.  Dozier has never finished a season hitting better than .244.

I agree though.  Right now he needs to be moved way down in the order.

[S.]

 

Correct...

 

I'm just saying... what he says to a reporter may not necessarily be how he feels inside. In other words, he may say he feels great and inside he's thinking, "Man I'd give anything for a bloop single right now."

I'm sure he wants to be playing better, but wanting it and doing it are not the same thing. His performance on the field is clearly showing he is not trying to change his approach. That is on him or its on him AND on the coaches. If the coaches are telling him to make changes and he is not willing to, that is 100% his fault. If the coaches aren't doing anything and he's continuing to approach his at bats the same way thats still his fault for not making the effort to change his approach. Regardless, 50-100% of the blame is on him and the eye test isn't showing him making even the slightest attempt to change his approach.

 

The double standards are ridiculous here for veterans vs rookies. If he was Sano or Rosario or Arcia or Buxton, he would've been in the minors 3 weeks ago. 

[LaBombo]

It may be that Dozier was aiming more for a 'Don't worry about me,  I'm not hurt and I'm not down on myself'  sort of thing,  and it came out more like 'It's just bad luck, leave me alone'.

 

He's been around long enough and through enough without being a locker room liability  that I'm completely willing to give him the benefit of the doubt when it comes to his dealings with the media and his overall attitude.

 

What I would have trouble with is if he presents the same 'I'm fine' attitude in response to the Twins asking him to make some major adjustments to his approach at the plate.   His poor performance is rapidly approaching the point where any suggestion short of taking up switch-hitting should not be regarded as too radical to try, even for a veteran like Dozier.

 

He would NOT be approaching that point,  at least in my mind,  were it not for the fact that Dozier has been, by some indications, skating on relatively thin ice dating all the way back to his initial success at the major league level.

 

Over a year ago,  in the context of a possible Dozier contract extension,  Fangraphs ran a nice profile of him.   But it included one troubling bit of evidence about the sustainability of his approach.

 

While it's been widely know that Dozier has been a pull hitter,  the article explained that not only is he one of the most extreme in baseball,  but that the others in that group almost all profile as exactly the same thing:  aging power hitters trying to milk a few more homers out of the final, 'white dwarf' stage of their career.

 

I like Dozier immensely as a ballplayer, on balance I liked the idea of extending him,  and I don't think he's doomed to an early flame-out.   But when a player who profiles so strongly like an aging power hitter both struggles and doesn't fully acknowledge that struggle,  it's at least some cause for concern that he's not ready to fix the problem if that means dropping the approach of an aging power hitter.

[Winston Smith]

Clearly Brian hasn't been watching his team play. I doubt any of us feel great after watching this mess.

[scottz]

 

...

 

He's been around long enough and through enough without being a locker room liability  that I'm completely willing to give him the benefit of the doubt when it comes to his dealings with the media and his overall attitude.

 

...

 

I think this is fair, and I can give Dozier the benefit of the doubt to a degree...but there are a few things going on that make me scratch my head a bit. The GM tells the reporter that the player needs to get fixed, the reporter tells the player (assuming linear facts and storytelling, which may be a big assumption), and the player's response is to smile and shake his head? Then, at the end of the story, the same player declares himself "the leader of the team?" There's something wrong there.

 

First, I'm not sure I've ever heard anybody on the team say anything to the effect of "Dozier is the guy we follow." I'm not saying it isn't out there, but I don't know that I get that feeling that anyone in that locker room is ready to go to war for Dozier. Second, if you really are the leader, and you're hitting .199, and you are informed that the GM says you need to get fixed, don't you pause for a minute and recognize that the buck stops with your performance? If you are the leader, don't you at least say, "boy, I wish he was wrong, but he's not. I really have to find a way to change what is happening." You can still say that you've been feeling good and hitting the ball square, but how do you not agree with the statement that adjustments need to be made?

 

I hope he sits for 3-4 games.

Then, I hope he recognizes that maybe there are some adjustments that need to be made.

Then, I hope he makes them.

Then, if he doesn't after about a week, I hope he goes to AAA until he does.

[TheLeviathan]

 

Yeah, I bet no righty has a very good BABIP if they try to hit every pitch down and away over the left field fence.

 

And the book is out and all he sees is low and away.

 

And a little bit up and a way.

 

Basically anything away is money.  You can beat him high too.  As long as you don't pitch low and in you can get him out fairly easily.

 

I'm sure Dozier is a nice guy and I'm sure he knows he is struggling, but until his approach actually changes - he should see his playing time and position in the lineup dropped. 

[Reider]

Feeling great isn't the same as playing great.

 

Dozier has never had a high batting average at the MLB level. It was always overlooked because he was hitting home runs, getting on base etc.. Basically all of his numbers this year are just as low, if not lower than in 2012. His numbers are definitely unacceptable at the MLB level. Dozer absolutely has to change something as I can't see pitchers changing their approach for no reason now that they have him figured out.

 

The good news for Dozier is that there is absolutely nothing wrong with going with the pitch. If pitchers want to throw fastballs over the outside of the plate, no problem, drive the ball to right center or down the first base line. Joe Mauer has no problem driving the ball to the opposite field. I think Dozier would have enough power to hit for extra bases, including HR's, if he dedicated himself to going with the pitch. I could easily see him having enough power to drive the ball into the wall in right center for doubles.

 

 

[DocBauer]

He has commented before he feels comfortable leading off, and he HAS done well there before as a table setter despite a lower BA providing some OB, power and speed. I originally thought maybe being put in that spot again might "shake him up" a little and he'd change his approach.

 

At this point he needs to be hitting 7th. Of course, half the guys on the team need to be hitting 7th or lower!

 

What WOULD I have done? I would have sat him for 5-7 games and started Polanco and hit HIS leadoff. Surprisingly, he seemed to actually hit when he got in the lineup.

[Riverbrian]

Some thoughts:

 

1. They say Bruno and Dozier are going to work on approach rather than adjustment first. 

 

2. I don't know if any of you have ever been a pull hitter but it isn't easy to just stop being one. It takes a lot of swings off the tee... in the cage and against live pitchers trying to get you out. 

 

3. Dozier has to do this. He isn't Ortiz enough to sell out like that. If he can take pitches the other way... He will start getting more pitches that he can drive. 

 

4. There was a comment out there from Molly that Dozier deserved an explanation... It was like Molitor was apologetic for the move. I don't like the impression that gives like the vets are privileged. 

 

5. I'm glad Polanco was sent down... Rochester would be a lot of fun to watch right now. 

 

6. It's a shame that Paul finally made this move after Polanco was sent down. 

 

7. In my opinion... With my eyeballs alone. I believe that almost every Polanco AB was more professional than what Dozier produced. 

 

8. I also thought Polanco was sharp in the field

 

9. Glad that Dozier gets a day off and I hope it's more to get him sorted out and I hope he remains a Twin because if we get Dozier back to functional... He will be a nice player for us. 

 

10. Nunez has out played Dozier almost 10 fold in 2016. He deserves playing time. 

[Platoon]

Minor leaguers read box scores. Polanco must be ecstatic that he sat on his butt all this time, and the minute EE came back Dozier took a seat. It also tells, confirms what is apparent. Molitor just does not like to play the young guys. He has no choice with Sano, and I doubt anyone thinks of Park as "young". But over and over his handling of younger players shows he really has to go. He isn't the reason they are 11-33, but he will be a big factor in keeping them there!

[TheLeviathan]

4. There was a comment out there from Molly that Dozier deserved an explanation... It was like Molitor was apologetic for the move. I don't like the impression that gives like the vets are privileged.

 

 

So, just like the Perkins stuff this offseason huh?

 

Perhaps Dozier, like Perkins, should've taken note of how badly he sucked.  That would seem to me to be more than sufficient explanation.  

[ShouldaCouldaWoulda]

From a Fangraphs chat today:

 

Brian Dozier: Am I ever going to get it together?
12:08

 

august fagerstrom: Was reminded of this recently: 

 

https://twitter.com/tlschwerz/status/734945397588656133

[ShouldaCouldaWoulda]

 

From a Fangraphs chat today:

 

Brian Dozier: Am I ever going to get it together?
12:08

 

august fagerstrom: Was reminded of this recently: 

 

https://twitter.com/tlschwerz/status/734945397588656133

Could not edit again for some reason, but to me the words written about Dozier in he link were and are spot on. Why does it seem like so many Twins team and individual success seasons or stretches seem to be so reliant on things that are so unsustainable, be it high BABIP's of Santana/Rosario or just-enough pull-power of Dozier?

[Ncgo4]

If I were under contract for $2 million I would feel great, too. In fact I could probably say, "In all honesty, I've never felt better in my life!"

[ShouldaCouldaWoulda]

Saw this today at Fangraphs: He was ranked as 21st 2B for fantasy going forward and in the 5th tier. 

 

Dozier is just depressing at this point, and in that way, he is a microcosm of the nearly unwatchable product that is 2016 Minnesota Twins baseball. At this point, it’s not fair to refer to Dozier as “slumping,” because he’s been playing terribly for five full months:

 

July ’15 – .206/.282/.433
August ’15 – .216/.275/.387
September ’15 – .197/.270/.295
April ’16 – .191/.276/.340
May ’16 – .215/.315/.316

 

It’s gotten so bad that the only way I’d let Dozier within a country mile of my fantasy lineup in any format is against a lefty, and I’d still hesitate if he was playing at home.

 

Oh yeah, that’s the other thing. He’s hitting .173/.239/.247 at Target Field this season. To place those numbers in context based on wRC+, there are just three position players in the league — Jose Iglesias (5 wRC+), J.T. Realmuto (10 wRC+) and Alexei Ramirez (25 wRC+) — who are hurting their teams at home more than Dozier (31 wRC+) is this year.

[Vanimal46]

Yep. This is no longer SSS territory. He's just a bad offensive player now. 

[TheLeviathan]

I need an update on this issue - can we include last year now?  Or do we have to wait until August so there is enough sample size?

[Taildragger8791]

 

I need an update on this issue - can we include last year now?  Or do we have to wait until August so there is enough sample size?

 

I think the rule is that you have to wait until the end of September. But once the offseason starts you can no longer look back at this season, of course, because it doesn't have any bearing on next year. It was just a blip and the product of contagious non-hitting throughout the roster. SSS, cherry picking, past performance isn't predicative of future results, etc etc etc.

[TheLeviathan]

 

I think the rule is that you have to wait until the end of September. But once the offseason starts you can no longer look back at this season, of course, because it doesn't have any bearing on next year. It was just a blip and the product of contagious non-hitting throughout the roster. SSS, cherry picking, past performance isn't predicative of future results, etc etc etc.

 

That pretty much sums up the arguments made on the other thread, well done.