Game Report 2: OKC vs RR

by rodcarew on May 10, 2009 10:17 AM CDT

First let me say that Spurdynasty has added a few views of his own on this game at the end of my 1st game report. Read it. We differ on a few opinions. When in doubt go with his mindset. He does some of the best work on LSB, no doubt.
Boggs -- He can throw. He cut loose several cannon shots in pregame warmups. So I think the club made a mistake not calling him up a few days ago. Or maybe they wanted Golson to work with Rudy a bit? Just a wild hunch.
Max's defense -- He had one really bad inning. Boggs made a throw from left field to try to nab a runner scoring on a single from 2nd. Max was going to try to cut the hitter down at 2nd base since the throw was slightly late to the plate, but Max didn't catch the ball. My view of this play was obstructed, but it looked like he simply missed the catch. Same inning, he blocked a ball in the dirt and it got tangled up between his feet. The runner moved to 2nd base from 1st. I had the feeling that the runner would not have attempted to get to 2nd unless he was aware of Max's poor defensive reputation. You just don't see guys attempt to get to 2nd when the ball is within reach of the catcher. Final bad play of that inning for Ramirez was a throw. With runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out, he tried to pick off the runner at 3rd base. His throw hit the runner in the back while he was diving back to the bag. It sailed down the left field line. Both runners scored. So here's the question. Can his offense overcome his defensive shortcomings enough to allow him to be an everyday catcher? If so, it's a close call, he'll have to really rake with the stick. I see him more as a backup catcher/DH. One last thing, his feet are a bit slow when moving to block pitches in the dirt. No balls got back to the screen, but that bothers me some.
Pirate Murray -- I remember Newberg talking about his new 5/8's arm slot. Here's the scoop. The fastball delivery is closer to 4/8's, the curveball is closer to 5/8's. Watch for it if you get a chance to see him pitch. You'll see it. The curve was a much more effective pitch too. His velocity was kind of everywhere between 76 and 89.
Golson -- Speed and arm are fantastic. Very athletic body frame. He just can't make enough contact with the bat to make a positive impact. He should have become a decathlete.
Vallejo -- I tried to get another stopwatch time for him going from home to 1st. Just didn't happen. I believe that the diving stop that spurdynasty mentioned was actually to his left. He didn't appear to get a good jump on that ball from my view. It was still a fine play though.
Warning -- Next time you go to a game in person, make sure that you are always alert. And keep reminding the people who sit close to you to do the same. Some lady took a nasty foul ball shot to the right eye. The ball had nearly hit the on-deck hitter before rifling into the stands. She walked, with assistance, up to a waiting wheel chair. Hope she's OK. I have never heard of an on-deck hitter getting hit before. Anyone?

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good to hear that Boggs arm is still strong

I was a bit worried that the shoulder troubles he’s had might have affected his throwing, and that is a pretty important part of his game.

Doctor please. Some more of these.

by tricer on May 10, 2009 12:21 PM CDT reply actions

Nice report.

Thanks!

"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"you gonna lose your horse. seriously." FX2
Yes we can! November 04, 2008

by Rodney on May 10, 2009 5:50 PM CDT reply actions

Observations from the Mother's Day game in Round Rock

Golson is amazingly fast. He’s the most graceful guy you’ll see in the outfield but he covers a lot of ground. Today, he very nearly beat out a routine grounder to shortstop and a poor sacrifice bunt. I think that he could realistically have a 350 BABIP in the major leagues despite the fact that he doesn’t hit the ball particularly hard. In two games, I’ve seen him make contact a dozen times and nothing has been left of the second baseman. Golson could be the first right-handed batter in the modern era to have the SS shift to the right side of the infield.

German Duran had a very solid day at SS today. If he can get his bat going, he can become a very good UIF.

Casey Benjamin played SS yesterday and LF for the second half of the game today. I wish that he was more physically because he would be a lot of fun to watch in a Rangers uniform. He made a nifty slid and snag on a grounder deep in the hole yesterday but didn’t have the arm strength to throw out the runner. Then today, he laid out to make a catch and save a run.

by spurdynasty on May 10, 2009 8:18 PM CDT reply actions

I had Golson

at 3.94 seconds from home to first. That is from the right side of course. If I had to guess, I think he’d be the fastest player in the entire organization.

"Evolution happened, now get over it." Michael Shermer

by rodcarew on May 10, 2009 9:02 PM CDT reply actions