Richard Durrett Q&A with Chris Davis
by Adam J. Morris on Aug 21, 2009 11:54 AM CDT
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PrintRichard Durrett has a good Q&A up with Chris Davis, with Davis explaining the changes that he's made in his stance since going down to Oklahoma and his thoughts on where he is and when he'll be coming back.
Really good stuff from Davis. I recommend you check it out.
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very good interview
Glad to hear CD made some real changes. I was concerned he was hitting better due to the inferior pitching. See you on Sept 8.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Why do you keep saying September 8th?
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
OKC season ends Sept 7.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Are they going to the playoffs or something?
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
I don't believe so.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
Then why make him stay down until the end of their season?
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
Ask JD.
I haven’t a clue.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
When did JD say they would wait until the 8th?
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
He has been non-commital on
his comments about when CD will return. Only thing I can figure out is that the Rangers are playing well and he doesn’t want to “upset the apple cart”. So I will continue to be pessimistic about his return.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
He'll be up no later than 12:01am Sep 1st..
book it.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
by the old rules
I would agree with you.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
I don't think it has to do with old rules or new rules...
The players don’t know that stuff, and a Sep 1 callup will fly just fine in the room.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
A lot of encouraging stuff there
Ill ask the question that im sure everyone is thinking…how come Rudy didnt make these adjustments with Davis? Did Davis just need a different voice/set of eyes?
08/03/2009 A day that will live in infamy for the rest of the AL West.
Can Rudy not speak English? WTH?
Hamilton said something similar when he was up from AAA. He said he started doing some drills that he had gotten away from that helped him.
by Feliz es bueno on Aug 21, 2009 12:10 PM CDT up reply actions
If Davis comes back up and hits well
I think that should be the nail in the coffin for Rudy. Reading about all the adjustments Davis is making and how they were similar to Cruz reminds me of how Cruz also had to go to the minors to learn about these adjustments. I don’t know what Rudy does or doesn’t do at this point, but its clearly not working anymore.
By 2028, Mark Teixeira will be in the HOF.
"I am one of the biggest Texas Ranger fans out there but I'm also one of the smartest. Deal with it."
-The Outlaw
also add in
extended slumps for Kinsler, Blalock and Hamilton. What has Rudy been doing this year?
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
How do explain why Rudy
had such a good year as a hitting coach in 2008?
It is interesting how CD was cleaned up in OKC instead of in Texas.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
by Josey Wales on Aug 21, 2009 12:25 PM CDT up reply actions
how do you explain the fact that hes having such a horrible year in 2009?
not like theres a lot of player turnover from 2008 to 2009 (other than bradley)
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
-
"Taking steroids is only gonna make him whiff on those sliders in the dirt with more fury." -thedirkatron
by knockoutking on Aug 21, 2009 12:28 PM CDT up reply actions
I don't think Rudy got stupid overnight
but I do find the CD Situation to be quite odd and there should be a good back story.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
by Josey Wales on Aug 21, 2009 12:32 PM CDT up reply actions
so again i ask
if they were so good last year (overall) what changed this year to make them so bad? why weren’t adjustments made?
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
-
"Taking steroids is only gonna make him whiff on those sliders in the dirt with more fury." -thedirkatron
by knockoutking on Aug 21, 2009 3:04 PM CDT up reply actions
its seems Rudy is not into adjustments
His logic seems to be “you cant hit .200 forever, just keep doing what your doing”. I really hope the org takes a serious look at wtf he is doing this offseason.
Keepin it Classy Gentlemen
There is, in fact, a manly and lawful passion for equality which excites men to wish all to be powerful and honored. This passion tends to elevate the humble to the rank of the great; but there exists also in the human heart a depraved taste for equality, which impels the weak to attempt to lower the powerful to their own level, and reduces men to prefer equality in slavery to inequality with freedom.
-Alexis de Tocqueville, 1835
by Hamiltons Homey on Aug 21, 2009 5:33 PM CDT up reply actions
Why are the Angels having
such a great year in 2009? Is it just coincidence that the Rangers had an outstanding 2008 with Bradley and the Angels in 2009 with Abeu? Both high OBP, power hitters.
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
He was only there for 1/3 of the season??
He was out for like 3 months with a knee problem or something like that. Maybe thats why the bats cooled off in August and September when he got back?? Tried to change up everything??
Elvis has "shook up" Arlington!!
Doesn't really matter
We see it all time in sports. Coaches lose their effectiveness all the time. Sometimes a new voice or a different style of coaching is all that is needed. Plus last season, we had a lot less in the inexperienced hitter’s department. I think you can also look at how we did with RISP last season and see we got lucky there last season while this year its almost the same OPS difference only in the other direction.
By 2028, Mark Teixeira will be in the HOF.
"I am one of the biggest Texas Ranger fans out there but I'm also one of the smartest. Deal with it."
-The Outlaw
Seems like CD is real cerebral when it comes to hitting...
wonder if that hurts him more than it helps.
Sometimes you just want to sit back and watch somebody throw 100. - Jeff Passan on Neftali Feliz
see ball, hit ball....
08/03/2009 A day that will live in infamy for the rest of the AL West.
by Michael Cave on Aug 21, 2009 12:15 PM CDT up reply actions
Is CD too smart for Rudy's approach?
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
It can be a problem
One of the things in Moneyball that was telling was Billy Beane talking about how he thought too much, obsessed when he’d be in a slump, worried about what he was doing up there…
Whereas his teammate Lenny Dykstra didn’t worry about that. He thought he was great and was going up there and would get a hit, and if he went hitless, he just figured that meant he’d get 2 hits the next day.
From what I understand, Davis tends more towards the Beane way than the Dykstra way.
by Adam J. Morris on Aug 21, 2009 12:16 PM CDT up reply actions
Looking forward to the
Smoak / CD competition next spring.
Saw that Smoak was voted the best defensive 1B in the PCL by Baseball America (may have been chosen by managers in the PCL but I’m not sure.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
by Josey Wales on Aug 21, 2009 12:19 PM CDT up reply actions
man that was random.
Sometimes you just want to sit back and watch somebody throw 100. - Jeff Passan on Neftali Feliz
Having two very good defensive 1B that can rake
at the same time is going to make for some interesting future discussions.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
by Josey Wales on Aug 21, 2009 12:23 PM CDT up reply actions
Good to see you expect good things from Christopher L. Davis.
Sometimes you just want to sit back and watch somebody throw 100. - Jeff Passan on Neftali Feliz
I'm more than willing to believe in CD
next year – we have to many meaningful games to play this year to take a chance on ruining the chemistry.
I used to love his future (thought he’d hit 35-40 bombski’s this year) but now I just like it because he was sooooo profoundly bad this year.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
by Josey Wales on Aug 21, 2009 12:31 PM CDT up reply actions
Hey, by the way...
…where’s that link with empirical evidence saying that the veterans on the Rangers hate the front office? I asked for it a couple days ago, and still haven’t seen it.
"I love winning." - rockin_rangers, on May 16, 2009
Interesting to read about the adjustments
CD made to pitchers throwing 90 mph fastballs right by him but he didn’t discuss what also killed the team when he was here – the inability to hit LH pitching.
The .143 average/.491 OPS v LH is unacceptable and a dealbreaker to him playing every day.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Even more interesting to hear about how well he got along with everybody
By 2028, Mark Teixeira will be in the HOF.
"I am one of the biggest Texas Ranger fans out there but I'm also one of the smartest. Deal with it."
-The Outlaw
Why
the hell would YOU care how well he got along with everybody?
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Apparently he was such a chemistry fucker-upper according to you
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
CD
seems to be a great guy and is probably a very good teammate.
That said, if you hit .143 with an OPS of .491 v LH’s and find yourself on a pace to K 266 times yet are still allowed to play every day over a vet who is clearly better, it doesn’t matter if you’re a great guy or a very good teammate.
Your presence is going to foul up the chemistry of the room.
I want the kid back here next year and look forward to all the CD/Smoak discussions over the off-season.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Gary Sheffield fucks up chemistry
Chris Davis, as bad as he was, does not fuck up the chemistry of the room. How do you explain the 20-9 month of May with such fucked up chemistry?
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
So if you hit
207/217/380 for a month for a grand total OPS of 580 that doesn’t foul up team chemistry?
The problem is your argument doesn’t make sense because its one sided. Blalock’s lack of production doesn’t matter, even though its worse over all then what you claim caused Davis to destroy team chemistry.
It was time for Davis to go down, not because of chemistry, but because he wasn’t showing any signs of getting better. Its now time for Blalock to sit down because hes showing no signs of improvement. Hes still pulling every ball to the right side of the infield. Until he stops doing that consistently hes going to be a replacement level player.
What do voluntary mean?
by JKolar on Aug 21, 2009 1:38 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
It's not time for Blalock to sit
until you can find a 1B who can play that kind of defense and have a .719 OPS v LH pitching.
We know that person is not CDavis (.491 v LH pitching).
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Ahem, we GET that he wasn't good this season from either side..
but he sported a .279/.323/.593/.916 against LH last year.
The only way the .491 matters is if you think he’s the same hitter he was earlier this year , instead of the batter he was last year and in AAA this year.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Yes it is
Right now we have a poor defensive 1b who is hitting to a 580 OPS for the last month+. Its time to get him out of the lineup, before his bad bat can hurt our team chemistry.
It is your point that a truly horrible hitter can ruin team chemistry right? Well right now Blalock is a sub-replacement level player. What do you call a 1b with no glove, no on base skill, and the ability to pull every ball into an over shift? Hank F, thats right!
What do voluntary mean?
You really need to tap the brakes on the "poor defensive 1B" thing..
Hank is not as solid as CD with the glove, but he isn’t Marv Throneberry either.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
The metrics say he is
uzr/150 of -13. Thats poor defense. According to a couple of defensive metrics he is a below replacement level defensive 1b in his time there this year.
What do voluntary mean?
That surprises me greatly..
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Well me too a little bit
but when you think about it a bit you start seeing things like more throwing errors since hank has taken over. Its not errors that show up on his tally sheet, but they could well be due to him.
I usually try and make sure I have a statistical leg to stand on before I start tossing things out there.
I will admit to a typo, its not -13 its -12. Now admittedly that could be due to a few bad games as he has about 2 months of games played, but still thats not good.
What do voluntary mean?
and I'd agree 100% (minimum) about the throwing errors..
His stretch is nothing like CD’s.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
It's not good, but it's far from conclusive.
You can’t really draw a conclusion about Blalock’s ability to play first from his UZR this season.
Your 2009 Texas Rangers: "Can't take a fucking to save their lives" (lisa w, 2009).
Also, which metrics are you looking at?
Fangraphs seems to have him at a 1.8 UZR and 5.7 UZR/150 for first base this season, unless I’m misreading something.
Your 2009 Texas Rangers: "Can't take a fucking to save their lives" (lisa w, 2009).
So...
…where is the link with empirical evidence that the veterans hate the front office?
"I love winning." - rockin_rangers, on May 16, 2009
by ghtd36 on Aug 21, 2009 5:58 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
Just look at the standings.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
"Ranger players, especially veterans, weren’t surprised that Daniels couldn’t find a deal"
Snooze.
Seriously, this is the best you’ve got? You used to be entertaining, at least.
by brettgardner on Aug 21, 2009 10:19 PM CDT up reply actions
Wait a second
So Mongo can rake all of the sudden. Did this just happen overnight? When would be a good time for us to get to witness this?
From recent occurrances
it appears that was correct—Dykstra is an idiot.
by Feliz es bueno on Aug 21, 2009 12:53 PM CDT up reply actions
That was some great stuff.
Makes me even more confident that he will be a massive improvement over the player to remain nameless. When they get their heads out of their asses and finally make the move that is.
Makes me just salivate to think how young and good our 2010 lineup is going to be:
Borbon CF
Young 3B
Hamilton LF
Cruz RF
Davis 1B/DH
Kinsler 2B
Smoak 1B/DH
Andrus
Salty/Teagarden
Get Vizquel to play one more year, Murphy and Boggs as reserve OFers
08/03/2009 A day that will live in infamy for the rest of the AL West.
by Michael Cave on Aug 21, 2009 12:29 PM CDT up reply actions
That wouldnt be bad
although I would leave Elvis at 9th so he and Borbon can bat back to back
Yeah i wouldnt mind that
….i would love to have andrus hitting second right behind borbon but then you will probably have Young, Kinsler, or Cruz hitting like 7th
08/03/2009 A day that will live in infamy for the rest of the AL West.
by Michael Cave on Aug 21, 2009 1:49 PM CDT up reply actions
Or go Borbon/Andrus at the top
Drop MY to 3 and Hammy to 4, then probably Kinsler/Cruz/Davis/Smoak (in some order, I suppose) and a catcher to round it out.
by Outworlder47 on Aug 21, 2009 1:49 PM CDT up reply actions
bleh
FOTF is, statistically, one of the worst 3 hole hitters in baseball…
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
-
"Taking steroids is only gonna make him whiff on those sliders in the dirt with more fury." -thedirkatron
by knockoutking on Aug 21, 2009 3:06 PM CDT up reply actions
Yep.
That lineup could be scary good next season and for many seasons to come.
And when you start to picture a rotation that has Holland, Feliz, Hunter and eventually Martin Perez, it might make your Rangers’ head explode.
So fucking lucky with the Smoak thing
I’d hate to imagine the alternatives had he not fell to us like that.
"When he came up with that ball, hop or not, he looked exactly like a homeless guy who had found a long cigarette butt – only to discover it was soaked with gasoline. He could not have thrown out anyone there, even though Cust moves at about the speed of soil erosion." - Ed C.
by inactive lsb user on Aug 21, 2009 2:37 PM CDT up reply actions
Speaking of that
any good hitters going to be around at 14 or 15 next yr for the Rangers? ha
08/03/2009 A day that will live in infamy for the rest of the AL West.
by Michael Cave on Aug 21, 2009 3:20 PM CDT up reply actions
i honestly dont think that Smoak will start the year in arlington
we still have four OFs that can play next year, one will likely be a DH for a while, until we feel Smoak is ready
"The House That Ruth Built, 85 years old, goes out as The House That Hamilton Knocked Down"
I have a question I'd like cleared up once and for all.
I thought a player would not be allowed to be on a team’s playoff roster if he is called up on Sept. 1 or later. If the Rangers do find themselves in the playoffs, and if Davis were called up on Sept. 1 or Sept. 8 or whenever, wouldn’t he have to sit at home during the playoffs?
There was a link posted a day or two ago
That linked to a Mets blog from 2006 where someone had said the rule was changed to anyone on the 40 man roster as of August 31st is postseason eligible. I believe RangerMad has been trying as well as myself to find a more credible link for that info.
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
Yep, don't know of a link
But you can pick and choose any 25 guys from your 40 man roster before each playoff series
By 2028, Mark Teixeira will be in the HOF.
"I am one of the biggest Texas Ranger fans out there but I'm also one of the smartest. Deal with it."
-The Outlaw
i believe they have to replace someone who is put on the DL
if they are not on the active roster before sept 1
Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.
-
"Taking steroids is only gonna make him whiff on those sliders in the dirt with more fury." -thedirkatron
by knockoutking on Aug 21, 2009 3:06 PM CDT up reply actions
The way i read the initial rules on it was
The 25 guys on the active roster plus anyone on the 15 or 60 day DL were eligible. Guys who weren’t eligible could replace a guy on the 60 day DL if they played the same position.
For example if Warner Madrigal is not up on August 31st and not on the DL he would initially be ineligible. But if we wanted to use him all we would have to do is put Eric Hurley on the playoff roster and sub Madrigal in his place since they are both pitchers.
That was my interpretation of it from a couple days ago. Since then like I said above a link showed up to another blog stating its changed to anyone on the 40 man roster or 60 day DL can be eligible.
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
DL
Is he on the 60 day DL or 40 man roster?
Elvis Andrus - 2009 AL Rookie of the Year
Mitch Moreland -Tom Grieve Rangers Minor League Player of the Year
Martin Perez - Nolan Ryan Rangers Minor League Pitcher of the Year
He's on the 15 day according to their website.
The Texas Rangers have been synonymous with explosive firepower ever since they emptied 130 rounds into Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow in 1934. - Alyssa Milano
Yeah I don't think you can trade anyone on the 60 day DL
Even if he was yes he would be eligible
Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.
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