Series Thread: A's in for 3. Sept 13-15

[Kelleyman]

Have you ever heard of a change in someone's hitting being this long of a process? It is a new one on me. It reeks of an excuse, not a reason.

This is the third change he has supposedly adjusted to over the past couple of seasons. One last summer, one in ST this year and now this one. I guess when Odor regresses again they will embark on another 12-18 month long change and tell us we need to be patient.

The front office and their media member fan club are losing every last bit of credibility with this. It has become laughable.

The question was postured a bit though haha But he sure thought it was dumb to trade and had unnamed insider knowledge of a guy thinking Odor will be better next year. I hope he does but would not balk over a trade. I don’t mind a slugger like Odor but can’t have Guzman and Mazara not hitting well. Definitely need less strike outs

 

[DT LUNA]

The question was postured a bit though haha But he sure thought it was dumb to trade and had unnamed insider knowledge of a guy thinking Odor will be better next year. I hope he does but would not balk over a trade. I don’t mind a slugger like Odor but can’t have Guzman and Mazara not hitting well. Definitely need less strike outs

Less strike outs come with less Odor. Neither are likely.

 

[saddles]

Well he backed off Rendon a bit but acted like we would pursue Donaldson.
But why do this if Solak is destined for 3B

Then Profar, er, I mean Solak, would have to learn a third position.

 

[saddles]

Less strike outs come with less Odor. Neither are likely.

Insider knowledge about trades and acquisitions is one thing. Insider knowledge about how a guy is going to get better is completely different, and is subject to unwarranted optimism.

 

[saddles]

The question was postured a bit though haha But he sure thought it was dumb to trade and had unnamed insider knowledge of a guy thinking Odor will be better next year. I hope he does but would not balk over a trade. I don’t mind a slugger like Odor but can’t have Guzman and Mazara not hitting well. Definitely need less strike outs

A slugger who hits 40-plus HR and can hit for an average of .240 -.250 is fine. Odor isn't in that category.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

Well he backed off Rendon a bit but acted like we would pursue Donaldson.
But why do this if Solak is destined for 3B

The Donaldson idea is absurd.

 

[jta4437]

He had a really good 2 months last year. Before and after that he was terrible.

That is the whole reason management thought he needed to reinvent himself as a hitter this year. They thought he had a bad year last year.

Overall his season wasn't bad though, in fact he's had more above average seasons than below average seasons

I'm not saying that Odor doesn't need to get better, which is exactly the way you would try to twist my words...

My issue is the hyperbole when it comes to players... Statements such as "Odor has been terrible 3 years in a row" are false, he's been terrible 2 of the last 3 years,

But hyperbole helps reinforce our biases towards certain players

Another example... Minor caved under the pressure of the trade deadline... no one has any idea if that's what happened or if the guy just had a string of bad starts right at the trade deadline... Its all spin trying to get people to believe your own personal biases about certain players and their actions...

 

[Nightcrawler]

Have you ever heard of a change in someone's hitting being this long of a process? It is a new one on me. It reeks of an excuse, not a reason.

This is the third change he has supposedly adjusted to overturn the past couple of seasons. One last summer, one in ST this year and now this one. I guess when Odor regresses again they will embark on another 12-18 month long change and tell us we need to be patient.

The front office and their media member fan club are losing every last bit of credibility with this. It has become laughable.

I think the big issue here is the regime change. We all know that Banny loved the little tough guy who wasn’t very talented, but could still occasionally win the fight. Odor is the embodiment of that in baseball player form. Under the Banny regime, it was ok for odor to strike out 9 times out of 10 if the 10th AB was a home run. Banny put odor into the lineup every single day and never briefly considered punishing his favorite little player.

With Woodward, I have no idea. I still think woodward came in trying to be the nice guy his first year and didn’t want to rock the boat too much. It’s possible that woodward looked at the locker room dynamics and figured out that by then, Odor is seen as a vocal leader by both management and the players. This is a big problem because why would the players listen to a guy who can’t hit above the Mendoza line 75% of the time?

I’ve also heard rumors that odor wants to be the guy who fills Beltres massive leadership void. I’m skeptical that he will ever command the respect that Beltre did. Beltre didn’t strikeout half of his ABs, Beltre didn’t commit senseless errors in the field, Beltre didn’t get caught stealing or get thrown out for bone headed base running. Beltre didn’t get into a fight on the infield. Beltre’s mouth was never bigger than his game.

The odor thing truly is baffling from an outsiders perspective, I’m starting to wonder if the fans who don’t like him will ever get to see him demoted. We might very well be looking at the rangers everyday second basemen until the year 2035, as scary as that is.

 

[Kelleyman]

You have to be prepared for the unexpected. No sure thing for Odor or Solak to be on team next year. Injuries happen, trades happen etc.

As a skill I still like Solak bat. It’s plenty controlled and still has some pop. Have to think the plan is to have a starting spot. Still not ready to shoot Odor to the moon just yet. Let the season and off season play out. Also Odors ceiling is at least there. Some players really don’t look like there is athletic potential to be much better like DDJ

 

[Kelleyman]

The Donaldson idea is absurd.

I would rather have Solak than Donaldson even though Solak would be much better at 2B

 

[Kelleyman]

 

[jta4437]

why would the players listen to a guy who can’t hit above the Mendoza line 75% of the time?

This is the crap I'm talking about, Odor has NEVER hit below the Mendoza line for a season so that number is 0%... and in fact 4 of his 6 seasons he's hit above .253.... another example of bias twisting the narrative... Odor needs to improve, but seriously... STOP LYING

 

[saddles]

You have to be prepared for the unexpected. No sure thing for Odor or Solak to be on team next year. Injuries happen, trades happen etc.

As a skill I still like Solak bat. It’s plenty controlled and still has some pop. Have to think the plan is to have a starting spot. Still not ready to shoot Odor to the moon just yet. Let the season and off season play out. Also Odors ceiling is at least there. Some players really don’t look like there is athletic potential to be much better like DDJ

The problem in giving him the offseason is that is the same as giving him all of next season. Once you get past this coming offseason you don't have amy good options. It would be too late for him to learn to become a utility player and he would be even harder to trade. The decision on him at the end of this season pretty much sets the course for next season as far as his role. Although, I think his course was set once his extension was signed until the contract is up.

 

[saddles]

Overall his season wasn't bad though, in fact he's had more above average seasons than below average seasons

I'm not saying that Odor doesn't need to get better, which is exactly the way you would try to twist my words...

My issue is the hyperbole when it comes to players... Statements such as "Odor has been terrible 3 years in a row" are false, he's been terrible 2 of the last 3 years,

But hyperbole helps reinforce our biases towards certain players

Another example... Minor caved under the pressure of the trade deadline... no one has any idea if that's what happened or if the guy just had a string of bad starts right at the trade deadline... Its all spin trying to get people to believe your own personal biases about certain players and their actions...

I think their approach in trying to completely overhaul Odor at the plate speaks volumes. You only do that to a player who just had a bad season.

If a guy performs very poorly for close to 4 months of the season he has had a bad season even if he hits .400 with an OPS of .950 the other two months. You can disagree, but that is how I see it.

I only said that about Minor because his worst stint of the year coincided with all his complaining. He complained more about that than anyone else who has been here so it must have affected him in a great way. Therefore, when he pitches much worse at the same time, the logical conclusion to me is that they were related. Again, you can disagree, but I certainly have a valid reason for feeling the way I do.

We all have personal biases based on one thing or another. You aren"t any different than the rest of us as far as that goes.

 

[saddles]

New thread is up.

 

[WastinSomeTime]

This is the crap I'm talking about, Odor has NEVER hit below the Mendoza line for a season so that number is 0%... and in fact 4 of his 6 seasons he's hit above .253.... another example of bias twisting the narrative... Odor needs to improve, but seriously... STOP LYING

I thought about what you said as soon as I started reading the 1st sentence he wrote.

 

[Kelleyman]

The problem in giving him the offseason is that is the same as giving him all of next season. Once you get past this coming offseason you don't have amy good options. It would be too late for him to learn to become a utility player and he would be even harder to trade. The decision on him at the end of this season pretty much sets the course for next season as far as his role. Although, I think his course was set once his extension was signed until the contract is up.

I doubt if he could be come a utility IF but he does look like a guy who could play LF a position we have zero need for. If it comes down to him and Solak at second base and all other spots are filled then at that point we trade Odor despite why T.R. says.

Still hope that maybe Odor can cut down on strikeouts and raise average some and avoid his cold streaks.
Maybe something can work for all players

 

[saddles]

I doubt if he could be come a utility IF but he does look like a guy who could play LF a position we have zero need for. If it comes down to him and Solak at second base and all other spots are filled then at that point we trade Odor despite why T.R. says.

Still hope that maybe Odor can cut down on strikeouts and raise average some and avoid his cold streaks.
Maybe something can work for all players

If he is going to be a backup I think he is eventually going to have to learn a couple of other positions, but I doubt he will ever be anything other than a starter here. If this season can't convince them he shouldn't be a starter, then they simply cannot be convinced.

 

[jta4437]

I think their approach in trying to completely overhaul Odor at the plate speaks volumes. You only do that to a player who just had a bad season.

If a guy performs very poorly for close to 4 months of the season he has had a bad season even if he hits .400 with an OPS of .950 the other two months. You can disagree, but that is how I see it.

I only said that about Minor because his worst stint of the year coincided with all his complaining. He complained more about that than anyone else who has been here so it must have affected him in a great way. Therefore, when he pitches much worse at the same time, the logical conclusion to me is that they were related. Again, you can disagree, but I certainly have a valid reason for feeling the way I do.

We all have personal biases based on one thing or another. You aren"t any different than the rest of us as far as that goes.

And what is it that I show all this bias towards?

 

[scotsman1948]

I would rather have Solak than Donaldson even though Solak would be much better at 2B

i'd rather have Rendon at 3B and Solak at 2B and Odor a distant memory