February 8, 200521 yr Conine's a better overall player than Encarnacion and is more deserving of the starting spot, but is the better bench player of the two. Cabrera is blocked at his natural position (3B) and his forced to the outfield (where it shows when in both left and right). His arm is far more valuable in rightfield than left, but right now feels more comfortable in left. Perhaps after another half-season he could feel as comfortable in right as he does left, but he's the team's superstar. There's no solution to this mess... except... to trade Enc and get a lefty to platoon with Conine .
February 8, 200521 yr Conine's a better overall player than Encarnacion and is more deserving of the starting spot, but is the better bench player of the two. Cabrera is blocked at his natural position (3B) and his forced to the outfield (where it shows when in both left and right). His arm is far more valuable in rightfield than left, but right now feels more comfortable in left. Perhaps after another half-season he could feel as comfortable in right as he does left, but he's the team's superstar. There's no solution to this mess... except... to trade Enc and get a lefty to platoon with Conine . 680473[/snapback] I'd actually say the best solution would be to "float" Conine, keeping him fresh, and Delgado and Cabrera fresh too. Encarnacion stays in right (because, at this stage, defense is more important than offense because we're talking about the 7-hole hitter), and Conine floats between left/first/right on a nightly basis, giving Cabrera and Delgado nights off when necessary, and keeping Conine fresh by starting him in about half the games...
February 8, 200521 yr Conine was superb last year in left and Cabrera was awful in right. With that being said, I'd like to see Cabrera in right just because he'll be 21 when the season starts and has the tools to be a right fielder for life. It'll only cost us a couple games. 680440[/snapback] When you think of the ratio of balls that are hit to left and right fields, there's not much difference between the two proposed defensive alignments (Cabs-Pierre-Enc and Niner-Pierre-Cabs). Cabrera's errors in left (which IMO he is every bit as terrible at as he was in right) would be more frequent. Additionally there's not much difference at the plate (.250 with Ks and power, .270 with walks and less power). Greater than the defensive aspect. Much greater. But not a deal-breaker. As much as I hate to say it, but... Enc starting and Conine pinch-hitting, where the Marlins ranked last or next to last in every offensive category last year, might help the team more. Then again, Aguila starting and Conine pinch-hitting, or Conine starting and Aguila or Willingham (or anyone but Lenny Harris, Easley or Wilson Delgado) pinch-hitting would help the team just as much if not more.
February 8, 200521 yr Author Miggy has a much better arm than Conine, and probably a stronger arm than Encarnacion. 680391[/snapback] Cabrera has a terrible arm dude. Certainly not an outfielders. 680393[/snapback] Are you joking? Cabs arm is a CANNON. 680395[/snapback] Uhhh...no. Enc has a cannon. Cabs is an infielder who got moved to the outfield. His arm is somewhat below average at best. 680413[/snapback] Unbelievable. You obviously have not the slightest clue as to what you're talking about.
February 8, 200521 yr I think starting Enc would be help with at least one apsect. Because at key moments late in the game we can pull double switches easier with Niner since we could plug him in as a defensive replacement at 1st and the outfield.
February 8, 200521 yr Conine can still hit, when he feels good the man is a veteran player who sees the ball well. My problem is that old man conine may be more of a liability in right than cabrera. I think cabrera is a better right fielder than cabrera, although conine can probably adapt to the position well, his age makes him too slow for right.
February 8, 200521 yr Vlad's arm is a bit over-rated the guy isn't incredibly accurate as many would think. He has a cannon of an arm, perhaps the best in that respect in the league but he isn't the most accurate more often than not. Apart from arm strength, accuracy would definitely be something to take into consideration, that of course requires some analysis and watching more than a few games.
February 8, 200521 yr Conine can still hit, when he feels good the man is a veteran player who sees the ball well. My problem is that old man conine may be more of a liability in right than cabrera. I think cabrera is a better right fielder than cabrera, although conine can probably adapt to the position well, his age makes him too slow for right. 680496[/snapback] He moved well enough in left. How would that hurt him in right?
February 9, 200521 yr Miggy has a much better arm than Conine, and probably a stronger arm than Encarnacion. 680391[/snapback] Cabrera has a terrible arm dude. Certainly not an outfielders. 680393[/snapback] Are you joking? Cabs arm is a CANNON. 680395[/snapback] Uhhh...no. Enc has a cannon. Cabs is an infielder who got moved to the outfield. His arm is somewhat below average at best. 680413[/snapback] Unbelievable. You obviously have not the slightest clue as to what you're talking about. 680487[/snapback] And the funny thing about it is he is very insistent with his mis-informed position.
February 9, 200521 yr Conine's a better overall player than Encarnacion and is more deserving of the starting spot, but is the better bench player of the two. Cabrera is blocked at his natural position (3B) and his forced to the outfield (where it shows when in both left and right). His arm is far more valuable in rightfield than left, but right now feels more comfortable in left. Perhaps after another half-season he could feel as comfortable in right as he does left, but he's the team's superstar. There's no solution to this mess... except... to trade Enc and get a lefty to platoon with Conine . 680473[/snapback] I'd actually say the best solution would be to "float" Conine, keeping him fresh, and Delgado and Cabrera fresh too. Encarnacion stays in right (because, at this stage, defense is more important than offense because we're talking about the 7-hole hitter), and Conine floats between left/first/right on a nightly basis, giving Cabrera and Delgado nights off when necessary, and keeping Conine fresh by starting him in about half the games... 680481[/snapback] I agree 100% TSwift. The addition of Delgado strengthens 3-6 in our line-up. The offense has already received a huge boost. There is no good reason to substantially degrade our defense to improve the 7th position.
February 9, 200521 yr A 'substantial' downgrade is quite an overstatement. And you can never have too much hitting.
February 9, 200521 yr One thing noone has even though of yet is to put Aguila in RF 680548[/snapback] There's a reason for that... :plain
February 9, 200521 yr It's not so much about who is the fastest (although speed is important), it's about how good a jump you get when the ball comes off the bat and how well your brain can interpret that data - where is the ball going and how much time does he have to get there. Watch a little leaguer try to play the outfield. More times than not they are apt to miss a fly ball that's hit right to (or near) them because they're not able to put the pieces (data) together. Chuck Carr was a fan favorite here but anyone who knows the game will tell you he was a terrible centerfielder who was blessed with one thing - speed. He got terrible jumps, judged balls poorly and used his speed to make up for his misjudgements. An enormous number of his circus catches (flying through the air, arms outstretched, etc.) that brought fans to their feet, cheering him wildly, would have been routine catches by upper tier ML CFers. In short he made what should have been everday plays look miraculous. To some degree Juan Encarnacion is the exact opposite. Because he gets a tremendous jump on the ball more often than not, he often looks like he's playing at half speed, strolling over, almost lazily and making the catch. I believe Cabrera views left field as an extension of third base. He sees things the same way, he's just playing a little deeper. When he goes out to right field (and anyone reading this should know by my avatar and signature that I love the guy) he's more like that little leaguer, he just can't put the pieces together quickly enough to make the ML-caliber play. Over time, if he's allowed to progress slowly, I have no doubt he can play right field. But the problem is the Marlins are now contenders on a mission to get back deep into the play-offs, and so, unlike 2000-2001-2002, every game counts. Learning by trial and error no longer fits the Marlins modus operandi. My guess is that (short of a series of injuries) we've seen the end of Miggy in right field. If perhaps the Fish could convince him to play right field in winter ball for a couple of seasons he'd have a chance again in right in the majors, otherwise he's our left fielder for years to come.
February 9, 200521 yr I really don't want Cabs in right field. Stop throwing him all over the damn place. He's already had to play out of position in moving to the outfield, at least keep him in left where he's shown a little bit of comfort. Enc is fantastic in right, but though Niner's arm is weaker I still think he can handle it just fine. He unloads the ball quick & makes good reads. Probably we'll see a platoon. If either one goes into a prolonged slump (like Niner's 1st half last season) the other's going to see a lot of starts.
February 9, 200521 yr We're better off with Conine coming off the bench to spell the corner infield and outfield, and having Easely for middle infield. Jack won't be able to get Pierre out of CF, even for an inning. Conine gives us much more flexibility on the bench that Encarnacion.
February 9, 200521 yr Please save us from a bottom of the order of Encarnacion and Gonzalez... I can already imagine the number of men left on base and the number of people not being moved over.
February 9, 200521 yr Please save us from a bottom of the order of Encarnacion and Gonzalez... I can already imagine the number of men left on base and the number of people not being moved over. 680783[/snapback] Gonzalez is the kind of hitter that can surprise you. Sure he has a lot of ugly ABs, yet he somehow managed to drive in 79 runs last year. Alex is more productive as a #7 hitter, so it could be better to leave him there and have Encarnacion #8.
February 9, 200521 yr Agreed Penguin.. Conines offense is more important to the team then Encs defense.. Plus its not like Conine is a bad defensive player anyway.
February 9, 200521 yr But... Encarnacion's due for a break-out year. He's an all-world all-tool talent.
February 9, 200521 yr Encarnacion stays in right (because, at this stage, defense is more important than offense because we're talking about the 7-hole hitter) I strongly disagree. If we learned anything from last season, a weak 7-9 will cause a black hole in the lineup that would cost the Marlins more games. It simply puts too much pressure on the heart of the order. Last season the Marlins offense often came alive in the later innings and the black hole prevented any chance of a rally. In fact, the extreme weakness of the 7-9 spots was perhaps the reason the offense came alive so late, as only 2/3 of the lineup was a legitimate threat to reach base. Therefore, if Pierre and Castillo did not reach base it would become far more difficult to score runs. I think the Marlins can only afford one Alex Gonzalez type player at the bottom of the order. His OBP is horrendous, but he has shown RBI potential and better power than Encarnacion. Also, good defense at SS helps the team much more than in RF. 680795[/snapback] That is where having Conine off the bench works out. He can replace Encarnacion in late innings when offense is needed.
February 9, 200521 yr lol.. an offensive replacement huh? I think you have that backwards.. Enc can come in the late innings as a defensive replacement.
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.