February 9, 200521 yr Fick can play catcher.. would we then be able to add Willingham as our 5th person on the bench. Then Willingham and Fick could split the backup catcher duties.. would that work? Fick and Delgado both swing a very good LH bat against RHP. A bench of Enc, Fick (L), Easley, WDelgado (S) and Willingham is a very nice bench.. That gives us really nice depth at every position.. Enc can play all 3 OF positions, Easley the whole IF, Delgado all IF positions but 1B, Fick and Willingham can play C, 1B and OF with Willy being able to play 3B. Hopefully they are looking into that.
February 9, 200521 yr I am not too sure. He plays dirty as we saw in the 2003 NLDS vs. the Cubs. 681367[/snapback] he apologized. and anyway, he did what he could to get to 1B....
February 10, 200521 yr I am not too sure. He plays dirty as we saw in the 2003 NLDS vs. the Cubs. 681367[/snapback] So does Arod. :shifty Im not for splitting backup catcher duties. Remember the Pudge/Castro/Redman stuff. Didnt get Castro much time. Id like to see Willingham get ABs this year to see if he is legit.
February 10, 200521 yr Love it. A very versatile bench with great hitting potential. Those bats could allow for the Marlins to give Conine a starting OF spot, instead of holding him back to pinch-hit. I might suggest Derek Wathan for Delgado. .300 switch-hitter with some pop and speed. Capable at 7 positions.
February 10, 200521 yr Author I like what I saw from WDelgado last year when he played us.. Had a pretty solid year.. hit .305 in 105 ABs last year vs. RHP I'm not too familiar with Wathan... is there a bio of him anywhere?
February 10, 200521 yr Flyingmullosk, Willingham and Fick (and maybe LoDuca) could get playing time at four other positions. IMF, re: Wathan Three year starter with the Marlins' AAA clubs. Primary position is shortstop. Long shot to make the team. Edit: Born in Iowa. Prospect overview here: http://marlins.scout.com/2/238097.html
February 10, 200521 yr Author Cedar Rapids.. image that. I went to school there for a year.. anyway Yea, if he can contribute more than Delgado, then by all means give him some ABs
February 10, 200521 yr I think at the very least, we should invite him to Spring Training, or sign him to a minor-league contract.
February 10, 200521 yr Fick is what you'd call a "hard nosed" player. I think he'd be a good guy to have on the team. He plays a handful of positions and it's always nice to have an extra left-handed bat on the bench. :thumbup That said, I think Wilson Delgado is also a nice player to have around.
February 10, 200521 yr I've always liked Fick i think he would be a great addition to the bench, he's a guy that loves to get out and play the game, he's like a Millar type guy from what i see. I think he'd do a good job keepin the guys loose.
February 10, 200521 yr I don't get this Fick thing at all. He can't even hit his weight. Not being able to stay above the Mendoza line speaks poorly of his abilities in anything other than a starting role. It appears he near worthless off the bench, the only times he's put up ML caliber numbers is when he get 400 or so ABs a season. He needs to be on a team where he can play everyday, and that sure isn't the Fish. I like the guy, and yes he plays hard. But he seems ill-equipped to be an asset to this team. The comparison to Millar confounds me.
February 10, 200521 yr Obviously he didn't do well last year otherwise he wouldn't be available so close to spring training. He's better than catchers Treanor, DiFelice and lefty pinch-hitter Lenny Harris. That's all that counts. Any bit of improvement helps the club. Robert Fick's career numbers (Avg, Obp, Slg): 1998: .364 .417 .818 1999: .220 .327 .439 2000: .252 .340 .374 2001: .272 .339 .476 --- vs. RH .280 .338 .382 --- vs. LH .237 .344 .382 2002: .270 .331 .433 --- vs. RH .265 .325 .436 --- vs. LH .281 .342 .427 2003: .269 .335 .418 --- vs. RH .289 .356 .440 --- vs. LH .135 .182 .269 2004: .199 .277 .319 --- vs. RH .207 .280 .322 --- vs. LH .111 .238 .278 Career: .260 .329 .425 --- vs. RH .266 .333 .439 --- vs. LH .234 .309 .364
February 10, 200521 yr Guys you forget Lenny Harris is going to make this team no matter what. I don't like it personally, but I don't see it going any other way
February 10, 200521 yr Obviously he didn't do well last year otherwise he wouldn't be available so close to spring training. He's better than catchers Treanor, DiFelice and lefty pinch-hitter Lenny Harris. That's all that counts. Any bit of improvement helps the club. Robert Fick's career numbers (Avg, Obp, Slg): 1998: .364 .417 .818 1999: .220 .327 .439 2000: .252 .340 .374 2001: .272 .339 .476 --- vs. RH .280 .338 .382 --- vs. LH .237 .344 .382 2002: .270 .331 .433 --- vs. RH .265 .325 .436 --- vs. LH .281 .342 .427 2003: .269 .335 .418 --- vs. RH .289 .356 .440 --- vs. LH .135 .182 .269 2004: .199 .277 .319 --- vs. RH .207 .280 .322 --- vs. LH .111 .238 .278 Career: .260 .329 .425 --- vs. RH .266 .333 .439 --- vs. LH .234 .309 .364 681588[/snapback] What I notice you ignored was his ABs. When he get's 400 ABs or more he hits moderately well, but when his ABs are limited, as they would be in any role with the Fish, he has problems. There's no way he's going to get anywhere near 400 ABS, which seems to be the threshold, if he joins the Marlins. I also don't understand how you can compare him to Treanor and DeFelice, both of whom are bonafide catchers. Fick is not a catcher, he's a guy who can catch. I don't like being in the position of saying not so nice things about a MLer, but I just don't see the fit in South Florida. It's inconceviable that anyone would suggest he could be the Marlins backup catcher ahead of the aforementioned guys, and even Willingham. He has no pop in his bat, he's not a speed demon, he has no cannon for an arm, he has minimal experience (save one year where he appeared in about 70 games) as a catcher. What does he really contribute (to our team)?
February 10, 200521 yr How about we give Joe Dillon a chance, i hope this guy blows everyone away in ST, i think he deserves it with the numbers he has been putting up. JOE DILLON!!!!!! :thumbup
February 10, 200521 yr How about we give Joe Dillon a chance, i hope this guy blows everyone away in ST, i think he deserves it with the numbers he has been putting up. JOE DILLON!!!!!! :thumbup 681711[/snapback] He's been invited to spring training.
February 10, 200521 yr Obviously he didn't do well last year otherwise he wouldn't be available so close to spring training. He's better than catchers Treanor, DiFelice and lefty pinch-hitter Lenny Harris. That's all that counts. Any bit of improvement helps the club. Robert Fick's career numbers (Avg, Obp, Slg): 1998: .364 .417 .818 1999: .220 .327 .439 2000: .252 .340 .374 2001: .272 .339 .476 --- vs. RH .280 .338 .382 --- vs. LH .237 .344 .382 2002: .270 .331 .433 --- vs. RH .265 .325 .436 --- vs. LH .281 .342 .427 2003: .269 .335 .418 --- vs. RH .289 .356 .440 --- vs. LH .135 .182 .269 2004: .199 .277 .319 --- vs. RH .207 .280 .322 --- vs. LH .111 .238 .278 Career: .260 .329 .425 --- vs. RH .266 .333 .439 --- vs. LH .234 .309 .364 681588[/snapback] What I notice you ignored was his ABs. When he get's 400 ABs or more he hits moderately well, but when his ABs are limited, as they would be in any role with the Fish, he has problems. There's no way he's going to get anywhere near 400 ABS, which seems to be the threshold, if he joins the Marlins. I also don't understand how you can compare him to Treanor and DeFelice, both of whom are bonafide catchers. Fick is not a catcher, he's a guy who can catch. I don't like being in the position of saying not so nice things about a MLer, but I just don't see the fit in South Florida. It's inconceviable that anyone would suggest he could be the Marlins backup catcher ahead of the aforementioned guys, and even Willingham. He has no pop in his bat, he's not a speed demon, he has no cannon for an arm, he has minimal experience (save one year where he appeared in about 70 games) as a catcher. What does he really contribute (to our team)? 681665[/snapback] Have you ever thought a catcher could be good offensively and defensively at the same time? They do exist. Many of them in fact. I like Treanor, but the fact that he's a crappy hitter does not make him a gold glover. The people who run baseball often hold this twisted view and have extended the careers of these no-hit average-field backstops. And I don't believe anyone suggested Fick replace Willingham on the bench. Rather that he replace someone else (the current lefty pinch-hitter perhaps). One of the benefits of having both Fick and Willingham is that you could use them to pinch-hit liberally without worrying about the possibility LoDuca goes down to injury later in a game.
February 10, 200521 yr Your argument might be valid if Fick had shown he could he hit off the bench, but he hasn't. As for having a catcher (which Fick is not) who is good offensively and defensively (as in Paul LoDuca) Fick's numbers don't indicate he fits the bill in either category. Even that ancient un-named lefty pinch-hitter currently with the team out hit Fick last season. Obviously there are thirty baseball GMs who disagree with you regarding his value or he would have signed already. When you look at some of the lesser talents being signed (at this point to mostly minor league deals with spring invites) you have to question why Fick hasn't. If the Marlins feel the need to sign him and he performs well I'll be the first to say I was wrong but as I said above, I don't see the fit.
February 10, 200521 yr I think you're putting way too much stock in Fick's 2004 numbers. Maybe you're just to that to be an argumentative old fart, but whatever. Those numbers are likely an outlier. In 2000, Fick did well in part-time duty. In 2001 he had arguably his best year while he was playing in 4 games a week. Anyway... Treanor, DiFelice and Harris are only going to be slightly better than .200 hitters without the pop or versatility of Fick.
February 10, 200521 yr Old fart or not I don't see the fit. And obviously neither do 30 baseball GMs and particularly the one who matters to this debate. I happen to agree that it was nice having Mordy available as a third catcher in emergencies and I suppose you could find value in the guy in that roll, but what we (as of this writing) don't need is yet another 1B or rightfielder (although I would like to see another lefty bat) as the team is now constituted. And with guys like Dillon, Willingham, Wathan, and others who are already in the organization vying for a spot with the parent club, signing Fick only complicates the roster. I realize that no one is supposed to disagree with you, but if you could keep your flatulent comments to a minimum it would be a breath of fresh air for the rest of us.
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