Guillen: If Reyes misses time, Hanley still won't play SS

[gizmo]

Manager Ozzie Guillen clarified his defensive plans for Hanley Ramirez, who is working out at his new position third base.

 

If shortstop Jose Reyes gets hurt or can’t play, Emilio Bonifacio will be the likely fill-in at short.

 

If Guillen can help it, Ramirez, who has played shortstop from 2006-11, will stay at third base.

 

“I’m not going to play with Hanley’s mind,� Ozzie said…

 

Expect the Marlins to run and run often in the early days of camp.

 

“I want everybody to run in spring training. I want to see what we have,� Guillen said.

 

But Guillen’s goals don’t just include more stolen bases.

 

Guillen wants the Marlins to be smart baserunners and know how to take extra bases on a groundball or hit…

 

For now, Reyes will lead off and Bonifacio will bat second. While Reyes will stay at the top of the lineup, Bonifacio might not always bat second. Ozzie said he hasn’t ruled out Omar Infante hitting there, too…

 

Guillen also watched Mike Stanton take batting practice for the first time today.

 

Asked what he thought about Stanton’s power, Guillen replied: “I keep telling people: I don’t want the long ones, I want a lot. That’s the difference between a home run 500 feet. How about 390, give me 40 (home runs that are) 390, 310. … How about (if there’s a) man on third base, (hit a) ground ball to second to get the RBI. That’s how you win.�

 

Guillen will emphasize pitching, speed and defense more than hitting for power.

 

“I’m a baseball fan,� he said. “I like to watch a baseball game, I don’t like to watch home run derbies.�

 

 

 

http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/marlins/2012/02/23/if-marlins-shortstop-jose-reyes-gets-hurt-hanley-ramirez-will-stay-at-third-base/

[poptart]

I can respect all of that.

[Michael]

Expect the Marlins to run and run often in the early days of camp.

LoMo 20/20 this year.

[Jokersgoon]

Expect the Marlins to run and run often in the early days of camp.

LoMo 20/20 this year.

Carlos Zambrano 40/42

[sgleason02]

Expect the Marlins to run and run often in the early days of camp.

LoMo 20/20 this year.

Carlos Zambrano 40/42

 

Is that a pant size joke?

[Old Timer]

I can respect all of that.

 

 

Same here, sounds great so far

[Old Timer]

Expect the Marlins to run and run often in the early days of camp.

LoMo 20/20 this year.

If we get a 20/20 out of LoMo we will get close to that Wildcard for sure. He is a catalyst for this team.

[30plus]

I can respect all of that.

 

 

Same here, sounds great so far

 

I can't respect any of it, other than attempting to optimize baserunning which likely won't translate into much. It reeks of outdated thinking and 10 million dollars over 4 years.

 

We're probably going to set the record for sacrifice bunts in a single season.

[poptart]

^the hell article did you read?

[30plus]

^the hell article did you read?

 

 

The one posted above.

[30plus]

Is that supposed to be me? Its missing my trademark dimples, but the rest is quite accurate.

[Dr Beinfest]

Uhhh...

 

huh.

[Admin]

If something happens where Reyes goes down in June and expects to miss several months, I absolutely would like to see Hanley playing short. I think he will be more comfortable there and probably field better there. That could also give Dominguez a second look at the position at the ML level.

 

I'd still prefer to see Bonifacio hitting before Reyes. I'm also not enthusiastic about Infante hitting anywhere outside of the 7th/8th spot in the line-up. Hitting him second is a terrible idea.

[Admin]

I can respect all of that.

 

 

Same here, sounds great so far

 

I can't respect any of it, other than attempting to optimize baserunning which likely won't translate into much. It reeks of outdated thinking and 10 million dollars over 4 years.

 

We're probably going to set the record for sacrifice bunts in a single season.

Pretty much.

[BroncoBob27]

Guillen will emphasize pitching, speed and defense more than hitting for power.[/left][/size][/font][/color] “I’m a baseball fan,� he said. “I like to watch a baseball game, I don’t like to watch home run derbies.�

http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/marlins/2012/02/23/if-marlins-shortstop-jose-reyes-gets-hurt-hanley-ramirez-will-stay-at-third-base/

Exactly what the FO has been saying for years now. It's why they made the new pond with these dimensions, trying to make it pitcher friendly. It's why they are letting the IF grass grow a little longer, to facilitate the speed on the team. It just sounds to me that Ozzie agrees with the way the FO has been building this team and is why he wanted to come here in the first place.

[BroncoBob27]

I can respect all of that.

Same here, sounds great so far I can't respect any of it, other than attempting to optimize baserunning which likely won't translate into much. It reeks of outdated thinking and 10 million dollars over 4 years.

 

A player getting himself into scoring position won't translate into much? A player going 1st to 3rd on a single won't translate into much? I disagree.

[BroncoBob27]

We're probably going to set the record for sacrifice bunts in a single season.

 

 

Maybe. But alot of those statistical sacrifices won't really be that. If Reyes is on 1st and Boni lays down a bunt, is he trying to sacrifice or is he trying for an IF hit? A batter with speed laying down a bunt with a guy on 1st is hoping to get the hit and/or force a throwing error.

 

I know alot of posters here won't be happy about it, but I would expect to see alot of early bunting. It would be silly to take the bats out of the big boppers' hands ( and I highly doubt that happens), but for those that use it as weapon will be using it. The thinking is that it will set the tone for later in the game when we are trying for that 1 or 2 runs. It's playing small ball. Which is fine as long as you don't try it with the guys that are here to drive in those runners. Just like the bull pen, each guy has a certain job to do so you use it to your advantage.

 

The FO has been preaching "pitching, defense, and speed" for years now. They have built a team with that in mind. They have built a ball park with that in mind. They brought in a manager and a coaching staff that believes in that. I can't see why anyone would think they would be changing their plans now. Whether we like it or not, it's the way they think will win the most games.

[BroncoBob27]

BTW In keeping with the title of the thread.....I agree with Ozzie on this one. If Hanley is going to be our 3B, then he is going to play 3B regardless of any circumstances. Boni will do just fine at SS.

[Wild Card]

BTW In keeping with the title of the thread.....I agree with Ozzie on this one. If Hanley is going to be our 3B, then he is going to play 3B regardless of any circumstances. Boni will do just fine at SS.

 

 

Boni will actually do better at SS. I agree completely, makes total sense. Don't give Hanley ANY kind of indication that SS will ever be a part of his life again.

 

I like this mentality, we need to be aggressive and take advantage of one of this teams biggest strengths: speed. People here thing it's going to be more risk than reward, I disagree. You CAN'T see EVERYTHING in NUMBERS! Giving these guys the green light puts pressure on the pitchers, forces slide steps, and gives every opposing player on the diamond a different thought process defensively. All that pressure will translate to a Marlins advantage. There's a reason it worked in '03 and it will; work again.

[Erick]

Why is it that you guys are saying that everyone on here hates stolen bases? I haven't seen anyone post that.

[Wild Card]

I can respect all of that.

 

 

Same here, sounds great so far

 

I can't respect any of it, other than attempting to optimize baserunning which likely won't translate into much. It reeks of outdated thinking and 10 million dollars over 4 years.

 

We're probably going to set the record for sacrifice bunts in a single season.

 

Erick, the post above...? And I think many have said that here in the past.

[Erick]

My issue with stolen bases is that it should only be done with the right guys, not everyone.

 

It shouldn't be about the quantity of steals but rather the quality. In other words, be efficient.

 

A guy like Jose Reyes who's basically successful 80+% of the team throughout his career certainly deserves a green light. The same applies to Bonifacio.

 

However, if we're stealing like Hanley Ramirez last year...he was caught stealing once every three times. Not exactly accomplishing anything. Not saying Hanley shouldn't steal as perhaps he had some nagging injuries last year - (he's been better before).

 

Point is, it should be about efficiency. And there's certainly an advantage if we can be efficient at it, of course.

[bakerluv77]

I like the idea of Hanley not seeing any time at short. It's not his position anymore and I want him to learn third. So much of fielding is muscle memory, to have him going from throwing (to first, for example) at 3rd, then SS, the 3rd again...it sounds like a million errors in the making. Have him learn 3rd and give up on SS. Bonifacio does an adequate job of short stop any way.

[Erick]

+ Hanley is a terrible shortstop, anyway.

[bobbob1313]

A player getting himself into scoring position won't translate into much? A player going 1st to 3rd on a single won't translate into much? I disagree.

 

 

A player getting thrown out trying to get himself into scoring position pretty much negates those advantages. That's the issue.

 

Run all you want if you're smart about it.

 

Also, the "It worked in '03, it will work again" argument doesn't hold up to scrutiny. We were 8th in the NL in runs scored in '03 and we were 8th in OBP and OPS. Right where you would expect. For all of our baserunning 'prowess,' we outperformed our offensive fundamentals by a factor of not at all.