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Nice to wake up to find out that the Birds won! Sounds like Cmart took a shot. Any word on him this morning?
Here is the Wong play for those who missed it. I am reminded of the poster who had tried to convince us that Gyorko is a better second baseman than Wong…
GIVE @KOLTENWONG THE GOLD GLOVE NOW! https://t.co/i2QJFUYv3r
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 22, 2018
To me, O’Neill looked like he was over-compensating on the Bader flys after missing two in the lights/sky.
Pads, I had the same impression. Yielding to the center fielder when he is calling for the ball is as basic as it can be.
I don’t listen to John Rooney enough.
"Got him, got him at first! I don't know how!"
Last night's highlight wasn't the first time John Rooney and @Cardinals fans everywhere were left wondering how Kolten Wong made that play https://t.co/BC9UbskaM8
— KMOX Sports (@KMOXSports) August 22, 2018
That was one of the best plays I have ever seen. Most of the time, you would not even throw the ball in that situation, after bobbling it. But to throw it like he did, and have the throw right there was incredible.
I am reminded of the poster who had tried to convince us that Gyorko is a better second baseman than Wong…
When you play your best players at their best position, good things happen. It is a basic concept that has griped me about the Cardinals for several years now, as they never seemed to understand it. They were always looking at the short term.
It is a synergistic thing. When you have guys with talent, you play ’em. You put up with the rough stretches they go through, because talent will win out. They will naturally make great plays, and do great things between the cold spells. Those “great things” start to build confidence, and guys say “I can play at this level”. Eventually that momentum leads to more consistency and better production.
I am reminded of the poster who had tried to convince us that Gyorko is a better second baseman than Wong…
I’ll be your Huckleberry, Brian.
2013: Wong had an 18.2 UZR/150 in 111.0 innings; Gyorko had -0.7 (roughly average) in 1008 innings
2014: Wong had a 3.2 UZR/150 in 887 innings; Gyorko had -5.0 in 951.1 innings
2015: Wong had a 2.0 UZR/150 in 1278.2 innings; Gyorko had -1.4 in 713.2 innings
2016: Gyorko had a 10.9 UZR/150 in 337.2 innings; Wong had 8.8 in 635.1 innings
2017: Gyorko had a 21.5 UZR/150 in 42.1 innings (admittedly small sample); Wong had a -1.1 UZR/150 in 888 inningsNow, I’m going to ask you Brian, is it easier to play multiple positions well (Gyorko comes into Spring training practicing 3-4 positions) or one (Wong)?
If you are looking at the trends from 2014 to 2017, what do you see for each of those two players?
Feels like narratives get spun sometimes when there is an agenda.
It certainly does, Brian. It certainly does.
No one was clairvoyant to know that Wong, for example, would take off, and Fowler did not.
But you are saying you could see past the defensive metrics from 2014 to 2017 and knew Wong was going to have a breakout year defensively in 2018?
It is easy for tough-talking internet GMs to tell DeWitt to swallow over $50 million of his dollars.
You know, when I fist came on this board in 2016, I often thought you were a keyboard warrior hiding in your parents basement, because you were often the leader of the lynch mob against anyone who said anything critical of the front office. After the Cardinals missed the playoffs two years in a row, you mellowed a lot, but still have a ways to go.
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