At the moment marks the final day of January, and we’re simply two weeks away from opening day. The urgent query is whether or not the workforce will probably be prepared. Hitting is lastly warming up, however our protection remains to be a catastrophe. Poor communication and fielding points stay fixed issues. On the pitching entrance, this can be a vital second for us. Our beginning trio isn’t overpowering, and Nick Robert’s efficiency is a chief instance; he began sturdy for 3 innings, however the fourth inning revealed some severe flaws. We’re nonetheless ready to see how Walters and Hugus are progressing this weekend. Center reduction and the Nearer place are areas of great concern transferring ahead. Our starters must constantly ship 5 to six innings or extra, one thing they struggled with final season. Cleveland’s struggles in the present day reinforce my perception that he’s not able to tackle the Nearer position. Conversely, Will Smith is displaying promise, doubtlessly as a setup man and even as our nearer. With solely two weeks till the common season, a whole lot of questions stay.
Nick Robert and Lazaro Collera have been on the mound, every finishing 4 innings of labor. Nick demonstrated a stable begin for the primary three innings, however the fourth inning proved to be a vital turning level. JD started the inning with a runner on first base, efficiently executing a sacrifice by Brandon DeGoti to advance the runner to second. Sadly, the next occasions unraveled rapidly, with Evan Taveras launching a house run to deep middle, supported by consecutive singles from Marsh, Williams, and Kulikowski. This sequence of occasions raises vital considerations about our beginning rotation. Like final season, our starters are struggling to increase their outings past 3 to 4 innings, putting undue strain on the bullpen, which is unsustainable and will result in fatigue.
Lazaro Collera encountered substantial challenges exacerbated by miscommunication amongst infield and outfield gamers, leading to a ball dropping between first and second base, resulting in a double. With a runner in scoring place, Evan Taveras took benefit of the state of affairs with an RBI single. He continued his aggressive baserunning, later scoring on a handed ball. Within the 4th inning, JD positioned runners on the corners to implement what we check with as a “razzle-dazzle” play, the place the intent was to attract a throw from the catcher, permitting the runner on third to attain. Sadly, Daniel Cuvet didn’t execute the plan, swinging on the first pitch, which rendered the setup ineffective.
Because the inning progressed, Lazaro’s efficiency took a downturn, culminating in a single and a stroll that loaded the bases. He then issued a stroll to Ethan Puig, which resulted in one other run, and Mike Torres capped off the inning with a sacrifice fly to deep middle, successfully concluding Lazaro’s day on the mound.
Alex Stanyek and AJ Ciscar have been scheduled to pitch two innings every; nonetheless, AJ was faraway from the sport after simply three batters on account of complaints of dizziness, which we hope is a minor challenge. Alex, returning to the rotation after not taking part in within the fall, confronted some challenges as properly. Dorian Gonzalez made an affect with a house run to proper discipline in opposition to him. Whereas Alex struggled with a few wild pitches and a stroll, he managed to restrict the harm to solely Dorian’s dwelling run. Like his predecessors, he needed to take care of a runner on first base initially of his second inning, an unlucky state of affairs he wished to keep away from. A flyout to middle, adopted by a 9-3 double play, offered some reduction; nonetheless, from my observations, he nonetheless requires appreciable work earlier than he will be confidently relied upon from the bullpen.
With AJ leaving early on account of dizziness, JD determined to not full that half of the inning and have Alex return to the mound after a brief break. Will Smith, on brief discover, accomplished what would have been AJ’s second inning of pitching. Quick discover or not, Will turned within the sharpest efficiency of the day and opened the door for consideration for the set-up pitcher and even Nearer. He appeared very efficient with a pair of strikeouts and a 6-3 groundout. Will is a graduate pupil coming in from Coastal Carolina. JD must take a better look and critically contemplate the potential of the Nearer or set-up. JD has his eyes on Jackson Cleveland, which he gave one other not-so-closer outing in the present day.
Jackson completed pitching 2 innings in the present day, along with his 2nd inning inflicting me probably the most concern. In his first inning, he didn’t enable a run, however he was hit fairly properly, giving up a pair of lengthy flyouts. Nonetheless, I really feel the 2nd inning ought to squash any ideas of him being additional thought-about for the workforce’s nearer position at the moment. In earlier appearances, he was unable to shut, and in the present day would have been disastrous had this been an precise sport. He opened the inning with JD reaching first base. Gaby superior him with a single. Fabio laid down a sacrifice, which Jackson retrieved however then threw extensive of third, permitting one run to attain. With runners on 2nd and third, Tanner Smith drove the nail deeper with a 2 RBI single. Jackson has but to show that he has earned the position of Nearer. Michael Fernandez, solely a freshman, seems to be a greater candidate for assuming the duties, and in the present day Will Smith seems to be like a a lot stronger choice to be thought-about.
The offense is clearly gaining momentum, reaching a preseason excessive of 15 hits. Crucially, these hits got here with runners in scoring place, an space the place we struggled final season. Dorian Gonzalez and Evan Taveras every hit dwelling runs to middle and proper discipline, respectively. With 4 catchers on the roster, deciding who will take the position of alternate catcher after Tanner Smith will probably be a problem. Though Evan can definitely hit, his throwing isn’t sturdy. He could be superb for pinch-hitting. Notably, three gamers had a number of hits: Max Galvin, who went 2-for-3 and is constantly hitting onerous, and Evan Taveras, who completed with a 2-for-4 efficiency.
The protection is an entire different downside that doesn’t appear to be getting any higher. There isn’t any communication and sloppy play. The power to show a DP has not been absolutely examined however positively wants work. The protection is the workforce’s Achilles’ Heel, and until they will flip it round, it should value us dearly. Nobody is taking cost. That’s the backside line.
Loads of areas to enhance upon and so little time to take action. Tomorrow it’s again below the lights on the Gentle beginning with first pitch at 6:45 PM.
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