Position changes

[rog]

In this era of 13-man pitching staffs, a player who can play a variety of positions has a nice value.  But check out these position changes in yesterday's Phillies game:

.  Scott Kingery pinch hit in the fifth inning, then moved from center field to third base to right field.  Even after entering the game in the fifth.

.  Rhys Hoskins moved from left field to right field to left field to right field.

.  Aaron Altherr moved from right field to left field to right field to left field to right field.


Maybe the outfielders were shifting according to the hand of the batter.  That could make sense.  But I've never seen that many position changes?  Has anyone else?

[sfgdood]

is that Mike Kingery's boy?

[donk33]

Mar 24, 2018 9:46:22 GMT -5 rog said:

In this era of 13-man pitching staffs, a player who can play a variety of positions has a nice value.  But check out these position changes in yesterday's Phillies game:

.  Scott Kingery pinch hit in the fifth inning, then moved from center field to third base to right field.  Even after entering the game in the fifth.

.  Rhys Hoskins moved from left field to right field to left field to right field.

.  Aaron Altherr moved from right field to left field to right field to left field to right field.


Maybe the outfielders were shifting according to the hand of the batter.  That could make sense.  But I've never seen that many position changes?  Has anyone else?

dk...Joe Amalfitano flew into NY as a bonus boy just after playing in a high school all-star game...the Giants were in a tight game with Joe on the bench...they needed an infielder and they brought in Joe..the game went into extra innings...they switched Joe  between 2B and 3B depending on the hitter....trying to keep him from having to make a play....I don't remember how many switches he made......we ere laughing are heads off....

[rog]

is that Mike Kingery's boy?


Rog -- I wondered the same thing, Randy, but no, he's not. What he is though is a lot better than Mike ever was.

[rog]

Joey went from pinch runner to third baseman for two plays to second baseman for the final two plays of the 13th and final inning. I have a couple of questions, Don.

First, the second batter in the 13th inning was Bob Borkowski, who sacrificed to first base. Borkowski was a right-handed batter who I would guess was as likely to hit a ball to third base as he was to hit it to second. With the bunt also a possibility, why didn't the Giants move Joey when Borkowski came up?

For that matter, the first hitter of the inning was right-handed hitting Wally Post, and I would guess he was likely to pull. One could make an argument that Joey should have been moved to second for Borkowski or possibly even for Post. I guess when Borkowski came up, the Giants were hoping for the double play, so they left Hank at second for that possibility.

Second, Joey wasn't that bad a fielder, was he? Probably as good or better than Hank? Why the big concern about keeping the ball away from Joey?

Quick quiz: Which future Hall of Famer did Joey pinch hit for?

[rog]

The Phillies showed a great way to deal with the extra year of control. They extended it from six or seven years to nine by signing Kingery to a six-year contract with three option years. Kingery is guaranteed $24 million, and he'll receive $66 million if he plays all nine years.

This is a nice deal for Kingery, since it guarantees him $24 million. And it's a great deal for the Phillies, who would have been faced with the potential of losing him to free agency after six or seven years and are instead able to buy two or three more years of control with a guarantee of only $24 million.

It will be a shock if Scott isn't an All-Star at some point, and this year he'll likely finish in the top five or fewer in the Rookie of the Year voting. Kingery is such a good player and athlete that the Phillies are planning to start him out as a super sub, playing him all over the diamond so he can get his at bats.

Congratulations to the Phillies. They're trying very hard to rebuild, and if they become good along the way, Kingery's contract will give them much more flexibility in making other moves.

By the way, unless the Giants shed contracts and punt the season, they wouldn't be able to use that strategy with say Steve Duggar, since the salary cap uses AVERAGE salary, and that would put the Giants over the cap.

It's unlikely that Duggar will be as good as Kingery either, so the likely cost savings would be less.

[donk33]

Mar 24, 2018 20:49:23 GMT -5 rog said:

Joey went from pinch runner to third baseman for two plays to second baseman for the final two plays of the 13th and final inning. I have a couple of questions, Don.

First, the second batter in the 13th inning was Bob Borkowski, who sacrificed to first base. Borkowski was a right-handed batter who I would guess was as likely to hit a ball to third base as he was to hit it to second. With the bunt also a possibility, why didn't the Giants move Joey when Borkowski came up?

For that matter, the first hitter of the inning was right-handed hitting Wally Post, and I would guess he was likely to pull. One could make an argument that Joey should have been moved to second for Borkowski or possibly even for Post. I guess when Borkowski came up, the Giants were hoping for the double play, so they left Hank at second for that possibility.

Second, Joey wasn't that bad a fielder, was he? Probably as good or better than Hank? Why the big concern about keeping the ball away from Joey?

Quick quiz: Which future Hall of Famer did Joey pinch hit for?

dk...Wally Post was not in the game when Joey came in...with Ted Kluszewski leading off...mammoth LH hitter, Joey, who replaced the 2B, moved to 3B and Hank Thompson moved from 3B to 2B....Klu walked. and with the bunt or DP in the cards, Leo decided (I guess) that the Giants would be better off with Hank at 2B...the bunt,to the right  side,worked and the Reds had the tying run on second with two right handers due up...Leo then switched Hank and Joey...and my Rochester neighbor ex-bonus boy Johnny Antonelli pitched out off it...complete 13 inning win.....nobody knew how well Joey would do in the field as it was the first time he ever played there in pro ball....his experience was limited to a couple of pinch running assignments....Joey joined the Giants in the spring and he sat on the bench...he was allowed to go back to California for an all-star game and returned prior to the Red's series..Hank   Thompson was a all round fielder who played 2B,3B and the outfield...I couldn't compare the Joey to Hank as fielders....the one memory I have about Hank was watching him hit 2 inside the park homers in the Polo Grounds in 1950....I also saw him and Monte Irvin play for Jersey City and could never understand why the Giants brought up Hank before Monte....this is how Baseball-Reference reports it...the details of the game is a little fuzzy after 64 years....

[rog]

You are correct, Don. I was wrong.

Perhaps you want to take a crack at which Hall of Famer Joey pinch hit for. If you pay close attention, you already know.