I Hope She's Warming Up the Grill Tonight

[craigharmann]

You do realize he decided not to eat it, right? Like many people, he might find the idea of eating meat disgusting.

Right, after learning about how the cows were treated and killed. I don't think he woke up one morning and said, "I can't stand the taste of meat, I will now become a vegetarian". His wife read some books about how cows were treated and that's what lead to the whole thing, if I remember right.

 

[sgtcluels]

And that's why he finds is disgusting.

 

It's very easy to get enough protein as a veggie, the bigger issue is the fat intake along with somethings like Tofu. So he shouldn't "hit for less power" but he may get heftier due to the fat intake. This off course can be offset by eating a lower fat diet, and I'm sure he's working with a nutritionist (I can think of millions of reasons why). And you can't say he'd be thinner eating meat, who knows he might be twice as over weight.

 

Somethings wrong with his swing and plate approach, and to say it's veggie is just a convenient excuse. Just like saying Bill E Halls at bat problems would be solved by Lasik.

[RU Rah Rah]

Sidestepping the ever-fascinating vegetarian topic for just one second, I thought I would take a look at Prince's HR totals by the 14 calendar months of his big league career (excluding his call-up in late '05):

 

2006: 5, 4, 7, 3, 5, 4

2007: 6, 13, 8, 3, 9, 11

2008: 4, 2 (thru today)

 

It's interesting to line them up and look for the mode (4) and the median (5):

 

2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13

[brewjihad]

I was watching one of the games against the pirates on fsn piitsburgh when they should clips of Fielder HRs against pittsburgh from last season at PNC. The differnces in his appearance from last yr to this yr are startling. Last year Prince looked like a big athletic guy. This year he looks like a beached whale.

 

I was watching some clips from last year and was surprised to see that he looks quite a bit bigger now. I don't buy for a second that becoming a vegetarian has caused him to lose power, just look at him- he's a big dude.

 

"Power" in baseball is an interesting thing. You'd think the biggest, strongest guys would hit the most home runs and while that's generally true, a slightly off-center hit can be the difference between a flyout to the warning track or a home run. I'm confident Prince will get hot and go on a 10-homer month in one of the next two.

 

In addition to RU Rah Rah's post, here are Prince Fielder's home run totals as a professional:

2003 A: 27 HR

2004 AA: 23 HR

2005 AAA/MLB: 30 HR

2006 MLB: 28 HR

2007 MLB: 50 HR

 

or 27, 23, 30, 28, 50. There's an outlier in there. I don't think last year was a fluke, but we shouldn't be expecting him to hit 50 every year. If he can OBP over .370 with 30-35 home runs, that's not shabby production.

 

And the series against the Braves has enlightened me to the fact that Mark Texiera has 5 homers so far this year. Did he go vegetarian too?

[Dmiles23]

I could care less about how many homers the guy hits. I believe those are going to come eventually. What really bothers me is that over the last month, he is hitting .298 but yet he's only scored 9 runs and has 7 rbi. He has turned into one of the least clutch players on the team. It seems like every time he's up with runners in scoring position, it's either a double play ball or a pop in the infield.

 

As for the no meat part... My dad was telling me they had a nutritionist on the radio talking about people switching to vegetarian diets. The nutritionist was saying that a major set back for people switching over to a vegetarian diet was immediate results were not immediate. He said that over the first 4 months, a person usually gains weight no matter how hard they work out. (ok, don't quote me on this next part... I think I understood it, but may have some details wrong) When a person loses weight, it's from muscle burning fat. When a person switches to a vegetarian diet, their muscles get a shock and don't burn the fat even as quickly as when you were eating meat. So many people get discouraged for the first 4 months because they gain weight, and I'm thinking Prince is still in that 4 months... or close to it.

 

So after all that, I'm thinking his home run totals have little or nothing to do with him actually not eating meat. I think it is a combination of him putting on weight and causing his bat to be a little slower, him not seeing the ball very well, and pitchers pitching him different.

[Brian the Automator]

Didn't we already have this argument?

[RU Rah Rah]

Can anyone find ready photographic evidence (before v. after) of the purported . . . blimping?

[sgtcluels]

Didn't we already have this argument?

Not much to talk about.. unless we can get some McClung, real staff ace threads?

[Brian the Automator]

Not much to talk about.. unless we can get some McClung, real staff ace threads?

Touche.... Let the completely grounded in science arguments regarding Prince's perceived protein intake levels continue!

[trwi7]

I will give Prince credit. If he still isn't eating meat and just stopped he has incredible will power. I would never be able to just stop.

[mothershipconnection]

You don't lose muscle that fast, people don't go vegetarian and have crazy muscle atrophy begin the next day.

If people want to rail on his diet, the obvious high amount of calories should be the key issue, not meat.

[dlk9s]

I think he's lost power and you do not. Let's see how the rest of the season plays out. I really don't see him hitting 35 HR's this year.

Lack of home runs does not necessarily mean he has lost power. From what I've seen (admittedly, I have not seen many games), Prince just isn't making solid contact as much as he did last year. He seems (and this is without looking at statistical evidence, so correct me if I'm wrong), to be hitting a lot of grounders and just not hitting the ball on the nose.

EDIT: I wrote this before I saw rluz's graph about the grounders.

 

 

 

 

[Thats Freakin Sweet]

Well it appears that there is some factual evidence that due to albumin and amino acids, that a vegetarian diet doesn't provide the same quality of protein and protein absorbtion for maintaining muscle mass....interesting.

Nutritionist or not, playing a long baseball season wears you down and if you aren't getting good protein, strength will wane (even moreso than normal....there's a reason guys were juicing to maintain strength). That said, I think a lot of Prince's lack of power is due to his swing. He's trying to hit home runs (I've noticed a big hitch on hitter's counts) and this is leading to topping the ball (grounding out), popping out, or even when he drives the ball it tends to have top-spin on it, which, as we all know, hinders how far the ball will carry. He's pressing for dingers and he needs to relax and they'll come to him. It's not like he's the only guy that's trying to park it on what seems like virtually every swing, Hall is doing the same thing. I'm starting to wonder what Skaalen does if he isn't hammering into these guys noggins that they need to stop hacking.

[southpaw121505]

I hate the argument that he is being pitched differently. How many star/power/clean up hitters get grooved fastballs? During his amazing year last year people were going right after him and it took 50 bombs for people to adjust? Come on, he's been the most feared hitter in this line-up, he's just flat out sucking right now. He has gotten pitches to hit and missed them.

[Gopher74]

What about his performance through 1/3 of the season leads you to believe he's regained his form from last year?

He had 1 HR all of spring training. Several scouting reports said he'd eat his way out of the league. Not many thought it'd be without meat.

 

 

I don't think a career is lost with a 1/3rd of a season playing below average. It's not like Prince is having a Ortiz like start to the season(Ortiz after about 3 weeks). He's just not quite hitting on all cylinders. I'll bet just about anything he goes on a 10 HR in 15 games type binge and his numbers will look a lot more respectable.

 

Hell, .270/.370 really ain't that bad. Throw in the power and you expect more out of Prince, but be patient. You'll likely get a whole lot more out of Prince.

 

[Gopher74]

Can anyone find ready photographic evidence (before v. after) of the purported . . . blimping?

Yea, I'd like to see two pictures in which he's got the same basic pose so that they're not mis-leading. I don't think he's any bigger this year, and I certainly don't think he's anywhere near 50 pounds bigger. It's funny, some people will tell you how much weight he's lost, some will tell you that he's gained some. The 50 pounds I've heard here though is the first time I've heard a number like that.

 

[kramnoj]

You don't lose muscle that fast, people don't go vegetarian and have crazy muscle atrophy begin the next day.

 

The issue isn't about him losing muscle, it's about him displaying less power. Let's say that he has the same muscle, but he has added fat on top of it, which could numerous effects. It could slow down his swing, it could lead to quicker fatigue and less stamina, it could slow his speed so that he isn't going to leg out as many doubles, or he sometimes isn't going to score from 1st on a double with two outs in the inning.

 

Fielder has gained weight, there isn't any question about it. Watch some Brewers Classics on FSN and you'll be able to notice the difference. He is developing neck fat, his stomach and chest "jiggle" when he's running. It didn't do that before, or at least not as much as before.

[Fatter than Joey]

The one thing I have noticed over the years is that the last "tool" players seem to lose is power.

 

Prince may have lost some power to his diet, but i seriously doubt there is enough loss to prevent him from hitting a baseball 320+ feet.

 

I'd certainly concede that there is something amiss -- I doubt it is his meat intake. I'd be more worried about his pop-tart/dorito intake first.

[JJHardy7]

I personally don't think his power outage has much to do with his diet. To me it boils down to a few things -- his mechanics are screwed up, he's pressing a bit trying to prove he deserves a huge contract, or he isn't in the physical shape he was lasat year. It's going to be pretty hard at this point and time to prove either of these, but I think it's safe to say that he's not the same player this year that he was last year.

 

I honestly believe if the Brewers aren't in it in July Fielder should be on the trading block. I know it might not be a popular move with fans, but if he doesn't turn it around and his physical shape is the reason his value will go down big time. I think Prince's bat last year more than made up for his limitations at first base, but not so much this year. We don't have above average players at 1B, 2B, or 3B (Hall) and improving 1B could help out Weeks and Hall should they be in the long-term plans of the Brewers.

[RyDogg66]

The more I think about it the more it is probably mechanics. When I was in high school I could hit a driver in golf 250 yards, straight as an arrow. I dont play much any more, about 1-2 times a year and I can barely hit the driver 200 yards. I know it is because my swing mechanics are screwy but I dont care enough to change anything about it. Im certainly stronger than I was 12-15 years ago but cant hit the ball as far.

 

I also dont think anyone expected Prince to hit 50 again this year, or any year. I think people were tempering their expectations to Prince being a 40 a year HR guy so long as he was a Brewer. To have gone to a 25-30 HR guy just doesnt make a lot of sense.

[ozzybourne]

This year he looks like a beached whale. He is at least 50 lbs more than he was last year and that is why he isn't the same player.

i believe you have hit a home run with this overweight viewpoint--although +50 lbs is probably too much. i was thinking 30-40 pounds.

 

it also is quite obvious that his footwork around first base is a bit more clumsy this year--yo! when they traded the big o to open up first base for prince(ss), i was surprised that he actually looked pretty nimble in his fielding, especially scooping low throws--not now monty. this must be affecting his mechanics at the plate, as well as defensively. bottom line--until he gets in better shape physically, he will not reach his potential again.

 

 

(pared back long quote --1992)

[jeffy]

I honestly believe if the Brewers aren't in it in July Fielder should be on the trading block. ... if he doesn't turn it around and his physical shape is the reason his value will go down big time.

But if in July he is still having a down year power-wise, what is his trade value going to be?

[jeffy]

I am sure the Brewers already have a dietician/nutritionist on the payroll...

 

You should not be "sure", as they say they do not have a dietician on staff:

 

"Some teams have a full-on dietitian on staff, but we just don't," said Tyler Barnes, vice president of communications for the Brewers.

 

 

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=722021

 

mothershipconnection wrote:

---

You don't lose muscle that fast, people don't go vegetarian and have crazy muscle atrophy begin the next day.

 

 

Or do you?

 

Protein is the big issue here, according to Nicole Kerneen-Fasules, who works with triathletes, marathon runners, weight lifters, rowers and the like..."If he starts losing muscle mass," she warned, "he'll see a difference in performance within 72 hours."

[chuckcrim]

Prince in May of 2007:

http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/images/2007/05/19/lcZCRaqC.jpg

 

 

Prince in May of 2008:

 

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/ee/fullj.5ef8cfcaf7beff21fc150fc6f23c271d/5ef8cfcaf7beff21fc150fc6f23c271d-getty-80332030jd017_atlanta_brave.jpg

[Mr QL]

Maybe Prince just stopped taking steroids/HGH after Mitchell report came out. Does seem rather coincidental that his body has so radically changed along with his and the rest of league's lack of offensive production compared to years past. Just sayin' is all. Rather it just be his ridiculous diet change though.

 

Fact is, Prince does look fatter and I'd say it has effected his play significantly. I'd also say becoming a vegetarian has had a lot to do with this weight gain.