2009-05-12 Marlins (Koronka) at Brewers (Parra): 7:05 PM CDT [Brewers win, 6-3]

[razzzorsharp]

No I didn't about Rickie. I have confidence that he will make contact the majority of the time.

[kiwi brewer]

untuckem. nicely done, boys. love watching this team. this summer is gonna rock-like.

[crewcrazy]

I know it's early, but they're only a game back of first place right now. That series against the Cards is going to be a ton of fun...but let's finish sweeping the Marlins first. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

[owbc]

The Reds are quietly making a push to be contenders this year. Once the weather warms up, it will be interesting to see if their pitching holds up at Great American Smallpark.

[SoCal Brew Crew Fan]

The Reds are quietly making a push to be contenders this year. Once the weather warms up, it will be interesting to see if their pitching holds up at Great American Smallpark.

 

No doubt. They are scaring me a little more than the Cards. The Cards bullpen is still horrendous. They just can't hit at the rate they have been even if Pujols keeps up the MVP push. The Reds are tough. Their top 4 starters are solid, although they can be inconsistent they all have talent. Add in Owings bat and you have a pretty solid #5. Their backend of the pen is solid. Jay Bruce is a flat out stud too. I'm glad Dusty is their manager, but Jockety as their GM scares me.

[RightFieldCoder]

Anyone know the estimated distance on Prince's blast?

The first one was estimated at 372. So now I know I sit 374 from home plate. All those years as a season ticket holder, and this is my first HR ball! I am still pumped about it. Quick disclaimer: I did not catch it on the fly. I wasn't going to loose my hand. It hit off the cement railing in front of me and back onto the field. Carroll picked it up and threw it back to us and I grabbed it. I also caught Cory's warm up ball in the ninth. I handed it to two little girls sitting next to me who were huge Hart fans and were asking for him all game.

 

The second blast was estimated at 432. At least, those were the distances announced over the PA at the ballpark.

[SoCal Brew Crew Fan]

Congrats Robin...enjoy the ball!!! Nice touch on the second ball to the kids.

[Ennder]

The Reds are quietly making a push to be contenders this year. Once the weather warms up, it will be interesting to see if their pitching holds up at Great American Smallpark.

Not worried at all, that is not a good lineup and I don't expect their pitching to hold up. They might scratch their way over .500 but it will take a lot of luck for them to be in the playoff picture.

[Invader3K]

Well, the NL Central is shaping up to be tougher than some expected, at least right now. Only division to have four teams above .500 right now, and of course we always have to deal with being in the only 6 team division. I think the Brewers have a chance to take 1st place, but it's not going to be an easy ride.

 

I think given how this team is playing, this could be a really special season, though.

 

Edit: It's also worth noting that the Reds and Brewers are currently tied for possession of the NL Wild Card.

[TheCrew07]

Cincy has built a very nice pitching staff, they are extremely talented but young. If the expectation is for Parra to improve, why won't Volquez and Cueto do the same? Harang is a sub 4.0 ERA pitcher, Arroyo/Owings are probably a wash with Looper/Suppan but Owings adds value with his bat.

 

They have 2 extremely talented youngsters and 3 vets, that rotation is arguably better than ours talent wise. Look out when the results catch up to the talent.

 

They are a team on the rise and if the youngsters develop ahead of the curve, they could very well be in the picture all year, at the very least they are definitely a threat for 2010 and beyond.

 

The same is true of Pit... don't write them off because they haven't been good, that's what fans of other teams have been doing with the Brewers forever.

 

Both Cincy and Pit have a nice young core of talent.

[Invader3K]

I don't get why the Reds let Dunn walk. Given what he signed for with Washington, he would have been a huge asset to the Reds this year.

[Ennder]

The Pirates have a few players but they aren't really close to a playoff team yet, they still have massive holes.

 

The Reds do have a lot of good young talent but I still think they are a year away and Baker will cost them a couple games.

[RobDeer 45]

Nice win here! Lets get todays game now too so we can garauntee 2 of 3. Go Crew!

[SoCal Brew Crew Fan]

We were a big favorite yesterday and we'll be a dog tomorrow. Today is the key to taking the series. Need a good effort from Looper and Nolasco to keep struggling. Fish bullpen is fairly solid so we need to strike early...and often.

[logan82]

I don't get why the Reds let Dunn walk. Given what he signed for with Washington, he would have been a huge asset to the Reds this year.

 

He was a base clogger.

[GormanHarvey]

Very encouraged with Manny's ability to bounce back after a rough first 2 innings and somewhat salvage his pitch count to get through 6 and finish very, very strong. Good sign. He obviously has the stuff, but by far my biggest concern was/is his mental make-up and I think last night was a big step in the right direction.

 

I know Prince's second HR was a blast, but I'm not sure you can hit a ball any harder than Rick hit his HR. That thing had a vapor trail!

[Ennder]

I think all of this mental makeup stuff is just in peoples heads~ Parra is having problems throwing strikes, there is nothing mental about it other than maybe trying to overthrow a little which is as much physical as mental.

[MJLiverock]

Why is it so inconceivable that Parra needs to work on his mental portion of the game? It has been mentioned numerous times by himself and others that he needs to work on this area, it isn't something just made up on a message board. It isn't like it impossible for guys to lose focus or get frustrated easily and slip into bad habits, it happens and some guys deal with it better than others, unless putting on a Brewer uniform is some sort mental accuity power. Gallardo is mentioned as being mentally tough, why can't a player also fall on the other end of the spectrum? If there was no such thing as mental problems in baseball Steve Sax and Chuck Knoblauch could still throw from 2nd to 1st.

 

Pitching is like golf, a very precise movement controlled and repeated. Nobody has issues when Tiger Woods says he wasnt' there mentally, and everyone praises his focus and mental toughness so again, why is it impossible for a pitcher to have some mental issues to deal with? No one is saying he is blathering basket case, he has a lot of talent but when things go bad they snowball for him and a manager, teammates, and Manny himself, have said he has to learn to overcome adversity and deal with it and toughen up mentally.

[GormanHarvey]

I think all of this mental makeup stuff is just in peoples heads~ Parra is having problems throwing strikes, there is nothing mental about it other than maybe trying to overthrow a little which is as much physical as mental.

Ok, you have never seen him cave and look like he was about to cry after a couple hard hits? If you haven't we must be watching separate teams. It has been alluded to by people in the organization that part of his problem is mental

[Ennder]

He was mentally fine for 22 starts in the middle of the season last year then I guess. None of his stats really suggest he somehow falls apart with runners on or anything, in fact for his career he has been at his worst with bases empty and at his best with RISP.

 

His biggest issue is a lack of control early in games and not being able to put guys away the 3rd time through the order. This is the same problem that like 90% of young pitchers have. Just seems like something that fans have latched onto and are using to explain every bad pitch he makes. Kind of like the fact Bush gave up a few big innings late in games back in early 2007 means he always falls apart late in games even though nothing about his stats suggest it is true. People get an idea in their head and then when they watch a player they aren't seeing them through unbiased eyes.

[TheCrew07]

You may believe that but when the player himself and people within the organization allude to the contrary, well I'm going to go with the people who would actually know, instead of what we the fans might think. When the player himself talks about innings snowballing on him, I'm not sure why people would believe.

 

You don't believe it because there's no statistical proof which is sort of funny because the proof is in the statistics and game logs. When he goes bad he's not "just" missing, he's missing by feet, he's all over place. To you it's probably just random ineffectiveness, to me I'm looking for the root cause.

 

What the difference between Yo and Parra? Objectively Parra actually has the better stuff, why hasn't he enjoyed the same level of success? Why does a pitcher like JDLR struggle for years with better stuff than either? Is it a mechanical flaw in their delivery or is it mental?

 

Bush was similar, when he pitched poorly he usually had 1 inning some place in there where the opposing team would put a significant crooked number. He's been a different pitcher since his demotion, he's said as much. Instead of him trying to do what Maddux wanted him to do he just went out there and did his own thing and it's been working for him. He didn't change his mechanics or his delivery, he simply changed the way he pitches and throws the pitches he wants to throw. The proof is in the result, he's pitched pretty well...

 

I suggest you go through Manny's game logs, in every big inning BBs, WPs, and HBs have played a major role. Sometimes the other guys are going to string some hits together, but there's no reason to walk the opposing the pitcher, or walk in a run. He's simply been giving away too many bases, when doesn't give bases away he's very good, when he does, he's pretty mediocre. Where you see random variance others will see a pitcher fighting himself.

[GormanHarvey]

Well put TheCrew07. I don't know how much more proof is needed than the player himself admitting he loses composure or confidence in himself from time to time. Gallardo is the anti-Parra as far as that goes at this point

[Ennder]

Well put TheCrew07. I don't know how much more proof is needed than the player himself admitting he loses composure or confidence in himself from time to time. Gallardo is the anti-Parra as far as that goes at this point

That is what 90% of young pitchers do so there is nothing at all abnormal about it, /shrug. That is what learning how to pitch at the big league level is all about, Parra isn't unique and 'soft', he's just inexperienced and normal.