Rickie Weeks--not related to confusion thread!

[brewerphandog]

I have to say while watching him this series--he plays so hard, he is a treat to watch in many regards. He is intense, he has improved defensively, he runs people over, takes guys out, is a very good baserunner...dang. I know I have been all over him, but there is not one person in this world other than maybe him and his parents, who wants him to absolutely absolutely explode offensively more than I That young man just does almost everything well, except hit an offspeed pitch that is.

 

Maybe the move back up the order will change things for him?

[crewcrazy]

It's been almost a full year since Rickie's wrist injury, and the Brewers have been saying all along it'd be almost a full year before he would be fully recovered. He was a lot of fun to watch in this series, and hopefully he keeps it up on the road. While I didn't like the idea of Rickie getting "benched," it looks like it lit a bit of a fire under him since he's been playing with incredible intensity lately. Only a matter of time before we see him start launching HR's into Big Mac Land again. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Never Outhustled]

I think it will definately help getting him out of the 8 hole, and getting him back to the leadoff spot. Pitchers don't want to risk walks leading off the games, which means less breaking balls. Rickie can still hit the fastball. His speed is a major asset on the bases, and leading off minimizes his inability to hit with RISP.

 

Also, leadoff is a good spot for a strikeout guy, despite the tired, old cliche. The only negative to Ks is they don't advance baserunners, and theres fewer runners on for the leadoffman. Strikeouts have no corelation to OBA.

[afeter]

rickie needs to hit a HR. maybe a couple. I bet that would help him really get going.

[1992casey]

Well, phandog, it seems that this is "kinda" related to the other thread, but what the heck. It's probably a good time for a new one. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

X ellence, from what I understand, strikeouts absolutely correlate to on base percentage, but not necessarily in a negative way. High OBP guys tend to see more pitches, and while running up balls, they'll also be running up strikes.

 

But I absolutely agree with you that strikeouts aren't a big issue for a leadoff hitter. He's one of the guys in the lineup who tends to come up with the bases empty more often than others.

[rluzinski]

If Weeks' wrist is still hurting his power, he can still be an asset to the team. He's not King every other AB anymore, so just getting some balls in play and racking up some walks makes him a whole lot better than before.

[DuWayne Steurer]

I seem to recall a few interviews (and Ned stating it as well) that Rickie prefers not to hit leadoff. If today (small, SMALL sample!) is any indication, I think he can get over it. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

 

Seriously though, I think if he's going to play everyday, he's much more suited to the leadoff role than Hart, if he can even get his average back up to .250, he'll be an asset in that role. He's shown over his first few years that an OBP .100 pts higher than his batting average is something we should count on.

 

Hart did not do poorly in the leadoff role, but his power is definately more of an asset down in the order a bit.

[clancyphile]

Believe it or not, Ricke's OBP as of the last game was .337 on his .222 batting average.

 

His rookie season, the OBP was .333 on a .239 average.

 

He's really improved at taking walks this year. If he were hitting at last year's clip (.279), his OBP would be over .390.

[JohnBriggs12]

It's at this exact point in the season, Monday July 24, 2006 to be exact where Weeks came out of a game against Pittsburgh at which time the Brewers trailed by just 4 1/2 in the wild card. The Brewers walloped the Pirates that night 12-8 and Steve Phillips said on Baseball Tonight that the Brewers would sign and not trade Carlos Lee.

 

Losses the next two games to Pittsburgh though, coupled with the loss of Weeks, led Melvin to pull the trigger on the Lee deal and the rest is history.

 

If Weeks hits .280 the rest of the season and stays healthy, I believe the Brewers win the division going away. He's that much of a force if he's going well.

[adambr2]

I like Weeks so much and think he could be a great leadoff hitter.

 

Look at his average, .222. Now look at his OBP, .337. A full .115 higher. For a 24 year old, that's a great show of patience and one area of his game that has come around VERY well since he came up.

 

Now think if he hit .290, which a healthy Weeks is more than capable of. We might see an OBP around .400 and 40 steals. That's a hell of a leadoff guy especially when he'll give you extra base power. Oh, and he finally learned how to play defense.

 

As much as people have been frustrated with Weeks, no one can question that his defense and plate patience have considerably improved this year. That's a significant step.

[brettac1]

Steve Phillips said on Baseball Tonight that the Brewers would sign and not trade Carlos Lee.

 

He was way wrong, though. I mean, it's Steve Phillips. They were never going to re-sign Lee, I don't think they were even negotiating with him by this late in the year last year.