Rickie Weeks so far this season

[rluzinski]

How do you know he needs a mental break? For all you know he feels great at the plate and just isn't getting the results.. it happens. He looks 10x better at the plate than he did a week ago already. (Hard to get much worse)

He's still striking out all the time. Plus, he still isn't swinging at the first pitch fastball right down the middle.

Rickie has never swung at the first pitch very often. Perhaps he's getting more to hit earlier in the count this season but I don't see why that would be the case. I would expect the opposite, actually.

[JohnBriggs12]

rluzinski is correct. Weeks has always taken a ton of first pitch fastballs. It's more noticeable this year because he hasn't hit (6 weeks and counting since his last multi-hit game).

 

The problem this season is not only the first pitch but how easy it is for major league pitchers get 2 strikes on him. He rarely puts the ball in play with his first swing in an AB whenever that comes in a count. A typical Weeks AB is first pitch strike (looking) then a foul ball on the 2nd pitch.

[HiAndTight]

I hear ya. He has squared up on a couple balls and hit some deeper flies. I just can't stand him watching that first pitch fastball right down the pipe. This weekend he had a 3-pitch at-bat and never took his bat off the shoulder. Kind of like watching Corey Hart last night on called strike threes (twice). I can handle it if Weeks can get above .200 by the break. We already have the entire Nashville squad in the dugout. Might as well have him out there.

 

 

 

I'm in complete agreement with you on the 1st pitch thing. I think his mentality might be a little bit too much like that of a leadoff hitter.

 

He's getting almost get me over fastballs almost every 1st pitch. He needs to just let it rip. But sitting him down isn't going to do that and in that scenario, he'd likely be used as a PH'er anyway, which IMO would only exacerbate the situation.

 

He's an all star and we all know he's talented, but he's simply in a huge funk. He watching fastballs on the inner half that he often put in the seats the last couple years and flailing at that slider off the corner again and again.

 

Get him attacking early in the count and get a couple multi hit games and hopefully he can go on a team.

 

With the way the team is playing right now, Weeks getting going could be monumentally huge for us.

[HiAndTight]

How do you know he needs a mental break? For all you know he feels great at the plate and just isn't getting the results.. it happens. He looks 10x better at the plate than he did a week ago already. (Hard to get much worse)

He's still striking out all the time. Plus, he still isn't swinging at the first pitch fastball right down the middle.

Rickie has never swung at the first pitch very often. Perhaps he's getting more to hit earlier in the count this season but I don't see why that would be the case. I would expect the opposite, actually.

 

 

 

Yeah, he has taken pitches and a lot of fastballs early in the count, especially 1st pitch fastballs in the past, but he is doing it MORE this year and in the past he was more concerned with getting on base as a leadoff hitter.

 

Not to mention, there were a lot of times he saw a first pitch fastball and hammered it. I would guess that's where probably a quarter to a third of his HR's have come from in the past 3 years.

 

But that's not even the point. What he did in the past is obviously relevant, but he's struggling so badly right now he needs to change something up.

 

And in my opinion, that's be a great place to start.

[HiAndTight]

Weeks is flat out embarrassing himself out there. He knows it most of all... why keep forcing the issue? Having a regular hitting .152 is completely unacceptable. His OPS dramatically lower than mcgehee's for last year. Does he have to be hitting under .100 to get a vacation? Look i'm not saying he won't bounce back eventually, but clearly this needs to change. It's been almost 1/3 of the season now, get a hint, Ron.

 

 

McGehee had a .593 and .422 OPS in May and June last year, and that's at 3rd base, NOT 2nd, ie, a power position vs one in which you don't expect nearly as much power.

 

His end of the year OPS ended up at .626

 

Weeks is currently at .588. That's not really that "dramatic," to me, and we stuck with McGehee longer when we actually had options(Gamel and Green tearing it up in AAA) longer than you're proposing we stick with Weeks.

 

I'm not sure "Ron," is the one who needs a hint, nor what a vacation would do unless you believe he's hurt. And even then, who do you propose? Eric Farris? I doubt he posts an OPS of .600 or better. Gennett isn't ready yet...

 

There is one option IMO and it's leave Weeks out there because the only chance we have to get to the post-season is if Weeks starts to perform like he has his entire career, namely the last 5 years where his cumulative OPS has been .805....an impressive line for a 2nd basemen.

[Bombers]

 

There is one option IMO and it's leave Weeks out there because the only chance we have to get to the post-season is if Weeks starts to perform like he has his entire career, namely the last 5 years where his cumulative OPS has been .805....an impressive line for a 2nd basemen.

I agree with this. Weeks has looked horrible, but he will bounce back ... We need the old Weeks back more than we need a replacement experiment.

[JohnBriggs12]

Weeks is flat out embarrassing himself out there. He knows it most of all... why keep forcing the issue? Having a regular hitting .152 is completely unacceptable. His OPS dramatically lower than mcgehee's for last year. Does he have to be hitting under .100 to get a vacation? Look i'm not saying he won't bounce back eventually, but clearly this needs to change. It's been almost 1/3 of the season now, get a hint, Ron.

 

 

McGehee had a .593 and .422 OPS in May and June last year, and that's at 3rd base, NOT 2nd, ie, a power position vs one in which you don't expect nearly as much power.

 

His end of the year OPS ended up at .626

 

Weeks is currently at .588. That's not really that "dramatic," to me, and we stuck with McGehee longer when we actually had options(Gamel and Green tearing it up in AAA) longer than you're proposing we stick with Weeks.

 

I'm not sure "Ron," is the one who needs a hint, nor what a vacation would do unless you believe he's hurt. And even then, who do you propose? Eric Farris? I doubt he posts an OPS of .600 or better. Gennett isn't ready yet...

 

There is one option IMO and it's leave Weeks out there because the only chance we have to get to the post-season is if Weeks starts to perform like he has his entire career, namely the last 5 years where his cumulative OPS has been .805....an impressive line for a 2nd basemen.

 

Your stats are comparing apples and oranges. Weeks had a .497 OPS in May. McGehee had a .593. Cumulatively at the end of May last year, McGehee's OPS was .661. Weeks sits at .588. Until the last 3 weeks of the season, the longest McGehee went without a multi-hit game was 16 games and only 12 games at this point in the season. Weeks has now gone 40 straight games (1/4 of the season) without getting more than 1 hit. Much of Weeks OPS comes from walks. That's fine but he's now primarily a number 6 hitter. That's an RBI spot. Walks there don't generally result in runs. McGehee had 24 RBI at the end of May. True 2B isn't the traditional offensive spot that 3B is, but McGehee was part of a lineup that had 2 MVP candidates, so offense there wasn't as critical.

 

Weeks has been awful. Plain and simple. He leads the league in striking out. He hasn't hit a lick when pitchers get 2 strikes on him. That's happened in 126 plate appearances. He's hit safely in 13 of those, a .103 BA. When he gets behind 0-2, his chances of striking out are 69%. That's part of the frustration of seeing him taking down the middle. We know that behind in the count, he's toast.

 

It's hard for me to get excited if he makes decent contact twice in a game or takes a couple walks one night. I need to see him break out and get a stretch where he goes a week and goes like 12 for 30 and only fans 5-6 times. I haven't seen it yet. He's capable I know, and they need it from him.

 

As for alternatives, I note you left out Taylor Green. He's played a lot of 2B. I no doubt think either Farris or Gennett (who's to say he's not ready, he might be) could certainly have put up numbers better than Weeks has so far also. But Weeks has a ton left on his contract and certainly his upside if he returns to his norm is likely better at this point. But there it is no sure thing he will. Resting him in favor of Green once or twice a week would be my plan until Weeks actually does something.

[longball04]

I changed my attitude to cheering for him to succeed instead of assuming he will fail. FYI - that didn't help. I am no professional hitting coach, nor do I know everything about baseball (but I am passionate about it), but even I can see the problems with his approach. Just wish they would come out and at least state they are addressing it. He doesn't look to attack the first pitch and he is still falling across the plate. I love the 0-2 stat. I would have guessed worse than that actually.

[brewmann04]

Sorry Weeks needs to sit for a couple days.

[DHonks]

Rickie normally squares up 2-3 balls per night...I havent seen him square up 3 balls over the last 3 weeks. even his ground balls have been weak rollers. I'd like to see us start Green for a series at 2b to try to let Rickie clear his head. He'll still press, but maybe his cage work will help regain confidence

[fondybrewfan]

I thought he looked a little better in LA. Still struggled to make contact but he hit a couple balls pretty solid. I am still OK with RR just riding the cold stretch out.

 

I like Taylor Green but it also isn't like he is lighting the world on fire either. His OBP is only marginally better than Weeks althought obviously it is a small sample size.

[3and2Fastball]

It has been a small sample size with Green but I sure hope he continues to take some walks. Up until a week ago he had exactly 1 MLB walk (he now has 3) and this is a guy who pretty consistently had his OBP about 75-80 points higher than his BA in the minors...

 

I would imagine that the more MLB at-bats he gets the more his game will come together.

 

Weeks is starting to come around a little. I'd let him continue to start

[FVBrewerFan]

I think Green needs to play at 2B once a series for two reasons.

 

1) Weeks isn't producing. As long as that's the case, he has no God-given right to play every day. So I wouldn't sit him a couple games a week to punish him. I wouldn't sit him in hopes that will get him out of his funk. It's simply a matter of production.

 

2) As long as Green is in Milwaukee, he needs more ABs. No, he hasn't set the world on fire but at his stage of development he needs consistent ABs. If he gets 3 starts a week at 1B,2B,3B plus some PH opportunities that would be ideal.

 

Beyond that, all you can really do with Weeks is wait for it to turn. Too much money invested in him, and too much history to give up on him.

[3and2Fastball]

With Weeks posting a .333 OBP in the last 7 days, including a Double, and the Brewers winning 4 straight in LA, Roenicke isn't going to sit Weeks for production reasons, baseball people are way too superstitious for that.

 

Weeks did roll over his wrist awkwardly in the field last night, so that may be a reason to sit him a few days, depending on if there is any lingering problems going on in that wrist from last night

[gregmag]

As for alternatives, I note you left out Taylor Green. He's played a lot of 2B. I no doubt think either Farris or Gennett (who's to say he's not ready, he might be) could certainly have put up numbers better than Weeks has so far also.

 

Farris has a 603 OPS this year at Nashville. Last year it was 689, the year before that 659. The idea that he would have produced more than Weeks this year is absurd. You could describe Weeks' problem this year by saying that he's hitting only slightly better than Eric Farris would hit.

 

Scooter Gennett has never shown that he can do anything for a major league offense but hit singles. He's kind of the anti-Weeks. Maybe, given Weeks' struggles this year, Gennett would have produced better numbers overall. It's possible, but it's nowhere near a sure thing.

 

Green, of course, isn't hitting better than Weeks. I like Green a lot, but nothing in his record suggests he's a good bet to outproduce Weeks in the forseeable future.

 

Overall, factoring in his whole game, Weeks is providing more value to the Brewers this year than McGehee or Betancourt did last year. Weeks has been a far, far better player in the past than either of those guys had been before last year. He has a broader skill set. We have no strong alternatives. If there's a concrete reason that sitting him would help him shake the funk -- a timing thing, whatever -- then fine, sit him some. But if the question is who at 2b, right now, gives the Brewers the best chance to win, the obvious answer is Weeks.

[TheCrew07]

Scooter Gennett has never shown that he can do anything for a major league offense but hit singles. He's kind of the anti-Weeks. Maybe, given Weeks' struggles this year, Gennett would have produced better numbers overall. It's possible, but it's nowhere near a sure thing.

 

If you ignore the fact that he hit for the cycle in a ST game which has been his very limited MLB opportunity so far then yes all he's shown is the ability to hit singles.

 

In 217 AA ABs this season Scooter has 11 doubles, 3 triples, and 3 home runs. He's certainly not the power threat that Weeks is but he's not a slap hitting 2B either.

 

Of course at this juncture I wouldn't replace Weeks with Gennett or Green (I just don't see Taylor being a good 2B) either but I didn't want to let that blurb about Gennett being a singles hitter go by.

[endaround]

A cycle in spring training? Really?

 

Gennett has an ISO of .111 in AA. Which makes him Craig Counsell without the great defense.

[TheCrew07]

A cycle in spring training? Really?

 

Gennett has an ISO of .111 in AA. Which makes him Craig Counsell without the great defense.

 

Yes really, that's his only MLB action of any kind, and he's just 22. I realize what his ISO currently is as I posted the relevant part of his line, however he projects to have double digit HR power at his peak.

 

Do we really have to go through the same debate about age and stats for every single MiLB player we discuss on the MLB forum? He'll SLG in the mid .400s someplace if he makes it, CC he is not, you can't MLE his power projection. That's as silly as comparing Jurickson Profar to Royce Clayton which was done in a different forum.

 

At least your snarky one liners are consistent.

[Gobias Industries]

The last few weeks I think he's slowly turning it around, but then he has one at bat a night that just shows you how lost he truly is.

 

His ab last night against Billingsley with the bases loaded was all kinds of awful. He saw 5 fastballs, all strikes. He just stared at 3 of them (one was called a ball for some reason), lunged at the other 2 and popped out to 2nd. I don't think I've ever seen a pitcher just flat out challenge him like that with the bases loaded on a 0-2 count. There was really no reason to give him fastballs right down the plate when he had him down in the count, but Billingsley just blew him away on heaters that cut the plate in half. It was more pathetic than most pitchers' plate appearances. So discouraging.

[DHonks]

Rickie should bust out one of his old bats with the several inches of tape on the handle. Time for a change

[Teatoe993]

I think he should cut the dreads and let his dome breathe.

[xisxisxis]

There was really no reason to give him fastballs right down the plate when he had him down in the count, but Billingsley just blew him away on heaters that cut the plate in half. It was more pathetic than most pitchers' plate appearances. So discouraging.

 

You know you are in horrible slump/funk when a pitcher doesn't feel he needs to throw a few balls to get you to chase when your down 0-2 in the count. rickie's gonna start seeing a bunch of fastballs over the plate until he starts turning on them and driving them.

 

Do we really have to go through the same debate about age and stats for every single MiLB player we discuss on the MLB forum?

 

do we really have to go through the same discussion with every prospect that we should ignore their track record and only go with their best case projection? i cansee you like gennett, but this isn't his first year in pro ball and at some point he has to produce. at least beyond 1 spring training game.

[gregmag]

A cycle in spring training? Really?

 

Gennett has an ISO of .111 in AA. Which makes him Craig Counsell without the great defense.

 

Yes really, that's his only MLB action of any kind, and he's just 22. I realize what his ISO currently is as I posted the relevant part of his line, however he projects to have double digit HR power at his peak.

 

Do we really have to go through the same debate about age and stats for every single MiLB player we discuss on the MLB forum? He'll SLG in the mid .400s someplace if he makes it, CC he is not, you can't MLE his power projection. That's as silly as comparing Jurickson Profar to Royce Clayton which was done in a different forum.

 

Based on the available evidence, I stand by my characterization of Gennett as a singles hitter. I agree very strongly with the underlying point that I think you're making, which is that hitters develop as they get older, and we can't limit their ceilings to what they're doing at the moment.

 

But you're ignoring the fact that I wasn't speaking to Gennett's ceiling at all. I was responding to a comment that Gennett, right now, would outproduce Weeks. Right now, Gennett has negligible power. His power numbers at AA are very poor, and they would likely be worse if he were in MLB right now. The ST cycle . . . I'm sorry, but that's meaningless.

 

Now, to address ceiling: while again I agree with the idea that hitters develop, I don't see a basis for your confident projection that Gennett will ever SLG in the mid-.400s in MLB. A .450 SLG from a 2b is a really strong performance. It would be foolish to assume that a guy with strong hitting skills couldn't develop that kind of power. But he has to show something before I'll start to feel good about his chances to hit with that kind of power.

[Gobias Industries]

bump for a really solid game yesterday. 2-2 (2 rockets to right), 2 BB, and 2 SB. Watched the squeeze play and he looked like a completely different guy out there.

 

It would be awesome if he can build on it today and have another multi hit game.

[Gobias Industries]

bump for a really solid game yesterday. 2-2 (2 rockets to right), 2 BB, and 2 SB. Watched the squeeze play and he looked like a completely different guy out there.

 

It would be awesome if he can build on it today and have another multi hit game.

Lol. 1-15 since this post and 0 for his last 14. At this point, he's gotta be a huge dog to finish up at .200.

 

Unfortunately, I think we're stuck with this Rickie for the year. Hopefully he can pull a Dunn and come back strong next year, otherwise he's a Suppan-esque contract going forward.