Aiki Mechanics
Control the Zone. Dr. D Never Heard Such a Thing
you are saying 1-2 is worse than 2-1, you fuule?

Posted by

jemanji
12/29/15
36

.

Jerry DiPoto and Scott Servais have their work cut out for them, don't they.  They are going to teach 150 players, up to and including Franklin Gutierrez, that when the count is 1-1 they are better off climbing to 2-1 than falling to a ball and two strikes.  Dr. D is normally not afraid of hard work, but he knows that if you succumb to a blood-pressure stroke when attempting the impossible, you'll be no good to anybody.  What say we scale it back a bit from this "1-1 is critical" project?  

Couldn't we start with something less radical, like whether 40 homers is a good thing.  DiPoto is having tons of fun at the wheel, that is obvious, but does he truly even realize that the Seattle Mariners are a MAJOR league baseball team? 

.....

No, kiddies, actually it's possible for ML players to improve their plate discipline.  One thing that provides a clue to this possibility is that --- > all the 32-year-old batters have more walks than all the 24-year-olds.  

:- )

A 27-year-old MLB hitter not only can improve his discipline; he will improve it.  It's as natural as a centered Danny Farquhar cutter on 3-1.  Hitters of course learn.  Our only question is, "Can any mortal human being TEACH what all the hitters LEARN?"  Can Edgar Martinez accelerate Ketel Marte's learning process by, say 10%?  So that under Edgar, Marte achieves by age 25 what he would normally achieve at age 25 and a half?

To ask the question is to answer it.  It's at least as obvious as the fact that trading Wil Myers for James Shields was feebleminded.

.....

There are three Q's you can start with here.  

1) CAN you teach discipline?  

2) If so, can you teach it org-wide?  (Corollary:  if you try to do so, is it a fascist move when you stomp out all those assistant coaches who don't buy in?)  

3) And finally, what does org-wide discipline look like?  

4) And which current Mariner hitter (imports) synch up best with it?

Hey!  That was four questions!   :: peter sellers having smashed steinway piano ::  NOT any MOAH.

Cheers, 

Dr D

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Comments

1

Probably, but it would take a lot of work, and they'd never be GREAT ballerinas.  You want to see some of the requisite skills in place first before you waste your time.  Our minor leagues don't have a lot of people with the right kinds of skills, so Edgar's instruction may need more fertile ground in order to grow.  DiPoto's roster churning across all our levels isn't done, which I'm sure cheers his dealer's heart.

If you wanted one guy in the minors who could take to Gar's instruction, the guy you'd point to would be Dario Pizzano, who has more walks than Ks for his career. In fact, one of these is Edgar's minor league line and one is Dario's:

.300 / .412 / .439 / .851
.296 / .383 / .462 / .845

So that ain't bad. The problem is that the Mariners' farmhands are not that great at walks in general. They had 25 guys get more than 30 walks last year (Jesus Montero and Tank O'Neill just missed with 29, but neither guy has what you would call a good batting eye, and Pizzano doesn't make it because of his injury). Of those guys, only 11 had a .5 or above batting average (that leaves off Jabari Blash and Nelson Ward, who should probably stay since they're two of the more interesting hitters on the list).

So including Blash and Ward, we've got 13 hitters who might have a worthwhile batting eye in a good number of plate appearances last year.  James Jones heads that batting eye list - he's gone. Blash is gone. Ji-Man Choi didn't make the list because of his injury either, but would have - and he's gone.

The remaining guys:
- Drew Jackson, SS in A ball known for his defense who had no power in college and translated that to no power in Everett.
- Arby Fields, switch-hitting 24 year-old outfielder in A-Ball whose minor league ISOP is a nice, even 100 points.
- Chris Taylor, delightful SS who has been supplanted by Ketel Marte and has no place on the Mariners.
- Aaron Barbosa, speedy 23 year-old center-fielder who can't hit yet. At least he can walk.
- Tyler Smith, 24 year-old middle-infielder aiming for a utility bench spot if he can get out of AA.
- Dan Paolini, 25 year-old short-pitcher-turned-corner-bat who regressed last year in AA
- Marcus Littlewood, tall-SS-turned-backstop whose batting average is Zunino-esque.
- Joe DeCarlo, led the system in walks as a young corner IF in A-ball, but hovers around the Mendoza Line hitting-wise and has shown low power.
- Daniel Torres, catcher whose only skill as a hitter is walking (nice arm though).
- Chantz Mack, a 5'10 DH/COF with limited power and BA in 3 years in the low minors. He turns 25 in May.
- Nelson Ward, college bat trying to turn into Blowers or Bloomie by playing a bunch of infield positions. Probably a 2B, not in the high-minors yet.

A large percentage of those guys are infielders or corner bats with no pop.  If you asked me who the three most promising guys on this kind of list were, I would have named Choi, Jones, and Blash. They all had major-league skills mixed in, and all are gone. The best remaining walkers who logged decent time last year would be Pizzano and Taylor, neither of whom we really have a place for. Pray for Alex Jackson, DJ Peterson, Austin Wilson and Tank O'Neill - Edgar getting ANY of those guys back on track in the Spring would be absolutely huge for us. Barring that, if Edgar is going to teach players how to walk and contribute to the big-league squad, they'd better be imports. Very few of the minor league guys he'll see in Spring Training have the requisite skillset at this point, and that process could be long and arduous.

2

Interestingly, the two guys still in the M's system that I'm highest on are Pizzano and Tyler Smith.  I really like those guys, and have for quite a while  I would add Kivlehan to that short list, but he's elsewhere, about to hit some Texican homers.

I am pretty willing to bet that the Dipoto "player template" is pretty rare in most organizations.  Guys who can hit AND walk have never grown on trees.  I am not sure you can turn hitters, simply by coaching, into guys who walk a bunch, too. Wade Boggs, for example, had a 2 to 1 eye as an 18 year old rookie ini A ball.  In his 6 minor league seasons he walked 366 times and K'ed 149!  OMG!!!

The amazing thing is that it took the Sox 6 seasons to get him to Boston!!

But he was born that way (Thank you Lady Gaga), nobody "taught" him to be Wade Boggs.  I have no doubt that Dipoto can identify young players who fit his template (as can every GM) but I'm not sure you "teach" that skill set.  

Will see.

Moe

3

Edgar's EYE in the minors included seasons like 71:30, 89:35 and 82:48.  Some of these lines just when he was getting started.

Alvin Davis went straight from college to the high minors and ran 2 walks per 1 strikeout all the way through.

I haven't noticed lines like this lately in the minors; either something in the game has changed, or I don't watch the statlines enough, or the M's don't have a lot of Edgar's and AD's coming up.

Sorting the M's minor league hitters by volume walks, on this page, is pretty scary.  There is one guy :- ) with a nice BB:K, close to 1, which is ... James Jones.

But then, DiPoto mentioned when he took over.  Very disappointed with the strike zones in the minors.  That's an unbelievable table for EYE ratio.

4

At the minor league level you'd need how many years to bring in "your kind" of minor league hitter?  

....

But that's an amazing point about Choi, Jones and Blash.  As usual the specificity of your examples is very convincing.

....

Speaking of corner bats with no pop, what's your take on Steve Clevenger G?

5

One thing about top-down organizational culture changes - they need a very simple message and it needs to be repeated over and over and over. It helps if you've got a figure head/hero for people to model. This appears to be a textbook example, at least early on. I'll bet we hear about it all year long. 

We do have to realize that this message is really not being said for the benefit of the guys on the 25-man roster. It's being said for the benefit of the 17 year old draftee - he's gonna know what the organization's expectations are for him. Ditto his coaches, trainers and team mates. If they are serious, this message will permiate through the minor leagues. "You want to advance in this organization? Control the Zone. You want to play in SafeCo? Control the Zone. Look at the guy with a street named after him in Seattle. The most beloved member of this organization. You want that? Control the Zone. It's the Mariner way." 

6

Newt Gingrich once compared it to TV acting vs stage acting.  You need pretty dramatic gestures if they're going to be seen in the balcony.

If you just joined us, Grizzly is in senior management.  He's aware that the further a position is from the CEO, the more the sound diffuses through the water.

7

Here's the top-rated Mariners minor league hitters from the midseason MLB.com list and how they did in 2015:

1) Alex Jackson - .680 OPS in low minors, demoted, 27/96 EYE 

2) DJ Peterson - .630 OPS in high minors, 31/93 EYE

3) Tank O'Neill - .875 OPS in High Desert, 29/137 EYE

4) Boog Powell (added recently, obviously) - .775 OPS in high minors, 61/79 EYE

5) Luis Liberato - .710 OPS in A-ball, 26/59 eye

6) Braden Bishop - .760 OPS in short-season, 5/33 EYE

7) Gareth Morgan - .650 OPS in rookie ball, 12/89 EYE

8) Austin Wilson - .715 OPS, 31/115 EYE

9) Tyler Marlette - .760 OPS, 22/66 EYE

10) Austin Cousino - .550 OPS, 22/52 EYE

... so yeah, we could use some Edgar magic - a LOT of magic.

8

Yeah, "magic" being the operative word. Those Jack-Z hitters may be beyond hope. Transplant/replacement may be the only strategy here. 

10
OBF's picture

OBF

JackyZ...  the gift that keeps on giving...

Like Curto said, the slogan may have already been in place, but it was little more than lip service.  Both in player acquisition and instruction, as evidenced by the above stats...

It's like if Pete Carroll had brought in a bunch of entitled veterans and told them to take every wednesday off and be ready for sunday and then had 15 rookies 5 of which were petted favorites that played no matter what...  and then preached to the media and fans "Always Compete", and the best players in practice are the ones that will play on sundays...

JackyZ sure did NOT practice what he preached!

11

You might want to refer to Drayer's and Rick Randall's response to the issue of C the Z on Lookout Landing. 

12

...I have no idea what you actually believe after reading this post.  Just saying...you may have tipped too far into sarcasm land...so that I can't tell when you're being serious or tongue-in-cheek anymore.

13

:- )

... I'm kinda contrarian, 'cause that's a more stimulating read than "the M's need more players with 3 WAR."  The tide of thought had turned towards "Control the Zone has no meaning."

But yeah.  The first half of the first post was ironic and then the next 2.5 posts were straight.

14

I just like to report when I am having trouble following you just to keep you informed.  I gathered, for example, that you were being ironic at first, with your "well duh" tone regarding C the Z...but there was a period where I was having trouble finding your conclusion from the video...got clearer by the end of the multi-part series. :)

So let me see if I followed you correctly:

1) C the Z is a platitude with little meaning on its face...one of those "well duh...yes, we need to try to do that" things.

2) You don't believe DiPoto thinks the idea itself is revolutionary, but that he uses it as a focal point for a larger philosophy regarding player acquisition, and instilling mental toughness in his players.

3) You also don't believe the current belief that discipline cannot be tought.  You just wonder how much an organization can bend the learning curve downward and make it easier for guys to get it faster

Do I have that right? :)

16

C the Z--nothing revolutionary here.  But certainly someone thought it was newsworthy enough to create a video and blast it to the masses.

So maybe it's because JD and SS are Zen masters in this arena?

JD pitched about 500 innings in the majors.  He struck out 6.4/9, and walked 4/9.  You can check your local Baseball Forecaster for that level of command, but rest assured, you won't find many human examples mentioned, because those numbers do not make the cut (I guess unless you're a LOOGY).  And he actually was a little worse than average in throwing strikes.

SS stepeed up to the plate about 2500 times.  He saw 3.43 pitches on average...compared to the MLB rate of 3.7.  He swung at 50% of the strikes thrown to him, versus 45.9% for the league.

So i'm left thinking that either their C the Z epihanies did not happen untill AFTER they were done playing...or they recognized this all along, and just couldn't figure out how to employ it.  

Should I be discouraged?

17

People would throw that in his face and he'd say, "Well, I didn't have a videotape machine back then."  There is also the question of talent; I don't remember Pete Carroll winning any Super Bowl MVP's.

Some guys learn their key lessons at age 19; some learn the key lessons at 50; some gather momentum as they go along.  DiPoto was a better ML pitcher than Theo Epstein ...

18

"Should I be discouraged?"

Not necessarily, but it sure does make you want to take a wait and see attitude. Edgar had great credibility when he spoke on how to approach hitting, but I still had to be convinced that he could effectively transmit what he knew into positive results for players, most of whom couldn't match his superb skills. So far the results are very encouraging.

But there's no instant credibility to be had by either DiPoto or Servais. They may turn out to be wizards or else just good at GM'ing and managing. Or worse. There's some encouraging news on the GM front over this offseason, but also some questions. We SO BADLY want success in Seattle that we are anxious to believe we've struck gold. Just give us a thin strand and we'll hang onto it for dear life until we find out differently. The first two "savior GM's" didn't pan out so well. There were times with both of them that we convinced ourselves the good times were at the doorstep. Remember Bavasi's offseason of Beltre and Sexson? Zduriencik heading into 2010 and 2015?

Sooner or later you gotta think that we're gonna get a streak of good seasons going.

But as I step back from things for a bit I still shake my head that the M's for the third straight time gave the car keys to an unproven GM. More upside with an unproven GM who impresses you in interviews, someone well-spoken and well-spoken of? Perhaps. But that's just the point. It's a gamble whether or not your impression translates into reality. With a proven GM the gamble is still present but vastly diminished.

I can't help but wonder why the M's have gone the unproven GM route. They don't want to pay what it would take? They don't want to revisit the Gillick scenario where somebody has the standing and stature to push back against the bigwigs and just leave if they grow disillusioned with their bosses? Do they want people who depend on their good graces for jobs?

Let's hope the third time with an unproven GM is the charm.

19

Because many of the 'proven' GMs sick with their first post a long time.

But, wasn't Bavasi proven? I guess not by all standards but I don't think there's available GMs that are proven by all standards.

Kenny Williams? Won the world series his 6th year in Chicago then spent 6 more years there, never passing 90 wins again.

Jim Hendry never made it to the World Series with the Cubs, but I remember listening on the radio the year I thought and hoped they would. 2003 was a long time before his last season there in 2011. He did spend about $300 million in the'06-'07 offseason and got them in the playoffs with 84 wins that year and 97 the next, only to lose all the postseason games they played.

Who is proven? Kevin Towers? Jennings, Bienfest, O'Dowd?

I don't think I'd want the Mariners run the same way most of them ran their respective clubs. BTW, Bavasi's track record upon his hiring here was in competition with most of this pack. Unproven for the last 2 hirings, in my estimation. Although the definition of proven may vary. Dipoto didn't get fired for losing games, per se.

It's there someone I missed that you would have preferred?

I'd like to see a dynasty here and don't find it as likely to happen among the list of retread GMs that were being discussed at that time. It seems far more likely to me that a fresh GM could put it together than the list of names who have only proven they're not elite.

20

"Proven GM's can be difficult to acquire."

Indeed.

I'm taking more of a step-back and long look at the years since Bavasi was fired. I guess I'm defining "proven" as having proven success, not just occupied a GM chair.

It still chafes at me that the M's didn't get LaRussa when they had a real chance to do so. Somebody like that. If your goal is to get a plum, then you stake out a plan to make that happen, even if it takes several years to make it happen. You lay the groundwork, make the contacts, send the signals, have the informal discussions. If all you do is wait until the latest schlamuck you hired proves he can't cut it, then you go into "GM search mode" (trade mark) and select the best unproven GM you can comb out, you run a big risk of getting just what we got.

  I'd want to acquire so far as possible a fire-and-forget missile, one sure to hit the target, a guy who had proven he could build the baseball architecture of my franchise and last at least ten years. I'd move heaven and earth to get it done, and I wouldn't bother myself too much with control issues if it was the right guy.

21

I badly wanted him then as well. He was the first MLB manager I followed after Rickey got me in to MLB and the A's. I got over the A's in just a few years but always liked LaRussa.

Gillick and maybe Cashman are the only names that I can think of that seem close to that mark in recent memory and became available. Those ships have all sailed.

I think that DiPoto could do better than any of them in the long run. Not saying he will, but the events so far make it seem possible. None of them come without some rough spots. The front office sounds like they've got good plans on setting this club apart from others. It's not just Dipoto but the crew he reworked around himself after coming in. No guarantees anyway, just ask a Baltimore fan about Gillick.

One thing though, who's to say M's brass hadn't been watching DiPoto's situation closely after targeting him as the plum they're seeking and kept Z on partially because the guy they wanted wasn't available yet?

22

Thoughtful post Wishhiker.  Has me reconsidering a long-held belief, to hold it even more strongly, that is.  Take your average GM or head coach, any sport, and drop him into a new situation on a level playing field.  

See how he does.  Probably you find out pretty quick that a lot of things broke right for him when he was on a roll.

23

"But there's no instant credibility to be had by either DiPoto or Servais. They may turn out to be wizards or else just good at GM'ing and managing. Or worse.

But as I step back from things for a bit I still shake my head that the M's for the third straight time gave the car keys to an unproven GM."

Good stuff amigo.

.........

Not to react defensively amigo, but I've got no dog in this fight.  I was all over DiPoto like a bum on a baloney sandwich.  Was the first to point out the off-putting level of self-belief among other things.  You remember articles like "Evan Scribner is fine by me, assuming we didn't give up James Paxton for him."  

Until he outbid the world for Adam Lind, and followed up with a Gillick-like swoop on Hisashi Iwakuma, which was a Peregrine falcon 200 MPH dive into a very transient opportunity.  Those two things caused me to re-evaluate my previous take on him, and then to go back and re-evaluate his moves in that light.

24

One pinged, the other ponged. So far as I can tell, we're both having fun playing ping pong with you parlaying some amazing shots that dive at the last second and just tick the corner of the back edge while I'm just tryin' my best to get them back over the net.

Just kidding. I know you are holding the fort keeping the flames of hope alive in Seattle, and with a regime change there is again reason to hope. No beef with you here, not at all. I need to hear it as much as the next guy, and as I said, I'm very aware that there's something about DiPoto's personality (so far) that just rubs me wrong in a very visceral way. Maybe after I get to know him more that'll change. I admit my preference is more for the LaRussa type who just gets things done and lets the results of his work do his PR.

Who knows, a year from now I might think DiPoto's the best thing to hit Seattle baseball since Junior.

25

Without that we have no discussion, er, ping-pong.

I'm not a DiPoto fanboy.  Although over the last four months my sequence has been

  • Yeah, he'd probably be the right choice
  • What are you kidding me
  • Oh!  I think I see what he's doing

And that's the KIND of feeling I get when watching genius at work, not to say DiPoto is one of those.  I just like the feeling at this point.

26

I like most of Dipoto's moves...I'm optimistic...but the Iwakuma thing is where the optimism bus has catapulted off the road.

If i remember correctly:

--JD went into the winter meetings saying that signing Kuma was his top priority.  This was not true.

--Signing Kuma on JD's terms may have been his top priority...but that's two different things.  Either way, he failed.

--Some say Kuma was just too expensive at $15m.  But that's exactly what Dipoto reputedly offerered--this year, and next.  The third year was the 'issue'.  (Not saying he was wrong, just that this is not the same thing as $15m this year.)

--Is Kuma someone who would appeal to C the Z afficianados?  Well...

  • Kuma, in an 'off' year, was the #12 starter in terms of K/BB
  • He was #2 in fooling batters into swinging at pitches out of the zone
  • He was #2 in minimizing pitches per plate appearance for batters
  • He was #1 in the Fangraphs calculation of 'plate discipline' (confession: I have no idea how they determine this)

--So to avert risk three years down the road, JD punted

--The Dodgers claimed to find some troubling physical issue(s).  So they punted.

--Kuma said he always wanted to be here anyway

--The Mariners were the only team in baseball who could sign him without forfeiting a supplemental pick

--JD had to go to the evil mizers in the front office to make this happen

--He stood up at the holiday party and took credit

Some have said this is just evidence of good luck.  And 'hooray' I say!  In my mind, this franchise is due for about ten years of consistently calling heads or tails right.  If JD can wave a magic wand, sign me up.

But I'm not going to do backflips over the failed pursuit of a player who perfectly fit his C the Z mantra...even if the player wound up falling into his lap.  

27

I like how he handled Iwakuma. I love the guy but he's going on 35 and has missed a decent amount of time to injury three out of the last four years. (While still being underpaid.) IP: 125, 219, 179, 129. Considering how the Mariner execs manage their budget, I don't know if I would have gone three years guaranteed either. The contract they struck with him is perfect for the ball club. If he's slow out of the gate again, you just let him Cone his way through the second half of the season. I'm down with that. Just *probably* not at 3 years guaranteed. 

I'm of the opinion that there is really no such thing as luck in business. Unexpected good things happen and unexpected bad things happen. It usually seems like you get more of the latter than the former but unless you are in a declining business or industry, the good and the bad come with roughly equal frequency. I've worked for some GREAT executives and one thing that separates them from the rest of us is their ability to handle the unexpected events. When unexpected opportunities arise, these folks hit home runs like roid-era Bonds. They're killers. 

Iwakuma dropped right into DiPoto's lap, no doubt. And he's the one guy that management would go outside the budget to accommodate. Kind of a perfect storm. But give DiPoto some credit - he took advantage. He didn't miss, which is what you want to see. What odds would you have given Zduriencik in that situation? 50/50? My pessimism tells me there's a healthy chance he would have fretted and chiseled Iwakuma into an A's uniform or something. 

It'll be years before we know if DiPoto's got that Gillick-level executive talent. I think he's definately proven to be bold and decisive - two killer traits for an executive. I hope he's great - like Obi Wan, he's our only hope. 

28
OBF's picture

OBF

contract that actually offers Kuma MORE total money than either the origional Mariner offer or the dodger offer (48 or 49 mil total over 3 years if all incentives are reached, IIRC).  It was creative, and allows Kuma plenty of garunteed money, but also, if Kuma is confident he can staty healthy the ability to make the most of any of teh deals...

You know if it had been JackyZ he woudl have come in with some lame 1 year, 5 million dollar contract to try to really take advantage (in a bad way) of the situation, and also score poinst with the big wigs ("Look how much money I saved") and maybe Kuma would have taken it, but he would have been bitter...

JeDi pulled off the Tri-Fecta:  Got his guy, Kept his Bosses and bottom line Happy (Lots of risk mitigation), and Kept Kuma dignified and well compensated.

29
OBF's picture

OBF

You are right not offering the third year was the issue not pure dollars...  This was never about "C the Z" of wanting Kuma to play for the Mariners, it was always about resource allocation, and yes the 2018 resources are important too, and JeDi knows that 15 mil sitting on the DL is a heavy burden to carry around, so he was trying to mitigate risk (2 years plus an option)...  So I don't see how that comes into the C the Z thing at all...  You can't have just ONE principal...  and Jedi clearly has several:

1.) C the Z 

2.) Athletisism and Defense

3.) Risk mitigation (raising the floor even at the cost of lowering teh celing)

4.) Resource allocation (No huge FA Signings)

There are probably more (in fact doesn't he have a list of 7 "Cardinal way" principals or something?  And they are overlapping and aren't mutally exclusive, and for each player one may weigh more heavily (like Martin in CF).  So I don't see the Kuma thing as JeDi not sticking to his C the Z gun at all costs I saw it as him weigh principle 4 more than principle 1...

30

I kind of like the feeling.

I still grumble about the loss of Kivlehan, but I'm kind of liking Dipoto.  It took me a bit to get the Miley deal, but when it hit me (the "NEED" for 200 innings), it hit me hard.

And then he came up smelling like a rose with Iwakuma.  I love the Lind signing.  Aoki, too.

I'm still thinking that there may be a RHB CF in the works....but Guti may be able to play CF, or O'Malley....and Booger may walk his way onto the 25-Man.

I don't think Dipoto is a genius, and he hasn't found a new "Moneyball" advantage, but I like a guy who works toward a philosophical goal.  Well, as long as they aren't a Puritan about it.  Dipoto seems not to be.

Did all of his effort work wonders in Anaheim?  Nah....but I'm loving attitude he's brought here.  Something is happening.

31

GM Jerry spent a cup of coffee as Arizona's GM, drafted Trout, won the AL West his last full year as the Angels GM, what constitutes proof? Right or wrong he has an actional plan that he has elucidated clearly and made coherent moves toward implementing his vision. Value determination will take time, so far I like his chances.

32

"What constitutes proof?" I suppose that differs depending on the person answering the question. For me, none of the above constitute any kind of proof at all that DiPoto has demonstrated he can be the architect of a long-term successful baseball organization. A cup of coffee, a single drafted player (no matter how good), and a single year at the helm of a division winner don't contribute much to that conclusion. That's not to denigrate that he did them. He deserves recognition for what he has done; he deserves recognition as a relatively new GM who has had some success stories that may or may not portend ultimate success. Liking one's chances is commendable, but to me it is not demonstrated success as a proven GM. A five year run as a successful franchise would do it, though. Here's to DiPoto supplying us that proof.

33

We'll believe he can implement it when ... we're the Cardinals :- )

Keep it comin' DaddyO.  Yer not lyin'.

35
Jpax's picture

Jpax (not verified)

As Maqman said, this is Jerry's 3rd time as a GM (granted AZ was very short time). I think a point often overlooked is that virtually Everybody improves with experience. When I left the Navy after seven years as a Lieutenant, I was much, much better officer than I was as a fresh newbie Ensign. A young Petty Officer who gets promoted to Chief Petty Officer often gets transferred also, as it is extremely difficult to go from being everybody's drinking buddy to their new front-line supervisor. They get a fresh start. The next time you are transferred (or next new job you get) you consolidate your experience and knowledge. Mistakes made in the past are learned from and not repeated.

I am very enthused that DiPoto has these prior years of experience and appears to have learned from them. It is very difficult to hire the next Gillick or LaRussa. But maybe we can identify someone before they become the next Gillick of LaRussa

36

Took Pete a lifetime to "jell" before he hit his Eureka! point.  This is also what James is referring to when he says, Keep Erasmo in there as opposed to turning to Edgar Olmos.  You've got a start to build on.

JPax, thank you for your service to the free country I live in securely.  And, compelling real-world example of moving an officer when he's ready to leap a plateau.

Warmly,

Jeff

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  • Allowed HTML tags: <a> <em> <strong> <cite> <blockquote> <code> <ul> <ol> <li> <dl> <dt> <dd>
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.