Add new comment

Clearly you're right, Sandy, that they sought OBP and didn't get it.
And Taro is right that adding SLG without OBP won't help either.
But the combination of philosophies Z is taking is problematic.
They are set up now for youth at 1b, 2b, LF & C (but they don't want too much youth), and they are still set up for glove-first at SS & C (which is ordinarily OK by me, but the glove strategy requires a bullpen, too), and they are set up for low-SLG guys at RF, 3b (assuming Figgins moves there) & 2b (assuming Ackley -- obviously 2b is not ordinarily a SLG position anyway, but still).  Then the attempt to layer the clubhouse chemsitry guys on top of all of that.
Each might be OK in isolation, but the combination seems deadly.
Z has left himself remarkably little room to overhaul the offense from my perspective (other than hope that Smoak, Ackley and Saunders get to be really really good really fast).