So Tech doesn’t have any arm in the blue pen other than Tomkin or Crigger?
Did LB just give this game up in the 8th when we just tied the game back at 7-7 by sending Crigger back out?
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So Tech doesn’t have any arm in the blue pen other than Tomkin or Crigger?
Did LB just give this game up in the 8th when we just tied the game back at 7-7 by sending Crigger back out?
Good season. Disappointing ending, but heck! only 16 teams will be playing next weekend out of 300+.
CUSA Tourney Champions.
Reached the NCAAs for the second straight year, a rarity for Tech for sure. Congrats Diamond Dawgs.
McConnell was no Bates, but he filled the role well.Quote:
Originally Posted by glm47
McLeod was a great all round player.
AD was clutch on both defense and offense
We need pitching!!
Burroughs was coaching from a position of hoping. As is his way, he can’t change the momentum of a game. He trusts in things to go the Dawgs way.
Crigger's season of two halves:
16 appearances in Tech's first 34 games through Rice on 4/8--30.2 innings, 20 hits, 2 R, 2 ER, 0.59 ERA
21 appearances in Tech's last 30 games starting with Rice on 4/10--37.2 innings, 40 hits 21 R, 16 ER, 3.82 ERA
No pitcher should ever be in 70% of a team's games over an extended period of time. And the stats give all the proof needed.
I think only one freshman got to even play, Harland. Who knows what talent there is on the bench. We’re pretty much losing all our pitching. Fincher, Martinez and Harland are the only ones returning who seem to have anything going for them.Quote:
Originally Posted by glm47
We’ve got some talent coming back, but we’ve got some serious improvements to make if we’re going to get better.
A team that goes to two straight regionals and 3 out of the last 6 has some good stuff to sell (not to mention the best G5 facility in our region). Are we selling it? If so we should be good.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bone_afide_Dawg
I’m talking about players that weren’t on he roster last year, including pitchers.Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
...saying that. Four guys off the last two teams are almost impossible to replace.
Those I named didn't play last year for the most part. It's rare for a true freshman or juco guy to make an impact in year 1, but no we did not have one of those. Probably should have had at least one or two. Gotta make some room on the roster.Quote:
Originally Posted by glm47
Seems like should have tried to go get at least a couple of proven players from somewhere.Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
He thought he was getting that in Burchfield as a slugger and Lancaster as a pitcher. The sundial was broken when he timed Burchfield on the bases and Lancaster had a freak injury.Quote:
Originally Posted by glm47
The good news is we have a lot of former blue chippers who want to transfer in. Like I said, he has to make some room on the roster.
Thanks for the info. Thats good to hear.Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
LB rode his best horse too hard and it cost him. It’s a shame considering how good Crigger is. Used in 47% of the first 34 games, 70% of the last 30, and 6 of the 8 games Tech played in the postseason.Quote:
Originally Posted by FriscoDawg
It's a shame, but Crigger would not have had it any other way. We never get where we were without riding the Crigger horse all the way down the stretch. No other dominant closers, but that was obvious early in the year.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dowty
Geeez.....isn't Air Force the team LA Tech beat 18-1 last season?Quote:
Originally Posted by Bone_afide_Dawg
This. ^^^Quote:
Originally Posted by dawg80
Obviously Crigger wants every opportunity to pitch. Every competitor at his level does. And his role played a large part in the team’s success this year.Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
None of that can change the simple fact that he was overused, though. It happens at every level from 9U rec leagues to the MLB.
While I had the roster handy here are some sophomores/juniors I think Burroughs has some serious thinking to do about considering the freshman talent already on the bench and whose coming in from elsewhere in the off season...Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
Hasler, Brantley, Wallace, Easterling & Boydston
Pitchers:
Tomkins, Knight & Hodges
May need to see what Matulia can do from the mound. I’m pretty sure he cm throw hard. Hy else he’s got is unknown.
yes that’s crazy isn’t it? The exact same players and…Quote:
Originally Posted by HogDawg
Stick to WBB
If Martinez can get better command of his pitches, he could really be a good arm for us.
Anyone else notice that the home runs in Texas would probably clear the tracks in Ruston? Or in left, probably roll into the volleyball court at the BCM. Dang our field is small.
Bigger than it was for over 50 years. Nobody talked about it being small before we rebuilt as large as possible. Nothing about our field is hurting us.Quote:
Originally Posted by techman05
Considering the size of our field we should be hitting a good many more home runs... If we really are a power hitting team which we really aren’t.
I have not heard us described as a power hitting team. The difference in this year and last year is obvious…the difference in production from our 2 hole guy.
Someone may hire Lane away!
Burroughs himself on several occasions has used terms such as that in the interviews I’ve heard him give.Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
I guess I blanked it out because I've never thought of us as a "power hitting team". We have guys who can go yard throughout the lineup, but our HR numbers seemed like they were way down for this team vs last year.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bone_afide_Dawg
This group thought they were power hitters as every swing was one for the fence. But all they did was strike out too much. The only guy we had who can be a long ball hitter is Corona. His natural swing lifts the ball, but even he does not have the upper-body strength to be a true HR hitter. The rest of our lineup are line-drive hitters and they all should have focused on being better at that. But alas, they kept trying to go yard every at-bat. Matulia is the biggest offender of this and that is why his BA was so low.
Coaching was very sub-par.
2022: 79 HR in 64 games (1.234/g)Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
2021: 76 HR in 62 games (1.225/g)
2020: 26 HR in 17 games (1.529/g - could we have kept this pace?)
More proof that our hitting coach isn’t getting it done. We aren’t improving enough.
Pitching got us beat Sunday -
Lack of timely hits got us beat Saturday
Pitching and hitting got us the win Friday
If LB is guilty of anything - its not expanding his bullpen more during the season - so that in Regional and Conference someone is given the opportunity to step up and shine
Last year it was Martinez in the tourney finals against ODU
This year NO ONE - we kept running the same old tired arms out there
Hitting we are who we are - the glaring weakness was Matulia in the 2 hole - Elliot struggle most of the season but had a really good last month and a very good post season run and Burchfield came on late also
I'm interested to see if Burroughs gets a chance to move on and if he doesn't can he hold his staff together?
Key to next year is McConnell and Garcia coming back - I think they are draft eligible due to their covid year
You can't replace TY - he is a generational player - a TB a Tim Rattay a Paul Milsap
Do we reload or do we rebuild? That's the offseason question
Wow! Almost exactly the same as last year. Not sure why but It just didn’t feel like as many. More spread out maybe?Quote:
Originally Posted by Dowty
Crigger pitched in all 5 conference tournament games in Hattiesburg plus the two losses in Austin.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dowty
In those 7 appearances over 12 days--12.1 IP, 17 H, 10 R, 9 ER, 6.57 ERA.
It was tough to sit in that stadium agains AF and watch him get opposite field "yarded" with that 2 run bomb...kid gave us EVERYTHING---just was wore out..felt really bad for the young man...
Those aren’t the numbers of a “Closer”. Those are the numbers of a middle reliever who won’t have that responsibility for very long. This wasn’t Crigger’s doing, like everyone knows and has pointed out, it was Burroughs failure to supplement his pitching ranks with enough supporting cast members. Crigger would pitch endlessly, it’s who he is. Pounded at the plate he’d say they’ll get tired soon enough and then I’ll get them.Quote:
Originally Posted by FriscoDawg
IF anyone watched the LSU/USM game last night (geaux Tigahs as much as it pains me to say that) Berry/Ostrander threw out a kid Storm who had only threw something like 13 innings all year and he ended up coming in and throwing the last 4 or 5 innings and getting the win -
Burroughs just refused to go to anyone but his known guys
Harland threw very little
Lancaster didn't throw
Gipson was supposedly unavailable yesterday but he warmed him up
Knight was used very little
I could go on and on
Got to develop that pen in the back half of the year at least a little
And I'm tired of hearing Burroughs (and even Malcolm) saying that a player has earned the right to be in the game in a particular spot. A player has to keep earning that right every time they play based on performance. And it is up to the manager (which Burroughs is not good at doing) to not put players in a position where failure is likely.
If players earned the right to be in the game, then allow a guy to DH at least 2 consecutive games. Let him earn it.
Must've skipped over one of his appearances when looking at it on my phone last night. He left it all out there, but just ran out of gas at the end.Quote:
Originally Posted by FriscoDawg
Just getting old :laugh:Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
TWSSQuote:
Originally Posted by Dowty
Excellently said! This makes me think of something I’ve often said about Burroughs… He coaches more like he’s trying to play out some fantastical script for a Hollywood movie ending than what is real life. Trends are trends for a reason, they’re reoccurrences from things that have taken place. As much as I appreciate Crigger’s effort and Whorff and Tomkins, their repeatedly proven trends were that they didn’t have it to hold the opposition to not scoring. Burroughs needed plan X and he didn’t have one... he didn’t even try to develop one. Just hoping for miraculous Bulldog comebacks and walkoffs isn’t reliable enough.Quote:
Originally Posted by FriscoDawg
Coastal Carolina ran out of arms too...it'll be Texas at ECU in the Super Regional.
Well said.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dawg74
No for 2020. Tech hit 18 HRs in the 5 games played at the RHS stadium, 14 in the last 3 games of the series against Maine. That leaves just 8 in the 12 games played elsewhere.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dowty
More important than the couple of MPH that his pitches didn't have at the end of the year, there was almost no movement in the zone on those pitches. When his arm was fresh his pitches had a bit of a tail in the zone to make him very tough to hit at all much less to hit hard.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dawg74
Nowhere near as hard to hit gunbarrel straight pitches once the batter gets a chance to time it up.
I only have a small sample size of watching Tech baseball games, but this is what I was thinking as well. Some very not good swinging mechanics going on, either.Quote:
Originally Posted by dawg80
Fielding could use some work, too. Or at least, some effort put in to put in some effort.
And why is everyone so winded by the second inning?
I thought McLeod looked like a candidate to be our leadoff guy next year. He's got a good eye and places the ball well. Elliot also became a pretty tough out down the stretch. AD is a guy who improves with more at bats and Corona is suited to hit cleanup. McConnell is a baller (if he doesn't go pro). We definitely need a couple of impact players but I don't think the cupboard is bare. Interested to see Ince at shortstop. We need to pick up a couple of pitchers but I do like Fitcher, Martinez, and Harland.
Taylor Young is one of the best baseball players I've ever watched at Tech. He will be sorely missed.
At least you qualified your statement before you confirmed you didn’t know we you were talking about…Quote:
Originally Posted by JuBru
I agree, I also still like Matulia at 1st. Need to commit to a DH. Overall, our fielding didn’t seem too bad, but when we committed errors, they seem to happen in clusters. Same game or same inning even.Quote:
Originally Posted by boxerdog
Agreed. Matulia is a good first baseman and he'll get even better. I think he's better suited to bat 5th or 6th. Nice swing but too many K's to be in the top 4. Our defensive infield was solid but TY made so many difficult plays seem routine.Quote:
Originally Posted by techman05
And it can be argued that the regional was a lost cause after the first day in Hattiesburg when Gibson was allowed to continue after the 5+ hour rain delay. Doing that plus pitching two more innings in the championship game on short rest and having shoulder tightness a few days later can't be a coincidence. At least it isn't for me.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bone_afide_Dawg
TY is a generational talent -
Is he the best to ever play here? Maybe, but he is definitely on the very short list...
I think Corona and McConnell are the key to next year's class - those to return and out middle of the order will be solid
Drop Matulia to 6th
McLeod 2nd
Believe it or not bat Elliot 1st - I think he is primed for a tremendous year
AD 5th
Ince 7th
8th and 9th TBD
I think Jennings will be hard to replace - but I think Martinez could be Saturday guy next year and Harland Sunday
Knight and Thompkins have to get it in gear
This team should be salty once again
As unfortunate as it is, what you say is pretty much a certainty. Maybe another case of the player saying, “I got this.” And Burroughs buying it regardless of it being a potentially unwise long term decision.Quote:
Originally Posted by FriscoDawg
I agree DFM, Wade was putting together some really good plate appearances in about the last 6-8 games. Saw a lot of pitches and squared up several. Should Cole bat 3rd and Jorge bat cleanup? No matter what, LB has to be better about how he manages pitchers. We should have another fun year for sure.
I like McConnell still in the 4 hole even though Corona is the more traditional 4
I second McConnell at 4. I like his ability to hit the ball all over the field and he has power too even though his home run numbers this year weren’t as many as what we really need. He’s going to get there if he stays here long enough.
McConnell is not a classic clean-up hitter, #4 hole. Corona is more of a #4, and with more upper-body strength such that he bops 20+ HRs, he would be a very good #4.
This year the only guys in their absolutely most appropriate spots in the lineup were Corona #5, McCloud #8, Elliot #9...kind of okay was Myers at #6. Other than those it was a hob-poch of out of place hitters. BUT! given our personnel choices, have to admit there was little LB could have done. We simply did not have the luxury of having a bunch of classic, proto-typical hitters to plug in. As discussed, Young as our best hitter (overall) should have been batting #3. But, who would you place in the #1 and #2 holes? Myers has speed but his BA/OBP was far too low. That was the problem, TY leading off made some sense because we simply didn't have any true #1s or #2s we could insert instead.
The biggest issue was the pathetic lack of coaching for our hitters. Anyone who has coached little league could do a better job of "coaching the guys up." Of course, there is also that measure of players taking responsibility for themselves too. I find it hard to believe that Division I baseball players have not been exposed to proper hitting techniques at some time in their career, and would know to employ them in situations. The most glaring weakness displayed was protecting the plate with two strikes. Nope! not our guys, just cut loose in their long, slow, sweeping golf swing and then pose for the photo after striking out...again.
I like the idea of another banger to take Netterville's place. Maybe Burchfield is that guy, not sure though.
He runs like a snail. Can't believe LB picked him up as a DH only. Nowhere in the field he can play. Sounds like a great guy, but not even a good baseball player. We have a few of those.Quote:
Originally Posted by boxerdog
I noticed he's not fast, neither is Corona. I'm not sure of the significance in terms of likeliness to score once on base. The on base percentage is more important than likeliness to score based on speed, I do know that. But speed has to factor in. Some data geek would need to break it down for me.Quote:
Originally Posted by PawDawg
Corona is a catcher and not recruited for his 90ft time. Corona is actually fast. Not sure why people think he is not. I suppose his first 90 feet time may slower than some. As Frisco said regarding Corona's inside the park grand slam, his stride is very long.Quote:
Originally Posted by boxerdog
I'm not sure we have ever had a regular player on our team as slow as Burchfield.
With those coming back, it's likely that Burch will take the right field spot.
Corona runs well, and not just "for a catcher." He won't ever be the FASTEST on the team but neither will other everyday players. And speed on the bases is not what you're looking for in a #4 or #5 hitter. It's power.
Have seen several players considered slow make good reads and score from 2nd on line drives. It’s more about your jump, lead, and reading the ball off the bat.