Risky Business
The title of an 80's classic starring Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay describes perfectly some of the various things I've been hearing lately. All have centered around the Houston Astros, and your people's champion and mine, Evan Gattis.
In the ongoing saga to get him playing time, skipper A.J. Hinch keeps failing to get him more regular and consistent at-bats. This is the opposite of what he said that he would do so in the following interview quote from April 19th. Again, readers, I want to stress to you that this is HINCH'S ACTUAL WORDS!!!!
I honestly wish that I knew the answers to these questions. What's even more frustrating is that no one in the mainstream sports media is doing anything to hold the feet of management to the fire. The ongoing mantra of journalism is supposed to be hold the powerful accountable. So why aren't these reporters doing just that here? I understand that there is a big difference between what happens in the Astros clubhouse vice what is going on in Washington, but that still is no excuse!
Of the 56 games that Evan Gattis has played in, 39 of them have seen him tally at least one hit. 13 of those 39 games have gone for multiple hits. He has 24 extra base hits, 8 home runs and 16 doubles to go with his 39 RBI. Additionally, the bear also has a solid .203 ISO, 121 wRC+, a 1.3 WAR and 126 OPS+ on the year. For further context, he has hits in 70% of his games, and multiple hits in just under 25% of the games he is in. On any other team, this would be far more than enough to get him more playing time. Case in point, he's more than "earned it!"
All of this raises so many red, or shall I say orange, flags. Yes, I'm well aware of what the designated hitter rule is, and why it's in place in the league. Contrary to popular belief, I'm not an oblivious idiot, nor am I just finding things to bitch about. In light of the fact that the team has such an awesome record, I cannot ignore the fact that a player that is starter caliber is constantly being sat for an overpaid veteran. For those unfamiliar with the DH rule in American League baseball, here is that part of that clause that gets people all stirred up:
But this is a risk that the team needs to be more willing to take. From some of the analysis I've read, the probability of a DH having to switch to the field mid game is roughly 2-4%. That's, in all honesty, not that high of a risk. It's actually pretty low, truth be told, because it does not happen nearly as often as some would like to think. The catching position may be the most demanding and subjugated to high injury risk, but the overall health of both Gattis and Brian McCann have been enough to sustain what is needed from that position. BMac did have that foul ball off of Aaron Judge hit him back at Yankee Stadium in May, but those are all rare, freak occurrences.
Look, Evan himself may not be one to metaphorically "stir the pot" or complain, but that doesn't mean he should be taken advantage of, or constantly be seen as some afterthought or yesterday's news to everyone. As I've stated before, and have subsequently had my head chewed off about it, there are just so many things about this whole situation that just seems to be unethical. I, for one, am not just gonna sit idly by or hold my tongue all because the team is on the hot streak. Like all of the best teams out there, they need to strive for what can make them even better. Whether anyone likes it or not, Gattis does that for them, and they are sitting on a literal gold mine with all of this!
It's becoming stretch time in the baseball season. Because of this, the team needs to shake things up now, or else risk other teams catching onto things too quickly. There will be times left that they still struggle, but they need to make sure the wounds are not self-inflicted. When you sit a batter like Gattis in favor of Beltran, as things stand right now, you run so much more of a risk than if you had to sub him mid-game for any potential injury to McCann. Despite that injury potential, McCann and Gattis are both providing just what this team needs on both sides of the ball and not dealing with any nagging health problems.
More must be done to address this issue. The mainstream sports media needs to do their part, and not just be the complacent yes men and women some of them usually are. A player slashing .279/.341/.482/.823 and only striking out 14% of the time does not deserve to keep being sat. He's "earned" that playing time. Hinch needs to start delivering on his word. If no one else is going to stand up for Evan, or give him the credit that he deserves, than that task will continue to fall to me. But it's a task I'm more than capable of handling!
So no to some of the fan base out there, I will not "shut the fuck up!" because of the team record, nor will I accept what is being done to the bear. The CDH (critics, doubters, haters) crowd would have to kill me in order for that to happen. I doubt very much that any of them have the guts to do that! No one would dare to make Evan Gattis a forgotten man in this game. Especially, not while I'm around!
“I’ve got to work harder to get him some more regular at-bats,” Hinch said. “It’s been hard with the DH spot going to Beltran most of the time. … I know when he warms up and starts getting some hits, the power’s going to come. He can do a lot of damage, but the two-out base hit to right — it’s hard to keep the ball fair inside the first baseman — proved to be a pivotal run as well.”So here's my follow up question: Why hasn't he made this happen? Is he NOT a man of his word? Could the front office be playing politics in the way that they constantly trot out Carlos Beltran and his .231 batting average and .697 OPS compared to a .279 BA and .823 OPS that El Oso Blanco is currently sporting? Are there other mysterious reasons as to why the better hitter in 2017 is NOT getting the playing time he has more than "earned?"
I honestly wish that I knew the answers to these questions. What's even more frustrating is that no one in the mainstream sports media is doing anything to hold the feet of management to the fire. The ongoing mantra of journalism is supposed to be hold the powerful accountable. So why aren't these reporters doing just that here? I understand that there is a big difference between what happens in the Astros clubhouse vice what is going on in Washington, but that still is no excuse!
Of the 56 games that Evan Gattis has played in, 39 of them have seen him tally at least one hit. 13 of those 39 games have gone for multiple hits. He has 24 extra base hits, 8 home runs and 16 doubles to go with his 39 RBI. Additionally, the bear also has a solid .203 ISO, 121 wRC+, a 1.3 WAR and 126 OPS+ on the year. For further context, he has hits in 70% of his games, and multiple hits in just under 25% of the games he is in. On any other team, this would be far more than enough to get him more playing time. Case in point, he's more than "earned it!"
All of this raises so many red, or shall I say orange, flags. Yes, I'm well aware of what the designated hitter rule is, and why it's in place in the league. Contrary to popular belief, I'm not an oblivious idiot, nor am I just finding things to bitch about. In light of the fact that the team has such an awesome record, I cannot ignore the fact that a player that is starter caliber is constantly being sat for an overpaid veteran. For those unfamiliar with the DH rule in American League baseball, here is that part of that clause that gets people all stirred up:
If a player serving as the DH is later used on defense, he continues to bat in his same lineup spot. But for the rest of the game, his team cannot use a DH to bat in place of the pitcher. A team is also barred from using a DH for the rest of the game if the pitcher moves from the mound to another defensive position, a player pinch-hits for any other player and then becomes the pitcher, or the current pitcher pinch-hits or pinch-runs for the DH.Here's the thing most fail to realize with this rule. The pitcher is not REQUIRED to bat in the DH spot. In fact, more often than not when the issue has arisen across the American League, the manager can make a double switch, and start to clear his bench. He can go to his other position players, bat them in that spot, and then put them out on the field in place of one of the starters. Indeed, this would mean that there would be a SLIGHT risk, emphasis on the word slight, that Beltran may have to take the outfield in a case like this, if push came to shove.
But this is a risk that the team needs to be more willing to take. From some of the analysis I've read, the probability of a DH having to switch to the field mid game is roughly 2-4%. That's, in all honesty, not that high of a risk. It's actually pretty low, truth be told, because it does not happen nearly as often as some would like to think. The catching position may be the most demanding and subjugated to high injury risk, but the overall health of both Gattis and Brian McCann have been enough to sustain what is needed from that position. BMac did have that foul ball off of Aaron Judge hit him back at Yankee Stadium in May, but those are all rare, freak occurrences.
Look, Evan himself may not be one to metaphorically "stir the pot" or complain, but that doesn't mean he should be taken advantage of, or constantly be seen as some afterthought or yesterday's news to everyone. As I've stated before, and have subsequently had my head chewed off about it, there are just so many things about this whole situation that just seems to be unethical. I, for one, am not just gonna sit idly by or hold my tongue all because the team is on the hot streak. Like all of the best teams out there, they need to strive for what can make them even better. Whether anyone likes it or not, Gattis does that for them, and they are sitting on a literal gold mine with all of this!
It's becoming stretch time in the baseball season. Because of this, the team needs to shake things up now, or else risk other teams catching onto things too quickly. There will be times left that they still struggle, but they need to make sure the wounds are not self-inflicted. When you sit a batter like Gattis in favor of Beltran, as things stand right now, you run so much more of a risk than if you had to sub him mid-game for any potential injury to McCann. Despite that injury potential, McCann and Gattis are both providing just what this team needs on both sides of the ball and not dealing with any nagging health problems.
More must be done to address this issue. The mainstream sports media needs to do their part, and not just be the complacent yes men and women some of them usually are. A player slashing .279/.341/.482/.823 and only striking out 14% of the time does not deserve to keep being sat. He's "earned" that playing time. Hinch needs to start delivering on his word. If no one else is going to stand up for Evan, or give him the credit that he deserves, than that task will continue to fall to me. But it's a task I'm more than capable of handling!
So no to some of the fan base out there, I will not "shut the fuck up!" because of the team record, nor will I accept what is being done to the bear. The CDH (critics, doubters, haters) crowd would have to kill me in order for that to happen. I doubt very much that any of them have the guts to do that! No one would dare to make Evan Gattis a forgotten man in this game. Especially, not while I'm around!
Original Photo Credit: Thearon W. Henderson of Getty Images
There are no more excuses to keep sitting the bear. Start playing him more, Astros organization!!!!
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