First Base

[7hottamales]

What are our options? I'm not saying...just curious.

[Rosewood]

You can't score if you can't get on base. I never had a problem getting on first base, plenty of girls told me to take a walk.

[haysdb]

I see only one alternative - put Clint at first and DH Cody Lassley, Bret Bascue, or Ryan Engrav. Will any of these guys hit better than Tyler? That's the question. We would lose a bit defensively at first base.

[t7017s]

I keep Hill at first. His D is by far and away and not even close the best. Although hes in a mini slump right now I think he is a .300 hitter and more importantly he is a senior leader on the team and has a history of being very very clutch in big spots. No way I would take him off first under any circumstances with obvious exception to an injury or something along those lines.

[goshox24]

No reason to take Hill out of the lineup. You aren't going to have a superstar .350 hitter at every spot in the lineup. Tyler brings exceptional defense and leadership to this team. He also competes at the plate and has come up with big hits plenty of times in his career.

I think there is more than just a little difference between Hill and Mckeever at first. You can witness this first hand by going to the games an hour early to watch warmups. Tyler is head and shoulders the better defensive player. He knows his role on this team.

[notquiteBWing]

I keep Hill at first. His D is by far and away and not even close the best. Although hes in a mini slump right now I think he is a .300 hitter and more importantly he is a senior leader on the team and has a history of being very very clutch in big spots. No way I would take him off first under any circumstances with obvious exception to an injury or something along those lines.

i'd have to agree.

unless it becomes imperative to get a better hitter in there. stick with tyler.

[KC Shox]

Freshman .269, Sophomore .286, Junior .288, current .258. His strikeout and base-on-balls numbers were pretty even the past three years, but this year he has K'd 21 times and walked 6.

Definitely disappointing numbers for his senior season. If Gene has better alternatives I'm sure he would experiment. But there are intangibles such as being a team player, senior leadership and a 'clubhouse' favorite I'm sure play a part in this.

Better for Tyler to slump now than later in the season when wins and losses mean more.

[7hottamales]

I keep Hill at first. His D is by far and away and not even close the best. Although hes in a mini slump right now I think he is a .300 hitter and more importantly he is a senior leader on the team and has a history of being very very clutch in big spots. No way I would take him off first under any circumstances with obvious exception to an injury or something along those lines.

Guys,

I really don't want to hit on this too hard for a 24-4 team, but look at Hill's avg/obp/slg over four years...find me a comparable player in terms of impact in history to compare it to...

You can sacrifice a little d at first and not lose much. Much like LF, the difference between a plus defensive 1B and an average one is very, very little in tangible value.

Not sure we have good options, so...

If someone steps up and looks like they have a good chance of contributing something offensively, I will probably revisit this later in the year.

[Shocker85]

Not sure we have good options, so...

If someone steps up and looks like they have a good chance of contributing something offensively, I will probably revisit this later in the year.

That's the key to the puzzle. The next best BA with more than 10 AB is only hitting .238, which isn't to say that if given more AB someone else would get more comfortable. This team has very little experience off the bench (much like the bullpen), and I bet if someone would step forward and contribure a little, they might get more chances. The problem is, everyone has pretty much failed to crack into the line-up with their bats.

Hill was a very good clutch hitter late in the season last year. He's hit a bunch of doubles this year. Maybe he'll put a couple good games back-to-back and get some confidence back at the plate.

--'85.

[t7017s]

I keep Hill at first. His D is by far and away and not even close the best. Although hes in a mini slump right now I think he is a .300 hitter and more importantly he is a senior leader on the team and has a history of being very very clutch in big spots. No way I would take him off first under any circumstances with obvious exception to an injury or something along those lines.

Guys,

I really don't want to hit on this too hard for a 24-4 team, but look at Hill's avg/obp/slg over four years...find me a comparable player in terms of impact in history to compare it to...

You can sacrifice a little d at first and not lose much. Much like LF, the difference between a plus defensive 1B and an average one is very, very little in tangible value.

Not sure we have good options, so...

If someone steps up and looks like they have a good chance of contributing something offensively, I will probably revisit this later in the year.

I hear what your saying but I think your undervalueing his importance at first this year. What your getting at would usually make sense but with the defense we have displayed over the last week I dont want to give out any additional bags to anyone. I know hill has saved at least 5 balls from getting by him over the last week or two alone. When Clint has played first and been in a situation to handle similar throws to first he hasnt faired so well. On most any other year I may agree with you but not right now or this year. Gene will find a solution to what may be an issue at first in coming years. Although I really dont know if I think the issue there is quite what you make it to be. But thats just my opinion.

[t7017s]

Not sure we have good options, so...

If someone steps up and looks like they have a good chance of contributing something offensively, I will probably revisit this later in the year.

That's the key to the puzzle. The next best BA with more than 10 AB is only hitting .238, which isn't to say that if given more AB someone else would get more comfortable. This team has very little experience off the bench (much like the bullpen), and I bet if someone would step forward and contribure a little, they might get more chances. The problem is, everyone has pretty much failed to crack into the line-up with their bats.

Hill was a very good clutch hitter late in the season last year. He's hit a bunch of doubles this year. Maybe he'll put a couple good games back-to-back and get some confidence back at the plate.

--'85.

I think Hill will be fine. Its baseball after all and everyone goes through mini slumps over the course of a year.

[xazshox]

Hill

Someone told me that last year Hill led the team in RBI's when there were 2 outs when there were runs to be driven in. In other words, he's a clutch hitter when it counts the most

[RoyalShock]

Re: Hill

Someone told me that last year Hill led the team in RBI's when there were 2 outs when there were runs to be driven in. In other words, he's a clutch hitter when it counts the most

Doesn't Bill James say there is not such thing as a clutch hitter? :D

[shox1989]

I am for keeping Hill at first. He provides some good senior leadership and he was gotten more clutch hits over the years than anyone else on the team.

[shocker3]

Keep Tyler Hill at first.

He is doing a great job defensively and has been pointed out he gets a lot of timely hits.

Besides he writes an excellent column on Mondays at goshockers.com. :D :wsu_posters: