I don't think this team is a total loss cause but I'm also about 99.9% sure they aren't a host team. I see us being somewhere between 14-16 and 16-14. Just like last year I think we will be 4-5 after our first 9 SEC games. With the schedule remaining I don't think 12-9 is too much to ask which would put us at 16-14. 6 of the last 7 series are very winnable @vandy is the only one that should be a guaranteed loss. With that said we have to continue to get better and we have to have somebody step up on Sunday. The lineups this weekend were a step in the right direction.
I think the lineup should be as follows for most every game:
Watson LF
Golsan RF
JB CF
Orvis 1B
Lartigue C
Perdzock DH
Bortles 3B
Blackmon 2B
Robinson SS
Knight is a SLOW inside out hitter which means he hits a lot of singles and a lot of ground balls to the 2nd baseman. He's a prime double play candidate and when he actually gets a hit it takes 2 more for him to score. Golsan and Watson are going to get on base and both put a lot of pressure on the defense with their speed. Bortles needs to move down in the lineup and hope he gets the 2006 Mark Wright treatment from the rest of the league. Mark Wright was moved to the 8 hole after 2 weeks of conference play in 06 and ended up hitting over .300 with double digits HRs. We desperately desperately need Blackmon to start hitting and he's started to come around a little. Robinson moving back down in the lineup this past weekend got him going and he was a huge weapon as a double leadoff in the 9 hole last year that's why I put him back down there. I'm more of perdzock fan than Chase and some others so that's why he's in there for me. I could be talked into Golsan DHing and Dishon playing RF with Dishon batting 8th and moving everybody up one with Holt out of that lineup.
As for the pitching staff which usually our strength... Trent is going to have us in every Friday night game and I can easily see us being 7-3 on Friday night. Brady Bramlett is going to keep us in most Saturday games but his high strikeout rate could turn into a negative. He throws so many pitches rest he won't make out of the 6th very often and our bullpen flat sucks right now. I think wags has to pitch on Sunday and let the Sizzle pitch midweek and long relief. Sam simply can't get it done anymore. Wyatt Short needs to be a 1 inning only closer IMO that way he can be used in multiple games. Weathersby needs to be the first one out of the pen in games where we are winning or tied no matter what inning it is other than the 9th. I think if Weathersby comes in this past Sunday in the 4th we probably win that game. He hadn't pitched all weekend so getting 4 innings out of him wouldn't have been a problem. Evan Anderson needs to step up and be able to give us multiple relief innings on the weekend. Will Stokes and Matt Denny need to find some success in midweek before we can really trust them on the weekend.
That's all I've got I've rambled long enough...
I think the lineup should be as follows for most every game:
Watson LF
Golsan RF
JB CF
Orvis 1B
Lartigue C
Perdzock DH
Bortles 3B
Blackmon 2B
Robinson SS
Knight is a SLOW inside out hitter which means he hits a lot of singles and a lot of ground balls to the 2nd baseman. He's a prime double play candidate and when he actually gets a hit it takes 2 more for him to score. Golsan and Watson are going to get on base and both put a lot of pressure on the defense with their speed. Bortles needs to move down in the lineup and hope he gets the 2006 Mark Wright treatment from the rest of the league. Mark Wright was moved to the 8 hole after 2 weeks of conference play in 06 and ended up hitting over .300 with double digits HRs. We desperately desperately need Blackmon to start hitting and he's started to come around a little. Robinson moving back down in the lineup this past weekend got him going and he was a huge weapon as a double leadoff in the 9 hole last year that's why I put him back down there. I'm more of perdzock fan than Chase and some others so that's why he's in there for me. I could be talked into Golsan DHing and Dishon playing RF with Dishon batting 8th and moving everybody up one with Holt out of that lineup.
As for the pitching staff which usually our strength... Trent is going to have us in every Friday night game and I can easily see us being 7-3 on Friday night. Brady Bramlett is going to keep us in most Saturday games but his high strikeout rate could turn into a negative. He throws so many pitches rest he won't make out of the 6th very often and our bullpen flat sucks right now. I think wags has to pitch on Sunday and let the Sizzle pitch midweek and long relief. Sam simply can't get it done anymore. Wyatt Short needs to be a 1 inning only closer IMO that way he can be used in multiple games. Weathersby needs to be the first one out of the pen in games where we are winning or tied no matter what inning it is other than the 9th. I think if Weathersby comes in this past Sunday in the 4th we probably win that game. He hadn't pitched all weekend so getting 4 innings out of him wouldn't have been a problem. Evan Anderson needs to step up and be able to give us multiple relief innings on the weekend. Will Stokes and Matt Denny need to find some success in midweek before we can really trust them on the weekend.
That's all I've got I've rambled long enough...
