Viciedo, Flowers and Beckham will be better hitters in 2013

[Frater Perdurabo]

Originally Posted by doublem23

Typical

It's a Munch world, and we're just living in it.

[DumpJerry]

Originally Posted by DSpivack

I'll let his actual work speak for itself. Thus, I make no certain statements or unfounded predictions as to Viciedo's 2013 season until he actually plays it.

Come on. This post is just way beyond outrageous. You know how we hate surprises and want all the answers for the upcoming season by Valentine's Day.

[tstrike2000]

They'll have to be better. I'm sure the pitching will be good, but right now this is the offense of a third place team.

[blandman]

Originally Posted by sullythered

Making contact is not his problem, at all. He is a .263 major league hitter, and hit .283 through the minors. He struck out a little too much last year, but he was nowhere near the league leaders. He makes a ton of contact, he just doesn't walk enough. His problem is patience, and a timing mechanism could help him with that.

Batting average is a poor evaluation tool when it comes to making contact. That doesn't tell you at all how good he was at making contact. The dude struck out in more than 20% of his at bats. He's Adam Dunn, except he doesn't walk at all (4:1 k:bb ratio, whereas Adam walks a ton) and he doesn't have as much power either.

[RKMeibalane]

Originally Posted by blandman

Why discuss things on a message board then?

Discussion entails making thoughtful observations, not spewing out predictions of certain doom.

[RKMeibalane]

Originally Posted by blandman

Batting average is a poor evaluation tool when it comes to making contact. That doesn't tell you at all how good he was at making contact. The dude struck out in more than 20% of his at bats. He's Adam Dunn, except he doesn't walk at all (4:1 k:bb ratio, whereas Adam walks a ton) and he doesn't have as much power either.

If Viciedo can improve his contact frequency, it's likely that he will provide more power. His ability to drive the ball is not something that most of us worry about.

[blandman]

Originally Posted by RKMeibalane

Discussion entails making thoughtful observations, not spewing out predictions of certain doom.

Discussion involves opinions and ideas. What you said brought nothing to the discussion, and seemed to knock those willing to have one.

[blandman]

Originally Posted by RKMeibalane

If Viciedo can improve his contact frequency, it's likely that he will provide more power. His ability to drive the ball is not something that most of us worry about.

He's a guess hitter who swings at full speed to produce that power though. I'm not sure what good this is going to do. He needs a complete rework if he's going to do both of those things. He's still young enough to survive it.

[October26]

Originally Posted by CoopaLoop

Nobody gets off the Island by walking.

There are some really funny posts in this thread but yours really made me laugh Thank you!

I read the Jeff Manto article that DumpJerry posted to open up this thread and I love Manto's optimism. I know I am a bit biased (or blind) when it comes to Viciedo. But it is February, so I am going to dream. I am hoping for a big year from Viciedo this year (30 homers, 90 rbi).

GO SOX & GO VICIEDO!!

PS - Also hoping for good things from Flowers (I miss AJ) and Beckham in 2013. If it helps the Sox win more games, then it's all good.

[Tragg]

Good to hear that the coach has some ideas to help them.

[SI1020]

The first time I saw Dayan Viciedo play when he was in the minors with Birmingham, he looked so rough and unpolished. Now that he has one complete season in MLB the term "diamond in the rough" comes to mind. I don't think Viciedo can be another Frank Thomas, but I believe in my heart of hearts that he can be a passable rendition of Carlos Lee. I'm just not completely confident that he will be. So far I like Manto, and hope that his work with Viciedo will pay off.

[JB98]

Originally Posted by Lip Man 1

Assuming the Sox don't make any more moves, the three hitters listed at the start of this thread damn well better be better hitters this season.

Agreed. No question about it. The Sox cannot count on 37-year-old Paul Konerko to be the centerpiece of their lineup forever. At some point, some of these younger players need to make strides. Preferably, that time is now since the team has enough pitching to compete for a playoff spot.

As for the Viciedo discussion, the idea of sending him back to the minors to rebuild his swing is complete nonsense to me. He needs minor tweaks, not a major overhaul. And you don't learn to hit big-league pitching at AAA. There were some positives last year. Let's see if he can build on it.

[TheVulture]

Originally Posted by blandman

I like the optimism, but if Manto is really serious about fixing Viciedo he needs to spend more than a year down in the minors starting from scratch. His entire approach is one huge flaw. 4 to 1 k to bb ratio

He had as good or better season at the plate than Rios had 2 of the last 4 years. Walked more than Rios the last did the last two years as well.

[TheVulture]

Originally Posted by blandman

So...failure then? I mean, he swings like Vlad Guerrero, only without the contact ability even in the zone, let alone outside it. Is kicking his leg gonna make him Vlad, or are we serious about making him a ballplayer?

If every hitter is expected to be Vlad, 99% of hitters don't belong in the majors.

[TaylorStSox]

If Munch thinks he needs a complete overhaul of his swing, that's a good sign. Viciedo will probably hit .290/35/110 going off of Munch's predictions.