Blake DeWitt .... everyday 3B in LA?

by throwingsmoke on Apr 2, 2008 1:09 AM EDT

I know it's early in the season, but Blake DeWitt has impressed me in his short stint. The walks and SB are the most positive to me.

What are his chances of sticking at 3rd for LA? I know LaRoche will obviously take some of his PT.

0 recs | Comment 27 comments

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

this year?

pretty much zero.

though all three people in front of him (LaRoche, Nomar and Abreu) are injury hazards (see, their DL right now), so maybe he'll get more than a handful ABs in '08.

by bleedjaxblue on Apr 2, 2008 2:16 AM EDT 0 recs

i think this is a similar situation to atkins. he was considered to be a stop gap for ian stewart. atkins blossomed immediately and stewart regressed somewhat but i suspect if dewitt can continue playing well it will be tough for torre to take him out of the lineup.

nomar won't be back anytime soon and laroche is out for a few months i believe. point is if dewitt has a solid to very good 2 month stint (because nomar will get hurt again) he could very well keep that job.

i disagree wholeheartedly with the notion that he has zero chance of sticking. the odds may be against that but i'd put them at markedly better than zero.

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Apr 2, 2008 9:50 AM EDT up 0 recs

atkins-stewart

three major differences between those situations:

1) Atkins is 6 years older than Stewart -- he was a "stopgap" in the sense that no one thought he was good enough to hold the position permanently, but not in the sense that he was only supposed to hold the job for a month. He was a full-time starter whom everyone expected to stay that way for a year or two. DeWitt, on the other hand, is the youngest person competing for the position with by far the least experience at higher levels.
2) Ian Stewart's decline made Atkins' tenure a sure thing (even if Atkins would have earned the position on his own). It's very unlikely that all of the people mentioned will struggle like Stewart, and even less likely that they'll do it at any level BESIDES the majors (because, unlike Stewart, these people are all already major leaguers, who will get their chances NOW -- hence making it unlikely that DeWitt will play this year).
3) Blake DeWitt is NOT an above-average major league corner infielder at this point in his career. He's just not. I'm happy with his success so far, and hope he can grow with it, but......he's not that special right now.

Also, just for the record, LaRoche should be back sometime in mid-May, and Abreu in a week or two. I'm less sure what the time-table is on Nomar, but I think it's a matter of weeks, not months. DeWitt is unlikely to stay on the roster as a backup third baseman, since Hu (or even DY) can play their in a pinch.

by bleedjaxblue on Apr 2, 2008 11:00 AM EDT up 0 recs

agreed

there are some similarities but you chose to highlight the differences. that's fine. all i'm saying is that dewitt has a chance. his opportunity to show what he can do is now. if he keeps performing at this level or close to it then i think that torre will have a decision to make. thus his odds are better than zero.

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Apr 2, 2008 11:32 AM EDT up 0 recs

"keeps performing at this level"?

you're talking about, what? two games? where he has two singles and three walks?

his spring was OK, too, but really?

anyway, i didn't say his chance is zero -- just pretty close to it.

by bleedjaxblue on Apr 2, 2008 12:10 PM EDT up 0 recs

speculation

isn't part/most of what's written on this site speculation? i realize he's only played in 2 games plus spring. again, i'm merely pointing out that he has a chance as slim as that might be. period. i'm not saying he's mike schmidt 2.0

i think at this point we pretty much agree anyway.

cheers!

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Apr 2, 2008 12:52 PM EDT up 0 recs

Its even possible

he gets some playing time at 2B if Kent goes down with an injury and one of the 3B guys ahead of him comes off the DL.

by Zabat on Apr 2, 2008 2:28 AM EDT 0 recs

seems unlikely too

1) i think their second base experiment with him is mostly ended
2) besides Kent, there's still Hu, Abreu, Delwyn Young, Angel Chavez and (presumably still) Ramon Martinez who can play second

he'd really have to force the issue this year for them to decide to give him ABs at second.

by bleedjaxblue on Apr 2, 2008 2:46 AM EDT up 0 recs

In the spirit of good will

In the spirit of good will, the Dodgers should hand over their surplus prospects to the Giants, who have a dearth of everyday prospects at the ready.

by sharksrog on Apr 2, 2008 3:43 AM EDT 0 recs

on different note

i cannot wait to watch the lincecum/bilz duel tonight.

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Apr 2, 2008 9:53 AM EDT 0 recs

i am disheartened that this isnt on national television

...instead of espn showing every yankee/red sox game, let's petition them to show every Lincecum start

by daveh33 on Apr 2, 2008 10:48 AM EDT up 0 recs

hmm

you really want people to actually see the Giants' lineup?

The fact that Brian Bocock drove in the first run of their season says it all.

"The Blue Jays won't win another playoff game until the Yankees and Red Sox are contracted." - Tom Berenger

by PujolsJunkie on Apr 2, 2008 11:02 AM EDT up 0 recs

they can blackout the channel

whenever SF is up to bat...

by daveh33 on Apr 2, 2008 11:36 AM EDT up 0 recs

lol

That is an OUTSTANDING idea.

"A little rudeness and disrespect can elevate a meaningless interaction to a battle of wills and add drama to an otherwise dull day." - Calvin

by RVachon on Apr 2, 2008 7:10 PM EDT up 0 recs

with a bases-loaded walk

President of the Joey Devine fan club as of 1/15/08. Accepting applications for other positions. "He has no equivalent." -Paul DePodesta on Jeremy Brown

by flipgatey3 on Apr 2, 2008 1:27 PM EDT up 0 recs

In the 16th inning of the season

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on Apr 2, 2008 3:26 PM EDT up 0 recs

get the baseball package if you can

that way you don't have to worry about it.

i get the package every year and i must say this yr's product is amazing. almost every game in hd and some games are broadcast in both markets so you can choose which announcers you want. if you buy the basic mlb package you can talk them into giving you the super fan (which is basically hd) for free. they've done that for me this yr. and last.

it's just become something i can't live without. thank God my wife is understanding. that's one of the reasons why i married a venezuelan ... :-)

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Apr 2, 2008 11:37 AM EDT up 0 recs

if you have comcast

they always do the first week free, so all the games are being televised til april 5th.

by sourstuff on Apr 2, 2008 12:19 PM EDT up 0 recs

ah

i have dish... i got the nba channels free for the first week....

by daveh33 on Apr 2, 2008 12:53 PM EDT up 0 recs

How much does it cost?

Talkin' Sports

by BlackOps on Apr 2, 2008 1:11 PM EDT up 0 recs

4 monthly payments of $42.25

The super fan (HD) added is $50.00 which i make them pay for. ... :-)

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Apr 2, 2008 1:57 PM EDT up 0 recs

Dish TV question

sorry for the lack of knowledge here...but if I have Dish TV can I even physically purchase the Extra Innings package??? Thanks in advance...

by mjwelch11 on Apr 2, 2008 12:55 PM EDT 0 recs

i don't think so

i would call them and ask. i think that's the difference between them. dish network doesn't get some or all of the sports channels.

I heard Tim Lincecum will win 1 Cy Young & 11 Tim Lincecums. Question is, how many Cole Hamels will he win?

by the pinstripes on Apr 2, 2008 1:55 PM EDT up 0 recs

dewitt

his spring was impressive IMO. He was composed, calm, didn't look overmatched at all and played at a flat-line level.

He has carried that into the season. He isn't chasing pitches, and he is making pitchers work. His improved plate discipline makes me cautiously optimistic that he will turn into a decent every day player....eventually.

He was always heralded by scouts as having the offensive tools to hit. So far, surely but slowly, those tools are starting to translate into skills.

by npurcell on Apr 2, 2008 3:45 PM EDT 0 recs

Re:

I'd have lost a lot of money betting that DeWitt would not get this opportunity and then losing more that he would do anything with the opportunity. Baseball is so whacky, the ballyhooed Alex Gordon could barely get a hit in April, and DeWitt whose MLE's are microscopic, bangs a few hits off one of the best young pitchers in the game and after 3 games is the teams leading hitter.

Love this game, keeps me humble

by ToyCannon on Apr 3, 2008 6:06 PM EDT up 0 recs