Brian McCann......Respect.

All The Hype · Aug 30, 2010

Just caught a minute of the Braves/Mets game and McCann steps up with runner on first no one out and a big shift on...and instead of trying to beat the shift by hitting through it, he selflessly lays down a push bunt to third base and the Mets didn't even have a play on it.

Gotta love that kind of unselfishness.

andyduke86 · Aug 30, 2010

bunting for an easy hit is being unselfish?

lisu · Aug 30, 2010

andyduke86 said:
bunting for an easy hit is being unselfish?

It's smart.

BluesBroSJ · Aug 30, 2010

maybe. maybe not. but at the very least he's a smart ballplayer

Mudcatsfan · Aug 30, 2010

andyduke86 said:
bunting for an easy hit is being unselfish?

yes because it makes you look 'weak' in the world of the locker room mentality.

he also walked off last night against my fish. Dude is for real.

All The Hype · Aug 30, 2010

andyduke86 said:
bunting for an easy hit is being unselfish?

A lot of guys are too concerned with hitting homeruns to take a free base for the good of the team. See Ryan Howard. See Barry Bonds.

It's refreshing to see someone putting their team above their own personal stats.

And guess what, if Howard would do this every now and then, maybe teams would think twice about shifting every time he steps to the plate, which would help him improve his average since he is a big pull hitter.

Perhaps a more obvious example of why this is unselfish is Mark McGwire in 1998. I remember seeing a team put on a shift against him and even in the midst of the homerun chase, McGwire hit two perfectly placed groudballs in two consecutive at bats to the left side for two easy singles. Helping his team win was more important than breaking what was (at the time) one of the most coveted records in all of sports.

Topnotchsy · Aug 30, 2010

Guy is a stud who will get the respect he deserves when people look back at his career and realize he was pretty much the best hitting catcher in the NL for years. He has made the All-Star game 5 years running, and while he's not Joe Mauer of Mike Piazza with the stick, at the position he's the best out there in the NL (we'll give Posey some time to prove otherwise.)

ffgameman · Aug 30, 2010

ALL_THE_HYPE said:
andyduke86 said:

bunting for an easy hit is being unselfish?

Click to expand...

A lot of guys are too concerned with hitting homeruns to take a free base for the good of the team. See Ryan Howard. See Barry Bonds.

It's refreshing to see someone putting their team above their own personal stats.

And guess what, if Howard would do this every now and then, maybe teams would think twice about shifting every time he steps to the plate, which would help him improve his average since he is a big pull hitter.

Perhaps a more obvious example of why this is unselfish is Mark McGwire in 1998. I remember seeing a team put on a shift against him and even in the midst of the homerun chase, McGwire hit two perfectly placed groudballs in two consecutive at bats to the left side for two easy singles. Helping his team win was more important than breaking what was (at the time) one of the most coveted records in all of sports.

I'm not so certain Bonds is the best example, considering the amount of walks he took (not talking intentional, of course). He could have easily swung for the fences instead of taking a pitch.

All The Hype · Aug 30, 2010

ffgameman said:
ALL_THE_HYPE said:

andyduke86 said:

bunting for an easy hit is being unselfish?

Click to expand...

A lot of guys are too concerned with hitting homeruns to take a free base for the good of the team. See Ryan Howard. See Barry Bonds.

It's refreshing to see someone putting their team above their own personal stats.

And guess what, if Howard would do this every now and then, maybe teams would think twice about shifting every time he steps to the plate, which would help him improve his average since he is a big pull hitter.

Perhaps a more obvious example of why this is unselfish is Mark McGwire in 1998. I remember seeing a team put on a shift against him and even in the midst of the homerun chase, McGwire hit two perfectly placed groudballs in two consecutive at bats to the left side for two easy singles. Helping his team win was more important than breaking what was (at the time) one of the most coveted records in all of sports.

Click to expand...

I'm not so certain Bonds is the best example, considering the amount of walks he took (not talking intentional, of course). He could have easily swung for the fences instead of taking a pitch.

I see what you're saying but still disagree because when he was swinging he was still swinging for the fences instead of taking the easy hit. Maybe not the best example, sure, but it still holds true. I wonder how many hits he lost because of trying to hit through the shift. That would be interesting to see.

Think about it though, if a player hits it to the hole maybe once or twice in a row, how can a team leave the shift on? I'd think that the player taking a free base would keep the defense honest. And if they keep shifting regardless, why not keep hitting balls to the gaping holes and bat .600 for the season?

Super Mario · Aug 30, 2010

andyduke86 · Aug 30, 2010

ALL_THE_HYPE said:
ffgameman said:

[quote="ALL_THE_HYPE":2exb6hz8]

andyduke86 said:

bunting for an easy hit is being unselfish?

Click to expand...

A lot of guys are too concerned with hitting homeruns to take a free base for the good of the team. See Ryan Howard. See Barry Bonds.

It's refreshing to see someone putting their team above their own personal stats.

And guess what, if Howard would do this every now and then, maybe teams would think twice about shifting every time he steps to the plate, which would help him improve his average since he is a big pull hitter.

Perhaps a more obvious example of why this is unselfish is Mark McGwire in 1998. I remember seeing a team put on a shift against him and even in the midst of the homerun chase, McGwire hit two perfectly placed groudballs in two consecutive at bats to the left side for two easy singles. Helping his team win was more important than breaking what was (at the time) one of the most coveted records in all of sports.

Click to expand...

I'm not so certain Bonds is the best example, considering the amount of walks he took (not talking intentional, of course). He could have easily swung for the fences instead of taking a pitch.

I see what you're saying but still disagree because when he was swinging he was still swinging for the fences instead of taking the easy hit. Maybe not the best example, sure, but it still holds true. I wonder how many hits he lost because of trying to hit through the shift. That would be interesting to see.

Think about it though, if a player hits it to the hole maybe once or twice in a row, how can a team leave the shift on? I'd think that the player taking a free base would keep the defense honest. And if they keep shifting regardless, why not keep hitting balls to the gaping holes and bat .600 for the season?[/quote:2exb6hz8]

I've never understood why more hitters who face defensive shifts don't do this. It keeps the defense honest and will get them out of the shift.

darocker80 · Aug 30, 2010

Topnotchsy said:
Guy is a stud who will get the respect he deserves when people look back at his career and realize he was pretty much the best hitting catcher in the NL for years. He has made the All-Star game 5 years running, and while he's not Joe Mauer of Mike Piazza with the stick, at the position he's the best out there in the NL (we'll give Posey some time to prove otherwise.)

Couldn't have said it better myself.

cgilmo · Aug 30, 2010

now im gonna have to suspend myself

mwashuc06 · Aug 30, 2010

McCann barring injuries will be a future HOFer IMO..

Super Mario · Aug 30, 2010

cgilmo said:
now im gonna have to suspend myself

Super Mario · Aug 30, 2010

mwashuc06 said:
McCann barring injuries will be a future HOFer IMO..

:benson:

darocker80 · Aug 30, 2010

Sam Banks said:
mwashuc06 said:

McCann barring injuries will be a future HOFer IMO..

Click to expand...

:benson:

its actually lookig like it. Averaging 20ish HR game, 5 straight all star appearance (Every full season). three silver sluggers and has been a key batter if not the anchor of the braves line up. If he keeps it up I can see it (because of his position). -especially if he stays entire years as a Brave

Super Mario · Aug 30, 2010

darocker80 said:
Sam Banks said:

mwashuc06 said:

McCann barring injuries will be a future HOFer IMO..

Click to expand...

:benson:

Click to expand...

its actually lookig like it. Averaging 20ish HR game, 5 straight all star appearance (Every full season). three silver sluggers and has been a key batter if not the anchor of the braves line up. If he keeps it up I can see it (because of his position). -especially if he stays entire years as a Brave

Yadi's got a better shot.

abravesfan · Aug 30, 2010

ho humm, .281/.388/.484 for a .873 OPS, 19 HRs, 70 RBIs, just another year for McCann

HOF talk is still way premature, he's going to have to put up some counting stats and catchers just do not age well, nor does he seem like the body type to break the mold. Still, he is only 26, if health goes his way he will have a chance to be one of the better offensive catchers of all times. Mauer definitely has overshadowed him, considering Mauer's offensive numbers outside of batting average are arguably comparable or even less impressive than McCann's

And Yadi for the hall is the funniest thing I've heard in awhile (probably since the last Sam post)

cgilmo · Aug 30, 2010

Sam Banks said:
darocker80 said:

[quote="Sam Banks":e0dytoks]

mwashuc06 said:

McCann barring injuries will be a future HOFer IMO..

Click to expand...

:benson:

Click to expand...

its actually lookig like it. Averaging 20ish HR game, 5 straight all star appearance (Every full season). three silver sluggers and has been a key batter if not the anchor of the braves line up. If he keeps it up I can see it (because of his position). -especially if he stays entire years as a Brave

Yadi's got a better shot.[/quote:e0dytoks]

:|

I don't see either getting in.

Yadi's bat simply isn't there long term.

Brian won't stay healthy long enough to play catcher his entire career. He's too big for that. If you could combine Yadi and Heap, you would have the perfect backstop.

Welcome to our community

Be apart of something great, join today!

Brian McCann......Respect.

Active member

New member

Active member

New member

Active member

Active member

Featured Contributor, The best players in history?

New member

Active member

Well-known member

New member

New member

Well-known member

New member

Well-known member

Well-known member

New member

Well-known member

New member

Well-known member

Similar threads

Log in