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Originally Posted by Hrycaj
I don't know about Houston but in Detroit Hinch has been very protective of his coaches. A.J. does a weekly piece with the local radio station and he always defends Scott and takes the arrows for him. I'm actually impressed with how he negotiates those weekly interviews. He doesn't shy away from the teams struggles but will not throw anyone under the bus. In this respect he has shown really nice leadership skills.
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I agree that the leadership shown by Hinch is impressive, which is probably why he should stay in charge. At some point though, you cannot die on the sword continuing to defend / protect your hitting coaches, coordinators, etc. when the numbers being produced are abysmal.
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My worry with the whole Javy Baez deal was you were adding a guy who has one of the worst profiles into a lineup that already had way too much swing and miss. The few hot, streaky weeks he will give you will not make it worth the investment. At this point in his career I don't think a hitting coach has any chance of reaching him. His game is obvious and established and the Tigers signed him anyway.
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Baez is a tough nut to crack. He is high energy, above average defensively, and can mash when he makes contact. He's tied for the AL lead with least errors at 10, and of note, he's only 1 of 2 shortstops on the list. Also, and I had to look this up twice to make sure I wasn't crazy, but Baez's strikeout rate is at a career low (by more than a few percentage points). The problem is, the average is way down. On the plus side, his XBH and HR numbers are in-line or better than previous seasons at the same number of games. With all that said, I still don't think he's worth near the $20M+ they're paying him for the next six seasons. Granted, there is an opt-out clause after 2024. Regardless, a guy like Baez shouldn't be taking up 15% of your 2022 payroll.
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I have also yet to hear (maybe its out there and I haven't found it) any of the players giving any credit to Scott working with them. I routinely hear it with the pitchers and Chris Fetter. (Although admittedly, the Tigers rank near the bottom in first pitch strike percentage as well) Still, players are giving Chris credit for helping them with their development where you just aren't hearing it with Scott.
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I found this very interesting and the cynic in me thinks the team is covering for Coolbaugh for some reason. At some point, Avila has to force Hinch's hand or the owners will for Avila's.