Glaus: Batting Cleanup?
Welcome to the new-look blog zone on STLtoday.com.
I told serial blogger Derrick Goold that he’s already making me and others look bad with his highly ambitious designs at Bird Land .. so many fancy links and assorted bells and whistles over there at Goold Land. It’s damned impressive.
(For the love of Luis Aparicio … what’s a “tag,” anyway? I thought that’s what a Cardinals 2B or SS does when Yadier Molina throws the ball to nail a base-stealer).
Before I can figure any of that stuff out (if I try), I’m just going to write, OK?
Here’s a quick opinion on new Cardinal Troy Glaus and his place in the 2008 lineup.
We’re all assuming he’s going to bat cleanup, behind No. 3 hitter Albert Pujols. Makes sense on the surface, because Glaus has an acclaimed power stroke, and presence, and he’s a dangerous hitter. He also doesn’t shy away from important situations.
One problem: Glaus hasn’t been a particularly good No. 4 hitter in his career.
In 1,435 at-bats as a No. 4 hitter, Glaus is batting .238, with a mediocre onbase percentage of .344, and a solid but unimposing slugging percentage of .471.
Granted, those numbers would represent a substantial upgrade over what the Cardinals got from their No. 4 hitters in 2007. They were anemic, with a .246 BA, .320 OBP and .386 SLG.
And Scott Rolen was feeble as a No. 4 hitter last season. It’s a small sample size (91 at-bats), but he hit .191 with a .276 OBP and a .309 SLG. (When healthy in years past, Rolen’s numbers at cleanup were very good).
Historically, Glaus has performed best as a No. 5 hitter or at No. 6 in the lineup.
In 1,226 ABs at No. 5, he’s .263 / .368 / .514
In 982 ABs at No. 6, he’s .273 / .377 / .539
You know how manager Tony La Russa likes “danger” in the No. 2 slot? Uh-oh … in 136 ABs as a second-place hitter, Glaus has batted .301 with a .404 OBP and a .684 SLG.
But don’t tell Tony; we wouldn’t want to give him any ideas.
Glaus may be less than ideal as the new No. 4 hitter, but compared to what the Cardinals had there last season, he’ll deliver a lot more wallop. Makes sense.
As we go, a couple of fun facts on Glaus, from my Team 1380-AM radio partner, Randy Karraker: Glaus’ mother lives in Ashland, Mo. And in the past, when he’s visited her, Glaus has worked out and used the batting cages at Mizzou.
I talked to Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt on Monday night, and he said that Glaus was excited to be here, and has always wanted to play for the Cardinals.
The St. Louis baseball atmosphere frequently has brought out the best in players who transfer here, and perhaps Glaus will thrive in the setting the way that so many others have before him.
Later …
The Land may have more bells and whistles and links and (too long) entries … but here’s betting that when it comes to the snazzy new star rankings you land more 5-out-5 than anyone else in P-D blogdom.
And who you calling serial?
dg
Bernie,
Goold is too full of numbers hard to relate to and abbreviations I can’t fathom. Of course, it may be my bad since I’ve only coached and followed baseball 60 years. Mizzou J-School grad, Trib sports, and the Arkansas Gazette before it merged into Democrat. Sorry, not touting my credentials. They don’t stack up to you or Goold, both of whom I enjoy in regular stories. Go TLR and experiment with Glaus until you find the best fit for him and the club. I’m excited about the change. Hope Rolen’s ego gets a real clobber and, then, if he can stick it out, that he does real well. If not, who cares?Tony will never change, but he needs a lot of lessons in diplomatic management. Players are people, too.
Thanks,
Grider
Bernie,
Has anyone speculated what number he will wear with the birds on the bat? Will he wear number 25?
What the hell is it with these star rankings, anyway? Why can’t we just write? I didn’t sign up to audition for American Idol.
Bernie, just my thoughts but I think Glaus should bat 5th. Put Duncan or Ankiel in the 4 spot. I know neither is ideal but you’d be going back to r/l/r etc,. Say Ankiel 2nd, Albert 3rd, Duncan 4th, Glaus 5th. Both Ankiel and Duncan should see good pitches to hit which would hopefully mean their production would in turn force pitchers to give Albert a pitch to hit from time to time.
I just thought the blogs were going Zagat on us Bernie. So far 37 people have chimed in with this being a four-star meal of a blog. Tender morsels of info, delicately sauteed in a brother of vintage BernieM insight. Slightly acerbic after taste. Excellent tannins.
I’ll take Grider’s comment — criticism? — to heart. B-Land tries to be a B-Lend. Stats, sure. But also stories, news and, of course, bad plays on words.
It’s a four-star meal for a two-star click.
Tony won’t bat him in the 2 spot.
He’s slowwwwwwww
Good luck,Scotty.You certainly beamed up some magic here and maybe you can revive your chances of becoming a Hall of Famer in Toronto.Glaus?Hope the big swings outweigh the big strikeouts,but one thing is certain…You will be embraced by this dynamic Cardinal Nation.I for one am hoping that past allegations of drug use won’t mean you are a formerly performance enhanced disappointment.
We’ll one thing for certain; we will probably lead the league in strikeouts. That being said, it really doesn’t matter what line up is used, there isn’t enough pitching to get this team in the upper tier of the division. Going 500 would be monumental with all the projects and broken toys. I guess I’ll show up at Bush about twice this year but not the 10 I’d averaged for the past decade. Sorry but that’s all the ownership deserves in my opinion. Besides, I have Rams tickets and there is only so much one can stomach in a year. GO BLUES!!!!! At least the Cowboys tanked so the gods are still smiling for me.
if glaus doesn’t hit 4th, who hits 4th? you give plenty of reasons for him to hit elsewhere, but no solutions to who bats behind pujols. what are ankiel’s stats hitting clean-up or what are duncan’s compared to other places they’ve hit in the order? i personally prefer the R/L/R arrangement in the heart of the order. i like the insight that you give to not have glaus protecting pujols, but i just feel incomplete until i know what our other options are for the 4 spot.
Glaus is the best option… that’s what I concluded.
nobody’s talking about his alleged steroid use. my concern is that his good years stem from using peds and that his recent problems may be more a result of increased enforcement by mlb than a legitimate injury, which would mean that last years numbers are more indicative of what the club will get from him than the big numbers earlier in his career. is this something we should be concerned about?
I like the trade—I also like the numbers that I get from “Birdland” (does that make me a geek?)…
I certainly don’t have the time or resources to dig out the stats like Goold does……
It’s good that Glaus wants to be a Cardinal. Perhaps the club house will be healthier to the degree baseball will be the focus.
I can see this:
Tony, to Troy: You know, “with the pitcher batting eighth, the 9th place batter is essentially the leadoff guy after the first inning. after your first at-bat you *are* in the 5-hole.”
-RBB
I think the stikeouts that come with Glaus will be a little more bearable now that Edmonds and his once a game K have left. I still like a HEALTHY DUNCAN hitting either in front or behind ALBERT and GLAUS IN THE OTHER 2 OR 4 SPOT.
I would seriously consider this:
Izturis/Ryan
Duncan
Pujols
Ankiel
Glaus
Ludwick
Molina
Kennedy
Pitcher
When Miles or Schumaker start, maybe they could hit leadoff?
The bottom line is and will be at seasons end, nothing new at third-base, just a different name for poor performance. Should have brought up or traded for someone with promise, not “has been”!
Bernie: I don’t want to pick on Troy Glaus or any player, but just as a practical matter, I find it difficult to expect any power hitter to produce at the power levels which they achieved during the high steriod use years. I am not saying Glaus did, but his name has been associated with steriods. There are potentially hundreds of players who’s power stats have been enhanced over the last ten years. Then a drop off occurs, ala Jim Edmonds, Brady Anderson and Troy Glaus and many many others. Shouldn’t it at least be acknowledged that there is a risk that Glaus may never again achieve his power production without PHDs.
Thanks
Bernie, do you know the reason Rolen would not salute the flag during the National Anthem? I know it is not required, but I noticed several times last season that he was the only Cardinal not saluting it. Did he ever give a reason for that?
Why are members of Cardinal Nation hatin on us already? It does absolutely no good to be so pessimistic to say that 500 would be monumental!! I think we have a legit shot at getting back to the top of the division this year. Glaus will be embraced by the GREATEST FANS IN THE WORLD! I know we have holes in our lineup but our coaching staff and front office can pull it together and get the right combo of people. I loved Scott Rolen, but it was time for a change. We are younger, faster, and hopefully we are united. Cardinal Nation will live on and rise to ocassion once again and Greg, if you don’t want to come to the games, by all means DON’T! WE DON’T NEED HATERS!!! GO BE A CUBS FAN IF YOU WANT TO HATE SOMETHING!!!
I see the lineup ending up as such:
CF Rasmus (assuming he makes the club), RF Ankiel, 1B Pujols, LF Duncan (make the most sense here), 3B Glaus, C Molina, 2B Kennedy, SS Izturis/Ryan, P
IF Rasmus does not make the team this becomes much more difficult. Who plays center, Schumaker or Ankiel? If Ankiel plays center, who plays right, Ludwick, Schumaker, Barton? Depending on who plays, there can be any number of arrangements, but it definitely looks like the bottom of the order is far from imposing.
Glaus for Rolen was great. But putting a strike out guy in the number four spot could be a mistake. I like the idea of putting someone with a higher average behind Pujols then put Glaus in the position to put on the hurt. I like the idea of Ankiel, Pujols, Duncan, and Glaus. TLR might want to put Ankiel in cleanup because he will likely have a higher average. When is Rasmus coming up from the beginning or midseason when the Cards are pretty much out of the race?
Oh FYI I think Rolen will tank in the AL against Boston and Yankee Pitching. And Glaus will actually slightly increase in average against Cubs Pitching. Your thoughts Bernie.
I think it makes the most sence to bat Glaus 5th because you can substitute the leadoff and 4th place with the most sensible platoon and keep the others in their spots no matter what type of switches you make during the game or between games.
L/R…Shoe/Barton…cf
L…Ankiel…rf
R…Pujols…1B
L/R…Duncan/Ludwick…lf
R…Glaus
R…Molina
S…Izturis…(speed in front of the pitcher)
Pitcher
L/R…Kennedy/Ryan/???
Shoe, Barton and Ankiel with speed in front of the power of Ankiel, Pujols, Duncan/Ludwick, Glaus…then hopefully better avg and gap power with Yaddie and back to speed with Izturis that the pitcher can move over then restart the leadoff in the 9 spot.
I’ll bet on that lineup…
PeterK, if your comment is directed to me, I don’t think there is an answer right now. Duncan and especially RickA don’t have enough of a track record to say whether they can handle the 4th spot or not. I’m not even certain it needs to be a big power guy on this team. Seems to me a good on base with doubles power type could do the job of protecting Albert, In my mind, for Albert to get decent pitches the two guys ahead of him are as important as the two behind him. If the top two guys are on base they have to pitch to Albert. Otherwise the opposing team will be facing bases loaded, in which a good doubles guy would work fine.
I think the question of where to hit Glaus, Duncan, Ankiel, and Ludwick will carry over into the season. I look for TLR to start with Ankiel 2nd, Albert 3rd, and Glaus, Duncan or Ludwick in the 4th, 5th and 6th spots (might even see Yada in there) depending on the pitcher and TLR’s crystal ball.
Here’s one extremely important consideration to this subject that hasn’t yet been mentioned in this thread.
Troy Glaus has historically been an extreme platoon hitter. He mauls lefthanders, but is very ordinary against righties. I don’t want to get into a lot of detail, but here is an overview of some of his career numbers:
vs. LHP: .286 BA, .407 OBP, .578 SLG
vs. RHP: .244 BA, .341 OBP, .475 SLG
That’s a whopping 169 point differential in OPS!
The numbers against lefties scream out “cleanup hitter.” The numbers against righties are more typical of a #6 or #7 hitter. They are certainly inferior to the numbers Chris Duncan has put up against righties in his major league career. I can’t see any logic to batting Glaus cleanup and Duncan lower in the order against righties.
I think the middle of the order against righties will be 3. Pujols 4. Duncan 5. Glaus.
one thing for certian is that glaus will bat clean up against lefties. He will destroy lilly and hill. If he can hit some domers at wrigley I will be happy with the trade.
Agreed:
The Glaus career line against LHP, in 1,092 ABs: .286 / .407 / .578
[...] at the PD, so at least we’re in good company, eh?) in his Monday post. Sports page colleague Bernie Miklasz responded in a later post, citing Glaus’ more productive line as a #5 and #6 [...]
Eric…
Perfect. Cut. Print. Great….
Eric…
I found this on google….
Ralph Wiggum…
I declare war on thee….
Payday Loans Online…
…
Danny T….
Good work. I am going to read some more on this….
build an intire playground -…
build an intire playgroundMother Earth News, KS -13 hours agoWhat’s more, big truck or tractor castoffs are just as easy to secure-and…
Stewart…
Good work….
magic network number serial…
Have heard from it before, but is indeed a very good comment. Thanks….
log home designs…
Once fabricated and assembled, the shell of the log home can be disassembled and the parts shipped to the final building site. That…
[...] Glaus, batting cozily in the No. 5 spot, ripped his first home run of spring on a 2-2 pitch that he deposited deep over the left-field [...]
Ab belt…
This worked for me. Yesterday I was able to stick to the Fat Flush plan with no problem. When I diet like this, I do not use recipes or make good food for myself. I just eat a couple hard boiled eggs or open a can of packed- in- water tuna. I eat to su…