Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Rosario vs. Hicks

Eddie Rosario got the
call Monday and
arrived at Target Field
during the game.
The Twins put Oswaldo Arcia on the disabled list Monday and called up Eddie Rosario. The choice of Rosario over Aaron Hicks was loudly questioned in the Twins blogosphere/social media, with the critics noting that Hicks' slash line at Triple A Rochester is .289/.375/.495 to Rosario's ,242/.280/.379.

But there's good reason for going with Rosario.

As I see it:


  • Arcia hits left-handed; so does Rosario. Hicks is a switch hitter, but he's much better hitting right-handed than left. If you want an outfielder to play against righties, Hicks is a poor fit.
  • One month's numbers aside, I don't believe anybody in the organization believes Hicks is a better hitter than Rosario. Nor should they.
  • Hicks, I suspect, made a bad impression in spring training with repeated lapses in concentration. In this piece on the reasons for going with Rosario, Terry Ryan offers a set of generic questions about call-ups, including these: "How's he going about his business? Is he listening?" He doesn't specifically rap Hicks on any of these points, but one can safely assume Ryan and Paul Molitor haven't forgotten March.
  • This figures to be a short-term stint. There's a line of thought that the Twins want Hicks' next return to the majors to be lasting, not a yo-yo.
That last really doesn't matter to me. I don't envision Hicks ever hitting well enough to be a regular center fielder, much less a regular left or right fielder. I think his ceiling is reserve outfielder, as is the case with Jordan Schafer and Shane Robinson. That's not the role Rosario is being called up to fill.

2 comments:

  1. Check Rosario's splits.... still doesn't get on base vs. Righties the last two years. I think it's a mistake to not give Hicks another shot. Maybe he doesn't pan out to be what it is that they once hoped he was but I still think if he can get on base and play plus D, they could go back to a high range outfield with Hicks/Buxton at some point that is more centered around D than offense ala the Gomez/Span outfields that were so much fun to watch

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  2. curious to see Rosario's ABs. questions about his bat load and being able to handle velocity long term:

    ''Eddie Rosario just is not going to hit until he fixes how he loads his hands. Wraps up. Long lead. Can't handle good stuff or velo right now"

    and

    ''I've complained earlier about the hitch in Rosario's swing set-up as the pitcher is delivering. It looked tonite as if he's gotten rid of most of that hitch/twitch.''


    is a couple things i have read recently. Wonder which one is more accurate?

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