Who's at Second (2012)?

[Frayed Knot]

Farmer Ted wrote: Would it be easier to convert Murph to RF?

Easier than what ...
- bench-pressing a Humvee?
- electing Sarah Palin to national office?
- herding Senator Schumer away from TV cameras?

... yeah, probably.
But not a whole lot easier than anything else.

[Vic Sage]

now that Murphy's ripped up both knees while playing 2b, do you think that his "klueless kamikaze" style of play renders him a DH in the wrong league?

[batmagadanleadoff]

Vic Sage wrote: now that Murphy's ripped up both knees while playing 2b, do you think that his "klueless kamikaze" style of play renders him a DH in the wrong league?

Might as well give Murph another crack at second base next year. He can't damage any more knees.

[Vic Sage]

but he might quite literally die.

[batmagadanleadoff]

For sure. He'll be the one to run straight through a fence to catch a ball. The catch'll cost him his life. Didn't I see this in a a baseball movie? But I hope that the Mets find a way to keep him around. I love that guy.

[Ceetar]

Nothing has changed.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

Vic Sage wrote: but he might quite literally die.

Not if opponents learn how to slide properly. There was nothing purposely dirty in the slide yesterday, but if Costanza had slid and stayed on the base, Murphy never would have got hurt. Yesterday was just seriously bad luck.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Vic Sage wrote: now that Murphy's ripped up both knees while playing 2b, do you think that his "klueless kamikaze" style of play renders him a DH in the wrong league?

The injury had nothing-- NOTHING-- to do with Murphy's style of play.

And as ugly as it may look sometimes, said style of play has been generally very effective at the corners this year.

[smg58]

My impression before yesterday, which hasn't changed, is that Murphy is an good major league corner infielder -- his bat will play with an average glove at third, and while he doesn't have a typical first baseman's power he can at least hold his own there. The Mets have better players at both positions (assuming full health), however, and Murphy had too many misadventures in the outfield. (To be fair, his range in the outfield was actually good; it was the routine plays that turned into triples that chased him back to the infield.) That made taking a look at him a second a reasonable experiment. But he's now blown both knees trying to play the position, and you can only try to fit a square peg in a round hole so many times. I think at this point my plan A would be to look for a team who could use Murphy at third or first and has a comparable bat to spare at a position more suitable for us.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I'm sure they'll entertain offers, but it likely won't be Plan A, since inquiring teams will likely want to wait until spring to confirm his damage wasn't permanent.

I disagree at least somewhat with the implication that his ability (or inability) at second somehow brought the injuries on himself.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Anyone making such implications should REALLY take a look at both plays-- the Leonard Davis roll from last year and the Constanza one from yesterday-- and ask themselves honestly whether Roberto Alomar or Joe Morgan would have been able to avoid injury in the same circumstance before making any such implications again.

[Vic Sage]

i don't know who might have or might not have been injured on a similar play. I didn't see the play, and don't boast expertise over such matters even if i had seen it. What i do know is that (1) Murphy's flaws as a middle infielder, as they have been reported, are not arm strength or range; he's just shown bad footwork, poor positioning and awkward movement around the ball and around the bag, and (2) he blew out the other knee while playing 2b in the minors on what i think was a similar play.

These are facts. draw your own conclusions. But i think a fluid, graceful 2bman is less likely (not immune, just less likely) to get taken out at 2b than an inexperienced, awkward one. I don't really think it's a controversial point, nor did i intend it to be. And while such a result may be purely bad luck, two such similar events may indicate a symptom.

I wish him nothing but a speedy and full recovery. Perhaps, since he's run out of knees to blow out, he may then be safe to return to middle of the diamond.

[Centerfield]

Murphy one of the better hitters on this team. He has to be in the lineup every day.

He's not going to play 1st or third, his best positions, because the other players are better.

He's not going to play SS, CF or catcher because of obvious defensive shortcomings. That leaves only second base, where he kind of sucks, or the corner OF positions, where he really sucks. Plus he doesn't really hit all that well for a corner OFer.

Plug him in at second unless we can find someone who will give us a hitter who fits better into our plans.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

My edge comes not from Ford, but from the fact that something like canon among certain folk that Murphy is reckless to the point of being a danger to himself and net detriment to the Mets... and, as unsightly as some of his misplays can be at times, that just reeks of bullstink.

I don't necessarily dispute your larger point, Vic, but on these two plays-- one a little more than a little dirty, and the other just plain freakish-- it just doesn't wash.

Last year:

UQZlmKzrLeU

This weekend.

[Centerfield]

Rockin' Doc wrote: Vic Sage wrote: but he might quite literally die. Not if opponents learn how to slide properly. There was nothing purposely dirty in the slide yesterday, but if Costanza had slid and stayed on the base, Murphy never would have got hurt. Yesterday was just seriously bad luck.

Agreed. Having watched the replay today, I have to agree there was nothing dirty about it.

Awkward and shitty, but nothing dirty.

[ashie62]

Centerfield wrote: Murphy one of the better hitters on this team. He has to be in the lineup every day. He's not going to play 1st or third, his best positions, because the other players are better. He's not going to play SS, CF or catcher because of obvious defensive shortcomings. That leaves only second base, where he kind of sucks, or the corner OF positions, where he really sucks. Plus he doesn't really hit all that well for a corner OFer. Plug him in at second unless we can find someone who will give us a hitter who fits better into our plans.

That sums it up pretty well. Justin Turner, what to do...

[Guest Edgy DC]

it's like his spike got caught on the base, storing up up momentum-generated energy in his leg for an instant, and then released (lucky for him, unlucky for Murphy), and changed direction about 25 degrees toward centerfield, popping to into Murphy's knee perhaps twice as hard as it would have had he slid right into it.

Strange play, you can fault him for exposing that knee in the first place, but the hit itself was a spike version of getting wounded by a bad hop.

[Chad ochoseis]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: For sure. He'll be the one to run straight through a fence to catch a ball. The catch'll cost him his life. Didn't I see this in a a baseball movie? But I hope that the Mets find a way to keep him around. I love that guy.

M2dR36mTkyo

Not quite through the fence, but close enough.

[ashie62]

Edgy DC wrote: it's like his spike got caught on the base, storing up up momentum-generated energy in his leg for an instant, and then released (lucky for him, unlucky for Murphy), and changed direction about 25 degrees toward centerfield, popping to into Murphy's knee perhaps twice as hard as it would have had he slid right into it. Strange play, you can fault him for exposing that knee in the first place, but the hit itself was a spike version of getting wounded by a bad hop.

Or being victimized by the Second Spitter.