Taylor Ward

[VladdyforHOF]

He's not helping the team's offensive production leading off. Wouldn't Drury or even Trout be better in that spot?

Ward

Batting 1st - 233 PA, .238/.313/.374 (not including 0-5 tonight)

Batting 4th - 30 PA, .379/.400/.483

Batting 6th - 21 PA, .316/.333/.684

He's looked more comfortable in those RBI spots. Sure he's been terrible with RISP (9-54, .167), but it's not any better to be terrible with RISP in the leadoff spot. The bottom of the lineup has been getting on base a bit this year and Ward has ended a lot of rallies in that leadoff spot. And that avg with RISP is bound to go up anyway.

Regardless I think Moniak should be getting a bulk of the playing time over Ward, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen as again tonight it was a righty pitching in Giolito. This team really sees something in Ward I guess. But he needs to get it together.

[Angelsjunky]

I really don't get him. He was so damn good for about a month last year, and after injury and struggle, was very good later in the year. I was really expecting that he'd build from last year and maybe hit .280/.350/.500 or so. I think he has that ability, but he's pretty much back to the guy he was before 2022.

Anyhow, eventually they need to start thinking about taking away his starter status. If Moniak keeps hitting and he doesn't, he has no place being a regular after the ASB or so.

[HaloBronco]

5 minutes ago, Angelsjunky said:

I really don't get him. He was so damn good for about a month last year, and after injury and struggle, was very good later in the year. I was really expecting that he'd build from last year and maybe hit .280/.350/.500 or so. I think he has that ability, but he's pretty much back to the guy he was before 2022.

Anyhow, eventually they need to start thinking about taking away his starter status. If Moniak keeps hitting and he doesn't, he has no place being a regular after the ASB or so.

At this point, Moniak should be starting against every right handed pitcher and Ward only against lefties. 

[greginpsca]

Ward's swing is way to long, which causes him to be prone to hot and cold streaks. His approach is to try to hit a home run every at bat.

[stormngt]

10 hours ago, Angelsjunky said:

I really don't get him. He was so damn good for about a month last year, and after injury and struggle, was very good later in the year. I was really expecting that he'd build from last year and maybe hit .280/.350/.500 or so. I think he has that ability, but he's pretty much back to the guy he was before 2022.

Anyhow, eventually they need to start thinking about taking away his starter status. If Moniak keeps hitting and he doesn't, he has no place being a regular after the ASB or so.

If Moniak continurs then he needs to play.  However Moniak has never hit left handers well.

Ward does need more game rome than just playing against left handers.  So a straight platoon isnt going to work.

[WicketMaiden]

10 hours ago, Angelsjunky said:

I really don't get him. He was so damn good for about a month last year, and after injury and struggle, was very good later in the year. I was really expecting that he'd build from last year and maybe hit .280/.350/.500 or so. I think he has that ability, but he's pretty much back to the guy he was before 2022.

Anyhow, eventually they need to start thinking about taking away his starter status. If Moniak keeps hitting and he doesn't, he has no place being a regular after the ASB or so.

It could be that Ward is super streaky like Upton used to be and that's what the team is waiting for, the next hot streak. I hope we don't have to wait much longer if that is the case.

[Taylor]

10 hours ago, Angelsjunky said:

I really don't get him. He was so damn good for about a month last year, and after injury and struggle, was very good later in the year. I was really expecting that he'd build from last year and maybe hit .280/.350/.500 or so. I think he has that ability, but he's pretty much back to the guy he was before 2022.

Anyhow, eventually they need to start thinking about taking away his starter status. If Moniak keeps hitting and he doesn't, he has no place being a regular after the ASB or so.

Pitchers figured him out, and he hasn't adjusted. The end of last season was a hot streak against a lot of team's September call-ups.

[Duren, Duren]

Ward and Walsh were projected to be longer term everyday players. Each had met expectations earlier and were expected to continue at around those levels.  And now were supposed to be hitting their prime productive seasons. Each instead has stalled (Ward) or seriously regressed (Walsh). 

Ward isn't an ideal leadoff hitter either. Not the right kind of swing for consistent contact. Not enough speed. The occasional home run doesn't compensate for mostly unproductive at bats. Probably should be hitting around seventh if they still intend to play him regularly.

With the current roster I would have preferred Neto, though obviously he's not a factor now. Fletcher was good leading off in the past, but clearly isn't in the same form now. Moniak is still a relative unknown as an everyday player. But he has a faster bat and uses all of the field. And currently even more power than Ward in limited playing time. Also a better outfielder. However he too isn't a classic lead off type. 

Optimistically it's still just half a season gone. Ward still has time to work on finding his groove again. But the team can't afford to keep playing him if he doesn't show improvement. From now to the trade deadline may be his only window. And I still would be looking for a trade and a proven lead off hitter. Even if just a rental. 

 

[T.G.]

41 minutes ago, Taylor said:

The end of last season was a hot streak against a lot of team's September call-ups.

Can you substantiate that?  Do you know that for certain or just speculating?

[Kendo36]

Surprised at Ward's long leash with our OF depth. He's clearly lost at the plate. He's not a great hitter and guesses way too much. Can't wait for Addell and Moniak to take over in the OF next year. 

[Taylor]

17 minutes ago, T.G. said:

Can you substantiate that?  Do you know that for certain or just speculating?

Just speculating. Like AJ said, his trends have been bizarre.

[Dtwncbad]

I don’t believe Taylor Ward is a natural hitter.  He has been a baseball player his while life and he seems like a hard worker.

His swing (to me) looks like the product of lots of deliberate mechanical technique for someone who is not a natural hitter to be able to be functional offensively.  Only a really hard worker could make that work at the mlb level, so I admire and applaud him for that.

But the question is how “real” it is in terms of being sustainable.

It is difficult for me to be overly optimistic if I believe this observation is correct.

I am perfectly happy that he has become good enough to play in the majors.  But I also feel like this kind of hitter has to have everything perfectly mechanically clicking to keep it going.  That’s hard to expect.

And secondly, pitchers are too smart to not simply keep making adjustments against him.

So he not only has to be perfect mechanically (to overcome him not being a natural hitter) and he has to be able to constantly make adjustments when pitchers make adjustments against him.

I want him in the lineup when he is hitting.  But I personally think it’s not a good idea to count on Ward going forward based on what success he has already had.  It just seems so possible that it won’t last.

(And I know I have shared this same angle before but it just seems appropriate to make these comments in a thread named “Taylor Ward.”)

 

 

[gurn67]

He doesn't have a good approach when he's leading off the game. He's batting .186 with an OBP of .300 when he leads off the game. I'm not saying don't play him, just don't bat him leadoff. 

That, or force him to watch Brian Downing videos. .375 OBP leading off the game in his career. That's the way to do it. Some guys thrive in that spot. Some guys don't. I rarely remember him having an at bat and thinking he had a bad approach at the plate. He had a plan every time he went up there and stuck to it.

[VladdyforHOF]

52 minutes ago, gurn67 said:

He doesn't have a good approach when he's leading off the game. He's batting .186 with an OBP of .300 when he leads off the game. I'm not saying don't play him, just don't bat him leadoff. 

That, or force him to watch Brian Downing videos. .375 OBP leading off the game in his career. That's the way to do it. Some guys thrive in that spot. Some guys don't. I rarely remember him having an at bat and thinking he had a bad approach at the plate. He had a plan every time he went up there and stuck to it.

This exactly. I'm not opposed to Ward playing, but please, let's take him out of leadoff. I recall games like the one in St. Louis where he hit a 3 run homer hitting cleanup IIRC. He does better lower in the order.

The thing I'm really looking at with Moniak is his BAbip. It's over .400, and the splits show that it's been consistently like that since he got called up. Yeah he strikes out a bunch, but there's room to fix those holes, and it seems like when he makes contact he hits it pretty hard usually.

[T.G.]

So…

[HanfordGuy]

Bat Ward 5th or 6th and he will hit.