Quote:
Originally Posted by Brianfo
Moose needs to be sent down. Send a message. It's time to compete. If I perform at my job the way he has, I'm looking for a new job. I don't get it. Mental midget. Shit or get off the pot.
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Baseball teams typically don't "Send a message" when it comes to performance issues.
Demote a guy who's hurting the team? Sure.
Demote a guy who's scuffling and can't fix it at the major league level? Yes.
The only type of player who typically gets demoted to the minors to "Send a message" is the player who isn't working hard enough.
This is why Butler was demoted early in his career. He wasn't working and was acting pretty spoiled.
From all accounts, Moustakas is a hard worker (Even if he doesn't like watching tape) who tries really hard (too hard, in fact, which is probably his problem) and has the right attitude.
The leash with Moustakas is not endless. They have a decent option in Valencia if Moustakas continues to struggle (would have a better one had they found a way to keep Bonifacio). But they're not going to jump on something after 8 games (And should not). Especially when he's putting in the work AND is showing the good approach.
The results are ugly, but the fact that he's seeing a lot of pitches and maintaining the approach they want to see is going to give him a little more leeway than the results alone would.
Now, if we get to the end of April and he's still a disaster at the plate, things might start to change. I would hope they would, but it's hard to say with this team.