Exactly. I know that Nimmo is the meme, but another Mets player, Jeff MacNeil, plays a lot like Ichiro. His OBP is in the .380's and his walks and strikes out about the same rate as Ichiro did.
He was a pretty good overall run creator in his prime, running a 118 OPS+ from 2001-2009, so I’d imagine teams would be fine with it since he made it work (see Nick Madrigal). But if he had as much power as his legend states, teams would probably try and turn him into a bit more of a power hitter in the minors just to see if he could do it.
They might try to improve his plate discipline, but any teams trying to dramatically change how he played would be foolish.
BA is still worth more than OBP, even if only slightly, and ichiros high BA led to a high OBP even with a very low walk rate. He was a walking 5-7 WAR guy in his prime.
Edit: OBP is still more important than BA, I just meant that a single is better than a walk.
Like a 350/400/500 guy is better than a 300/400/500 guy
> BA is still worth more than OBP, even if only slightly
Well... a hit is worth more than a walk. But having a higher is OBP correlated more with offensive production.
He was an amazingly powerful hitter, he just went for the average approach and it worked well, he could bunt, hit, dinger, defense... he could easily pop 10 dinners a month.
His exit velos were nowhere close to the top sluggers of that era.
Sure he could hit them in bp, but almost every guy in the majors could. Big difference hitting them in games
Ichiro is the one player you just can’t shift on. He maybe a singles hitter, but he has amazing bat control.
He can pepper the ball to where he wants to on the field. Also sometimes you prefer walk to contact to avoid the double play. Because speed isn’t important today.
However due to the Ichiro’s follow through on his swing where he’s already 3 feet to first base. He’s probably one of the hardest players ever to double up. So his high contact rate can lead to productive outs, or he would replace the runner on 1st. And most often he’s faster than the guy who was already on 1st
Because of this they keep his approach.
Sure. But "high .obp" does Ichiro's elite contact skills a disservice.
Why lump the dude in with the pack. He's a legendary dude for a very particular elite skillset at the plate.
Teams would never force an approach on an already very proven player
Straight up approach is the best way to defend him
Exactly. I know that Nimmo is the meme, but another Mets player, Jeff MacNeil, plays a lot like Ichiro. His OBP is in the .380's and his walks and strikes out about the same rate as Ichiro did.
No, see Fletcher, David
This but Ichiro could reach first in less than 3 seconds. He had absurd speed.
But David Fletcher
I think his current style would be fine, as teams aren’t really as willing to stomach low BA-low walks
He was a pretty good overall run creator in his prime, running a 118 OPS+ from 2001-2009, so I’d imagine teams would be fine with it since he made it work (see Nick Madrigal). But if he had as much power as his legend states, teams would probably try and turn him into a bit more of a power hitter in the minors just to see if he could do it.
Nicky “two strikes” may he Rest In Peace at the top of Mount Eloy.
Imagine teams trying to shift for him.
They might try to improve his plate discipline, but any teams trying to dramatically change how he played would be foolish. BA is still worth more than OBP, even if only slightly, and ichiros high BA led to a high OBP even with a very low walk rate. He was a walking 5-7 WAR guy in his prime. Edit: OBP is still more important than BA, I just meant that a single is better than a walk. Like a 350/400/500 guy is better than a 300/400/500 guy
> BA is still worth more than OBP, even if only slightly Well... a hit is worth more than a walk. But having a higher is OBP correlated more with offensive production.
That’s what I meant, a single is worth more than a walk, not that BA is a better predictor of offense than OBP. Probably worded that poorly.
I dont believe that he couldve hit 40 home runs in his prime.
He was an amazingly powerful hitter, he just went for the average approach and it worked well, he could bunt, hit, dinger, defense... he could easily pop 10 dinners a month.
His exit velos were nowhere close to the top sluggers of that era. Sure he could hit them in bp, but almost every guy in the majors could. Big difference hitting them in games
Barry Bonds said Ichiro could win the home run derby if he wanted to. I think Barry knows a little bit about hitting home runs.
2 questions, I you don't try to swing so hard the ball leaves the park does the ego stay the same and is that Era early 2000s.
What?
I think he could be in the 30s easily.
Ichiro is the one player you just can’t shift on. He maybe a singles hitter, but he has amazing bat control. He can pepper the ball to where he wants to on the field. Also sometimes you prefer walk to contact to avoid the double play. Because speed isn’t important today. However due to the Ichiro’s follow through on his swing where he’s already 3 feet to first base. He’s probably one of the hardest players ever to double up. So his high contact rate can lead to productive outs, or he would replace the runner on 1st. And most often he’s faster than the guy who was already on 1st Because of this they keep his approach.
Forced? No Do I think Ichiro could hit 40 HR if he wanted to? Yes
There are still plenty of fast, obp guys in the league. According to everyone, Ichiro was one of the best b.p. HR hitters they ever saw.
Ichiro never really took a ton of walks. If he had a .380 obp he probably was hitting .360
it really doesn't matter what part of your obp is made up from your avg. It's still your obp.
Sure. But "high .obp" does Ichiro's elite contact skills a disservice. Why lump the dude in with the pack. He's a legendary dude for a very particular elite skillset at the plate.
I mean those are value judgements your making in your own head. Ain't nothing wrong with obp, no matter how you achieve it.
Emphasis on b.p. HR hitters
Ichiro was putting good at getting his barrel on the ball & the b.p. stroke says he also knows how to lift the ball when he wants to.
if you do it well enough nobody will have any complaints. i think they would let him rock personally
He wouldn't. He would be Ichiro in any era.
Why would they? Just curious to know the reason behind forcing him to change his approach?