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Tuesday, September 06, 2005 |
Another Baffling Power Slide? Really!
At the rate the Angels are accumulating expensive but dysfunctional hitters, you'd think there was a blowout sale at the $9.9 Million Store or something. This time, it's Garret Anderson whose lack of power production is stymieing resident sage Mickey Hatcher:
The power slump baffles the Angels. Hitting coach Mickey Hatcher said injuries have affected Anderson's swing. Bench coach Joe Maddon said the swing "looks the same" to him.... aaaand why doesn't he have his legs and his back? Because he's an old player! Stoneman's reluctance to make trades is bad enough, but his reliance upon Veteran Presence™ type players reminds me of the terminal-phase 2003-04 Mariners, when "Stand" Pat Gillick and Bill Bavasi handed out tons of money in guaranteed contracts to guys like Bret Boone, John Olerud, and Scott Spiezio, all of whom were headed into the decline phase of their careers. The Mariners front office, of course, acted surprised when they didn't produce, but what could they possibly have expected? Similarly, Stoneman now claims to be perplexed when the 30-year-old Cabrera didn't hit for half the year following two years of declining power numbers before he was signed. Finley hit a career high 36 home runs last year -- and turned into a pumpkin the minute the Angels signed the forty-year-old. Heck, Salmon's barely played over the last three years of his contract. It's not like Stoneman didn't have examples right in front of his eyes when he signed the contract. Anderson's contract was a mistake the moment ink hit paper. That we found out only a few months into it is the only surprise; surely, at this point, Stoneman can't claim anything else."I don't have an answer," General Manager Bill Stoneman said. "The best answer is going to come from Garret."
"It's hard to say," Anderson said. "You can't say everything is a lock every year. I really don't know. It just hasn't happened, for whatever reason."
...
"The nagging injuries have affected him," Hatcher said. "He's kind of changed his stance a little bit to help him get through some hard times."
With the right knee hurting, Hatcher said, Anderson struggled to put as much weight as usual on his right leg. That, in concert with the sore back, hampered him from driving the ball with authority and consistency.
"When you don't have your legs and your back, you're not going to do that," Hatcher said.
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