Carlos Gomez - Are we concerned?

While our anticipation for the regular season beginning has us putting everyone under the microscope, realistically it will be 3-4 weeks minimum to make performance assessments of anybody or anything with any accuracy.

On the other hand, I cant really imagine nothing of significance happening to the roster for 3-4 weeks. Guys coming off the DL will force the issue. So decisions will have to made based on small samples.

So while it would be easy to dismiss individual performance ramifications based on a game by game tally, these early impressions of players may play a roster related role in the not too distant future.

 

Gomez is a very solid hitter when he doesnt try to kill the ball...I know it seems like he wants to kill the ball every time for us, but I actually think that might be a product of the lineup around him.

Ive watched him play before he got to Houston and I had never noticed him swing for the fences EVERY time. I know he had period when he was just making contact and getting on base...that seems to have been lost here.

I think when he's around guys like Springer, Altuve, Correa, Rasmus...even Valbuena who hits bombs...he feels a certain type of pressure to hit on their level or even out play them, which has led him to overcompensating.

Just my theory, Im probably dead wrong, but I just feel like if he doesnt worry about whats going on around him and isnt concerned with hitting home runs every time he steps to the plate, he'll get his old form back.

 

That seems about right for part of it. But it feels like another part is how he thrives when in the spotlight or near the glamour. While his individual performance is focal to him, I think team success matters also.

If the team starts out strong, the pressure he puts on himself may wane slightly if the team is succeeding. If we struggle as a team, thats when IMO he is likely to exert even more.

 

Swinging as hard as he can every at bat is what changed him into the great player he was during those last few years with the Brewers.

During his first few years with us, our team tried doing with Carlos just as the Twins had tried. Both teams saw him as this super fast guy who should be a leadoff hitter that bunted a lot and hit lots of ground balls to use that speed to get on base. This plan failed miserably over his first five seasons.

Then Carlos started to fill out more and in 2012 our hitting coach at the time Dale Sveum decided to try something completely new. He told Gonez to start just swinging for the fences pretty much all of the time as he did in batting practice hitting bombs and his career took off. Carlos simply wasn't a slap hitting leadoff hitter two teams tried making him into and he was built more like an NFL safety.

So even though there would be some frustrating at bats where Carlos would strikeout while screwing himself into the ground and helmet flying off when the team had say a runner on 3rd/less than two out, his overall much improved production at the plate was well worth it.

Try to keep that in mind when Carlos K's in a key spot and his helmet flies off in the process. That's not so much him selfishly swinging for the fences when just a single or sac fly will do. Instead, it's simply how he pretty much always swings and that style of hitting is what turned him from a .650ish OPS out machine fringe MLB player to an .800 plus OPS top 5 overall centerfielder in baseball.

He was my favorite player on the Brewers before we traded him to Houston and i really hope he plays like that for you guys because when Gomez is playing well, man he's fun to watch and great with the fans.

 

I was really struck by how much love the fans and broadcasters in Milwaukee had for him. I watched the Brewers telecast for the series, and man, some of the flashbacks they did of him during his time there were just great. I'm rooting for the guy, histrionics be damned.

But damn, sometimes I really wish he could modify his "grip it and rip it" approach, in certain situations it really gets frustrating to watch.

He's struggled all spring and early this year, but he seems like the kind of hitter that will start seeing the ball really well and just get on a massive hot streak at some point. He also strikes me as the kind of guy that is "uncoachable", but not necessarily in a bad way. He does his thing and it's worked for him and he's not going to change too much, for better or worse.

He's a damn good CFer too.

 

He's certainly having his struggles, but he has the talent to turn things around. I hope he'll learn to loosen up a 'bit on his swing instead of trying to hit it 500 feet and just taking the pitch where it's thrown and going that way with it.

I see signs of for instance, that double at Minute Maid. High outside heater, and took it the other way on a nice line drive base hit. Has me feeling the same way as I feel with Springer right now. Whiffing on the outside pitches, trying to pull it instead of going the other way with it.

It's been 6 games, way too early to make knee jerk reactions. For those wanting to follow spring numbers. Well, Castro hit over .300. I gave up on Spring numbers after that.

I know it sounds funny, and obviously I'd be more excited if we were winning, but the things that I was really worried about are passing my expectations. I was worried about

A) Our production at first. No, White won't continue to hit .600 while hitting bombs, but he does show signs of knowing what to do at the plate. More than Carter did for the first 4-5 months.

B) Our DH production. Obviously we're going to give Gattis his AB's, but Tucker has looked fantastic. So if Gattis fails, we have a back up plan in Tucker that's ready to go.

Dallas will calm down and be more of the Dallas of last year. Hopefully our starters will have a better second go, (Can't get much worse than the first right?), and Fister looked pretty good in his first start. The main thing about the first 6 games, Noooooo injuries!

 

Watching him play for this series, i think he's bulked up to much. I noticed it last year with us also and he lost a bit of range in CF and speed at stealing bases.

When we first traded for Carlos, he was built more like an NFL corrnerback. Thin, but not skinny. Then he put on the perfect amount of muscle through about 2012-2014. The dude was an athletic beast. Strong at the plate, in the outfield he'd chase down balls you never could have thought he'd catch, and stealing 40 bases.

Then last year i thought he was a little to big. Hit the weights to much and in turn lost some of that electric speed. He looks like he could play linebacker now. Not sure if that's impacting his swing, but at least when it comes to his swing for the fences approach nearly every at bat, he did the exact same thing here during that great three year stretch.

The baserunning brainfarts though, just gotta live with them because he did that for his five years as a Brewer also. One play he'd score from first on a long single and the next time get thrown out by 5 feet and fans are screaming at the TV, why Gomez. Why yet again.

As for the fans. Carlos got this reputation as a selfish cocky showboat, but to a man every teammate loved him because he was fun and always played hard. Always. He'd spend extra time not just signing autographs, but also talking with fans on the rail. Answered mail personally. Very humble family man off the field. Spent his time in the community.

 

Richard Hidalgo did that back in '01. His swing never recovered.

 

gomez is willie mays hayes in Major League 2, i.e., when he bulked up

 

Nah, he got fat/out of shape. He actually had a really good 2003 (team MVP), and a blazing start in 2004, when he finally slimmed back down a little.

 

I've yet to be really impressed by Gomez since he's joined the Astros. I guess my expectations for the type of player we would be getting were really high. Too many games, he just doesn't seem to hit well and feels like a dead spot in the lineup. Now, whether that is backed up by stats or just my biased interpretation, I dunno. I guess I'm looking for him to string together some games where he has multi-hit games with some homers...to be the force I expected. I want him to have that kind of impact on games versus now where he just seems like a decent role player. I don't question his ability as a fielder.

 

Yes sir.

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/eye-on...ts-discussing-carlos-gomez-trade-with-brewers

I completely understand the concern over Gomez. I think/hope he'll be just fine, but players that show emotion on their sleeves (i.e. arrogant, showboat) tend to get criticized under a more critical microscope.

Let's hope he settles into a nice groove soon, just like the one he was seemingly getting settled into prior to his injury last year. I'd take that over the course of a year.

 

Richard Hidlago did a large amount of steroids and lifted weights without any formal trainer and without any concern for flexibility or targeted muscle groups.

Richard wasn't very bright.

 

Did he get back on the roids for 2003? Or did it take 2 years for them to kick in?

Did anybody doubt he wasn't on roids for the best years of his career? He even broke down sooner than he should have.

 

I don't know how I forgot 2003 and 2004 for Hidalgo. Nook has a point about flexibility--I remember that. I can imagine that he got himself "right" by '03 before falling off the map.

(Sorry for the minor thread hijack.)

 

If Gomez is hurt, he'll probably never regain his All-Star form or even near it. He's had an entire offseason to recover and he's still not healthy?! There was an article last winter about his extreme workouts and how he was in the best shape of his career. Maybe he's being stubborn by continuing to play injured. Seems like he's just itching to contribute, but just not able.

 

I am just going to reply to the first post in this thread to get my point across rather than starting a thread.

I think Marisnick should be sent down to triple A to get everyday work at the plate. He is not going to improve with the 5 token at bats a week he is getting now. Either let Tucker play left when we are at home, or call up a warm body for another outfield option. Marisnick needs a chance to have as many positive at bats as possible. It could revitalize him and give him confidence.

I do not see Gomez here next year with this team. He will either turn it around quick, fast, and in a hurry or he will continue to struggle. If he turns it around he will be potential trade bait at the deadline for pitching perhaps. If he does good and is retained through the season, I cannot see Lunhow offering him a multi year deal. He will receive a qualifying offer and this will leave us with a pick and a spot that Marisnick may need to fill.

 

Concern means you had expectations. So nah!