Perhaps Justin Morneau simply isn't thinking clearly after suffering for months with concussion syndrome. And just perhaps that's a cheap shot. But Morneau was quoted as complaining about the dimensions at new Target Field are too tough on hitters. He is quoted as saying that right handed batters can't hit the ball to the opposite field and vice versa for left handed batters. He calls the dimensions from right center to left center, "Ridiculous." And he expressed his disappointment that the Twins' organization did nothing to address the concerns. This Fan has several questions for Mr. Morneau:
Did you consult with your pitchers upon making this request? It would seem that the pitchers, or roughly more than half of the team, would probably prefer the larger dimensions to keep some of their mistakes in the park. Yes, it affects the offense. But it also affects the apposing teams' offense.
Did you consult with your team's home/road record in 2010? It would be understandable if you have no awareness of the end results, but the Twins had the best home record in baseball in 2010 with a record of 53-28. Why would you want to mess with that?
Do you remember what you were hitting when you were unfortunately hurt? Your slugging percentage was over .600. And yeah, you had an OPS of 1.205 on the road compared to .914 at home, but that kind of defeats your arguments that your swing gets messed up at home from trying to pull the ball.
Did you realize that Jim Thome, a very similar hitter to you, actually fared better at home than he did on the road? He had an OPS of 1.112 at home and .958 away. He hit 15 homers at home and 10 on the road. Most of his moonshots are into the gaps, are they not?
David Wright was freaked out by his new stadium his first year. He bounced back to have a terrific offensive season the next year. From Morneau's splits, it is apparent that his home field messed with him a bit. He hit three times as many homers on the road than at home. But he was still the most valuable player in the league before his unfortunate accident at second base on that double play ball. Obviously the Twins played fantastic at home, so you can understand their hesitancy to change anything. Morneau is just going to have to deal with it.
Just get yourself healthy, big guy. You were missed after your concussion. Just get yourself right and then play baseball.
1 comment:
I wouldn't move the fences in, but they are pretty high. Still, from an aesthetic standpoint I think the fences and the park look great as is.
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