Random Stupid Quotes And Stupid People: Mark Sweeney « Mike Scioscia’s tragic illness

Random Stupid Quotes And Stupid People: Mark Sweeney

June 29, 2008 at 6:54 pm | In Mark Sweeney, Please God Let Sweeney Be Gone!, Random Boneheadedry |

From this morning’s L.A. Daily News, Mark Sweeney explains the reasons of his struggles this year:

I never make excuses, but

Yet here comes the excuse…

The situations I have been in haven’t been ideal for pinch-hitting and putting your piece into a team, because offensively we have struggled. There are times when you feel like you’re in the flow of the game and you want to put your piece in, whether it’s advancing a runner or putting a ball in play.

O.K., I am now convinced that Sweeney is on crack. What the hell does this mean? For starters, what is an ideal pinch hitting situation and non-ideal pinch hitting situation? I’m guessing that he means one where he’s able to come up with runners on, as opposed to the bases empty and, because he feels he’s getting more of the latter, that’s why he has struggled.

So, basically, the reason he is now hitting .098 is because of the fact that his team cannot give him “ideal situations” to come in and do his job.

O.K., let’s look a little more in depth into this.

In his 61 at-bats this season, only 29 of them (less than half) have been with the bases empty. In these 29 at-bats, he is 2 for 29 (which is a third of the amount of hits he has all season, by the way), which amounts of to .069/.100/.103 line.

O.K., fine, so, you’re right, Sweeney Poo (poo?). Discounting the fact that some of these at-bats also count the starts that you’ve had this year, we get it; you’re not great with the bases empty. You’re a lean, mean, pinch hitting machine when it matters… that’s right, with runners in scoring position!

Sweeney with RISP: 1 for 17, .059/.227/.059

Err… O.K. They can’t be in scoring position. Just on base.

Sweeney with runners on first and second: 0 for 3: .000/.000/.000

O.K., so you mean second and third?

Sweeney with runners on second and third: 0 for 3: .000/.000/.000

Bases loaded?

Sweeney with bases loaded: 0 for 1: .000/.500/.000

No…? How about leading off an inning?

Sweeney leading off an inning: 0 for 8: .000/.000/.000

Close and late?

Sweeney close and late: 2 for 19: .105/.250/.158

How about scoring position with two outs?

Sweeney with RISP with 2 outs: 0 for 10: .000/.167/.000

Oh, forget it, you just suck. And for that matter, quit your whining, Mark. Guess what? You decided to spend your career specializing in a role that is one of the hardest in the game. What the hell do you expect, to step into the game with bases loaded, 0 outs every night? To blame your failures on the rest of the team for not giving you “ideal situations” is ludicrous, especially when you have completely sucked in every which possible situation. I’m sure our starting rotation also doesn’t like our offense and it’s a freaking rarity when they get “ideal situations.” That hasn’t stopped most of them from doing their part. Your job is to hit the ball… regardless of who’s on base. A bases empty situation doesn’t exempt you from doing your job.

There’s your veteran leadership…

- Vin

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Is there something in Mark Sweeney’s feed that is making him think he is actually a good ballplayer? Delusional doesn’t cut it here. The man has some serious psychological issues if he thinks it is not his fault he sucks like my ex-wife at an insurance convention.
I swear, between the serious toolage that is Jeff Kent and his inability to drive home a run and this whack job, I gotta wonder what Plass-Hat and TJax see in the PVL thing? Must be feeding them the same stuff as Sweeney.

Comment by grabarkewitz — June 30, 2008 #
Lessee - 6 hits in 61 AB, to go along with 7 BBs. Wow! Oh yeah, there are the 18 K’s. So, about 20% of the time he does something productive. About 30% of the time he sux big time, and then the other 50% of the time he just kinda sux. Thank gawd he has no position.

Comment by kennerbuggy — June 30, 2008 #
[...] Hear that, folks? That guy that the Dodgers pay $4 million dollars a year to make wise baseball decisions? He makes them based on feel and other subjective measures. This is how our manager makes roster decisions. Our starting third baseman is starting because Joe Torre has a feeling, a feeling deep inside, oh yeah, while praising Mark Sweeney and his sub-.100 average because of “swing paths” and &#8220… [...]

Pingback by I Know, It’s Only Three Games… But I Like It, Like It, Yes I Do… « Mike Scioscia’s tragic illness — July 21, 2008 #
[...] Actually, you can make that .092 after today’s pinch hit strikeout. I guess he wasn’t in an “ideal pinch hit situation.” [...]

Pingback by Irony « Mike Scioscia’s tragic illness — July 27, 2008 #
[...] his career and Blake DeWitt and Cory Wade come out of nowhere to start theirs, and we’ve seen Mark Sweeney struggle along like a horse on its way to the glue [...]

Pingback by Ladies and Gentlemen, Your 2008 NL West Champions « Mike Scioscia’s tragic illness — September 25, 2008 #
[...] Outside of a brief moment of douchebaggery this season, Sweeney does seem to be a good guy and one of the pranksters in the clubhouse. He’s had a very good career, but all careers come to an end, and it’s time for him to hang it up. Or at least play for another team… [...]

Pingback by MSTI.com’s 2008 In Review: First Base « Mike Scioscia’s tragic illness — October 23, 2008 #