Jay Johnson gets real

[txbo]

My biggest take away was owning roster construction and pretty much saying we need to keep the guys we’ve developed here. He then said it was his fault. I respect that a coach of his stature can say those type things.

Yep, I watched it a couple times because his issues seem very similar to ours and between our two programs lie the last 3 national championships.

 

[vol66]

Yep, I watched it a couple times because his issues seem very similar to ours and between our two programs lie the last 3 national championships.

Exactly. The candor is refreshing.

 

[wmcovol]

Searched threads and didn’t see this posted. Jay gets very candid about LSU’s struggles, specifically roster building. I think this applies here as we’ve seen powerhouse teams, including our own, having real issues.

Prior to this year you’d see Jay, Tony and a few others stacking talent. That smasher at Ole Miss transferred from Clemson. Hard to imagine that would happen if these teams were signing 50. You have to wonder how his team will respond after being bus rolled.

173K views · 1.3K reactions | LSU Baseball Coach Jay Johnson tore the scab off tonight, saying the obvious: that he and his staff made mistakes building this team, cherry picking players who had lofty power numbers at smaller schools - power that has not translated to good at-bats at the SEC level. Johnson was candid and said this would “never happen again.” | By-U Sports

Very close to Tennessee situation. Too many younger guys haven’t made the step yet.

 

[chuckiepoo]

Very close to Tennessee situation. Too many younger guys haven’t made the step yet.

…but will. One thing TV had in spades was confidence in his kids. The reason i have so much faith in E. He was right there at the knee…

 

[chuckiepoo]

 

[taylorvol]

Exactly. The candor is refreshing.

Only a handful of head coaches have the gravitas and resumes to be so candid. Winning 2 of last 3 NCs allows for more transparency.. I’m here for it.

 

[VolatileVol]

Hitting it where they ain't isn't small ball. That's just smart, especially in this shift era.

I look at that as a solid hitting approach. It’s a focus or concentration on hitting the ball where it’s at vs focusing on pulling the ball. Selfishly focusing solely on exit velocities and launch angles often leads to pop outs or rolling over into 6-4-3 or 4-6-3 DPs vs driving the ball up the middle or opposite field. The latter is a more mature, team focused approach IMHO. Me ball vs team ball.

I suppose people just dislike the term small ball. Because Jay is 100% railing against the "homer" for the entirety of that clip. Small ball is just like regular baseball, but without extra base hits. Hitting it where they ain't can simultaneously be good hitting AND small ball. Embrace good baseball. Embrace the return of the small ball!

 

[VolatileVol]

Josh Reddick said it best, originally as a Dogger, but brought the philosophy to Houston during their run of AL and WS Championships:

View attachment 827569
Not to piss off @txbo, but even that is extreme, as a bunt has it’s place. Different players got different skill sets and a wise manager knows which buttons to push. The more buttons, the better opportunity for a successful outcome.

I'm not big on bunting, but it certainly is underutilized these days. Based on how many errors I see most nights I'd just be trying to put balls in play far more often than we do. In regards to your launch angle stuff, it's worth noting teams were scoring more runs per game chopping wood and creating backspin on the ball than they do in this church league softball phase of baseball we are still in.

 

[vol66]

I suppose people just dislike the term small ball. Because Jay is 100% railing against the "homer" for the entirety of that clip. Small ball is just like regular baseball, but without extra base hits. Hitting it where they ain't can simultaneously be good hitting AND small ball. Embrace good baseball. Embrace the return of the small ball!

You have to pardon some of us old cats that lived through the Serrano era.

 

[preacherman20]

I don't dislike it. Small ball to me has always been bunting, slashing, and fake bunt steal. Then there is smart hitting which is putting ball where you want it to go. Then homers. All three have a place but you can't live off any of them. I don't dislike any of them but they have to be used right.

 

[VolatileVol]

You have to pardon some of us old cats that lived through the Serrano era.

I never minded Serrano that much. Don't forget he was our pitching coach for that 1995 team, too! Couple of those Irvine and Cal State Fullerton squads were really good, as well. Had higher expectations, but we could have done worse.

 

[vol66]

I never minded Serrano that much. Don't forget he was our pitching coach for that 1995 team, too! Couple of those Irvine and Cal State Fullerton squads were really good, as well. Had higher expectations, but we could have done worse.

By all accounts, very nice guy as was Coach Simcox and I was very much on board with the hire at the time. In the Pre NIL times, they did much in the community as well. It also coincided with my first few trips(heartbreaking as they were) with my young son to Hoover. We had some really good players too, Maddox, AJ, Stewie, Senzel to name but a few. The SEC was changing, we just didn’t know it yet.

 

[Volstylexx]

Speaking of Serrano. Good to see him doing well.