Aug
23
Cano missing Bowa’s ‘tough love’
ByThe Times’ Jack Curry caught up with Larry Bowa in Philadelphia this week, and the New York scribe and Bowa chatted about Robinson Cano and his relationship with the now-Dodger third base coach. Bowa feels that Robinson Cano is missing the tough love and pressure Bowa used to exert upon the Yanks’ second baseman. Even with a huge hot streak over the last 30+ games of the season, Cano’s 2008 will be viewed as a huge step back and one of the bigger reasons why the Yankee offense is on pace to score nearly 200 fewer runs this year than they did last.
I don’t but that crap. This is just one of those things that fall under the heading of “I’m too lazy to find and/or comprehend the numbers that explain a dramatic change in production so I’ll attribute it to some unmeasured occurrence which nobody can necessarily prove wrong.”
Robinson Cano is striking out at a career low mark. His K% mark this season is 9.8%. That number is lower than his career total (12%) and last season’s total (13.8%). This shows me that Cano is actually making more contact than ever before in his career and is just running through some horrid luck, portrayed by his career worst BABIP of .272 (.050 off his career mark). He’s also hitting more line drives this year (19.8%) which is comparable to his monster 2006 campaign (19.9%).
You can argue that he is being overly aggressive this year by swinging at too many pitches and his talent to make contact with almost anything is acting as a detriment to his production. However, couldn’t you also say that Cano is being overly aggressive at the plate this year to compensate for the terrible luck he has hit into this season? You can’t say that his walk rate is the cause for his struggles this year because at 4.8% it is the second highest mark of his career (5.9% in 2007) and 1.2% higher than his monstrous 2006 season.
I’m sorry, but I don’t think a bunch of yelling and screaming would have resulted in Cano’s BABIP number returning to his career norms. The lack of Larry Bowa sure hasn’t affected his defense, but no, we wont mention that.
Since May 1, Cano is at .296/.330/.444, compared to last year when he was .306/.353/.488. His season numbers are down because he had a horrid number. If Bowa was such a great influence, why didn’t he help him last year?
On the defensive side, maybe you can make the argument that Bowa would help, but even then I think it’s a stretch.
For nearly the entire first half, Robinson Cano was the second best defender at second base in the American League (Mark Ellis), statistically (Range Factor and Zone Rating specifically). He has been in a remarkable defensive slump in the second half, however.
Ditto to what has been said. It is the lazy and nay-saying journalist who looks for angles like this. As I have said, if Bowa was such an amazing influence, why did Cano have terrible first halves with him around too? As mentioned, Cano was playing GREAT defense in the 1st half, which 100% disproves any attempt at saying he is “lazy” or “unfocused.” He’s definitely having a disappointing year, but to say that’s because ol’Blowhard Bowa isn’t around anymore and that somehow Cano can’t be successful without him is simply lazy speculation. As Jamal demonstrated, even a little basic research shows that its just not that simple…
Of course Bowa is going to say Cano misses him, Larry isn’t exactly known for being selfless…
This to me is part and parcel with the “Bobby Meachum has cost the Yankees X # of wins and HAS TO GO!!!!!11!!!!” argument. Its dumb…
No doubt about it. The Yanks had a chance to keep him as their 3B coach, but they didnt. Big mistake
The only way they could have kept him as the 3B coach is if they offered Torre a contract he didn’t deserve.
Bowa probably thinks Pat Burrell and Scott Rolen also miss his tough love.