On the pregame show today, Shannon said that Ronnie would again (for the third day in-a-row) be starting at SS. She felt this was a pretty clear message to Yuni and that is not so much about his offensive patience (or lack thereof, as it has actually improved of late) or his defense (though there's certainly a LOT of room for improvement there). From Shannon's own observation (backed by Wak's comments) it's all about Yuni's lackadaisical approach to preparation.
Saturday, when Betancourt didn't play again, it was clear the Cedeno factor wasn't the only one. Betancourt, who has irked the team in past seasons for his lack of preparation and work ethic, apparently hasn't changed appreciably.
"It has nothing to do with (anything) on the field," Wakamatsu said. "It has to do with preparation."
The Mariners have stressed to all players since the beginning of spring training the importance of physical and mental preparation needed to improve. Betancourt has been a season-long frustration. He is batting .249 with two home runs and 17 RBI, but also has a team-high nine errors.
No comments:
Post a Comment