re: Neal at C, or only DH?

You can’t take Travinski out of this lineup.

I’d split C 70% Milazzo 30% Neal.

Having to face White/Trav/Jones back to back to back might make pitchers actually cry.

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Are you going to recognize the strike calls that he steals with framing or the wild pitches he saves?

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Don’t get me started on this. Look I get it! Milazzo is a gritty player who “plays the game the right way” but the mental gymnastics people use to justify playing time is crazy to me.

If I'm not mistaken, Neal has the same back issue that Hurd came in with. I don't think it's correctable. They have to adjust his movements to keep him from aggravating it. They did a masterful job with Hurd, albeit with some early trial and error. If, in fact, Neal has the same issue, I would imagine that they're closely monitoring each and every session to see what does and doesn't work. He can't just come back at full swing doing what he's always done.

We have the luxury of Milazzo and Travinski to shoulder the load, regardless. Neal will get time at C and DH, but I don't think he will force it down his throat like he did last season now that they know what they know. Getting reps for Frey and even Jones behind the plate would be for additional flexibility if we had injuries. Neal is our lone LHH backstop.

We know you love Neal Lester. Jay has already said he isn’t going to be a full time catcher. All three will split time. I don’t know why this is even a discussion.

Neal will probably only get one start a week because of his back. Milazzo will probably start the other two. Travinski will play a lot of DH but also catch.

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Don’t get me started on this. Look I get it! Milazzo is a gritty player who “plays the game the right way” but the mental gymnastics people use to justify playing time is crazy to me.

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Come on man. Neal had 5 hits in 33 SEC AB’s. Don’t act like he is some elite offensive hitter at this point.

With the amount of firepower we are losing on offense, I just can’t see how we can afford to have someone other than Neal or Trav catching on a regular basis.

You could somewhat hide Milazzo with the unreal lineup we had last year.

I fully understand. I never claimed that Milazzo was better offensively than Neal. But don’t sit here and talk about “mental gymnastics” while acting like a 5th year guy who hit .289 doesn’t deserve playing time because you have a kid that has played in 26 games hitting .209 and has legitimate back problems. Neal has a ton of potential and will get plenty of playing time.

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fully understand. I never claimed that Milazzo was better offensively than Neal. But don’t sit here and talk about “mental gymnastics” while acting like a 5th year guy who hit .289 doesn’t deserve playing time because you have a kid that has played in 26 games hitting .209 and has legitimate back problems. Neal has a ton of potential and will get plenty of playing time.

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I said that not MOT. .289 but slugging .299 (ALL SINGLES EXCEPT 1). Do y’all not realize how terrible that is?? Milazzo isn’t even close in batting as Neal even in his limited ABs (just look at Neal’s OB% snd Slg%) and he isn’t in the same ballpark as Trav offensively.

Let him close games and play midweek to keep Neal and Trav fresh.

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His defense basically became folktale.

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THIS!!! But he frames pitches so well!!! He is a good defensive catcher not great. Hell Trav threw out runners at a better clip.

I get it. Milazzo gives it all he has good and seems to be a great teammate but let’s not pretend he should be playing substantial innings behind the plate for a national contender.