What to do with Pat Burrell

[baseballnewb]

Last week he hit 2 HR and drove in 5 runs. Not like he's been useless. The week before he missed time with a groin injury and the 2 weeks before that he put up solid numbers.

[RAmst23]

I don't know why fantasy players knock Burrell for being streaky. When you know a player is streaky, just bench him during his cold streaks and start him during his hot ones. I've been resting Pat the Bat on the bench for a little bit.. I think it's time to let him start playing again

BTW there's a really long thread somewhere in here that talks about him in length, might wanna scout that out.

[Melo255]

No, he's not for real, and you should have sold high. But now that you've missed your chance...I would bench him until he hits another mini-hot streak (hopefully for you, he will) and then attempt to trade him.

He's comparable to Burnitz IMO, but in a better lineup. Expect a lot of power, with a low average.

Exactly. The first two weeks so overhyped Burrell that people are refusing to see him for what he is even now that he has fallen back to earth like most of us said he would. He's a .250 35 home run hitter. I'd rather have Mike Cameron and his .220 30 hr 20sb

[d18Mike]

Uggggggh!

There is no such thing as a streaky player.

This has been studied to death by armies of mathaticians who should have better things to do.

Periods of hot and cold hitting are just a reflection of the natural variability observed in coin tossing. A good hitter has a better chance of a hitting streak just because he will get more hits and the chances of clustering are higher.

So slotting someone in who is "hot" is just as likely to backfire as it is to pay off. Sure all of us have occassional anecdotal experiences that seem to defy this, but it's a fact.

(Now if I could only convince myself of this as it applies to Eric Chavez .

[Cornbread Maxwell]

So slotting someone in who is "hot" is just as likely to backfire as it is to pay off. Sure all of us have occassional anecdotal experiences that seem to defy this, but it's a fact.

great point - completely agree.

As for Burrell, I think he will have a really nice yr due to his change in approach to the plate, therefore, I would more than likely keep him if I had him or trade for him if I can get him cheap enough.

[slomo007]

So slotting someone in who is "hot" is just as likely to backfire as it is to pay off. Sure all of us have occassional anecdotal experiences that seem to defy this, but it's a fact.

great point - completely agree.

As for Burrell, I think he will have a really nice yr due to his change in approach to the plate, therefore, I would more than likely keep him if I had him or trade for him if I can get him cheap enough.

The past month hasn't convinced you otherwise yet?

[acsguitar]

Yea he hit 37 bombs 2 years ago..not bad for a left fielder...

[Cooner]

Uggggggh!

There is no such thing as a streaky player.

This has been studied to death by armies of mathaticians who should have better things to do.

Periods of hot and cold hitting are just a reflection of the natural variability observed in coin tossing. A good hitter has a better chance of a hitting streak just because he will get more hits and the chances of clustering are higher.

So slotting someone in who is "hot" is just as likely to backfire as it is to pay off. Sure all of us have occassional anecdotal experiences that seem to defy this, but it's a fact.

(Now if I could only convince myself of this as it applies to Eric Chavez .

This simply isn't true. Yes, random things tend to have many more "streaks" than people expect from something that is truely random. But baseball players hitting well is NOT random. It could only be random if they were doing the exact same thing at every at-bat, but they're not. When a player gets hot, he's more relaxed, his swing is automatic and unforced- a product of muscle memory, and his reaction times are quick. When he's in a slump, his swing is forced, he's thinking too hard and not letting it happen, and his mental attitude makes it harder for him to get a hit. To say that a baseball player's evolution through the season is an independent random variable is a ridiculous hypothesis.

edit: I bailed on Burrel a week and a half into the season. It would have been perfect timing, except I got Magglio Ordonez for him, two days before the "hernia"

[d18Mike]

You might very well be right. Good luck arguing against the numbers on this one!

[4Pack]

So many differing opinions on Burrell. What it comes down to is...if you have him on your team (as I do on a few) you have confidence that he will have a good season. If he is not on your team or you don't like him (or have been burnt by him in the past) ...then the guy could be hitting .350 with 30 HR's and 90 RBI's going into August...and you managers would still not believe he is going to have a good season.