Why is Mench disliked?

[adambr2]

Mench in the first half of 2007:

 

vs. LHP -

 

.327 AVG, 5 HR, 15 RBI, .897 OPS

 

Seriously, isn't this pretty much exactly what we wanted to see out of our lefty pitcher hitting platoon partner in LF?

 

I don't see where he is such a liability. We brought him back to start every few days and hit lefties well. Seems to me that he is doing that.

[brewerphandog]

I think he hurt his rep with his foolish comments about his unwillingness to platoon.

[foamboy1]

He's beginning to show signs of life.....

[RightFieldCoder]

A. His numbers against RHP and then commenting that he should be an every day player.

 

B. his inability to take a walk. Not a reason to hate someone, but that is my biggest beef with him.

 

Outside of that, I think he's hit as advertised. A slow start and a little loss of HR power, which could both be attributed to Letter A, are his other drawbacks.

[recte44]

B is what does it for me. I don't dislike him, I just expect more out of him. Lately Mench has been coming through with some nice hits so you haven't heard me blasting him.

[BrewCrewRising]

I don't hate him, but he can be frustrating. However, the frustration is more about my own irrational fan feelings of wanting more out of players. He is what he is.

 

But along to B. above, his defense strikes me as shaky. I'm not looking at any stats, but sometimes he looks so clumsy and slow out there. That would be easier to swallow if he was an .850 OPS guy with minimal LHP/RHP splits.

 

But like every player, he's welcome to prove me wrong anytime. Unless you hit puppies for batting practice, I'm not really going to hate anybody.

[JohnBriggs12]

A lot has to do with how he played last year which was awful.

 

For what he is, he's been okay this season. Not great. Not bad. Just OK. He's gotten some key hits. He can look real bad defensively from time to time though and that doesn't endear him to fans.

 

There's probably nobody out there available who would be much of an upgrade unless Jermaine Dye would suddenly turn back into the player he was last year.

[aracko]

I am glad to say that I have been in Mench's corner since day one. The one thing I really didnt appreciate about mench was the day that we acquired him he arrived to the game late and I think he had a chance to pinch hit if he hustled and got ready. We were down one and he would have been a great canidate to pinch hit.

 

He took too long and the opportunity passed. Other than that though - I think he has been an excellent addition.

[joepepsi]

He's a good bench player.

[sgtcluels]

B! Really, take some walks. His OBP for awhile was about 3 points higher due to 1.. yes one walk. His power really never showed itself like advertised, and he's not a really good fielder.

 

He's a bench player in denial, that bugs me. I know everyone wants more play time, but unless you prove you can hit a righty, play your roll! Also, when he runs for a double, it always looks like he's about to die gasping for air, like he smokes 5 packs of cigs a day.

 

Mench Boooo! (With that said i'm sure he'll get 3 - 4 with 7 RBIs next time he plays)

[Diskono]

Mench is surprisingly not terrible vs righties in his career (.737 OPS since 2004). Good bench player, and a near-perfect option for a platoon with Jenkins or Gross. Despite all the negative comments about his attitude, he always seems to be the first guy out on the dugout steps high-fiving his teammates after making a nice play.

 

I'd like it if he were a little cheaper, but really I can't complain too much - he's done just what is expected of him.

[JJHardy7]

I didn't like the way he came to Miller Park last year...it almost seemed as if it was a WWE scene (maybe that's the Brewers fault) and I didn't like the comments he made about starting every day. He didn't earn anything last year and he's lucky he even had a roster spot. His play has come around though and I haven't heard too much from him.

[rluzinski]

Mench is surprisingly not terrible vs righties in his career (.737 OPS since 2004).

 

That is actually pretty terrible for a corner outfielder.

[JoeHova]

Quote:

---

He's a bench player in denial, that bugs me. I know everyone wants more play time, but unless you prove you can hit a righty, play your roll!

---

 

 

This is something that also causes me to dislike players. It's why I was happy when the Bucks traded Desmond Mason and why I'm not happy they are bringing him back. It's one thing to want to play, everybody should want to play. It's another thing to be so delusional that you seem like a total idiot (whether it's Mench talking about how he's gonna "pitch a fit" if he doesn't get a starting role despite being a below average hitter for a corner OF or Desmond talking about how he's going to score 20 per game and make the all-star team. Either of those things could theoretically happen, but they would be extremely detrimental to the team).

 

Anyway, I like Mench a lot as a platoon player. I don't like him personally (because of the above reason) or as a starter.