Sticking Points 2061.3: GM Hits the Analyst's Couch

[JimSlade]

"It's been rough, Doc."

Rockville Pikeman GM Jim Slade shifts on his analyst's couch. "It's more than the losing."

"Tell me about it," says Dr Stuart, letting out an unexpected sigh. Slade wonders whether it's a sign of empathy or exasperation.

"It's all the ways things fall apart," Slade explains, "the gaps we can't bridge, the hopelessness that follows my leadership."

"Have players told you they're feeling hopeless?"

"Not in words, but I look in the eyes of a veteran leader like Nathaniel Davis, and I see my reflection. I'm the guy who's not been able to send him out in style. I'm not saying Nathaniel is hanging 'em up, mind you, but he can't have too many more years left in him, right?"

"Tell me about other signs of hopelessness that you are picking up on."

"Well, we've got young talent like Richard Vernon. At the trade deadline, we couldn't get a sniff on the guys we waved out there - some veterans who could have contributed to a stretch drive - but everyone feels free to ask me if I'll trade them Dick. How the hell am I helping that kid by holding onto him for some promised future that continually gets further out of sight? If I truly cared about that kid, I'd ship him to Nashville for a handful of half-assed specs."

Dr Stuart cracked a slight smile at that last claim. He tugged at his right corduroy pant leg and looked over Slade's shoulder. He squinted at a crack of sunlight coming through the blinds, then returned his gaze to the large, frazzled man aggressively seeking comfort on the couch.

"Is there any sign of hopelessness you're picking up from your players that is coming directly from them? So far," Dr Stuart continues, "I feel like you're expressing your own sense of hopelessness."

Slade was now hunched over, leaning on his knees and grabbing at his hair. He opened his mouth to speak, then caught his breath with something between a gasp and a yawn. He opened his mouth again.

"I see what you mean. What about the time I overhead Alex Payne ask David Wade when he realized I was a - quote - 'pie-in-the-sky candyass'?"

"How did that make you feel?" Dr Stuart flutters his eyes teasingly.

"Terrible..." There was nothing more that Slade could muster.

"Ashamed," the doctor adds - and not as a question.

"That's who I am, Doc." Slade sat up and spread his legs comfortably. "I know we've got some talented kids coming up. We're developing a base of young contributors, like Çelik Lüfi and Joshua Ackland, but we're lacking in some studs, some catalysts."

"So you're doing something right," suggests Dr Stuart. He continued down a path he usually avoided in this doctor-GM dynamic. "Now, you know more about baseball in your pinky than I ever will, but I want to check where you are with your sense of 'young contributors,' as you put it. Do you mind if I throw some names of your younger players at you so that you can tell me the first words that come to mind?"

"Sure," says the GM, who chuckles. "You're not aiming for a job with us, are you?"

Dr Stuart good-naturedly frowns. "OK, here goes..."

"Fida bin Kaseem."

"Productive. Need to keep him on the field and find a spot for him on the field or, at least, in the lineup."

"Muslih Abdul-Hasib."

"Oh my god," says Slade, "who saw this kind of season coming? The kid's hitting .400 with a 2 WAR in 40 games! But we need to keep him on the field and find a position that suits him."

"Ivan Alvarado."

"Unfinished product. Shows me some signs."

"Jorge Ramirez."

"Sky's the limit!"

"Kasib Majd."

"Fast riser. Sky's the limit!"

"Joe Hall."

"How much time do I have to tell you about Joe Hall?"

Dr Stuart pretended to look at his watch as he processed just how much of a pie-in-the-sky candyass this Slade guy is.

"As a matter of fact," Dr Stuart once again tugs at his cords, "we're out of time. I'll see you next week."

[BaseClogger]

That's not a bad core.

[Trebro]

You have some good pieces, but I think the issue is getting them firing at the same time with the correct support. I'd look carefully at where you don't think you have someone ready or about ready and think about what you can do to improve there.

For example, my current total black hole is catcher. I have absolute jack waiting in the wings there vs other positions where I'm either in a good position or set up to be in good position. So that's where I need to focus.