Jays banking on comebacks from Lind, Hill

[LittleOzzy]

They were the lost boys of 2010. In two weeks, they will begin their bid to become the comeback kids of 2011.

That would be pressure enough for Adam Lind and Aaron Hill, presumptive stars of the Toronto Blue Jays’ future after the 2009 season and enigmatic flops last year. Just to tighten the screws a tad, the Jays are counting on them to pick up the slack in a lineup that will open the season with 71 homers and 221 RBIs gone from last season.

John Farrell, the new manager, does not want to put too fine a point on it. Neither does he shy away from the role Lind and Hill must play if the Jays are to build a bridge to all-out playoff contention in 2012.

“I’m not going to say we’re going to hinge the 2011 season on two guys, but their return to their normal production will be key for us,” Farrell said yesterday. “That will go a long way toward our overall and sustained success.”

In an interview before he guested at the 60th annual Conn Smythe Sports Celebrities Dinner to benefit Easter Seals Kids, Farrell said the trade of Vernon Wells sharpened the focus on Lind and Hill. Assuming Jose Bautista continues to bat third in the lineup, someone must step up to supply solid offence in the fourth and fifth spots, he said.

“When you consider the trade of Vernon, their bounce-back, and the ability of one of them to provide protection for Jose, is going to be key for us,” Farrell said.

Wells contributed 31 homers and 88 RBIs last year. Gone too are Lyle Overbay (20 and 67) and John Buck (20 and 66).

Two years ago, Lind and Hill blossomed, each winning Silver Slugger Awards as the top American League hitters at their positions. Last season, Lind’s batting average fell 68 points to .237 and Hill’s dropped 81 to .205. They did combine for 49 homers, but their on-base percentages plummeted.

Their decline in OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage) was also stark. Lind dropped from .932 to .712 and Hill from .829 to .665.

According to Fangraphs.com, which breaks down every at-bat over the season, Lind swung at 34.6% of pitches outside the strike zone, up 10% from 2009.

Hill also swung at a career-high 31.3% of pitches outside the strike zone. It followed that he saw fewer pitches in the strike zone than in any of his previous five seasons.

As one might expect at this time of year, Farrell is confident about a turnaround. His optimism stems from his conversations with Lind and Hill this off-season.

http://sports.nationalpost.com/2011/02/ ... lind-hill/

[Duffman100]

I personally think Hill has a better chance to rebound between the two.

He seemed to make good contact last year...but just happened to hit RIGHT at players. I also don't think Lind really believes in himself fully...he spoke constantly about expecting to be sent down to the minors.

[evilRyu]

I wonder what he jays are going to do wig his 3 option years remanning.

[The_Hater]

I think it's going to be pretty tough for either Hill or Lind to hit as poorly as they did last year, they just both dug huge holes for themselves the first 4-6 weeks. They should both be able to bounce back to varying degrees.

[satyr9]

I think it's going to be pretty tough for either Hill or Lind to hit as poorly as they did last year, they just both dug huge holes for themselves the first 4-6 weeks. They should both be able to bounce back to varying degrees.

yeah, neither is as bad as they looked last year, but are either as good as they were two years ago? Hill is 100% in between, I'd even say the average of the two years is probably fair. Lind I have less confidence evaluating. I think it's possible his hitting talent is closer to his career best numbers, but I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if it's significantly lower either.

IMO even though they both slumped they're in very different situations. I know exactly what Hill is with the bat. I know what he's like hot and what he's like cold and his seasonal stats are just a question of how long he's hot and hot long he's cold.

Lind is far more of a wild card than that to me. His good and bad splits are just too massive to be inside, even starting out he'd come up for 20 games and rake, then come up a year later and look like a poopoo platter. Hopefully he settles into an area where we can at least expect a reasonable range of performance, but IMO it's a pretty big year in Lind's career and just another one for Hill.

[WpgPage]

agreed this is a make or break year for Lind, the good thing for Lind is his struggles seam to be more mental thank anything wrong with his actual swing. Also seamed to have a lot of trouble recognizing the down and away off speed pitch which really killed him this year.

[Randle McMurphy]

The biggest problem with Lind is that he can't hit left-handed pitching (.341 OPS last season). If he does anything close to that again this season, he's going to be viewed as a platoon hitter going forward.

[The_Hater]

The biggest problem with Lind is that he can't hit left-handed pitching (.341 OPS last season). If he does anything close to that again this season, he's going to be viewed as a platoon hitter going forward.

.608 career OPS vs LHP in 4 seasons. Lind is already a platoon player.

[Randle McMurphy]

The biggest problem with Lind is that he can't hit left-handed pitching (.341 OPS last season). If he does anything close to that again this season, he's going to be viewed as a platoon hitter going forward.

.608 career OPS vs LHP in 4 seasons. Lind is already a platoon player.

Lind should be, but he isn't being treated as such by this team.

[The_Hater]

The biggest problem with Lind is that he can't hit left-handed pitching (.341 OPS last season). If he does anything close to that again this season, he's going to be viewed as a platoon hitter going forward.

.608 career OPS vs LHP in 4 seasons. Lind is already a platoon player.

Lind should be, but he isn't being treated as such by this team.

True. Lind's career splits almost match Curtis Granderson and 2 teams have refused to platoon him either.