Quote:
Originally Posted by ISiddiqui
I've always assumed that a shoulder injury affects swinging the bat too  |
You would think, but that hasn't been true. Napoli actually started hitting in spring training early, well before he was allowed on the field to catch. He probably did as much as two weeks of DHing, IIRC. His shoulder concerns didn't extend to his swing much, from what the coaching staff has been saying. The possibility of using him at DH has been a hot topic on Angels boards for a month now.
As for the field, I understand they'll be cautious about that, plus Mathis has been good. But Napoli was catching 6-7 innings in the last spring training games and was pretty much pronounced ready to go (which is why he wasn't placed on the DL).
No, this is Scioscia, as usual, getting myopic on his lineup choices, which is one of his worst attributes. He doesn't have many bad ones, but his over-reliance on speed and contact guys to make his move the runners offense run constantly has him rolling out much more of a punch and judy lineup than he needs to. Which is, unfortunately, why Brandon Wood as at AAA right now, too.