Thread of future Red Sox superstar Triston Casas

MLB made the mic’d up video private 🫣

My beloved Mariners got absolutely crushed by the Red Sox, poor Luis didn’t deserve that 😩😩😩 but at least Justin Verlander had a worse night.

However, if you can quietly sidestep the Mariners train wreck (you have no idea how grateful I am Servais didn’t throw Matt Brash out there, but what the fuck was he doing putting the closer out in the 7th, no I am not updating that thread 🫥) it was a good night for Triston Casas.

His BA continues to climb, at this rate he’ll be hitting .250 by the 4th of July. He got a home run and a walk last night, too bad he snapped his on base streak of 23 games last night.

Triston Casas - Boston Red Sox (6)
pic.twitter.com/h99xp75WGy

— MLB HR Videos (@MLBHRVideos) May 16, 2023

Hitting homers and eating berries.

Typical day in the life of Triston Casas.
pic.twitter.com/je196NdI1B

— Tyler Milliken ⚾️ (@tylermilliken_) May 17, 2023

Slash line April: .133/.283/.293, OPS .576
Slash line May*: .257/.338/.429, OPS .766

Not lighting it up yet but you can see him adjusting. Swinging more and making tons more contact, and has had some bad luck. Hopefully his June is even better. And he’s looked a lot more settled in fielding, no stupid errors like that one v the Pirates. Felt bad for him, last two games have been bad, however, his worst stretch in May was three games without a hit. In April it was six. So hopefully this is just Development.

*i am travelling all day tomorrow so this misses out today assuming he plays.

For the second time this year, Triston Casas swats a homer at a 44-degree launch angle.

With that height, the @RedSox rookie is tied for the MLB lead: pic.twitter.com/ROygM7Bbvo

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) June 9, 2023

GOLD GLOVE CASAS SAVES A RUN AND AN ERROR

Hell of a play by Triston Casas to hold onto the bat. pic.twitter.com/y3tnQqIklq

— Tyler Milliken ⚾️ (@tylermilliken_) June 9, 2023

"His off-speed pitches were really immaculate today."

Triston Casas praised Garrett Whitlock following the Red Sox 3-2 win over the Yankees. @WebsterOnTV | #RedSox pic.twitter.com/j0DYBGQnfB

— NESN (@NESN) June 10, 2023

Interesting comments from Casas regarding his change in approach at the plate:

Triston Casas joined @SoxBooth after the Sox sweep of the Yankees to discuss his big knock, abilities at first ("I think I'm a difference maker"), tap to listen:
📷 © Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports pic.twitter.com/eSUuiKFxlE

— WEEI (@WEEI) June 19, 2023

Triston Casas smokes a two run double! pic.twitter.com/YbSF2Wuo1S

— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthewCFB) June 19, 2023

I like change ups https://t.co/2QMDTYMcus

— Triston Casas (@mvptc37) February 26, 2022

Also, Red Sox Stats points out that he gets robbed on a lot of full count balls, probably on account of his size like a lot of other tall hitters.

A sampling of 3-ball count called strikes on Casas this year pic.twitter.com/6XbGfmRp0k

— Red Sox Stats (@redsoxstats) June 19, 2023

pic.twitter.com/kpCw7EXUNm

— Red Sox Stats (@redsoxstats) June 22, 2023

Final June numbers for the king of the himbos:

.288/.380/.488, OPS of .868. Saw a figure of him having a WRC+ of 140(!) for this month but can’t find that tweet rn. Still, you take those numbers for a 23 year old rookie don’t you?

Actually more impressed by him lowering his strikeout rate for the month, it was 21.7% in June compared to a not-great 27.5% in May and an even less impressive 29.3% in April (I think that was when you posted that he struck out four times in a game, Tracer?) Btw he hasn’t walked once since June 18 so his k/bb rate isn’t as impressive as it was mid month when it was 1:1, but clearly he’s decided to put the ball in play more & it’s paying off.

You take those numbers from anybody

wild that he can change his approach that much and make it work for him.

Idk have you watched him recently Tracer? He doesn’t look that wildly different at the plate, just a lot more assured & more willing to swing. If I wasn’t too lazy to go on Savant & find out, I’d be interested to see his % of pitches that he swings at. Scrolling back up, you said about him hitting breaking pitches and he’s had some success with them in June, to put it mildly.

https://i.postimg.cc/v8cN9DZ3/IMG-4311.jpg
AL East’s Judge/Altuve.

Also, came off the bench and smashed a slider for a double today.

He smoked one at Wrigley (second in two days! Go big boy!) and we’ll get to that BUT

Casas very confident in his arm pic.twitter.com/8yPyIDJ0LE

— Red Sox Stats (@redsoxstats) July 15, 2023

Casas turning into a beast very early in his career. Homers to the cup snake. pic.twitter.com/4QMca3nzhS

— Red Sox Stats (@redsoxstats) July 15, 2023

Completely normal thing for NESN to post

Casas is a whole vibe. pic.twitter.com/7xfgmfoQUk

— NESN (@NESN) July 18, 2023

I love when this guy homers twice off Max fucking Scherzer.

Yeah, Scherzer isn’t who he was. But he’s still someone that could fuck a rookie up. Three ABs & couldn’t get Casas out in any of them. He clearly didn’t want to pitch around him, looking at it now.

Look at this maniac staring across the plate at Scherzer after Scherzer threw him two fastballs across the plate in nearly the same spot and the second was crushed
https://i.postimg.cc/CLFtWcGs/37c11a17-a137-4ebf-b285-83a17d88d321.jpg

Scherzer will have to wait until next season to get another crack at Casas. It was clear who emerged victorious in their first encounter.

"I left pitches in his wheelhouse,” Scherzer said. “I'd like to face him more. I'd like to get more at-bats against him. But tonight, I left pitches down and in for him to be able to hammer."

Kind of insane stat, this

At 23, Casas joined Lou Gehrig as the only players ever to hit multiple homers in a game at such a tender age against an opponent with 3,000 strikeouts; Gehrig’s performance came against Walter Johnson.

What a guy Casas is 😂👏 #RedSox pic.twitter.com/Vg7m0HyGxy

— NESN (@NESN) July 26, 2023

Bumping mine and Traitor Hand’s favourite thread for this gem:

Baseball isn’t Boring (podcast, great) interviewed Casas in spring training and asked him about his approach to the game. Casas reiterates that he does every day at a time working towards progress every day. When asked about his daily routine, here’s what he said:

New slogan: 'Put the mushrooms and peppers on the grill!' (Photoshop wizards, assemble ...)
Listen to Casas on @BBisntBoring: https://t.co/O6DUWP8QaU pic.twitter.com/l2bA6YDKIe

— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) July 30, 2023

de·stroy (verb)
put an end to the existence of by damaging or attacking it. pic.twitter.com/lT9EJKo0Pq

— Red Sox (@RedSox) July 29, 2023

Alex Cora said postgame that Triston Casas' home run was as impressive as any he saw Barry Bonds hit back in the day.

"I played here a lot of games and I saw one of the great ones dominating from like 2000 to 2004. That ball he hit to left center, that's one of the best home…

— Mac Cerullo (@MacCerullo) July 29, 2023

Fangraphs interviewed Casas about his hitting

Laurila: You do your thinking before you step in the box.

Casas: “Yes. I develop my approach to an at-bat when I’m on deck. What is the best way to go about this at-bat to put my team in the best position to succeed? Maybe I want to grind it out and I’ll be taking the first pitch. Maybe I’ll be trying to take my whack on the first pitch, trying to drive the ball into a gap, hit a double, hit a home run. Sometimes the game calls for a walk. I also look at where I’m at in the lineup; who am I protecting, or who is protecting me? A lot goes into it.

“When I step into the box, I know what I want to do. I know what I’m looking for. I know what part of my swing I want to get to. I focus on what I intend to do based on my feel for the game and the situation. From there, it’s all about reaction.”

Honestly for a himbo hippie the guy's kind of a low-key hardball poindexter

I don’t love that swing.. he’s flying open too quick, opening his shoulders up too quick.. can’t argue with the result though

“I’ve always said if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, you’re going to think it’s dumb, but if you talk to me about hitting, you might think I’m the smartest person in the world.”

Bless

He is staying down on the ball more imo. There is something funny about lefties, though, and for some reason I notice it more with Japanese players. Yoshida and Ichiro both look like they fly open way too soon, kind of unspooling their torsos to follow the bal

https://rpseawright.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/ted-williams-hitting-chart.jpg

I’m guessing this is the chart

Looks like Ted didn't like down and in either

https://i.postimg.cc/ydxqHMRt/IMG-8250.jpg

"What if I don't hit by May 3?" - Triston Casas when told of the Dustin Pedroia story on April 24 https://t.co/gMl9X9xL8n

— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) May 4, 2023

We talked to Dustin about a player who is having an eerily similar rookie year to his in 2007, Triston Casas... Needless to say, he had some high praise for the rookie
Listen here ➡️ https://t.co/5yHcI31X5l pic.twitter.com/lUk2FyTiCf

— Baseball Isn’t Boring (@BBisntBoring) September 7, 2023

every time i hear dustin pedroia speak i imagine it being said by matt dillon

I’ve watched so much Pedroia tape. He’s hilarious.

I read a piece with him earlier in the season cos he attends spring training. Two of his kids play baseball and the other doesn’t; he said that son has no interest because baseball used to take his dad away from him. I guess that’s why he’s not very involved the rest of the year but he watches all the games, he says.

Season’s over 💔

Triston Casas (right shoulder inflammation) to the IL.

His 2023 season is effectively over. Scratched from the Red Sox lineup each of the last two days.

He basically had two years in one:
-- .128/.281/.282/3 2B/3 HR prior to May 3
-- .293/.387/.536/18 2B/21 HR from there

— Bill Koch (@BillKoch25) September 16, 2023

Wasn't sure if I should post on the Jays thread or not, but I was listening to "Baseball Isn't Boring" podcast for Sept 16, which for some reason had Toronto radio personality Jeff Blair et al asking questions of Boston personality "Bradfo".

Blair (laughter in background): "When did Tristan Casas go from being the dude who was like, walking around the field in bare feet before the game and doing yoga and painting his nails and all that stuff, to 24 homers, first in OPS among rookies, 2nd in home runs among rookies...when did that happen? How did that happen?"

Just a disappointing question. Obviously, he's not two different people. Obviously, the behaviours/achievements are not mutually exclusive. Am I being hugely uncharitable if it sounded to me like he's asking "when did this guy go from total f** to complete chad?" Maybe it's innocuous for sports radio, i dunno. It got me wondering how Boston media has been treating his season as it relates to his personality vs. his accomplishments?

Bradfo himself adores the guy and has interviewed him several times, most recently here:

On his one-year anniversary as a big leaguer, Triston Casas sat down with @bradfo to reflect on his journey (that most recently included a game-winning, three-run home run)
Listen: https://t.co/ykkGQCvbEJ pic.twitter.com/BvgXAungqw

— Baseball Isn’t Boring (@BBisntBoring) September 5, 2023

Casas has had the second-biggest turnaround in quality of contact in MLB between April and May, and has the 6th best quality of contact in May overall. pic.twitter.com/uGNRa3kFcV

— Red Sox Stats (@redsoxstats) May 15, 2023

The snackster pic.twitter.com/QUibPtUmHF

— Sox & Shoes (@soxandshoes) May 17, 2023

Casas is a whole vibe. pic.twitter.com/7xfgmfoQUk

— NESN (@NESN) July 18, 2023

Obviously, he's not two different people. Obviously, the behaviours/achievements are not mutually exclusive.

"What if I don't hit by May 3?" - Triston Casas when told of the Dustin Pedroia story on April 24 https://t.co/gMl9X9xL8n

— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) May 4, 2023

Yep, Bradfo backed him up very well with his answer. The red flag was all in the question, and I wondered how pervasive that kinda condescending tone had followed him.

thanks for that! i've been very interested in Casas for his potential and his personality, helped by yourself and this thread. i really hope he continues to live up to that potential - a very easy guy to root for, which means a lot coming from a Blue Jays fan!

I had suspected there was a tonal shift as he proved himself, and agree that it's bs to have to succeed to be accepted as an individual.

Thank you, I think just Tracer Hand and I really follow/pay attention to him, he’s a fun/unusual personality and character for baseball, and if you haven’t read the interview with him towards the beginning of the thread where he cooks for the reporter, it’s a really nice piece and he talks about the nails etc. His Fangraphs interview where he talks about hitting is also a really interesting read, he has a very mature (!?) approach to the plate.

Also, that video of him micd up talking to Braves players is sweet 🥲

Oh yeah that article is paywalled, well not here it isn’t.

I'm going through Casas withdrawal already, I can't deal

don’t

When I started this thread I thought it might be fun to follow this weird kid over the season.

This article with its quotes from/about multiple teammates is so sweet!

JT is A Guy:

Turner, who played with the Orioles and Mets in the early years of his career, credits players such as Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, Ty Wigginton and David Wright for instilling the idea of a mutually respectful relationship between teammates, regardless of age. Rather than following the concept of “making them earn it,” Turner believes in embracing rookies and making sure they’re comfortable.

“I always say I’m like the bumpers on a bowling lane,” Turner said. “I don’t want to interfere with them or stop them from doing anything, I just want to keep them moving in the right direction, make sure they don’t wind up in the gutter.”

Outside of the meticulous gameplan Casas follows, the rookie’s confidence not only in his routine but in the way he carries himself has stuck out to some veterans. Jansen saw that confidence firsthand one night after a game when he and Casas were the only two left in the clubhouse.

As they sat eating in silence, the 23-year-old rookie turned to a 35-year-old Jansen and asked, “Hey, do you have a problem with me?”

“He kind of called me out,” Jansen said. “Not called me out, but was like … ‘I have a sense that you don’t like me.’”

Though Casas noted that techniques such as grounding have been “in the works long before (he) came on this earth,”

not only have his teammates accepted Casas’ routine, some have tested it for themselves. Among those players who have joined Casas in the grass pregame? Devers, fellow rookie Yoshida and Nick Pivetta.

“I think you might see a couple guys over the next couple years do it,” Casas said. “I feel like I'll be here for a while, so I'll definitely keep doing it.”

Tracer Hand, this is the Fred Lynn interview.

“It was nice to see somebody in the Major Leagues make an adjustment, because I see a ton of them just do the same thing over, and over, and over,” the nine-time All-Star said with a chuckle.

“Back then, we didn’t even see what we were hitting until Sunday when the averages came out,” Lynn recalled of having to get the newspaper just to know how everyone was faring. “It was easy to just play the game and not be overwhelmed by all the other stuff. Today’s players, they can’t do that. I don’t know how they do it, to be honest, because they can’t get away from all that chatter.”

he is unreal

Brennan Bernardino, Triston Casas, Chris Murphy, and Brandon Walter spreading holiday cheer with the 2023 Holiday Caravan! pic.twitter.com/AKF1yH9HP3

— Red Sox (@RedSox) December 7, 2023

⚠️Warning⚠️

The contents of this video are HOT. pic.twitter.com/nAUgjmBrey

— Red Sox (@RedSox) December 7, 2023

DUDE

His laugh at the end 💀💀💀💀

He’s so sweet

https://archive.is/hXmnm

Casas hopes to use his experience not only to help teammates but also the region. His participation alongside teammates Brennan Bernardino, Chris Murphy, and Brandon Walter in the Red Sox’ holiday caravan — with visits to hospitals and charitable programs — represented an interest in becoming more deeply invested in the community.

“Baseball is great, hitting home runs is good, and winning World Series is even better, but giving back to the community and somehow making an impact in somebody’s life is better than those things,” said Casas. “I struggle sometimes with knowing my purpose in life and what this all means, being a baseball player compared to a workforce member or a teacher or a firefighter. We get so much attention and compensation that sometimes I’m confused about the dynamic of the world.

“But I want to use this platform for good. Any opportunity that I can get to come up to Boston or give back to the community or hopefully one day get into (hosting)charitable events and foundations, to tap into that after I’ve gained my platform, I’m here to give going forward.”

this guy

he’s back

Red Sox' Triston Casas turned 24 on Monday and enjoyed a big b-day dinner courtesy of his dad.
“My dad went to my favorite butchery shop in Miami and he got me an Australian Wagyu Tomahawk, then a separate Japanese A5 Wagyu Ribeye. So I had both of those for the birthday dinner"

— Christopher Smith (@SmittyOnMLB) January 17, 2024

Him! Posted in hope a passing FrancisF might see this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iEm7ZBXhrY

There are so many shithead comments online like Ted Williams would nEvEr and bro, Teddy Ballgame wouldn’t even admit he had a Mexican mother until decades past retirement. It’s ok for players to be themselves now.

Joe Sheehan has him as the 5th best 1st-baseman in the game, behind Freddie Freeman, Matt Olson, Bryce Harper and Vladdy Jr

gyac thinks he might be better than Vladdy Jr and all I have to say about that is, it'll be interesting to watch :)

I mean maybe?????

What exactly did Sheehan say? I remember he was annoyed with some Sox fan who was complaining about Casas having a low average in May or something, after he’d started hitting, but before it showed up in his numbers. Sheehan: do Red Sox fans bother watching the games?