Ball or Nuthin' » MLB

Could Pujols Be the Greatest Hitter Ever?

T Lamont — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 14:48:41 +0000

After Game 3 of this year’s Series, there will definitely be a million and one posts – mostly from Cardinals fans – declaring how great Albert Pujols is.

Pujols’ three-homer night ranks with the greatest World Series performances of all time and, truthfully, fans of the game have been awaiting a signature moment like this in the slugger’s career.

Well, he delivered.

The St. Louis’ first baseman has had a stunning career that has been nothing short of phenomenal. But the greatest asset that has assured Pujlos’ entry into Cooperstown has been his uncanny consistency. Thanks to baseball-reference.com, a quick glance at his stats reveal that he has been the most dominant hitter throughout the entire decade.

He’s been given the nickname “The Machine,” and with plenty of justification. Phat Albert has hit no less than .299 (this past year), no fewer than 32 home runs (2007) or 99 runs batted in (this year). In fact, his 162-game average is quite startling to behold:

.328 batting average
42 home runs
126 runs batted in
43 doubles
.617 slugging percentage

An easy call for the Hall of Fame just got a lot easier. Having a night like he did on baseball’s biggest stage cements his case as one of the game’s best.

But his grand evening brings to light another hypothesis: Pujols could very well be regarded as the game’s best right-handed hitter of all time.

The game’s very best, legendary hitters have generally come from the left side of home plate, and with good reason. Historically, most of baseball’s pitchers are right-handers, and that lends itself to the unsaid advantage that left handers have. Atop the list of greatness includes names like Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Ty Cobb, Lou Gehrig and Stan Musial – who all happen to be left handed batters. In particular, Ruth, Gehrig and Musial combined averages that were consistently above .300 with considerable power numbers.

Pujols has his work cut out for him against the Rangers.

So, while we can’t distinctly pronounce that Pujols is the greatest hitter of all time, we would be within our rights to suggest that he may be the best handicapped (i.e., right-handed) hitter in history. His consistent combination of power and average haven’t been seen from righties.

Now we all saw that Pujols’ swing-and-miss strikeout in the ninth inning of Game 5, but opponents limit his comfort at the plate by preventing him from getting into any rhythm. The Cardinals slugger was intentional walked three times last night, adding to his career-leading mark of 251 (IBBs have been tracked since 1955). Add to the fact that Pujols has not had any continuous protection around him, and it can be quickly confirmed that his dominance has been even more impressive than many realize.

Pujols’ next challenge? His team is currently mired in a 3-2 World Series deficit against the Rangers. It’s a lead that was achieved in part – after his historic Game 3 – by refusing to give Pujols any semblance of good pitches to hit.

Can Pujols lead his team to two straight World Series game victories without getting any pitches to hit?

If so, he’ll have to do it without getting hits. And consequently, Phat Albert’s legendary status would grow even phatter.

Home Run Derby Lacking Creativity

T Lamont — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 23:18:12 +0000

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One of major league baseball’s biggest stages in right around the corner, and admittedly, I’ve lost a bit of excitement about it.

I’ve been a lifelong baseball fan, and what’s happening next Monday night is flat out wrong.

Early next week marks baseball’s All-Star activities. It’s the time for the brightest stars in the recently maligned sport to shine brightly in an attempt to put on a dazzling display.

But this time around, some of the sport’s deserving stars will be sitting at home due to the lack of creative brain power in assembling a portion of the showcase. In this year’s Home Run Derby, each league was represented by a captain – which turned out to be none other than the past two Derby champions, David “Big Papi” Ortiz and Prince Fielder. Each captain was assigned the responsibility of picking three other participants from his own league.

The result? Well, let’s look at this year’s contestants:

American League:
David Ortiz (captain) – 17 HRs
Jose Bautista – 28 HRs
Adrian Gonzalez – 16 HRs
Robinson Cano – 14 HRs

National League:
Prince Fielder (captain) – 22 HRs
Matt Kemp – 22 HRs
Rickie Weeks – 15 HRs
Matt Holliday – 12 HRs

Based on the home run production from the potential participants, it’s clear to see that each captain had his own agenda regarding his selections. Predictably, both Fielder and Ortiz hand-picked a teammate (Weeks and Gonzalez, respectively) to co-star in the festivities.

When being interviewed about having to contact other performers from across the league, Ortiz responded with the following remarks:

“First of all I talked to [Adrian Gonzalez], my teammate. We hit in the same group in batting practice. I said ‘Gonzo, you should go with me to the Home Run Derby,’ and he was like ‘Papi if you want me to I will.’ And then I called my boy [Jose] Bautista. He told me the same thing. At the same time [Robinson] Cano told me he would do it. Cano’s one of my boys. And that’s how I put my team together. It was kind of easy for me.”

Holliday's one of the best hitters in the game, but others have displayed more power this year.

In a similar fashion, the Milwaukee Brewers first baseman offered:

“It was very tough, I wanted everybody to be in it. I definitely wanted someone from the Diamondbacks to be in it, but these guys, I know these guys really well, and these are my picks, no hard feelings.”

Granted, Big Papi appeared to be more upfront about the nature of his choices, but both sluggers clearly chose players that they had befriended. This within itself is not necessarily a bad thing. However, we don’t have to look far to notice a half dozen other players who have belted at least 20 homers prior to the upcoming break – Mark Teixeira and Curtis Granderson (25 apiece), Lance Berkman (23), Paul Konerko (22), and Nelson Cruz and Mark Reynolds (20 each). Jay Bruce and Ryan Howard would have also been great selection in the senior circuit, each having swatted 18 longballs to this point in the season.

But can we really blame the captains?

Their participant selection basically amounts to captains choosing their teammates for, say, a game of pick-up hoops. Those given the task of choosing their roster, all talent equal, would most likely go with their friends. This form of team creation is about as elementary as it can get.

From another perspective, there is a dose of undeniable truth which comes along with the captains’ selections. The sad reality is that the player choices that Fielder and Ortiz made are no more popular, and will bring in no more fanfare than the players who should probably have been chosen to participate.

The American pasttime lets an opportunity slip by without putting its best foot forward.

And we can blame it on the third grader who thought this would be a good idea.

Daughter or Ball? Hmmm…

T Lamont — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 18:11:35 +0000

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As a sport, baseball is a game that is second to none.

As a spectator sport, it is a game that is second to just about anything.

But unlike football or basketball, or any other major sport for that matter, it remains the only sport with the constant possibility of crowd participation. As a crowd member with good seats at a ball game, one is required to be at attention at all times. In a split second, the manner in which that insignificant foul ball is handled can garner the cheers – or jeers – of those in the stadium. One mistimed swing of a player’s bat can determine the difference between a fan comfortably enjoying the rest of the game – or pulling the brim of his hat a little closer to his chin.

All hail the power of the foul ball.

One of these defining moments occurred a few nights ago:

This has to be one of the funniest videos in major league baseball history…or something like that.

What happened dad?

He obviously looked like he was obliging to help the child catch a foul ball. Then, suddenly, he decided that he wanted to be an overprotective parent and realized she could get hurt if she doesn’t catch it properly.

Well, time is running short now. The ball is on its way. In a hunch, he thought, “I can catch this ball…if my daughter would just get out of my way. Let me sit her down.”

That’s probably what he was thinking. But the execution was poor. The girl clearly missed the seat. In fact, dad didn’t even look down. That oncoming foul ball became priority number one.

And now that he had improperly discarded his baggage, dad had ample time to square himself in front of the ball. He did just that. And missed the catch. So, he dropped his daughter to catch a ball which he also dropped.

Out of curiosity, I’d like to know who that was that was sitting on his opposite side? Another daughter? It seemingly couldn’t have been his wife, given the lack of reaction to what had just happened. It was almost as if she wasn’t shocked at all, as if to say, “Yep, that’s what he did to me a few years back…”

At any rate, I guess we should just be grateful that he didn’t have a baby in his hands.

The First Barry Bonds Was the Best

T Lamont — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:31:10 +0000

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The time frame – the late, late 1980′s.

A time when the Bay Area was home of the best baseball being played in the majors. My favorite team at the time, the Oakland Athletics, would later become infamously renown for having some the sports biggest miscreants and most eccentric personalities ever.

But they were a fan’s dream back then. In 1988, Jose “Blabbermouth” Canseco became baseball’s first ever 40-40 man (40 HRs and 40 SBs in the same season). He and Mark McGwire were affectionately known as ”the Bash Brothers.” Rickey Henderson was more than just a blur on the basepaths – he was a refined combination of speed, power, and genuine baseball instinct.

Yet, around the time that teams in Oakland and San Francisco were making headlines, the multitalented Barry Bonds was showing a glimpse of his potential in Pittsburgh. For the first 10-12 years of his career Bonds was doing it all. He swiped 28 or more bases in 12 of his first 13 seasons in the big leagues. Bonds made amazing catches and throws, and covered tons of ground in the outfield. He gradually worked himself into becoming a more patient, efficient hitter – flirting with the .300 mark for most years in the 90′s. Bonds’ home run production had also crept into territory that would have him classified as a ‘power hitter.’

As the new millennium neared, we had all observed a natural progression of Bonds’ size and stature. In and around ’99 and 2000, it was clear to all that Bonds was gaining mass, but, of course, the 90′s and early portions of the new decade had yet to be declared as ‘the steroid era.’

Reports have alleged that Bonds’ drug use coincided with the fan-captivating 1998 home run race between McGwire and Sammy Sosa – both of whom have since been outed by teammates, media and/or the government.

The Riverside native’s desire to enjoy such a moment in the spotlight can be understood, but it ended up jeopardizing his sure-fire Hall of Fame standing. Up until 1998, here were Bonds’ statistics (12 years):

.288 BA
374 HRs
1094 RBIs
418 SBs

During the first half of his career, Bonds was one of the best all-around performers in major league baseball history.

After 1998, he became the first player to ever member of the 400-400 club (400 HRs and 400 SBs). Couple those figures with some above average play in the field, and Bonds was clearly on his way to Cooperstown. Bonds was a complete player, who was equally dangerous in nearly every aspect of the game.

But we know how the story ended. Bonds’ spectacular 73-homer campaign, which came a few years after McGwire’s record-setting 1998 total, would only elevate the speculation surrounding the increased long ball numbers over the past decade. Eventually, many baseball players startled us with connections to performance enhancing drugs – - to the point where we began to wonder which baseball players had not engaged in such activity.

Based on this account, Bonds foray into the PEDs became obsessive and he became a different player altogether. As a baseball fan it was saddening to witness the limitations – and decline – of Bonds’ signature well-rounded play. Sure, for five years, Bonds was the most feared hitter in the sport…but at the expense of his other abilities? That certainly turned out to be the case.

During the 90′s, baseball was all about the long ball. Now that the smoke has cleared, only the true fans of the sport remain.

And we can all agree that the first Bonds was clearly the best Bonds.

Red Sox Start Not As Bad As Advertised

T Lamont — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 18:23:54 +0000

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Before I get deeply entrenched into this post, let’s be clear on one thing.

It’s extremely hard for any baseball team to begin the season losing its first six games.

Why?

It’s simply the law of averages. Baseball is a game based upon a unique set of skills that each position player possesses. Pitchers are athletes who possess the ultimate amount of skill, and their success (and the entire teams success) is primarily based on the proper execution of their skill.

Given that, what are the odds that the Red Sox pitchers AND Red Sox hitters would simultaneously execute their skill worse than their opposing pitchers and hitters? Couple that with the fact that Boston’s lineup is a modern-day murderer’s row, and any fan should have reason for major concern, right?

Jacoby Ellsbury – Batted .301 in last full season

Carl Crawford – .300+ hitter in 5 of last 6 seasons

Dustin Pedoira – 2008 American League MVP

Kevin Youkilis – .300+ hitter with above average power

Adrian Gonzalez seems to be a perfect fit for the Green Monster at Fenway.

Adrian Gonzalez- Had three MVP-caliber seasons in Petco Park

David Ortiz- 351 career HRs

J.D. Drew – good 7th hole hitter with power

Any team would be jealous of this batting lineup. But they enter a weekend hosting the Yankees after getting swept by the Rangers and the Indians.

But a closer examination would help us to see that things aren’t as bad as they seem. In the midst of their slow start, the Red Sox have put up 5 runs in two different games, and 4 runs in another. That number of runs – while not exactly what Boston is capable of – is certainly a sufficient amount to win a ball game. But those respectable offensive outputs were marred by poor pitching, contributing to the BoSox’s current losing streak.

And with New York coming to town, one might think that Boston’s suffering will continue. But to the contrary, the Yankees will indeed spark a fire under the Sox. If there’s one team that Boston peps up for, it’s New York.

Bottom line – there’s 162 games in a season for a reason. The best teams are determined over the course of spring, summer, and fall.

Given that less than 4% of the major league schedule has been played at this point, the Sox have plenty of time to recover. And with the talent on its roster, Boston can have faith that they’ll improve.

And that’s just the law of averages.