Data Table Time!
The teams are ranked in order of Runs Created per Game.
Doesn't it seem odd that only one AL team got more than 30 HR from its first basemen? It appears that that the existence of the DH has encouraged AL teams to move defensively challenged players (hello Mr Ortiz!) away from first base. But it still seems strange. This is the American League, after all, where Gehrig, Foxx, and Greenberg once cavorted (all of whom were good enough with the glove to have stayed in the infield even had the DH been around in their day.) This spot was obviously a disaster for the Jays and the main culprit was Overbay's dreadful season, which, it is to be devoutly hoped, can be explained by his hand injury. Also contributing, however, was the fact that Matt Stairs simply didn't hit much when he was playing first base. He was a mighty offensive force as an outfielder or a DH - but when in the lineup at first, he hit about as mildly as... well, Overbay.
Ah, the dark days of May 2007. Will we ever forget the Zambrano Era?
Anyway, let's split up and choose a couple of teams. And imagine them playing each other:
The teams are ranked in order of Runs Created per Game.
CATCHER AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27The Jays weren't as awful as one might have expected - Gregg Zaun, even in an injury plagued year, is simply a more productive hitter than the majority of AL catchers, including Ivan Rodriguez and A.J. Pierzynski. And, unlike the Tigers and White Sox, the Blue Jays don't generally place their catchers in a key offensive role. Detroit gave more plate appearances to their catchers than any team in the AL except the Yankees and Indians, and for no apparent reason. Anyway, Zaun's support in 2008 was so awful (.195 with 2 HR in 225 at bats) that it's reasonable to expect some improvement here. Even if Zaun misses 60 games again.
NY Yankees 604 101 195 49 1 19 100 70 115 2 0 6 22 .323 .396 .502 .898 117 7.13
Cleveland 617 85 179 47 0 28 121 62 113 0 0 10 19 .290 .361 .502 .863 109 6.21
Minnesota 610 70 177 33 3 8 84 60 72 4 1 5 18 .290 .357 .393 .750 85 4.90
Boston 564 68 134 19 3 22 85 83 172 1 2 10 15 .238 .343 .399 .742 79 4.61
Seattle 595 71 173 37 0 15 72 22 58 0 3 15 24 .291 .331 .429 .760 76 4.50
AL AVERAGE 580 69 147 32 2 16 76 50 115 2 2 7 17 .252 .317 .393 .710 70 4.04
Detroit 658 63 183 41 5 12 81 15 131 2 2 6 20 .278 .299 .410 .709 73 3.86
LA Angels 529 71 121 32 1 14 68 51 146 7 4 6 12 .229 .299 .372 .672 59 3.57
Toronto 543 58 121 35 1 11 68 65 98 2 1 5 15 .223 .309 .352 .660 60 3.51
Baltimore 567 61 134 26 1 12 72 53 124 1 4 8 14 .236 .308 .349 .657 60 3.47
Texas 582 74 137 25 3 16 71 41 146 6 2 3 10 .235 .287 .371 .658 62 3.44
Oakland 564 57 134 25 0 11 67 49 92 3 1 6 11 .238 .301 .340 .642 59 3.40
Kansas City 525 56 104 28 0 22 63 54 156 1 1 14 16 .198 .286 .377 .663 56 3.31
Chicago Sox 598 59 146 28 0 12 49 28 82 1 1 8 22 .244 .285 .351 .636 55 3.03
Tampa Bay 562 65 123 22 3 16 64 45 111 4 1 2 16 .219 .276 .354 .630 53 2.99
FIRST BASE AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27
Tampa Bay 576 110 163 34 1 50 137 107 156 1 1 10 11 .283 .398 .606 1.004 145 8.69
Baltimore 606 71 172 38 2 20 89 69 107 1 3 5 6 .284 .361 .452 .813 101 5.89
Boston 614 102 162 36 4 20 93 90 135 4 2 16 12 .264 .369 .433 .802 103 5.73
Oakland 598 90 152 35 1 24 73 105 110 1 1 5 15 .254 .367 .436 .804 99 5.62
Cleveland 614 80 172 36 1 22 81 52 114 2 1 20 14 .280 .351 .450 .801 97 5.51
Minnesota 608 90 162 32 3 29 102 68 93 1 1 5 20 .266 .340 .472 .812 95 5.32
AL AVERAGE 602 82 161 36 2 22 88 70 114 3 2 7 15 .267 .347 .443 .791 93 5.26
LA Angels 592 78 171 42 3 13 84 56 69 3 4 6 21 .289 .354 .436 .789 87 5.15
Detroit 623 57 184 40 2 10 79 53 92 4 4 2 12 .295 .350 .414 .765 89 5.12
Chicago Sox 601 75 152 34 0 30 90 80 115 1 1 2 20 .253 .340 .459 .799 92 5.10
Texas 605 95 149 37 3 24 94 74 161 1 1 7 10 .246 .334 .436 .771 90 4.97
NY Yankees 563 78 160 26 1 16 86 49 93 6 4 10 15 .284 .350 .419 .769 81 4.91
Kansas City 602 71 166 38 5 12 80 43 109 5 1 6 21 .276 .326 .415 .742 78 4.45
Toronto 624 83 153 43 2 15 65 64 117 5 0 1 17 .245 .315 .393 .708 76 4.09
Seattle 606 74 136 29 0 23 82 66 131 2 0 7 21 .224 .307 .386 .693 69 3.75
Doesn't it seem odd that only one AL team got more than 30 HR from its first basemen? It appears that that the existence of the DH has encouraged AL teams to move defensively challenged players (hello Mr Ortiz!) away from first base. But it still seems strange. This is the American League, after all, where Gehrig, Foxx, and Greenberg once cavorted (all of whom were good enough with the glove to have stayed in the infield even had the DH been around in their day.) This spot was obviously a disaster for the Jays and the main culprit was Overbay's dreadful season, which, it is to be devoutly hoped, can be explained by his hand injury. Also contributing, however, was the fact that Matt Stairs simply didn't hit much when he was playing first base. He was a mighty offensive force as an outfielder or a DH - but when in the lineup at first, he hit about as mildly as... well, Overbay.
SECOND BASE AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27Aaron Hill had a fine season, but the AL is pretty deep in second basemen who can swing the bat. All four AL East teams got quite a more out of their second basemen last season, and probably will again. Remember that B.J. Upton spent more time at 2b last year than anyone else on the Tampa team, and this year the Rays have moved last year's third baseman over. So see below.
Detroit 685 120 225 43 3 11 78 37 47 8 4 11 10 .328 .369 .448 .818 113 6.14
Boston 633 105 197 44 3 11 60 51 54 8 2 12 10 .311 .372 .442 .814 106 6.02
Tampa Bay 615 82 182 44 6 20 86 46 152 14 5 8 14 .296 .350 .485 .835 102 5.88
Baltimore 661 107 185 43 5 12 58 91 105 51 7 0 11 .280 .365 .415 .780 110 5.79
NY Yankees 631 93 191 42 7 19 100 40 92 4 5 8 19 .303 .350 .482 .832 99 5.70
Toronto 623 88 181 48 2 17 80 41 107 5 3 0 21 .291 .332 .456 .788 87 4.96
Oakland 630 87 172 33 3 21 81 49 102 9 4 10 13 .273 .334 .435 .769 90 4.95
LA Angels 623 91 195 38 4 10 82 26 99 13 8 4 23 .313 .343 .435 .778 84 4.91
AL AVERAGE 626 92 178 36 4 13 72 48 96 13 5 7 15 .283 .338 .416 .754 87 4.85
Texas 591 113 147 27 2 21 68 76 101 26 3 11 16 .249 .342 .408 .749 87 4.79
Kansas City 658 99 195 40 5 8 77 42 91 4 5 13 23 .296 .349 .409 .757 88 4.74
Chicago Sox 592 84 146 29 8 12 55 66 110 9 6 3 12 .247 .323 .383 .707 74 4.13
Minnesota 630 77 170 21 4 0 30 51 76 18 5 1 12 .270 .324 .316 .640 66 3.58
Cleveland 595 78 150 28 6 6 75 29 121 15 5 5 10 .252 .289 .350 .639 60 3.33
Seattle 595 69 152 20 2 12 72 25 83 3 4 5 18 .255 .290 .356 .646 56 3.15
THIRD BASE AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27The Twerp stands alone, of course. It will be tough for the Jays to improve all that much this season - even when healthy, Rolen simply isn't the same kind of offensive force as Troy Glaus, even when the big fellow misses a third of the season.
NY Yankees 605 145 185 32 0 52 153 98 131 25 4 21 15 .306 .415 .617 1.031 161 9.55
Boston 635 82 204 41 2 22 123 59 79 3 2 4 21 .321 .379 .496 .875 115 6.68
Seattle 648 93 184 44 2 27 101 40 117 16 2 4 19 .284 .328 .483 .811 98 5.33
Toronto 575 78 147 25 2 23 79 78 146 2 1 7 8 .256 .348 .426 .774 90 5.22
LA Angels 618 96 183 30 6 4 75 63 100 39 9 0 11 .296 .358 .383 .741 90 5.16
Tampa Bay 649 103 181 27 11 13 51 64 145 15 9 3 5 .279 .343 .414 .758 95 5.06
AL AVERAGE 607 85 161 32 4 19 84 59 127 12 4 6 14 .265 .333 .426 .759 86 4.82
Oakland 611 78 156 39 2 21 92 72 130 5 2 2 18 .255 .332 .429 .761 86 4.73
Baltimore 622 84 171 35 3 15 74 56 111 9 4 3 26 .275 .334 .413 .747 81 4.42
Cleveland 631 79 163 37 3 17 83 50 134 3 3 10 14 .258 .320 .407 .728 81 4.30
Kansas City 605 66 147 39 7 17 71 52 139 16 6 12 15 .243 .314 .415 .729 77 4.26
Detroit 567 71 134 27 2 17 82 49 167 10 2 11 10 .236 .307 .381 .688 68 3.90
Texas 565 79 138 33 6 16 64 42 126 4 2 2 16 .244 .296 .409 .705 65 3.73
Minnesota 569 70 134 20 6 6 46 60 86 17 3 1 12 .236 .308 .323 .631 59 3.39
Chicago Sox 603 60 133 20 1 22 78 44 167 4 3 2 11 .221 .275 .367 .641 59 3.15
SHORTSTOP AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27When you give John McDonald more than 300 plate appearances, this is what you get. Here endeth the lesson. Even a full year of Royce Clayton, gruesome as that is to contemplate, would have moved them up a few notches. What's fun about this group is the contrast between Boston and Seattle. Betancourt was pretty decent, and Seattle shortstops created way more runs per game (4.08 to 3.36) than the Boston shortstops (mostly Lugo, who was pretty bad.) But the Boston shortstops actually created more runs overall (76 to 73). This was mainly because Boston shortstops had 110 more plate appearances than the Setattle shortstops. The main reason for that is probably because two-thirds of Lugo's at bats came as a leadoff hitter, whereas Betancourt hit almost entirely in the bottom two spots in the order. It's easy to criticize Tito for that, but he could hardly have anticipated Lugo's awful year. And it's also true that that the entire Boston lineup is going to get more plate appearances than the Seattle lineup anyway, even if John McDonald was leading off.
NY Yankees 688 108 213 42 4 14 85 59 111 15 9 14 23 .310 .375 .443 .818 109 5.80
Baltimore 632 84 195 25 4 20 91 45 73 6 5 10 23 .309 .362 .456 .818 97 5.59
Detroit 611 90 171 35 8 20 99 54 94 14 7 5 14 .280 .340 .462 .802 94 5.29
Texas 669 85 206 40 1 10 95 49 115 13 3 5 22 .308 .359 .416 .775 96 5.25
Cleveland 619 89 164 27 1 22 78 65 154 4 4 4 12 .265 .335 .418 .753 87 4.77
LA Angels 667 101 195 36 1 8 88 45 72 20 4 6 12 .292 .337 .385 .723 89 4.67
AL AVERAGE 614 80 165 32 3 12 73 44 101 13 5 6 15 .268 .319 .390 .710 76 4.21
Seattle 580 77 165 39 2 9 68 20 53 8 5 1 13 .284 .307 .405 .713 68 4.08
Tampa Bay 602 74 156 35 2 11 59 46 114 8 2 7 16 .259 .318 .379 .696 71 3.97
Minnesota 601 82 150 22 7 5 46 58 91 26 6 8 9 .250 .322 .334 .657 69 3.86
Boston 649 79 150 40 5 8 78 50 91 32 4 4 12 .231 .288 .345 .633 68 3.36
Oakland 615 81 144 31 0 15 65 47 114 12 3 6 20 .234 .294 .358 .652 62 3.31
Chicago Sox 568 61 132 20 2 20 72 35 120 2 9 4 8 .232 .279 .380 .660 57 3.25
Kansas City 569 62 148 26 7 5 56 14 101 6 7 4 14 .260 .280 .357 .637 52 3.03
Toronto 531 53 126 35 2 2 41 27 105 9 3 3 13 .237 .276 .322 .598 46 2.77
LEFT FIELD AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27It's shocking not to see Boston at the top of the heap. But Ramirez had an off year, and they slipped behind the Yankees. Matsui had about as quiet a productive year as it's possible to have (and Damon was sensational when he was playing LF). Meanwhile, Matt Stairs was insanely good when he wore his outfielder's glove in games. How good was he, Johnny? In 2007, he was the best - the best hitter as a left fielder in the American League. That's right - better than Manny, better than Matsui, better than Crawford. You want to bet anything you value on that happening again? I'll bet all the money in my pockets against all the money in your that it doesn't.
NY Yankees 640 122 193 35 5 26 114 74 80 13 3 4 10 .302 .374 .494 .868 121 6.79
Boston 612 106 180 42 4 23 100 86 116 5 0 9 25 .294 .384 .489 .872 114 6.57
LA Angels 619 106 193 40 3 17 105 63 85 18 5 3 14 .312 .373 .468 .841 109 6.33
Seattle 633 91 194 38 5 23 112 55 112 1 2 2 12 .306 .360 .491 .851 110 6.30
Tampa Bay 668 102 203 41 9 17 94 43 154 50 12 7 10 .304 .351 .469 .819 112 6.03
Texas 610 88 167 42 5 18 74 48 129 4 4 8 11 .274 .332 .448 .780 89 5.01
Oakland 686 97 196 28 3 15 57 65 88 9 3 5 16 .286 .350 .401 .751 96 4.95
AL AVERAGE 622 89 171 34 4 17 86 53 111 12 5 6 14 .275 .333 .425 .758 88 4.86
Toronto 640 80 166 38 2 21 86 47 124 5 4 9 14 .259 .318 .423 .741 83 4.40
Chicago Sox 581 87 149 31 5 14 63 58 112 13 7 10 19 .256 .332 .399 .732 75 4.30
Cleveland 602 87 156 30 6 15 78 51 120 7 9 3 8 .259 .315 .404 .718 76 4.19
Minnesota 597 62 148 27 3 14 79 44 93 10 1 5 15 .248 .303 .374 .677 67 3.74
Kansas City 594 66 157 21 3 7 72 43 107 19 9 3 8 .264 .315 .345 .660 66 3.71
Detroit 622 84 149 37 1 19 102 33 152 6 4 4 22 .240 .279 .394 .673 62 3.27
Baltimore 598 68 144 30 5 8 72 32 84 6 2 6 11 .241 .283 .348 .631 58 3.20
CENTRE FIELD AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27The Jays have every reason to believe, and hope, that 2007 was an injury blip - even if Wells doesn't play at the levels of his outstanding 2003 and 2006 seasons, simply a return to his normal, Joe Carter level, will help. A lot. And yes - 26 triples for the Tigers. Don't see that too often.
Detroit 680 132 202 39 26 24 83 56 157 27 1 5 4 .297 .354 .537 .891 135 7.12
Cleveland 644 121 176 34 5 24 77 102 159 33 10 17 3 .273 .386 .453 .840 124 6.72
Seattle 688 109 238 20 6 5 66 48 83 35 10 4 8 .346 .391 .414 .805 115 6.41
Minnesota 630 100 182 46 1 28 109 43 102 18 10 6 18 .289 .338 .498 .836 99 5.57
Texas 647 107 182 27 7 17 74 61 90 23 5 5 13 .281 .343 .423 .767 97 5.15
AL AVERAGE 641 100 174 32 6 16 76 62 115 24 7 7 12 .271 .340 .413 .753 92 4.92
Tampa Bay 627 96 158 22 2 26 85 87 169 15 8 4 22 .252 .344 .418 .762 88 4.74
NY Yankees 644 88 174 31 8 10 82 65 90 22 6 6 11 .270 .339 .390 .729 89 4.65
Kansas City 645 108 168 32 9 7 60 67 89 10 5 23 12 .260 .349 .371 .720 87 4.54
LA Angels 611 92 154 30 3 18 77 71 121 20 6 2 13 .252 .329 .399 .728 82 4.51
Boston 622 94 166 30 7 9 73 60 113 33 5 1 13 .267 .329 .381 .710 82 4.43
Baltimore 627 90 173 37 5 11 68 28 92 43 9 5 6 .276 .310 .404 .713 81 4.37
Oakland 614 82 150 39 1 14 72 81 117 4 2 6 16 .244 .334 .379 .714 80 4.29
Toronto 657 100 158 40 5 17 83 56 101 11 4 3 10 .240 .301 .394 .695 78 3.96
Chicago Sox 644 80 159 14 3 9 53 48 121 41 12 9 12 .247 .308 .320 .628 66 3.40
RIGHT FIELD AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27That Alex Rios is pretty good. He ain't Magglio or Vlad, but he's the best of the rest. (In the AL, anyway - he may only be middle of the pack in the other league.) And Rios is much more likely to improve from where he is now than Magglio or Vlad. Ordonez' 2007, great as it was, absolutely screams FLUKE! - surely he got lucky with about 30 balls that normally go for outs but last year fell in for hits. Otherwise, his season is exactly like the five straight monotonously excellent years he cranked out for the White Sox before his knee injury - where he hits between .300 and .315, with around 30 HR and 40 doubles. As for Vlad, who just turned 32 but is showing signs of wear, as great as he continues to be, he played just 109 games in RF last year, and none of his replacements were able to slug better than .366 in 10 at bats. Of course the 2008 Angels have outfielders oozing from every pore...
Detroit 633 130 233 58 1 32 153 75 85 7 1 3 23 .368 .434 .615 1.049 164 10.27
Toronto 654 115 195 43 6 27 91 55 112 17 5 10 10 .298 .358 .506 .864 120 6.54
LA Angels 609 85 190 45 1 19 106 72 88 9 6 6 20 .312 .386 .483 .868 111 6.54
Oakland 601 74 157 34 4 24 83 109 182 8 2 8 12 .261 .375 .451 .826 109 6.09
Seattle 634 91 188 29 2 27 107 44 131 6 1 20 16 .297 .358 .476 .834 107 6.00
Baltimore 651 99 193 43 3 23 113 64 114 18 6 5 23 .296 .361 .478 .839 108 5.92
AL AVERAGE 622 93 179 39 3 21 97 66 128 10 4 6 17 .288 .358 .465 .823 102 5.80
NY Yankees 641 126 179 39 5 18 107 88 120 26 8 3 14 .279 .365 .440 .805 107 5.79
Boston 590 96 159 41 4 16 80 87 135 5 3 3 18 .269 .362 .434 .796 93 5.43
Chicago Sox 608 80 162 41 1 31 90 56 132 2 3 5 19 .266 .331 .490 .821 93 5.26
Kansas City 624 91 185 37 7 9 83 63 136 15 5 3 23 .296 .361 .421 .783 92 5.24
Minnesota 617 92 166 31 6 17 86 64 121 5 0 9 19 .269 .343 .421 .765 89 4.94
Texas 607 75 162 31 5 23 96 47 168 5 3 4 11 .267 .323 .448 .771 86 4.87
Cleveland 594 78 161 38 3 15 73 63 128 8 5 1 14 .271 .339 .421 .760 84 4.83
Tampa Bay 641 68 180 39 0 17 95 32 138 11 3 3 17 .281 .314 .421 .736 81 4.41
DH AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP GDP BA OBP SLG OPS RC RC/27Big Papi stands alone, but the Big Hurt is still a pretty productive hitter. By the way, it wasn't so much a slow start that set Thomas back last year - he wasn't great in April, but all that bad - so much as a horrendous slump immediately after. From May 4 through June 3, he hit .150 (12-80).
Boston 577 118 190 56 1 35 125 112 116 3 1 4 16 .329 .440 .612 1.051 158 10.33
Chicago Sox 543 88 142 28 0 37 104 107 155 3 3 8 12 .262 .389 .517 .907 113 7.14
Toronto 554 67 156 33 0 28 99 81 99 0 0 7 15 .282 .377 .493 .870 104 6.57
Cleveland 565 82 152 26 2 25 102 103 119 0 1 8 14 .269 .386 .455 .840 103 6.27
Detroit 586 118 152 28 2 30 86 90 93 20 5 9 11 .259 .364 .468 .831 105 6.09
Oakland 583 78 157 30 2 26 109 80 161 0 2 1 19 .269 .355 .461 .816 94 5.51
AL AVERAGE 573 82 154 31 2 23 90 74 113 5 2 6 15 .268 .355 .449 .804 92 5.50
Texas 583 82 153 33 4 30 114 56 151 1 0 10 18 .262 .334 .487 .821 92 5.39
NY Yankees 595 88 145 26 1 26 94 82 121 8 1 6 8 .244 .337 .422 .759 90 5.01
Seattle 605 89 177 24 3 9 60 63 66 3 0 2 22 .293 .356 .387 .743 82 4.75
Minnesota 543 58 146 37 2 10 74 56 80 8 2 7 21 .269 .342 .400 .741 72 4.54
Baltimore 562 68 143 25 2 20 70 57 92 1 1 4 15 .254 .324 .413 .737 74 4.44
Tampa Bay 561 67 135 25 2 16 63 68 157 12 6 7 5 .241 .329 .378 .707 73 4.35
Kansas City 584 65 155 35 3 13 87 40 100 1 1 9 16 .265 .320 .402 .722 72 4.25
LA Angels 581 82 151 23 1 18 79 47 74 6 7 5 18 .260 .319 .396 .715 68 4.01
Ah, the dark days of May 2007. Will we ever forget the Zambrano Era?
Anyway, let's split up and choose a couple of teams. And imagine them playing each other:
The Silver Sluggers The Feeble FlailersIt was a huge relief to see Shea Hillenbrand here - he barely edges out Guerrero to lead the Angels in DH plate appearances, and having Vlad Guerrero on this team would just be wrong. It's a little surprising to see Josh Fields and Delmon Young - but Joe Crede played a lot of third for the White Sox as well, and he was beyond awful. And while Young might have been impressive for a 21 year old, he wasn't very impressive compared to other AL right fielders (and he hit a fair bit better when he was playing centre anyway.)
c - Posada, NY Navarro, TB
1b - Pena, TB Sexson, Sea
2b - Polanco, Det Lopez, Sea
3b - Rodriguez, NY Fields, Chi
ss - Jeter, NY McDonald, Tor
lf - Matsui, NY Payton, Bal
cf - Granderson, Det Owens, Chi
rf - Ordonez, Det Young, TB
dh - Ortiz, Bos Hillenbrand, LA
