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On my blog, I'm holding up the Jays' McDonald, and the Expos Angel Salazar as possibly the best fielders around who couldn't hit MLB pitching.  When discussing McDonald, I said:

It must be a virtual certainty that he’s a great fielder, since he’s never had 300 PA, has come into the league at almost age 25, is now 32, has 1146 career PA, his career OPS+ is 56, with a career high of 75.  His career high in salary is 500,000$. He’s also had SIX different managers on three teams.

And, here is the criteria:

1 - has been in the league for at least 5 seasons
2 - has played in at least 300 games
3 - has averaged less than 4 PA per game (preferably under 3)
4 - has a career OPS+ of under 60
5 - is a 2B,SS,3B,CF (i.e., not a catcher, and I’d be shocked if you could find anyone at another position)
6 - better than league average fielding percentage

Peter Bergeron of the Expos is another that qualifies.  So, are we in the midst of seeing McDonald be the best at this?

Is John McDonald the best example of a great fielder who can't hit? | 8 comments | Create New Account
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Chuck - Friday, December 01 2006 @ 01:56 PM EST (#159615) #

Some Expos of yore...

A qualifier: Pepe Frias (MacDonald's clone).

A near qualifier: Larry Lintz. His OPS+ was 63, which disqualifies him (the man could draw a walk).

Mike Green - Friday, December 01 2006 @ 02:16 PM EST (#159619) #
Other qualifiers- Rob Picciolo, David Howard, Juan Castro.

Skeeter Webb misses the fielding percentage criterion.  Skeeter managed to stay in the league for years and years, despite having an OPS+ under 50 almost every year (for his career, he manager an OPS+ of 48).  Even more bizarrely, he accomplished this feat despite playing in a wartime league and continued on for 3 years after the war.

Frank Markotich - Friday, December 01 2006 @ 02:21 PM EST (#159621) #
Dal Maxvill looks like a qualifier.
Mike Green - Friday, December 01 2006 @ 02:55 PM EST (#159624) #
Maxvill is an excellent choice.  BP's statistics love him, and he had the primo defensive rep.  I remember him as a very good defensive shortstop, but a fair piece from Ozzie.
Magpie - Friday, December 01 2006 @ 03:45 PM EST (#159629) #
If you bring up Dal Maxvil, I'm immediately reminded of Ray Oyler.

Couldn't hit the ocean if he fell out of a boat.
Mike Green - Friday, December 01 2006 @ 03:52 PM EST (#159630) #
Mario Mendoza didn't beat the league fielding percentage, but is, I think, the gold standard for futility with the lumber in his hands.
Is John McDonald the best example of a great fielder who can't hit? | 8 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.