Hall of Fame Pyramid - Honorable Mention Shortstops
Apr 9, 2019 13:47:11 GMT -5
Rich - Former GM, Texas Rangers, and 2 more like this
Post by sansterre - Milwaukee Brewers on Apr 9, 2019 13:47:11 GMT -5
One of the endless number of Giants that John McGraw developed into talent, Art Fletcher! Fletcher barely scraped into the building with the minimum JONS score of a 30. He had an incredibly short career, not playing in more than 100 games until he was 26 (in 1911). He started until he was 35 when McGraw traded him to the Phillies, believing correctly that Fletcher was slowing down. Fletcher had a good year with the Phillies but, accustomed to being on a top team his whole career, struggled to cope with being out of the first division. He sat out his entire age 36 season (1921) to cope with his father and brother dying and his career had pretty much wrapped.
Fletcher was a league average hitter (99 OPS+ over 6035 plate appearances), which made him a better than average hitter for a shortstop but a very weak hitter for this building. His career 277/319/365 may seem paltry, but for his era it was normal. If you’re having trouble remembering eras, just assume that everything between 1901 and 1919 is a low-scoring wasteland. He hit for good average and finished in the top ten for doubles three times. He walked incredibly rarely (only 203 times in his entire career) but compensated by leading the league in hit-by-pitch five times (141 total). He boasted incredible fielding, worth 144 runs above average. He was the prototypical deadball-era shortstop; good contact, sufficient doubles power and a great glove.
Just starting with the Indians when Fletcher was winding down, Joe Sewell! Sewell hit 312/391/413 for his career (1920-1933), a slash line that jumps off the page (at least at shortstop). Would you be surprised to learn that his 312/391/413 was only worth an OPS+ of 108, only marginally better than Fletcher’s 277/319/365 (OPS+ of 99)? When in doubt, remember that the 20’s and 30’s were super hitter-friendly, like the late 90s except that instead of home runs going out of control, batting average jumped hugely. That said, Sewell hit for good average (two top tens in average, seven for singles and six for hits), mostly on the back of the fact that he never, ever, struck out. After age 25 he never again struck out more than 9 times in a season; he led the league nine times in at-bats per strikeout. He also had three top tens in walks and seven in doubles. He won two championships; one in his rookie year with Tris Speaker’s Indians, and one in 1933 with the Yankees (for whom he played third to accommodate Frankie Crosetti). A better hitter than Fletcher with a longer career, if only mediocre with the glove.
Jumping several decades, Jim Fregosi! Fregosi averaged an OPS+ of 113 for 7403 plate appearances, enough for a JONS of 33.1. You may be noticing a trend. This is the third Honorable Mention Shortstop with an OPS+ under 115, and while Fletcher was a wizard with the glove, neither Sewell or Fregosi are. This may seem unusual in light of the other positions so far. There are zero first basemen in here who hit at this level, and the second and third basemen who do (and there are a few) are universally fantastic fielders. Yet for shortstops, apparently all you have to do is be an above average hitter (OPS+ 110 or so) and not be a terrible fielder. And you know what? That’s completely true. But why?
Enter Bill James’ Defensive Spectrum. It starts on the left with the easiest positions and works right toward the hardest: DH <- 1B <- LF <- RF <- 3B <- CF <- 2B <- SS <- C. The idea is that it takes the most athleticism to play on the right-hand side, but as you get older you tend to move left, to a position that needs less from you. Look at Joe Torre or Ricardo Ramirez, catchers that over their career moved to easier positions. Or Cal Ripken starting at short but finishing his career at third. What are the implications? Let me put it this way, what percent of major league hitters can play DH? All of them! Okay, what about first base? Probably almost all. Let’s go to the far end of the spectrum; what percentage of hitters are capable of playing short? The answer is not a lot; it’s a difficult position to play. Because fewer batters can play short, the average shortstop is a worse hitter than the average third or second baseman. Which means that a 110 OPS+ shortstop, relative to others at his position, is about as valuable as a 120ish OPS+ third baseman. So even though their bats may seem weak, for shortstops, they’re quite good. So bear that in mind.
Back to Jim Fregosi. He won a gold glove and made six All-Star teams, starting his career at age 19 (1961) with the Angels and played with them until he was 30 before playing with other teams and eventually retiring at age 37 (1979). His slash stats 265/338/398 are solid for the low-scoring era of the 60s and 70s. He had a diverse array of top tens: four in WAR, four in hits, three in doubles and seven in triples. He had five 5+ WAR seasons and two 7+, one in 1964 (age 22) where he hit 277/369/463 with great defense, and the other in 1970 (age 28) where he hit 278/353/459 with great defense. As with most shortstops, his best doesn’t look impressive, but two 7 WAR seasons is nothing to shake a stick at.
The second worst hitter in this building (who wasn’t a pitcher), Bert Campaneris! Campaneris came up in 1964 (age 22) for the Kansas City Athletics but then jumped to Oakland in 1968! Okay, just seeing if you’re awake, the Kansas City Athletics moved to Oakland in ‘68, so he didn’t jump teams, the teams jumped cities. He played with the A’s all the way until he was 35, winning three rings with them (‘72-’74). He had one good year after leaving but that was pretty much it. Campaneris, as I said before, was a below average hitter, with an OPS+ of 89 over 9625 plate appearances. But you know what’s crazy? 89 is still above average for a shortstop. But, you may be thinking, how did Campaneris get in as an Honorable Mention with a bat like that? Must have been a great fielder right?
Actually, not as much as you’d think. He was good (+63 runs), but interestingly was quite bad (-34 runs) for the first four years of his career. By age 26 he figured it out and became an excellent fielder, worth almost 100 runs over the rest of his career. But that alone wouldn’t be enough to get him here. Campaneris was the third best running shortstop ever. He rarely hit into double-plays and stole bases very well. Over his career he stole 649 bases and was only caught 199 times; his best year was ‘69 when he stole 62 and was only caught eight times. Heck, in Texas at age 36 he still stole 22 bags and was only caught four times. Campy could run. Put it all together and his career had one 6 WAR, three 5s, three 4s and four 3s. Seven years at 4+ is pretty solid, eleven at 3+ is pretty solid. Not a Hall of Famer, but definitely an Honorable Mention.
With a career almost as short as Art Fletcher, Nomar Garciaparra! Nomar is the latter-day Charlie Keller, the all-time great that never was. Let me paint the picture for you. At the age of 23 he starts full time with the Red Sox (1997), hitting 306/342/534 (OPS+ 123) as a rookie with great defense, 6.6 WAR, winning Rookie of the Year. Over the next three years he’s worth 7.1, 6.6 and 7.4 WAR (OPS+ of 140, 153 and 156). In that last year (age 26) he hits 372/434/599. Hopefully at this point you realize how freakishly good this is; almost no shortstops have ever hit like this. A-Rod is the only player who consistently hit at this level this young at this position. At this point you would reasonably have thought Nomar was a guaranteed Hall-of-Famer. And then it all went wrong.
In 2001 he aggravated an old wrist injury and ended up missing almost the entire year. When he came back in 2002 his batting averages had dropped; 310 in 2002 and 301 in 2003. He still OPS+’d 127 and 121 (great for a shortstop) and with a great glove he put up 6.8 and 6.1 WAR. So at this point he’s put up 40.5 WAR in six seasons (missing one in the middle), which not many have done. Then in 2004 he suffered a serious achilles injury that had him miss half the season, cost him his fielding range (his glove after was almost always below average) and going forward his OPS+ was always 120 or lower. He was traded to the Cubs where he struggled, watching from afar while his former Sox teammates went on to celebrate their first World Series win in 86 years. He then signed with the Dodgers in free agency and had one more solid hitting year (303/367/505, an OPS+ of 120) but at this point he had to play first and he was only worth 2.5 WAR (because an OPS+ of 120, while great at short, is almost average at first). And that was pretty much it.
His JONS of 33.9 is almost totally made of the beginning of his career; few have fizzled so fast after a start like that. He had respectable home run power, excellent gap power, amazing contact (at least in his prime) and took few walks. He was one of three phenomenal shortstops that came on around the same time, A-Rod, Jeter and himself. The first two are above us in the Hall. And Nomar remains here on the Ground Floor, reminding us that nothing is guaranteed.
A little bit later with a much happier career, Jimmy Rollins! Rollins got a starting job slightly later (in 2001 at 22) and hit the ground running for the Phillies. Over his career he averaged an OPS+ of 107 over an impressive 11045 plate appearances, with an additional 46 runs of fielding and 54 runs of baserunning thrown in (he retired with 602 steals and 128 caught). He never had a particularly dominant season; probably his best was 2011 where he hit 281/347/483 (OPS+ 125) with 43 steals for 6.3 WAR. But in terms of long-term performance he was incredibly reliable, with an incredible ten 4+ WAR seasons (two 6s, four 5s and four 4s). His awards include an MVP (not deserved; he was 6th in WAR that year), a Silver Slugger, two Gold Gloves, four All-Stars and a ring (2008). He had modest home run power (231 career), solid contact (four top tens for hits, three for singles) and excellent gap power (four top tens for doubles, eight for triples, leading the league four times). Combine these solid skills with a lot of durability and he had an excellent career, the best of any Honorable Mention shortstop.
Almost as good from the same era, Jose Reyes! Reyes came up in 2003 for the Mets at 20, but didn’t start until 22 in 2005. A comparable baserunner to Rollins (more steals, but caught more often) he was a slightly worse fielder (still above average). Averaging an OPS+ of 112 over 9118 plate appearances, Reyes was a slightly better hitter for less time, winning a Silver Slugger and five All-Star appearances. He had more limited power but quality gap power (with a ton of triples, just like Rollins). His career line of 287/355/427 compares favorably with Rollins (especially adjusted for playing almost his whole career with the Mets), with more on-base at the expense of power. For eleven years, from 2006 to 2016, he averaged almost 5 WAR a year. And then, in 2017 (age 33 when playing with Detroit) he suddenly lost the ability to make contact and was out of the league two years later. At his best he was better than Rollins, but his comparably shorter career led to his career being slightly worse, with a JONS of 36.3.
Jumping forward a decade, Steve Walton! Walton kicks off the trio of light-hitting Honorable Mention shortstops from the PBL, and is also probably the best pure PBL shortstop. How is that possible, you may ask? How can a league not churn out a single Bronze or better shortstop in forty years? First, in the PBL you generally aren’t allowed to play shortstop unless you’re a really good glove man, and most really good glove men can’t hit. Second, nowadays players have long careers so even if they played short in their prime, they may end up having played more second base by the time they retire (as few players have the skill to play shortstop well for 15-20 years). An indirect result is that, mechanically, PBL shortstops in this building have more in common with deadball era shortstops than those you’d find in the 90’s and 2000s.
Sorry, back to Walton! In 9237 career plate appearances Walton averaged an OPS+ of 112. He had no home run power at all, hitting 45 in his entire career. He hit for good average (career 283 hitter), mostly on incredible bat control, never striking out more than 78 times in a season. He had seven top tens in walks, finishing with an excellent OBP of 372. Despite strong doubles power (three top tens in doubles and two in triples, hitting 494 and 60 respectively) his slugging was just 378, showing how hard it is to get a high slugging without the ability to hit the ball out of the park.
Walton came up with the Padres young, putting up 5.4 and 5.8 WAR in his ages 22 and 23 seasons (2024, 2025). The Pirates traded five players (including one you’ll meet in just a second) to land Walton. He put up 12 WAR over the next two years but regressed at 26, losing the ability to hit above 300 (which he had done every single year before). The Pirates sold him for parts and a first rounder to Detroit where he put up three 4-WAR seasons, but never again as good as he'd been. By age 31 he was bouncing around the league, only breaking 2 WAR once, and retiring by 36. His prime (ages 22 to 25) was amazing, averaging 325/415/430 with 40 doubles a year. His sudden slip at 26 unquestionably cost him a spot in the Bronze tier, or possibly even higher.
Up next, say it with me, Denilde Vizela! Vizela had a strange career. Drafted in the 20th round by the Miami Marlins he languished in their farm system until being cut after two years. The Toronto Blue Jays snapped him up in free agency, apparently seeing something that Miami did not. He was a project, taking another five years before reaching the majors, but by that time he was already known for his patience at the plate. He was in the top ten for walks nine separate times, with three top tens for OBP. He was a career 245 hitter, but routinely put up 4+ WAR batting only 230 thanks to great patience, solid gap power, a good glove (+41 for his career) and a solid running game (292 steals, only 84 caught). He had eight separate 4+ WAR seasons, including a 7.7 WAR where he unaccountably hit 282/412/420. Over his career he won a silver slugger, three gold gloves but only two All-Stars. His career line of 245/355/377 certainly suggests why only two; he was a skilled batter (110 career OPS+) but a weak hitter. Make no mistake though; Vizela was really good.
Before I start talking about this next player, I’m going to tell you a story. Once upon a time, a player gets taken in the third round of the draft. He gets traded a few times in the minors (once as part of a package for Steve Walton), breaks into the majors at 23. Starting at age 24 he puts up 4.3, 4.3, 3.2 and 5.0 WAR. He then gets traded to a new team which gives him a five-year $70 million extension. Over those years he puts up 21.8 WAR (with a 5.2 and 6.5 WAR in there). He then gets extended for another three years at $15 mill per, putting up 12.3 WAR in that time (let the record show that he’s 36 by this point). The player retires with eight 4+ WAR years of which four were 5+ WAR. What kind of hardware do you think this guy has? I mean, he wasn’t dominant, but he averaged 4+ WAR for twelve seasons and made $150+ million over his career, so he clearly was no schlub.
Would you believe that this player has made not a single All-Star game?
Let’s talk about Cristian Medina. He’s one of the weakest hitters in this building, with a 265/347/367 line, good for a 105 OPS+ over 9850 plate appearances. He had zero home run power (89 for his career). But he hit for decent average, got on base well (zero top tens for hits, batting average or walks, yet has two top tens for OBP) and five top tens for doubles. He also played an unremarkable but excellent short, worth +87 runs, but because he was so consistently good (and rarely remarkably good) he only won a single Gold Glove. Look, I realize that guys that can’t slug above 400 or hit above 300 aren’t sexy. But I’m telling you, if they play short, great fielding plus reliably above average bat plus long career equals a really good player. Don’t get it twisted, Medina isn’t anywhere near Bronze. But he deserved to make at least one All-Star game.
Tired of all this lame fielding and ready to see some big bats? Good! Up next, Honorable Mention Right Fielders!
Fletcher was a league average hitter (99 OPS+ over 6035 plate appearances), which made him a better than average hitter for a shortstop but a very weak hitter for this building. His career 277/319/365 may seem paltry, but for his era it was normal. If you’re having trouble remembering eras, just assume that everything between 1901 and 1919 is a low-scoring wasteland. He hit for good average and finished in the top ten for doubles three times. He walked incredibly rarely (only 203 times in his entire career) but compensated by leading the league in hit-by-pitch five times (141 total). He boasted incredible fielding, worth 144 runs above average. He was the prototypical deadball-era shortstop; good contact, sufficient doubles power and a great glove.
Just starting with the Indians when Fletcher was winding down, Joe Sewell! Sewell hit 312/391/413 for his career (1920-1933), a slash line that jumps off the page (at least at shortstop). Would you be surprised to learn that his 312/391/413 was only worth an OPS+ of 108, only marginally better than Fletcher’s 277/319/365 (OPS+ of 99)? When in doubt, remember that the 20’s and 30’s were super hitter-friendly, like the late 90s except that instead of home runs going out of control, batting average jumped hugely. That said, Sewell hit for good average (two top tens in average, seven for singles and six for hits), mostly on the back of the fact that he never, ever, struck out. After age 25 he never again struck out more than 9 times in a season; he led the league nine times in at-bats per strikeout. He also had three top tens in walks and seven in doubles. He won two championships; one in his rookie year with Tris Speaker’s Indians, and one in 1933 with the Yankees (for whom he played third to accommodate Frankie Crosetti). A better hitter than Fletcher with a longer career, if only mediocre with the glove.
Jumping several decades, Jim Fregosi! Fregosi averaged an OPS+ of 113 for 7403 plate appearances, enough for a JONS of 33.1. You may be noticing a trend. This is the third Honorable Mention Shortstop with an OPS+ under 115, and while Fletcher was a wizard with the glove, neither Sewell or Fregosi are. This may seem unusual in light of the other positions so far. There are zero first basemen in here who hit at this level, and the second and third basemen who do (and there are a few) are universally fantastic fielders. Yet for shortstops, apparently all you have to do is be an above average hitter (OPS+ 110 or so) and not be a terrible fielder. And you know what? That’s completely true. But why?
Enter Bill James’ Defensive Spectrum. It starts on the left with the easiest positions and works right toward the hardest: DH <- 1B <- LF <- RF <- 3B <- CF <- 2B <- SS <- C. The idea is that it takes the most athleticism to play on the right-hand side, but as you get older you tend to move left, to a position that needs less from you. Look at Joe Torre or Ricardo Ramirez, catchers that over their career moved to easier positions. Or Cal Ripken starting at short but finishing his career at third. What are the implications? Let me put it this way, what percent of major league hitters can play DH? All of them! Okay, what about first base? Probably almost all. Let’s go to the far end of the spectrum; what percentage of hitters are capable of playing short? The answer is not a lot; it’s a difficult position to play. Because fewer batters can play short, the average shortstop is a worse hitter than the average third or second baseman. Which means that a 110 OPS+ shortstop, relative to others at his position, is about as valuable as a 120ish OPS+ third baseman. So even though their bats may seem weak, for shortstops, they’re quite good. So bear that in mind.
Back to Jim Fregosi. He won a gold glove and made six All-Star teams, starting his career at age 19 (1961) with the Angels and played with them until he was 30 before playing with other teams and eventually retiring at age 37 (1979). His slash stats 265/338/398 are solid for the low-scoring era of the 60s and 70s. He had a diverse array of top tens: four in WAR, four in hits, three in doubles and seven in triples. He had five 5+ WAR seasons and two 7+, one in 1964 (age 22) where he hit 277/369/463 with great defense, and the other in 1970 (age 28) where he hit 278/353/459 with great defense. As with most shortstops, his best doesn’t look impressive, but two 7 WAR seasons is nothing to shake a stick at.
The second worst hitter in this building (who wasn’t a pitcher), Bert Campaneris! Campaneris came up in 1964 (age 22) for the Kansas City Athletics but then jumped to Oakland in 1968! Okay, just seeing if you’re awake, the Kansas City Athletics moved to Oakland in ‘68, so he didn’t jump teams, the teams jumped cities. He played with the A’s all the way until he was 35, winning three rings with them (‘72-’74). He had one good year after leaving but that was pretty much it. Campaneris, as I said before, was a below average hitter, with an OPS+ of 89 over 9625 plate appearances. But you know what’s crazy? 89 is still above average for a shortstop. But, you may be thinking, how did Campaneris get in as an Honorable Mention with a bat like that? Must have been a great fielder right?
Actually, not as much as you’d think. He was good (+63 runs), but interestingly was quite bad (-34 runs) for the first four years of his career. By age 26 he figured it out and became an excellent fielder, worth almost 100 runs over the rest of his career. But that alone wouldn’t be enough to get him here. Campaneris was the third best running shortstop ever. He rarely hit into double-plays and stole bases very well. Over his career he stole 649 bases and was only caught 199 times; his best year was ‘69 when he stole 62 and was only caught eight times. Heck, in Texas at age 36 he still stole 22 bags and was only caught four times. Campy could run. Put it all together and his career had one 6 WAR, three 5s, three 4s and four 3s. Seven years at 4+ is pretty solid, eleven at 3+ is pretty solid. Not a Hall of Famer, but definitely an Honorable Mention.
With a career almost as short as Art Fletcher, Nomar Garciaparra! Nomar is the latter-day Charlie Keller, the all-time great that never was. Let me paint the picture for you. At the age of 23 he starts full time with the Red Sox (1997), hitting 306/342/534 (OPS+ 123) as a rookie with great defense, 6.6 WAR, winning Rookie of the Year. Over the next three years he’s worth 7.1, 6.6 and 7.4 WAR (OPS+ of 140, 153 and 156). In that last year (age 26) he hits 372/434/599. Hopefully at this point you realize how freakishly good this is; almost no shortstops have ever hit like this. A-Rod is the only player who consistently hit at this level this young at this position. At this point you would reasonably have thought Nomar was a guaranteed Hall-of-Famer. And then it all went wrong.
In 2001 he aggravated an old wrist injury and ended up missing almost the entire year. When he came back in 2002 his batting averages had dropped; 310 in 2002 and 301 in 2003. He still OPS+’d 127 and 121 (great for a shortstop) and with a great glove he put up 6.8 and 6.1 WAR. So at this point he’s put up 40.5 WAR in six seasons (missing one in the middle), which not many have done. Then in 2004 he suffered a serious achilles injury that had him miss half the season, cost him his fielding range (his glove after was almost always below average) and going forward his OPS+ was always 120 or lower. He was traded to the Cubs where he struggled, watching from afar while his former Sox teammates went on to celebrate their first World Series win in 86 years. He then signed with the Dodgers in free agency and had one more solid hitting year (303/367/505, an OPS+ of 120) but at this point he had to play first and he was only worth 2.5 WAR (because an OPS+ of 120, while great at short, is almost average at first). And that was pretty much it.
His JONS of 33.9 is almost totally made of the beginning of his career; few have fizzled so fast after a start like that. He had respectable home run power, excellent gap power, amazing contact (at least in his prime) and took few walks. He was one of three phenomenal shortstops that came on around the same time, A-Rod, Jeter and himself. The first two are above us in the Hall. And Nomar remains here on the Ground Floor, reminding us that nothing is guaranteed.
A little bit later with a much happier career, Jimmy Rollins! Rollins got a starting job slightly later (in 2001 at 22) and hit the ground running for the Phillies. Over his career he averaged an OPS+ of 107 over an impressive 11045 plate appearances, with an additional 46 runs of fielding and 54 runs of baserunning thrown in (he retired with 602 steals and 128 caught). He never had a particularly dominant season; probably his best was 2011 where he hit 281/347/483 (OPS+ 125) with 43 steals for 6.3 WAR. But in terms of long-term performance he was incredibly reliable, with an incredible ten 4+ WAR seasons (two 6s, four 5s and four 4s). His awards include an MVP (not deserved; he was 6th in WAR that year), a Silver Slugger, two Gold Gloves, four All-Stars and a ring (2008). He had modest home run power (231 career), solid contact (four top tens for hits, three for singles) and excellent gap power (four top tens for doubles, eight for triples, leading the league four times). Combine these solid skills with a lot of durability and he had an excellent career, the best of any Honorable Mention shortstop.
Almost as good from the same era, Jose Reyes! Reyes came up in 2003 for the Mets at 20, but didn’t start until 22 in 2005. A comparable baserunner to Rollins (more steals, but caught more often) he was a slightly worse fielder (still above average). Averaging an OPS+ of 112 over 9118 plate appearances, Reyes was a slightly better hitter for less time, winning a Silver Slugger and five All-Star appearances. He had more limited power but quality gap power (with a ton of triples, just like Rollins). His career line of 287/355/427 compares favorably with Rollins (especially adjusted for playing almost his whole career with the Mets), with more on-base at the expense of power. For eleven years, from 2006 to 2016, he averaged almost 5 WAR a year. And then, in 2017 (age 33 when playing with Detroit) he suddenly lost the ability to make contact and was out of the league two years later. At his best he was better than Rollins, but his comparably shorter career led to his career being slightly worse, with a JONS of 36.3.
Jumping forward a decade, Steve Walton! Walton kicks off the trio of light-hitting Honorable Mention shortstops from the PBL, and is also probably the best pure PBL shortstop. How is that possible, you may ask? How can a league not churn out a single Bronze or better shortstop in forty years? First, in the PBL you generally aren’t allowed to play shortstop unless you’re a really good glove man, and most really good glove men can’t hit. Second, nowadays players have long careers so even if they played short in their prime, they may end up having played more second base by the time they retire (as few players have the skill to play shortstop well for 15-20 years). An indirect result is that, mechanically, PBL shortstops in this building have more in common with deadball era shortstops than those you’d find in the 90’s and 2000s.
Sorry, back to Walton! In 9237 career plate appearances Walton averaged an OPS+ of 112. He had no home run power at all, hitting 45 in his entire career. He hit for good average (career 283 hitter), mostly on incredible bat control, never striking out more than 78 times in a season. He had seven top tens in walks, finishing with an excellent OBP of 372. Despite strong doubles power (three top tens in doubles and two in triples, hitting 494 and 60 respectively) his slugging was just 378, showing how hard it is to get a high slugging without the ability to hit the ball out of the park.
Walton came up with the Padres young, putting up 5.4 and 5.8 WAR in his ages 22 and 23 seasons (2024, 2025). The Pirates traded five players (including one you’ll meet in just a second) to land Walton. He put up 12 WAR over the next two years but regressed at 26, losing the ability to hit above 300 (which he had done every single year before). The Pirates sold him for parts and a first rounder to Detroit where he put up three 4-WAR seasons, but never again as good as he'd been. By age 31 he was bouncing around the league, only breaking 2 WAR once, and retiring by 36. His prime (ages 22 to 25) was amazing, averaging 325/415/430 with 40 doubles a year. His sudden slip at 26 unquestionably cost him a spot in the Bronze tier, or possibly even higher.
Up next, say it with me, Denilde Vizela! Vizela had a strange career. Drafted in the 20th round by the Miami Marlins he languished in their farm system until being cut after two years. The Toronto Blue Jays snapped him up in free agency, apparently seeing something that Miami did not. He was a project, taking another five years before reaching the majors, but by that time he was already known for his patience at the plate. He was in the top ten for walks nine separate times, with three top tens for OBP. He was a career 245 hitter, but routinely put up 4+ WAR batting only 230 thanks to great patience, solid gap power, a good glove (+41 for his career) and a solid running game (292 steals, only 84 caught). He had eight separate 4+ WAR seasons, including a 7.7 WAR where he unaccountably hit 282/412/420. Over his career he won a silver slugger, three gold gloves but only two All-Stars. His career line of 245/355/377 certainly suggests why only two; he was a skilled batter (110 career OPS+) but a weak hitter. Make no mistake though; Vizela was really good.
Before I start talking about this next player, I’m going to tell you a story. Once upon a time, a player gets taken in the third round of the draft. He gets traded a few times in the minors (once as part of a package for Steve Walton), breaks into the majors at 23. Starting at age 24 he puts up 4.3, 4.3, 3.2 and 5.0 WAR. He then gets traded to a new team which gives him a five-year $70 million extension. Over those years he puts up 21.8 WAR (with a 5.2 and 6.5 WAR in there). He then gets extended for another three years at $15 mill per, putting up 12.3 WAR in that time (let the record show that he’s 36 by this point). The player retires with eight 4+ WAR years of which four were 5+ WAR. What kind of hardware do you think this guy has? I mean, he wasn’t dominant, but he averaged 4+ WAR for twelve seasons and made $150+ million over his career, so he clearly was no schlub.
Would you believe that this player has made not a single All-Star game?
Let’s talk about Cristian Medina. He’s one of the weakest hitters in this building, with a 265/347/367 line, good for a 105 OPS+ over 9850 plate appearances. He had zero home run power (89 for his career). But he hit for decent average, got on base well (zero top tens for hits, batting average or walks, yet has two top tens for OBP) and five top tens for doubles. He also played an unremarkable but excellent short, worth +87 runs, but because he was so consistently good (and rarely remarkably good) he only won a single Gold Glove. Look, I realize that guys that can’t slug above 400 or hit above 300 aren’t sexy. But I’m telling you, if they play short, great fielding plus reliably above average bat plus long career equals a really good player. Don’t get it twisted, Medina isn’t anywhere near Bronze. But he deserved to make at least one All-Star game.
Tired of all this lame fielding and ready to see some big bats? Good! Up next, Honorable Mention Right Fielders!