TDA Bullpen - Our Writers' Blog

Thursday, August 12, 2004

A Tale of Two Hitters

Let's take a look at some stats (career to date up through yesterday) for two outfielders who turn 35 this year:

		G	AB	H	BB	SO	R	OPS
Player 1		1991	7135	2128	1177	851	1276	.928
Player 2		1997	7379	2156	984	1323	1320	.937

Player 1 started out as an infielder and had some adjustment problems before settling in to play well above-average outfield defense, which he still plays. Player 2 is a gold-glover who has played a bit less effectively in the field of late. Player 1 has averaged twice as many outfield assists as Player 2, though, over the last ten years.

Player 1 has been an all-star in eight different years, and finished in the top 10 in the MVP four times. He was, at one point, the highest-paid player in baseball.

Player 2 has been an 11-time all-star, and finished in the top 10 in MVP voting six times, winning it once. He has never been the highest-paid player in baseball, although was the Number 2 man one year.

Let's look at some less interesting stats:

	RBI	HR	SB	AVG
Player 1	1315	405	203	.298
Player 2	1444	501	178	.292

Player 2 spent most of his career batting third or fourth; Player 1, like Barry Bonds, spent a while at the leadoff spot and has been bounced around the lineup a lot.

Both players have been plagued by injuries through their careers; Player 1 mostly in the earlier part of his career, Player 2 mostly recently. Player 1 is currently bothered by chronic pain and is considering retirement at the end of the year. Player 2 is out for the season right now.

Player 2 has been lauded as a "no-brainer Hall of Famer" if he retired today. I keep my ear to the rail for Hall off Fame talk, and I haven't heard a thing spoken about Player 1. Not a peep.

Player 2, as many may have guessed from the home run total, is Ken Griffey, Jr.; player 1 is Gary Sheffield.

I haven't done the ballpark splits, but I suspect Sheffield's homer total was hampered by the parks he was playing in most of his career -- old County Stadium, Jack Murphy, Joe Robbie, and Dodger Stadium -- while Junior has been largely helped, playing in the Kingdome, Riverfront, and the new Great American Ballpark. That obviously won't erase the entire 94-HR gap betweenn the two of them, but it would make it seem a lot smaller.

Sheffield has always had a superb batting eye, and a reputation as a head case and a primadonna. Junior was well-loved to the point of sugar shock, but has taken some hits in the whining-reputation department over the last few years. I feel very sorry for the guy, with all the injuries he's had, but I suspect if I were making his salary I'd be able to suck it up a bit. In any event, this is not about a personality contest, since neither guy is likely to accept an invitation to dinner at my house anytime soon.

Junior, despite the spin I put above, was obviously a superior defensive player for a decade, relative to Sheff. But the net value of outfield defense to overall value of a player is an open question. I believe in the end a lot of it is aesthetic, although I'd pick a healthy primetime Junior over Sheff if the game was just defense.

I'm not advocating either player one way or the other as a Hall of Famer. But the similarities in the stats lines are pretty interesting.

posted by The Crank 10:38 AM