Results tagged ‘ Hanley Ramirez ’
Uniform Numbers have to have Best Players too
There hasn’t been much going on in baseball except everybody
wondering which team Johnny Damon will go to and the transactions that have
been made which we will have in our transaction review (sorry about the timing
of that). So I decided I wanted to see who the best current baseball player was
at each uniform number. Like who is the best baseball player who wears number 1
or 2. And yes I am going to bore you until 99 but I will take it one by one. I
will have 10 different ones every week, so you won’t be as bored. Here is 1-10.
1: The best
player that wears number 1 is Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts. Not to say
Brian Roberts isn’t good but he didn’t have that much competition like Corey
Hart and Luis Castillo Brian Roberts has the most homeruns and RBI’s (16 and
79) he has the second best average after Nyjer Morgan (.283 to .307). What
makes Roberts better than Morgan is the power numbers. Roberts had 16 homeruns
which is good for a leadoff hitter and 79 RBI’s which is very good for a
leadoff hitter.
2: The best player that wears number 2 is probably going to be our closest
one ever. And Hanley Ramirez is our winner. Who is that unlucky man who just
lost to the great Han-Ram? You guessed it, Derek Jeter. If I was a Yankee fan
who didn’t appreciate anybody else I would say Derek Jeter. But I know Hanley
Ramirez is better than Derek Jeter. He has a better average, but not by that
much (.342 -.334), Hanley has better power (24 HR to 18 HR), and more RBI’s
(106 to 66). Jeter had more speed than Hanley and had a better defensive year
but Hanley was a lock in the Marlins 3 spot while Jeter was very valuable to
his World Series team. This debate will go on for a while.
3: Evan Longoria
is the unanimous choice. The only person that might stand a chance is Jorge
Cantu. But here come the stats. Cantu did have a good year (16 homers, 100
RBIS, .289 BA) but Longoria had way better power numbers (33 homers, 133 RBI’s,
.528 SLG). Cantu had a better average and was more versatile then Longoria but
as a starting player that didn’t matter.
4: Brandon
Phillips is the choice here. He has competition in Jose Lopez who has a mix of
power and average as well. They both have very good 25 homerun capable power
both hitting at least 20 last year. They both bat in the .270′s but the big
difference is the speed and defense. Brandon Phillips has both of these. He is
a gold glove second baseman and stole 25 bases last year. Therefore Brandon
Phillips is better than Jose Lopez by speed and defensive value.
5: There isn’t
much to say here. Just two names, Albert and Pujols. Pujols is the best
player in baseball and definitely the best number 5 in baseball. I don’t
even need to compare him to anybody. 8 time All-Star, 5x Silver
Slugger, 06 Gold Glove, and 3 time NL MVP. Enough said.
6: Ryan Howard is
lucky that he doesn’t wear number 5 or nobody would consider him. Melvin Mora
might be the only person I can compare him to and that would just be unfair.
Ryan Howard has 141 RBI’s compared to Melvin Mora’s 48 and 104 in 09 and 08. He
had 45 homers this year and Mora had 31 in the past 2 years. You Orioles fan
might want to skip to #7.
7: Joe Mauer is
pretty obvious and I will compare to poor James Loney. Mauer had 15 more homers
(13 – 28), almost 90 points better in average (.365 to .281). Joe Mauer was
also more valuable to his team last year. Without him they wouldn’t have gotten
anywhere. The Dodgers still had Manny. I will stop picking on James Loney and
let you Dodger fans not get put through the torture…
8: Ryan Braun had a very good year but will
it be enough to beat out Shane Victorino? The stats will show us. Ryan Braun
had 22 more hits (203 to 181), a better average (.320 to .292), Braun had more
homers (32-10) and RBI’s (115-62). Victorino had more speed though (25-20 SB’s)
and was a better fielder (.994 fielding percentage to .997), and made less errors
(2-1). But overall it is clear that Braun has a big edge.
9: Who will be
the best at number 9? Chone Figgins or Hunter Pence? Well Hunter Pence
obviously has less stolen bases (42-14). He has 5 times as many homers (5-25)
and more RBI’s (54-72). Figgins had a better average (.298-.282), a better OBP
(.395 to .346) and more hits (183-165). It was pretty even but Figgins scored
more runs for his team (114-76) therefore being worth more to his team.
10: Michael Young
and Chipper Jones are pretty even and Jones had a bad 09 so I will compare the
Michael Young 09 to the Chipper Jones of 08. Jones had a better average (.364
-.322), the same amount of homers (22), Chipper has 71 RBI’s to 68 RBI’s, less
games (155 to 128). Michael Young had more triples (2-1), more runs scored
(102- 82), and more hits (174 to 160). Pretty even but the reason I am going to
choice Michael Young is because of Chipper’s horrible 2009 season. He batted
exactly 100 points less than last year. Michael Young is therefore the best
player who currently wears the number 10.
Thank You, Thank You. Any questions, comments or disagreements? Feel free to comment.
NL MVP: SAME OLD, SAME OLD
Seasons changes, people change, ages change, rules change, planets change. Everything changes, except for the MVP award going to Albert Pujols. For the third time, the St. Louis Cardinal 1st baseman has been named the NL Most Valuable Player. It was a unanimous vote, an unarguable ruling, one that contains no twists, no difficulties, no obstacles; from any angle you look at it, whether you are a Cubs fan or a Cardinals fan, a Rays fan or a Red Sox fan, a Mets fan or a Mariners fan, Albert Pujols is the best player in baseball. Just take a look at the numbers for proof:
BATTING AVERAGE: .327 (6th in baseball, 3rd in the NL)
HOME RUNS: 47 (1st in baseball)
RBIs: 135 (3rd in baseball)
OPS: 1.101 (1st in baseball)
WALKS: 115 (3rd in baseball)
RUNS: 124 (1st in baseball)
FIELDING PERCENTAGE: .992
There is no way to argue with those numbers, so we’ll leave you to ponder the greatness of the man.
Though no person was as good as Pujols, some players had outstanding seasons and deserve honorable mentions. Here they are:
HANLEY RAMIREZ: Han-Ram led the NL with a .342 batting average, and had a bit of power as well with 24 homers. He knocked in 106 runs, had an OBP of .410, and slugged it out at .543. As a bonus: he nabbed 27 bases. Those numbers constitute a very impressive season, as he took home the Silver Slugger Award from shortstop and cam second in the running for MVP.
PRINCE FIELDER: Prince smashed a stunning 46 homers this season and led the NL with an incredible 141 RBIs. his OBP and Slugging were very high as well, at .412 and .602 respectively, and his batting average was a shade under .300 at .299. In addition, he fielded the ball well, and ended up with a .995 Fielding Percentage. An absolutely fantastic season for Prince, but not enough to beat out Pujols.
RYAN HOWARD: Howard hit 45 homers, knocked in a league leading 141 runs, and slugged .571. So far, so good. But the possible reason he did not get the MVP was that he only hit .279 and could only manage a .360 OBP. He had a nice season, but not quite up to MVP standard.
MARK REYNOLDS: Reynolds hit 44 homers and knocked in 102 while slugging .543, but his .260 batting average and his .349 OBP just aren’t good enough to take home the MVP.
ADRIAN GONZALEZ: Gonzalez went unnoticed the whole year, but put up some respectable numbers, with 40 homers, 99 RBIs, and .551 Slugging. His average was below par at .277, and he was never a real threat to Pujols for the MVP award. Still, ha had a nice season.
And that will wrap up our analysis of the NL MVP! Congratulations to Albert Pujols!
And the winner is…
Well the award season is over and we have many deserving winners and many non-deserving winners as well. We will quickly go through all of the winners and tell you why they won it. 
So, let’s get started!
Most Valuable Player: AL: Joe Mauer, NL: Albert Pujols
Joe Mauer had an amazing season. He led the league in batting average, slugging, on-base percentage, and on-base+slugging. Do I need to say more?
King Albert is amazing. He hit 30 homers in the first half of the year and ended with 47. He was an early favorite to get a triple crown. See why he deserved it?
CY Young Award: AL: Zack Grienke, NL: Tim Lincecum
Zack Grienke’s ERA was under 2.30 and he had 216 strikeouts. Enough said. It is an obvious winner
Did Tim Lincecum deserve the CY Young? Well we don’t know and we don’t think so but this is something we can allllllll agree on. He had a very good season. 262 K’s and an ERA under 3. Pretty dang good for someone who does something illegal.
Rookie of the Year: AL: Andrew Bailey, NL: Chris Coghlan
In the NL Coghlan would be the unanimous c
hoice if not for JA Happ or Tommy Hanson. Chris Coghlan had the most hits after the all star break with 100+ hit. He hit .321 as well which led all NL outfielders. Not impressed? Well you should be.
In the AL Andrew Bailey shined from the ninth inning role with 26 saves in 30 chances. He had an ERA of 1.84 and got 6 wins from that closer spot. Pretty good for someone in his first season ever.
Manager of the Year: AL: Mike Scioscia, NL: Jim Tracy
In the AL Mike Scioscia won Manager of the Year because of how he managed his team after the tragic death of rookie Nick Adhenhart. After coming off of this sad, sad event Mike Scioscia managed his team to the ALCS.
When Jim Tracy became the Rockies manager, everybody thought they were gone. At the end of the year, the Rockies were in the playoffs.
Comeback player of the Year: AL: Aaron Hill, NL: Chris Carpenter
In the AL Aaron Hill went to the All Star game and won a silver slugger. What more can you ask for right? But he was coming back from a season ending concussion!
In the NL Chris Carpenter had an injury plagued 2008 and in 2009 he finished 2nd in the CY Young award ballot but really should have won it.
Delivery man of the year: Our very own Mariano Rivera is the DHL Delivery man of the year because he had the best ERA out of closers and had 42 saves and blew only 2. He is automatic.
Silver Sluggers:
AL and NL
C: Joe Mauer and Brian McCann
1B: Mark Teixeira and Albert Pujols
2B: Aaron Hill and Chase Utley
3B: Evan Longoria and Ryan Zimmerman
SS: Derek Jeter and Hanley Ramirez
OF: Torii Hunter and Ryan Braun
OF: Ichiro and Andre Ethier
OF: Jason Bay and Matt Kemp
DH/P: Adam Lind and Carlos Zambrano
All these guys had fantastic, amazing seasons when it came to hitting. The guys who didn’t hit .300 had 30 homers. And the guys that didn’t have 30 homers had an average over .300. (Except Zambrano) See what I mean?
Gold Glove:
AL and NL
C: Joe Mauer and Yadier Molina
1B: Mark Teixeira and Adrian Gonzalez
2B: Placido Polanco and Orlando Hudson
3B: Evan Longoria and Ryan
Zimmerman
SS: Derek Jeter and Jimmy Rollins
OF: Ichiro and Matt Kemp
OF: Adam Jones and Michael Bourn
OF: Torii Hunter and Shane Victorino
P: Mark Buehrle and Adam Wainwright
These guys kept making web gem after web gem. If it is Torii Hunter robbing a homer to Adrain Gonzalez covering home on a play that seemed impossible. But web gems weren’t everything of course. They all didn’t make errors when it seemed to matter the most. They made the big play when they mattered most.
Thank you, thank you, and thank you. All these guys deserved what they got. Most of them anyways…
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CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2009 NL SILVER SLUGGER WINNERS!
The 2009 NL Silver Sluggers have been announced, and Yankeeholics offers our heartiest congratulations to them. Here they are:
C: Brian McCann
1B: Albert Pujols
2B: Chase Utley
3B: Ryan Zimmerman
SS: Hanley Ramirez
OF: Ryan Braun
OF: Andre Ethier
OF: Matt Kemp
P: Carlos Zambrano
And now for our in depth analysis…
Catcher: Brian McCann
Our Prediction: Brian McCann
Brian McCann is the deserved winner of the Silver Slugger this year, posting a .281 average with 21 homers and 94 RBIs. He led all catchers in homers, was 14 RBIs ahead of the second placed catcher, and only Yadier Molina, who hit .294, posted a better batting average. Though McCann was also second in the league in strikeouts by catchers, his homeruns, average, RBIs, and slugging (1st in the league among catchers at .486, 44 points higher than second place) earned him the Silver Slugger.
First Baseman: Albert Pujols
Our Prediction: Albert Pujols
Albert Pujols won the Silver Slugger award…what’s new? Just Pujols having another crazily incredible year. If Ryan Howard or Prince Fielder or Todd Helton had been in the American League, they would have certainly taken the silver home…but Pujols has outdone them once again. He hit .327 (1st among all first basemen in baseball) with 47 homers (1st among all players in baseball) 135 RBIs (3rd among all players in baseball, 3rd among NL first basemen) a .658 slugging percentage (first among all players in baseball) a .443 OBP (second among all players in baseball) and a 115 walks (3rd among all players in baseball, second among all NL first basemen). As you can see, there is no possible way Pujols could NOT have gotten the Silver Slugger this season.
Second Baseman: Chase Utley
Our Prediction: Chase Utley
The typical Silver Slugger has a year to brag about, a year that stands out and is noted by the baseball community. Chase Utley really did not have that kind of year, but he got the job done enough to bring home the silver. His OBP and slugging both were first among second basemen in the league (at .397 and .508 respectively). He hit .282, good but not great, and only 6th among NL second basemen. Not a Silver Slugger average. He also hit 31 homers, which was joint first among second basemen in the league (along with Dan Uggla) while knocking in 93, second among second baseman in the NL to Brandon Phillips. None of these numbers are exemplary, but no other NL second baseman put together average, RBIs, and home runs like Utley did. This is not a Silver Slugger award Utley will cherish…he merely won because the other second basemen in his league were very mediocre.
Third Baseman: Ryan Zimmerman
Our Prediction: Pablo Sandoval
What? You’re asking us. Who is Pablo Sandoval? Why not Ryan Zimmerman? Or Mark Reynolds? Well, let’s do a full comparison of the three. Home runs wise Reynolds walloped the other two, hitting 44 big flies. Zimmerman hit a respectable 33, while Sandoval brought up the rear with 25 (which came in joint third among NL third basemen, behind Zimmerman and Reynolds). In RBIs as well, Sandoval came in last among the three, but not by much; his 90 RBIs (which came in third among NL third basemen, again behind Zimmerman and Reynolds) were only 12 shy of Zimmerman’s and only 16 shy of Reynold’s. Take into account that Sandoval had fewer at bats than both of them (he had 572, Reynolds had 578, and Zimmerman had 610) and you realize that the RBI totals are actually very similar. We move on to batting average, and we find that Sandoval hit an unbelievable .330, 70 points higher than Reynolds and 38 points higher than Zimmerman. According to us, batting average is one of the most important numbers, and the fact that Sandoval had such a high BA showed that he had a fantastic year (his batting average was second in the whole NL). Next we go to OBP, in which Sandoval comes in 3rd among NL third basemen, but ahead of Zimmerman and Reynolds. Sandoval posted a .387 OBP, Zimmerman came in 4th among NL third basemen with a .364 OBP, and Reynolds came in 6th among NL third basemen with a .349 OBP. In slugging, Sandoval put up .556, which led NL third basemen. Reynolds came in second among third basemen in the NL with a .543 slugging percentage, and Zimmerman put up .525 which was good enough for third among NL third basemen. Also factor in the fact that Sandoval only struck out 83 times, which was well behind Zimmerman’s 119 and way behind Reynold’s record-breaking 223, and you see that Sandoval hit very well among NL third basemen in 2009. It was a tight race, but in the end we just had to give the honors to Pablo Sandoval. But what do you think?
Shortstop: Hanley Ramirez
Our Prediction: Hanley Ramirez
Troy Tulowitzki put up a fight, but Hanley outdid him to take home his 2nd Silver Slugger award. Han-Ram led the NL with a .342 average, and his 24 homers were second among NL shortstops to Tulo (who had 32). Hanley also knocked in 106 runs (1st among NL shortstops) had a .410 OBP (again 1st) and a .543 slugging (2nd to Tulowitzki’s .552). Hanley had a fantastic season, and he richly deserves the Silver Slugger.
Outfielders: Ryan Braun, Andre Ethier, Matt Kemp
Our Prediction: Ryan Braun, Justin Upton, Carlos Lee
Ryan Braun was far and away the best outfielder in the National League. He hit 31 homers, which was third among NL outfielders, and his 114 RBIs topped the charts for NL outfielders. His .320 batting average was 2nd among NL outfielders to the talented rookie Chris Coghlan, and he also landed second to Coghlan in OBP, posting .386. In slugging though he topped the charts of NL outfielders again; putting up .551. Those impressive numbers made it very easy to choose Ryan Braun as a Silver Slugger.
Andre Ethier put up good numbers this season, but we feel like Justin Upton edged him out. Though Justin Upton only hit 26 homers (5 less than Ethier) and only knocked in 86 runs (20 less than Ethier), Upton has a solid reason: he bats at the top of the lineup, while Ethier bats cleanup. At the top of the lineup, your job is not to hit homers and knock in runs; it is to get a hit and get on base. Justin Upton did that very well; he hit .300 with a .366 OBP, while Ethier could only manage .272 with a .361 OBP. Upton also edged Ethier out in slugging; .532 to .508. So despite the fact that Justin Upton knocked in fewer runs and hit less big flies, he did his job very well and his contribution to his team was better than Ethier’s contribution to the Dodgers.
Matt Kemp and Carlos Lee had scarily similar seasons. Both had 26 homers. Lee had 1 more RBI (102 to 101) and a 3 point higher batting average (.300 to .297). Kemp had an 9 point higher OBP (.352 to .343) and a 1 point higher slugging (.490 to .489). The only thing that tips the scale in Lee’s favor is that he only struck out 51 times, while Kemp struck out 139 times. For us, this gives Lee the Silver Slugger, but it is a very close decision.
Pitcher: Carlos Zambrano
Our Prediction: Carlos Zambrano
As well as having a decent year with the ball, Big Z had a (relatively) great year with the bat, posting a .217 average with 4 homers and 11 RBIs. Those numbers were good enough to earn him his third Silver Slugger. Do we have a batting champion on our hands?
And that will wrap up the National League Silver Slugger awards! Thank you for reading and be sure to post your questions, comments, and opinions. Till next time!
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