The Hands on Runs statistic determines how much weight an individual player carries in his line-up. Which players were most valuable to their team now that the 2008 season is over?
There will definitely be no A-Rod World Series opt out announcement and it is unlikely that a near $100M deal will be hashed out at a fast food restaurant, but the free agent class for 2009 contains a whole host of current All-Stars, former All-Stars, salvage cases and at least one future Hall of Famer.
The story of Albert Belle can be summed up in one word: controversy. His talent on the field was matched by very few, and his propensity to deal with the media the way he did, made national headlines.
RealGM Search
By Christopher Reina
At RealGM, we use the Field Impact Counter (FIC) to objectively measure how effectively teams are performing. We combine the position players and pitchers' FIC scores to measure which teams have played the best so far in 2008.
In this edition we look at just the previous 20 games to gauge who is hot and cold in the MLB.
Team: FIC Per Game Total (FIC Position Players/FIC Pitchers)
1. Los Angeles Angels: 23.7 (13.1, 10.6)
Long a problematic part of their team, the Angels have a whole collection of players hitting over .300 since the break including Anderson, Hunter, Kendrick, Guerrero, Teixeira, and Aybar.
2. Chicago Cubs: 20.3 (9.3, 10.9)
Jeff Samardzija has a 1.54 ERA since joining the big league club.
3. New York Yankees: 19.5 (10.8, 8.7)
Where would the Yankees be without Mike Mussina? He has a 2.18 ERA in five starts since the break.
4. Tampa Bay Rays: 19.5 (8.1, 11.4)
Evan Longoria is slugging .613 since the break and having him on the DL will be tough.
5. Detroit Tigers: 19.2 (10.4, 8.8)
The Tigers’ lineup has finally begun to deliver the way they were expected to this season.
6. New York Mets: 18.5 (8.7, 9.8)
Carlos Beltran has just one homer since the break.
7. Colorado Rockies: 18.2 (9.4, 8.7)
Brian Fuentes, Taylor Bucholz, and Manuel Corpas have been practically unhittable in July and August.
8. Texas Rangers: 18.1 (10.8, 7.3)
Milton Bradley has a .937 OPS since the break but no homers.
9. Baltimore Orioles: 17.8 (10.4, 7.4)
Melvin Mora (1.110) and Aubrey Huff (1.036) have been killing it since the break.
10. Houston Astros: 17.5 (8.0, 9.5)
While Lance Berkman has come back to earth, Mark Loretta, Carloss Lee, and Geoff Blum have picked up the slack.
11. Milwaukee Brewers: 170 (5.7, 11.4)
The Brewers have struggled to get homer production outside of Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder.
12. Boston Red Sox: 16.7 (6.8, 9.9)
Jason Bay has a nice .908 OPS since coming over to Boston, but David Ortiz’s OPS is just .481 over his past six games.
13. Chicago White Sox: 16.5 (7.7, 8.9)
Carlos Quentin shows no signs of letting up with 12 homers in July and August.
14. Philadelphia Phillies: 16.5 (6.5, 10.0)
Shane Victorino has a 1.016 OPS and six homers since the break.
15. Atlanta Braves: 16.1 (7.8, 8.3)
Jorge Campillo has a 2.17 ERA over his past five starts.
16. Arizona Diamondbacks: 16.1 (5.5, 10.5)
Conor Jackson (.983) and Stephen Drew (.928) have been hitting well since the break, but Mark Renyolds, Tony Clark, and Chady Tracy have all struggled.
17. Toronto Blue Jays: 16.0 (6.2, 9.9)
The absence of Vernon Wells has been extremely difficult for Toronto.
18. Cleveland Indians: 15.5 (6.7, 8.7)
Kelly Shoppach has a 1.090 OPS and five homers since the break.
19. Pittsburgh Pirates: 15.5 (6.7, 8.8)
Ian Snell’s once solid promise has dissipated with a 6.58 ERA even though he has a still very good 9.35 K/9 rate.
20. Los Angeles Dodgers: 15.4 (4.9, 10.5)
Brad Penny (1.80), Chad Billingsley (2.43) and Clayton Kershaw (2.45) have all been brilliant since the break.
21. Minnesota Twins: 15.3 (6.3, 9.0)
Francisco Liriano is 2-0 with a 2.31 ERA since his return.
22. St. Louis Cardinals: 14.8 (6.8, 8.0)
Chris Carpenter has a 1.88 ERA since returning from injury, but he might be back on the shelf.
23. Kansas City Royals: 14.6 (5.0, 9.6)
Bill Butler has a .907 OPS since the break.
24. San Diego Padres: 14.3 (5.2, 9.2)
Jody Gerut has four homers in his last seven games.
25. Seattle Mariners: 13.5 (6.9, 6.6)
Ichrio, Cairo, Reed, Ibanez, Vidro, and Lopez all are batting over .300 since the break.
26. Florida Marlins: 12.4 (2.5, 9.9)
Mike Jacobs has a 1.085 OPS since the break.
27. Washington Nationals: 11.5 (3.4, 8.1)
Lastings Milledge has three homers and a 1.094 OPS over his past seven games.
28. San Francisco Giants: 11.0 (0.6, 10.4)
Thirteen teams have hit more homers than the Giants (6) and A’s (16) have combined for over the past twenty games.
29. Cincinnati Reds: 8.6 (2.0, 6.5)
Brandon Philips and Edwin Encarnacion have both struggled in the second half.
30. Oakland Athletics: 4.5 (-1.7, 6.1)
Only Kurt Suzuki has an OPS over .800 in the second half.
