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| 14th March, 2008 - 5:42 pm | Christopher Reina/RealGM - In the obviously not worth much, but for what it’s worth category, we examined the statistics during the first half of Spring Training and gleaned out the top performers based on our Field Impact Counter (in parenthesis below).
Click here for more information about the Field Impact Counter and the Reina Value
Hitters
1. Mike Morse, Seattle Mariners (30)
Morse, who is primarily a third baseman but can handle first and shortstop, is making a strong argument to finally stick with the Mariners.
As a September call-up last year, he had a 1.056 OPS in 18 at bats and Morse is continuing his success this spring. He is hitting .581/.658/.903 with two homeruns. Morse is also striking out less and walking more (7 walks/4 strikeouts), which has always been his biggest problem (2.77 K/BB ratio over 326 career plate appearances).
2. Lastings Milledge, Washington Nationals (26)
The Mets, once so high on Milledge, gave him away to Washington this past winter and they very well may live to regret that decision 18 days a year.
Milledge is hitting .359/.444/.538 while stealing five bases, showing the combo of power and speed that made him a top prospect for so long.
3. Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers (25)
Hamilton, like Milledge, is a former much-heralded prospect that was dealt over the winter.
He is hitting .577/.607/1.115 with two homeruns so far this spring. Hamilton also has hit two homeruns in just 28 plate appearances.
4. Mike Sweeney, Oakland Athletics (25)
After a long career in Kansas City, Sweeney is attempting his reclamation project in rebuilding Oakland. He has a .985 OPS in 28 at bats.
5. Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels (23)
Hunter became Arte Moreno’s most expensive Del Taco dinner last winter and he has been impressive this March, hitting .542/.560/1.125 with two homers, four doubles and two triples.
6. Elliot Johnson, Tampa Bay Rays (23)
The majority of attention Johnson has received this spring (for his entire career for that matter) was when he barreled over Francisco Cervelli of the Yankees. Johnson has played extremely well, batting .526/.609/.842 with one homer, two doubles and three stolen bases.
7. Chris Burke, Arizona Diamondbacks (23)
Burke was once Houston’s top prospect and is famous for hitting the 2005 NLDS walk-off in the 18th inning, but came over to Arizona in the Jose Valverde deal.
He will be Bob Melvin’s utility man, possibly finding time at seven positions.
At the plate, Burke has a 1.325 OPS with three homers, two stolen bases and 10 runs scored.
8. Melvin Mora, Baltimore Orioles (23)
As the Orioles enter their full rebuild mode, Mora has been excellent this spring, posting a 1.279 OPS.
9. Orlando Hudson, Arizona Diamondbacks (23)
Hudson is hitting .409 with two doubles and a triple while also walking seven times.
10a. Ian Kinsler, Texas Rangers (22)
Kinsley already has six doubles and has three HBP’s while also posting a .655 slugging percentage.
10b. Placido Polanco, Detroit Tigers (22)
Polanco has an impressive .818 slugging percentage, hitting two homers, three doubles and one triple, starting exactly where he left off in 2007.
Also Impressive:
- Aaron Hill, Toronto (.550/.625/.700)
- Jack Cust, Oakland (1.472 OPS, 3 homers)
- Angel Pagan, New York Mets (.400/.426/.578)
Pitchers
1. Darren O’Day, Los Angeles Angels (66)
The Angels’ submarine reliever has had an incredible spring, striking out 10 in 9.1 innings while not giving up a single run. O’Day is putting his med school future on hold while he becomes a contender to make their club as a middle reliever that pitching coach Mike Butcher cannot ignore.
O’Day features two kinds of sliders that Cactus League hitters have yet to figure out.
2. Jeff Weaver, Los Angeles Angels (59)
Weaver has given up three hits over nine innings, but two of them were solo homeruns. Beyond those two mistakes, Weaver has been very good, striking out six and walking just one.
3. Chris Volstad, Florida Marlins (48)
Volstad is putting himself in a position to become Florida’s fifth starter, giving up just one run on a solo homer despite yielding almost one hit (10) per inning (11).
4. Chris Narveson, Milwaukee Brewers (48)
Like O’Day, Narveson has been a very good non-roster invitee, as he has finally been healthy. The southpaw has struck out nine while walking five over 12 innings, yielding just one run along the way.
5. Jair Jurrjens, Atlanta Braves (47)
Jurrjens, who came over in the Edgar Renteria trade, looks very ready to round out Atlanta’s rotation. Jurrjens has given up one run and four hits over nine innings.
6. Claudio Vargas, Milwaukee Brewers (47)
Vargas is doing everything he can to secure a slot in Milwaukee’s rotation, giving up three runs on eight hits over 10 innings while striking out five.
7. Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers (45)
Verlander, who figures to be a strong Cy Young candidate, hasn’t given up a run or a walk over his eight innings of March work.
8. James Shields, Tampa Bay Rays (44)
Shields has given up three runs over 10 innings while giving up one homer, something h needs to reduce in order to elevate his game.
9. Ryan Dempster, Chicago Cubs (44)
The decision to move Dempster back into the rotation is looking like a good one at this point, as he given up three runs over nine innings while yielding just five hits.
10. Vicente Padilla, Texas Rangers (43)
Padilla has been sharp this spring, but a strained hip muscle forced him out of his previous start.
Also impressive:
- Joel Hanrahan, Washington (12 K’s, 1 BB, 0 runs in 7.2 innings)
- Manny Parra, Milwaukee (8 K’s, 1 BB, 1 ER in 9 innings)
- Dana Eveland, Oakland (10 K’s, 2 BB’s, 2 ER in 10 innings)
- Christopher Reina is the executive editor of RealGM and the creator of the Reina Value. [READ] |
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