Wednesday December 9, 2009
The Websoulsurfer All Decade Team 2000-2009
We have come to the end of a decade - 2000-2009.
That got me started thinking about who were the best players of the decade. The best hitters, the best pitchers, the best by position. I decided to put together a team of the best players.
Let me start by saying that anyone tainted by steroids is not included, regardless of their stats. To be on MY all decade team you have to be a player worth rooting for, and cheaters are not worth rooting for in my book.
I also did not include a DH. In my opinion, to be considered as a great BASEBALL player you have to play the field.You don't have to be the BEST fielder at your position, but you have to be a good enough player to HAVE a position in the field.
Here is my team:
1B - Albert Pujols - 172 OPS+ 366 HR 1112 RBI .334/.427/.628 3230 TB
No one else even comes close. When his career is over he will probably start on my All Time Team.
2B - Jeff Kent - 130 OPS+ 216 HR 850 RBI .300/.371/.518 2462 TB
Most Home runs by a 2B ever. Was at his peak during those years and retired after 2008.
SS - Derek Jeter - 121 OPS+ 161 HR 727 RBI .317/.387/.456 2793 TB 219 SB
While I don't like the Yankees as a whole, Jeter has been the best SS in the last decade.
3B - Chipper Jones - 147 OPS+ 273 HR 921 RBI .311/.413/.547 2700 TB
Only 3 players hit more HR & only 2 had a better OPS+ in the decade. Enough said.
LF - Brian Giles - 136 OPS+ 209 HR 806 RBI .289/.400/.494 2543 TB
136 OPS+ puts him in rarified air. 209 hr while playing 6+ years in Petco. Amazing player.
CF - Ichiro Suzuki - 118 OPS+ 84 HR 515 RBI .333/.378/.434 2646 TB 341 SB
6 seasons leading league in hits. 9 straight 200 hit seasons. Gold Glove fielder.
RF - Vladimir Guerrero - 146 OPS+ 315 HR 1037 RBI .323/.392/.569 3080 TB
Vlad the impaler lead AL outfielders in HR and RBI in the decade. 4th best OPS+
C - Ivan Rodriguez - 110 OPS+ 161 HR 643 RBI .298/.335/.477 2207 TB
Best defensive catcher since, well, maybe ever. AND he can hit.
RHP - Pedro Martinez - 112 Wins 3.01 ERA .691 win % 152 ERA+
LHP - Johan Santana - 122 Wins 3.12 ERA .670 win % 143 ERA+
Closer - Trevor Hoffman - 363 Saves 2.77 ERA 8.8 K/9 4.22 SO/BB 90% Saves
466 GF. 403 Save opportunities of 546 appearances. Only 18% of inherited runners scored
On this one I am a little biased. Ok, a lot biased.
What Trevor did on a weak Padres team that won only 606 games in his 9 seasons as a Padre is astounding. 363 saves on two teams that only had 4 winning seasons in 10.
363 saves when your teams only won 686 games.
Hoffman entered 365 of 466 games in high levereage situations. (Rivera only 389 of 589 games.)
Honorable Mention
At some positions it was either very close or the player I chose was head and shoulders better than the next best choice so I have added an Honorable Mention category.
1B - Todd Helton - 145 OPS+ 260 HR 981 RBI .331/.436/.569 3021 TB
2B - Chase Utley - 129 OPS+ 161 HR 585 RBI .295/.379/.523 1730 TB 2003-2009
SS - Miggy Tejada - 116 OPS+ 251 HR 1046 RBI .297/.347/.481 3010 TB
3B - Scott Rolen - 124 OPs+ 201 HR 832 RBI .285/.368/.497 2321 TB
LF - Lance Berkman - 148 OPS+ 309 HR 1026 RBI .300/.413/.559 2887 TB
CF - Jim Edmonds - 140 OPS+ 261 HR 768 RBI .280/.389/.548 2175 TB
RF - Bobby Abreu - 132 OPS+ 216 HR 993 RBI .297/.402/.492 2851 TB 295 SB
C - Mike Piazza - 127 OPS+ 187 HR 567 RBI .285/.360/.512 1667 TB 2000-2007
C - Jorge Posada - 124 OPS+ 208 HR 849 RBI .283/.386/.878 2177 TB
RHP - Roy Halladay - 139 Wins 3.40 ERA .668 win % 133 ERA+
LHP - Randy Johnson - 143 Wins 3.34 ERA .647 win % 137 ERA+
Closer - Mariano Rivera - 397 Saves 2.08 ERA 8.4 K/9 4.88 SO/BB 90% Saves
589 GF. 437 save situations of 651 appearances. 32% of inherited runners scored
Awesome. Simply awesome, but his team won 965 games. They never had a losing season.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
An Outfielder for the Padres?
Wednesday December 9, 2009
Marlon Byrd?
Looks like the Rangers are going to let Byrd walk. Byrd is a free agent after making $3,060,000 in 2009
Byrd, 32, hit .283/.329/.479/.808 with 20 home runs in the band box they call Rangers Ballpark.
Is he the Right Handed outfield bat the Padres are looking for? Could they afford him with a $40 something million payroll?
Marlon Byrd?
Looks like the Rangers are going to let Byrd walk. Byrd is a free agent after making $3,060,000 in 2009
Byrd, 32, hit .283/.329/.479/.808 with 20 home runs in the band box they call Rangers Ballpark.
Is he the Right Handed outfield bat the Padres are looking for? Could they afford him with a $40 something million payroll?
Why the Padres CAN compete in 2010
Wednesday December 9, 2009
The Padres had a pretty good team in 2009 that was decimated by injuries. I believe that with a few key additions the Padres can compete in the NL West in 2010.
This is pretty stream of consciousness, but I think once you see my argument, you will at least have to think twice about writing off the Padres in 2010.
The Padres played .527 baseball the 2nd half of the season and .596 baseball from July 27th on. That after playing .500 baseball in both April and May.
Throw out a stretch from June 1st to the All star break when the Padres went 11-27 and the Padres played 64-60 baseball the rest of the year.
No way around it, that is good baseball from a group of young baseball players. No mirage there. The mirage is the 11-27 stretch in the middle of the season when the starting rotation was devastated by injuries.
Now the pitching staff has incredible depth to deal with the inevitable injuries, but no real veteran top of the rotation guy in there.
We don't know how Sheets will respond once he returns from this latest injury, but his career averages are enough to put him at or near the top of the Padres current rotation. 27 starts and double digit wins for maybe $5 - $7 million on a 1 year deal.
Same can be said for Rich Harden although he may get closer to $7 million on a one year deal and he has averaged only 20 starts over the last 6 seasons.
Mulder, who is 32 years old, was a #1-#2 starter before injuries set in. No one knows how well he will pitch in 2010, but certainly he is worth bringing in on a incentive laden 1 year deal, just like Prior was. If you win, you win big. If you lose it doesn't cost you much.
Uggla is available in trade and the Marlins will be looking for only prospects and young, controllable player in return. The Padres have Kouzmanoff and lots of good young prospects they could trade for him. He is also a 30 HR RHB at 2B. How many of those are there? One other, Chase Utley.
That move also gives the Padres a chance to move Eckstein to a middle infield utility position that the team does not have now.
It adds 25-30 home runs at a non run producing position and shores up the bench at the same time.
Add a decent power hitting catcher like Miguel Olivo and you have a solid team that can make a run at the NL West.
The Dodgers will be lucky to resign Wolf (update - Wolf signed with the Brewers today) and its doubtful they will be in the running for any major FA with the impending divorce there. Their pitching was suspect in 2009 and they may be losing Belliard, Hudson, Loretta, Thome, Garland, Padilla, Wolf and Weaver.
The Diamondbacks sunk, when most expected they would get better and they are going to be without Webb, Davis, Garland, and Petit to start 2010. Their OPS+ in 2009 was among the lowest in the league(while the Padres was above league average). They made a huge trade yesterday giving up two good young pitching prospects in Max Scherzer and Daniel Schlereth for Edwin Jackson of the Tigers and Ian Kennedy of the Yankees. In my opinion they have made a marginal improvement in their pitching staff for a huge leap in costs.
The Rockies will be cutting payroll with Marquis and his 15 wins, Josh Fogg, Joe Beimel, Garret Atkins, Yorvit Torrealba, Alan Embree, Herges and possibly Rafael Betancourt leaving the team. They will still be good and will probably be contenders in the NL West as well.
The Giants will still have great pitching, Lincecum's marijuana bust not withstanding, but their offense was the worst in baseball in 2009 and it would take several huge signings to make it any good.
With a big bat to protect Adrian in the batting order and a #2 starter added to a core of good young players the Padres should be able to contend in a weakened West.
What do you think? Who would you sign? What trades would you make to help the Padres contend in 2010?
The Padres had a pretty good team in 2009 that was decimated by injuries. I believe that with a few key additions the Padres can compete in the NL West in 2010.
This is pretty stream of consciousness, but I think once you see my argument, you will at least have to think twice about writing off the Padres in 2010.
The Padres played .527 baseball the 2nd half of the season and .596 baseball from July 27th on. That after playing .500 baseball in both April and May.
Throw out a stretch from June 1st to the All star break when the Padres went 11-27 and the Padres played 64-60 baseball the rest of the year.
No way around it, that is good baseball from a group of young baseball players. No mirage there. The mirage is the 11-27 stretch in the middle of the season when the starting rotation was devastated by injuries.
Now the pitching staff has incredible depth to deal with the inevitable injuries, but no real veteran top of the rotation guy in there.
We don't know how Sheets will respond once he returns from this latest injury, but his career averages are enough to put him at or near the top of the Padres current rotation. 27 starts and double digit wins for maybe $5 - $7 million on a 1 year deal.
Same can be said for Rich Harden although he may get closer to $7 million on a one year deal and he has averaged only 20 starts over the last 6 seasons.
Mulder, who is 32 years old, was a #1-#2 starter before injuries set in. No one knows how well he will pitch in 2010, but certainly he is worth bringing in on a incentive laden 1 year deal, just like Prior was. If you win, you win big. If you lose it doesn't cost you much.
Uggla is available in trade and the Marlins will be looking for only prospects and young, controllable player in return. The Padres have Kouzmanoff and lots of good young prospects they could trade for him. He is also a 30 HR RHB at 2B. How many of those are there? One other, Chase Utley.
That move also gives the Padres a chance to move Eckstein to a middle infield utility position that the team does not have now.
It adds 25-30 home runs at a non run producing position and shores up the bench at the same time.
Add a decent power hitting catcher like Miguel Olivo and you have a solid team that can make a run at the NL West.
The Dodgers will be lucky to resign Wolf (update - Wolf signed with the Brewers today) and its doubtful they will be in the running for any major FA with the impending divorce there. Their pitching was suspect in 2009 and they may be losing Belliard, Hudson, Loretta, Thome, Garland, Padilla, Wolf and Weaver.
The Diamondbacks sunk, when most expected they would get better and they are going to be without Webb, Davis, Garland, and Petit to start 2010. Their OPS+ in 2009 was among the lowest in the league(while the Padres was above league average). They made a huge trade yesterday giving up two good young pitching prospects in Max Scherzer and Daniel Schlereth for Edwin Jackson of the Tigers and Ian Kennedy of the Yankees. In my opinion they have made a marginal improvement in their pitching staff for a huge leap in costs.
The Rockies will be cutting payroll with Marquis and his 15 wins, Josh Fogg, Joe Beimel, Garret Atkins, Yorvit Torrealba, Alan Embree, Herges and possibly Rafael Betancourt leaving the team. They will still be good and will probably be contenders in the NL West as well.
The Giants will still have great pitching, Lincecum's marijuana bust not withstanding, but their offense was the worst in baseball in 2009 and it would take several huge signings to make it any good.
With a big bat to protect Adrian in the batting order and a #2 starter added to a core of good young players the Padres should be able to contend in a weakened West.
What do you think? Who would you sign? What trades would you make to help the Padres contend in 2010?
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