Justin Morneau, Overrated?
I was having a conversation with my brother the other night, and he said something I couldn't believe. Justin Morneau was totally overrated. Sure, I thought his winning the MVP was a little much, given that the entire team turned it around last year, rather than just Morneau. But surely, the Twins couldn't live without him.
But they COULD, he asserted. My brother feels that Morneau had a tought time hitting in the clutch and all his stats came when they were least needed. I find that hard to believe. So I thought I should do some more research.
Well, according to the stats from last year, he had a .323 average with runners in scoring position, which, frankly, is pretty good. Sure, I can see how, if you watch him all the time, it may seem as though he isn't that proficient. Actually, with runners at 2nd and 3rd last year, he hit .600 with 21 RBI. He also hit nearly 400 with the bases juiced. So, frankly, Morneau can hit with men on base.
So, what about with outs? With nobody out last season, Morneau had his best average, but with 2 outs, he had a guady 51 RBI with a .310 average. That's the most of any number of outs. So, actually, he hits better with the pressure on in a given inning, in any case.
Of course, Baseball-Reference gives us the "late (after the 7th inning) and close (the batting team tied, ahead by one or the tying run at least on deck)" statistic. Of all stats listed, this is where Morneau performs the worst. He bats a paltry .292 with 31 RBI. Boy. Awful. For comparison, Derek Jeter, the other main cadidate for the MVP award, had a similar average of .298, but only 19 RBI.
My brother may ahve pointed out that Michael Cuddyer had nearly equal, if not better crunchtime stats as Morneau. However, opposing pitcher had to pitch to Cuddyer unless they wanted to face Morneau, which few teams did. Imagine how different his statistics would have been with Torii Hunter batting behind him.
Now, I will admit that Morneau wasn't the only one that turned it around last year. The entire team did that. This year, focusing on Morneau during Joe Mauer's injury and absence does a disservice to the other guys in the lineup who are doing so well this season, especially Hunter and Luis Castillo. The question remains though. Is Justin Morneau overrated? Maybe a little. The more important question is, could the Twins succeed without him?
But they COULD, he asserted. My brother feels that Morneau had a tought time hitting in the clutch and all his stats came when they were least needed. I find that hard to believe. So I thought I should do some more research.
Well, according to the stats from last year, he had a .323 average with runners in scoring position, which, frankly, is pretty good. Sure, I can see how, if you watch him all the time, it may seem as though he isn't that proficient. Actually, with runners at 2nd and 3rd last year, he hit .600 with 21 RBI. He also hit nearly 400 with the bases juiced. So, frankly, Morneau can hit with men on base.
So, what about with outs? With nobody out last season, Morneau had his best average, but with 2 outs, he had a guady 51 RBI with a .310 average. That's the most of any number of outs. So, actually, he hits better with the pressure on in a given inning, in any case.
Of course, Baseball-Reference gives us the "late (after the 7th inning) and close (the batting team tied, ahead by one or the tying run at least on deck)" statistic. Of all stats listed, this is where Morneau performs the worst. He bats a paltry .292 with 31 RBI. Boy. Awful. For comparison, Derek Jeter, the other main cadidate for the MVP award, had a similar average of .298, but only 19 RBI.
My brother may ahve pointed out that Michael Cuddyer had nearly equal, if not better crunchtime stats as Morneau. However, opposing pitcher had to pitch to Cuddyer unless they wanted to face Morneau, which few teams did. Imagine how different his statistics would have been with Torii Hunter batting behind him.
Now, I will admit that Morneau wasn't the only one that turned it around last year. The entire team did that. This year, focusing on Morneau during Joe Mauer's injury and absence does a disservice to the other guys in the lineup who are doing so well this season, especially Hunter and Luis Castillo. The question remains though. Is Justin Morneau overrated? Maybe a little. The more important question is, could the Twins succeed without him?
posted by Ryan | 11:26 PM
1 Comments:
Some people probably overrate Justin Morneau, but I believe in general he's exactly what people expect of him: gets some big hits, get hits, makes defensive plays, and has yet to turn into Superman.
A pessimist will see the 7 out of 10 times he gets out. The optimist will realize 3 out of 10 is still a .300 batting average, which is quite good. So tell your brother that he's a pessimist. ;)
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