03/03: YB Community Projection: Alex Rodriguez
Posted by: James
Alex Rodriguez - Third Baseman (Ummm...graphs)
Age: 29 Years Old (Turns 30 in July).
Three Year History and splits:
Outlook: What can be said about A-Rod that hasn't been said already? The AL MVP was an absolute beast in his second season with the Yankees. His 48 home runs were the most by any right-handed batter in Yankees' history, he became the youngest player to reach 400 homeruns and he just put up the best season ever by a Yankee third baseman. Heck, he even stole 21 bases (out of 27 attempts for a 77.8% clip). Even more astounding was the man's consistency. Every month, before and after the break, he put up awe-inspiring numbers. Seriously, what's the worst thing anyone can say about him? He struck out 139 times, the most times in his career (topping his previous high set in 2004). Yeah, but he also set his career high in OBP (.421). He's not clutch. Yeah, except for his .293/.418/.520/.938 line in close and late situations and hitting .305/.406/.551/.957 with runners on.
It gets better. A-Rod is still in his prime. There's a chance he could repeat these numbers (heck, you don't have to dream too big to imagine him surpassing his 2005 numbers). He's got the same protection behind him (with the addition of a full year of a healthy Giambi) and good batch of table-setters in front of him. Add to that the fact that after a "rough" first year in pinstripes, he seems to have adjusted pretty well to Yankee Stadium (.351/.448/.666/1.114 at home vs. .291/.395/.556/.951 away) and it's pretty hard to temper your expectations of him. His natural ability, endurance and consistency don't hurt either.
(For anyone who's still hating on A-Rod, I'd recommend this article by Alex Belth from Bronx Banter who sums up how I feel about A-Rod far more eloquently than I could. Also, SG has taken a look at A-Rod in 2006 from a sabermetric view.)
Please post your predictions for the following stat line in the comments section:
Age: 29 Years Old (Turns 30 in July).
Three Year History and splits:
| SEASON | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | CS | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 161 | 607 | 124 | 181 | 30 | 6 | 47 | 118 | 87 | 126 | 17 | 3 | .298 | .396 | .600 | .996 |
| 2004 | 155 | 601 | 112 | 172 | 24 | 2 | 36 | 106 | 80 | 131 | 28 | 4 | .286 | .375 | .512 | .887 |
| 2005 | 162 | 605 | 124 | 194 | 29 | 1 | 48 | 130 | 91 | 139 | 21 | 6 | .321 | .421 | .610 | 1.031 |
Outlook: What can be said about A-Rod that hasn't been said already? The AL MVP was an absolute beast in his second season with the Yankees. His 48 home runs were the most by any right-handed batter in Yankees' history, he became the youngest player to reach 400 homeruns and he just put up the best season ever by a Yankee third baseman. Heck, he even stole 21 bases (out of 27 attempts for a 77.8% clip). Even more astounding was the man's consistency. Every month, before and after the break, he put up awe-inspiring numbers. Seriously, what's the worst thing anyone can say about him? He struck out 139 times, the most times in his career (topping his previous high set in 2004). Yeah, but he also set his career high in OBP (.421). He's not clutch. Yeah, except for his .293/.418/.520/.938 line in close and late situations and hitting .305/.406/.551/.957 with runners on.
It gets better. A-Rod is still in his prime. There's a chance he could repeat these numbers (heck, you don't have to dream too big to imagine him surpassing his 2005 numbers). He's got the same protection behind him (with the addition of a full year of a healthy Giambi) and good batch of table-setters in front of him. Add to that the fact that after a "rough" first year in pinstripes, he seems to have adjusted pretty well to Yankee Stadium (.351/.448/.666/1.114 at home vs. .291/.395/.556/.951 away) and it's pretty hard to temper your expectations of him. His natural ability, endurance and consistency don't hurt either.
(For anyone who's still hating on A-Rod, I'd recommend this article by Alex Belth from Bronx Banter who sums up how I feel about A-Rod far more eloquently than I could. Also, SG has taken a look at A-Rod in 2006 from a sabermetric view.)
Please post your predictions for the following stat line in the comments section:
| AB | R | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|
Matt wrote: