Quote:
Originally Posted by JayP
So what's your excuse for Wells (29), Rios (27), Scutaro (32), Wilkerson (31), Overbay (31), and Mench (30)?
The average age for an MLBer is about 29 and I'm sure it's higher for batters since they tend to have longer careers than pitchers. All those players are in what should be their peak years and all are below career averages.
It's hilarious that you judge Gatson by not pulling a team 10+ games out of the division lead back into the race in just over 30 games.
I'll make this simple:
Gatson 19W, 14L = .576 Winning % (which is 4th in the MLB, 2nd in the division)
Gibbons 35W, 39L = .473 Winning %
No improvement there whatsoever, hey?
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We have had this argument many times in this thread already but I will reiterate that Mench and Wilkerson are below average players so at their ages they are likely to see a bigger decline in their numbers and see that decline faster. There is a reason they were available in the season, people saw that they didn't have much left. It isn't a surprise that they are not good hitters.
Overbay has had seasons like this before. It isn't an anomaly. He is starting to shot that this type of season is likely. Again it isn't a big surprise looking at his history.
Vernon has a few very good seasons that help to boost his career averages but again like Overbay has had some duds as well. This isn't a single bump in a Pujols like consistent career for Wells.
Rios has played what 2-3 full seasons in the league and in none of those seasons was he a top hitter. He has yet to prove that he has great hitting ability so the fact that he struggles again should not be that much of a surprise. He doesn't have a track record of consistent production.
Scutaro just isn't that good of a hitter. Not sure why you expect much more him. He is giving the Jays about what they should really expect out of him.
Also factored in is the fact there is no hitter on the team that forces pictchers to take chances with other players. Who cares if a Jay is walked if there is no Ortiz, Manny, Arod, Pujols, Hamilton etc. to punish you for putting guys on base. Who cares if Rios gets a hit or even a HR if that is likely to to be one of the few runs they get. The way the line-up is put together also contributes to poorer results for the hitters, in my view, as it doesn't challenge pitchers or put them in tough spots.
The fact is that the Jays don't have anyone on the team that is a good enough hitter that their slumping shoudl be a surprise.
Cito has had a nice run since he came in. I never said that. I was just laughing at the idea that with him here the Jays are going to make a charge. Thre reality is that although more wins have come the Jays are nowhere near to competing for a play-off spot and in reality the overall fortunes of the team haven't changed much at all. It sure looks nice to the fans but really means squat in terms of play-offs.