From: spira@panix.com (Greg "Sarcasm Is A Way Of Life" Spira)
Subject: Re: The Monthly Cecil Fielder Thread
Date: Tue, 1 Sep 1992 16:40:07 GMT
Organization: Boo!  
Keywords: Responding To Posts like this makes me worry about the future of us  

In <1992Sep01.110530.6268@brtph560.bnr.ca> psycho@brtpa25.bnr.ca (Paul Jezioranski) writes:

>In article <1992Aug31.203843.16669@midway.uchicago.edu>,
>thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu (Ted Frank) writes:
>> In article <1992Aug31.151729.1491@island.COM> fester@island.COM (Mike
>Fester) writes:
>> >In article <1992Aug28.225043.25547@leland.Stanford.EDU>
>claudius@leland.Stanford.EDU (Nelson Lu) writes:
>> >>In article <8#k-MW_@engin.umich.edu> martyp@engin.umich.edu (Martin
>Pochmara) writes:
>> >>>AMERICAN LEAGUE MVP....
>> >>>
>> >>>Fielder.....to make up for the last two years!
>> >>>still leading in RBI's
>> >>>up there in homers
>> >>>Not the same year as the last two, but dammit...he should be rewarded!
>> >>
>> >>For what?  In '90 he was probably among the top 5, but last year he was no
>> >>better than being about 40th-50th best, if that.  And this year's downright
>> >>mediocre (for an MVP candidate, that is).

>This is the most ridiculous talent appraisal I've witnessed in some
>time. Power hitters are paid to drive in runs.

They are?  Silly me - I thought they were paid to help their team win!  Now,
once again, someone informs me that they're paid the club pays them to
accumulate lots of RBIs, even if it costs the team wins!  Will I never learn!

 Nobody has been better at
>that for the last three years than Cecil Fielder.

Nonsense. There are a number of players who have been better at driving
in runs over the past few years.  Leading the league in RBIs does not
indicate that you are the best in driving in runs - it just means that
you have driven in more runs than anyone else.

 If the Tigers'
>pitching staff hadn't been the laughing stock of the league over that
>time period, Fielder would have won the MVP, and the Tigers would have a
>couple of pennants.

Well, its quite possible that Fielder would have won a MVP.  But baseball
writers have a habit of translating MVP as "Player Who Came Up With
The Most Runners On Base."  

At this
point, he's about the 5th most valuable player on his team.  The Tigers
would lose a lot less by replacing Fielder with an replacement level
first baseman than they would by replacing Whitaker, Phillips, Tettleton,
or Fryman with replacement level players at their position.  Run a lineup
simulation, and the results won't even be close.

Fielder's decline over the past few years, by the way, is pretty frightening.
If he continues at the same rate of decline as he has been experiencing in
the past two years, he's going to run himself out of baseball in a couple
of years.  If his OPS falls another 100 points, they'll be no reason
to keep him around.

Year     OBP    SLG
1990     .377   .592
1991     .347   .513
1992     .317   .460 (thru a week ago)

I'd rather have Paul Sorrento at this point.

This has been standard reply BST-232, by the way.  One size fits all.

Greg 

-- 
  spira@panix.com       "The one-O delivery to Fisk.  He swings.  Long drive,  
 cmcl2!panix!spira      left field!  If it stays fair, it's gone!  Home Run!"  
158-17 Riverside Dr.                     Ned Martin, 10/22/75   
Whitestone NY 11357          (Insert your favorite baseball moment here)