On Michael Young, and a guy compared to him
Michael Young usurped Orlando Cabrera as
the American League Gold Glove winner at shortstop, and you might hear about it the next time Cabrera makes the rounds in Chicago newspapers.
(For example: Not only was he a selfish, me-first player who left the clubhouse before the media showed up, but he didn't even bring his award-winning defense. That would create some dissonance, considering if he were only concerned with his own numbers, he theoretically might've tried harder to cut down on his errors, but I imagine we'll see something to this extent from somebody.)
Although he did seem to improve a little this season, Young's been a sieve at short for years, and
Dave Cameron and
Rob Neyer blast the choice accordingly. But you don't even need to know defensive metrics to get the idea, because Ranger fan response has been tepid at best, both from
bloggers and
newspaper readers.
Young won it mainly, I presume, because he led the league in fielding percentage at .984, compared to Cabrera's .978. But Young and double-play partner Ian Kinsler are a big reason why the Rangers were dead-last in defensive efficiency, or turning balls in play into outs. Young is a decent second baseman playing short, and Kinsler is a bad second baseman with nowhere else to go. It's a mess, and Young is just starting a five-year, $80 million deal.
But here are the other key numbers, if you're so inclined:
Plus-minus:- Cabrera: +1 (17th among shortstops)
- Young: -7 (27th)
Zone rating:- Cabrera: .831 (1st in AL among eight qualifiers)
- Young: .818 (5th)
This isn't an impassioned defense or advocacy for Cabrera by any means. Three years ago, I was undeniably irked when Derek Jeter won it over Juan Uribe. But Cabrera's defense didn't capture the imagination -- it was fine, reliable, but not inspiring.
I'm not even sure if Cabrera should've won it. Plus-minus loves Mike Aviles (+15), which could be accurate for all I know. I didn't see enough of him to really gauge his ability, other than knowing he could handle the position ably.
Instead, I'm just kind of waiting for this to be the last flaming arrow shot at Cabrera's wagon as it heads out of town. We'll see if that thought is realized. Or if flaming arrows were shot at wagons in the first place. I get my centuries mixed up sometimes.
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Gordon Beckham enjoyed the best day of his professional career to date,
going 5-for-5 with two homers, a triple and seven RBI, perhaps due to
summoning Chippendale strength from within.
Two thoughts on Beckham beyond his box score:
No. 1: The Daily Herald's Scot Gregor has some quotes from Buddy Bell, and also drops the following into his blog:
Looking ahead, Beckham is likely headed for a split 2009 season between
Class AA Birmingham and AAA Charlotte. The 22-year-old infielder
figures to join the White Sox in September, when rosters expand.
Interestingly, Beckham has been mainly playing second base in the AFL.
Shortstop is his preferred position, but Alexei Ramirez is going to be
there for at least the next three years.
Maybe the Sox move Beckham to second base; maybe they use him at third.
Baseball America has pointed out (
and Larry was kind enough to preserve the quote, as it's disappeared from the original page) that Beckham is playing a lot of second because he wasn't assigned to the AFL roster early enough to be given priority for his position.
Ozzie Guillen
has compared Beckham to Young -- and
we know he likes Young. While Guillen was only referring to his offensive approach, it could very well apply to his defense as well, which isn't considered sterling by anybody. But there isn't any reason for the Sox to shift him off short until the following things become clear:
- Beckham truly can't hack it at short.
- Ramirez is adequate there.
There's no reason to develop Beckham as anything other than a shortstop. Ramirez wasn't a good enough second baseman to convince people he can play a stronger short, even if it's his natural position. And Beckham, at this point, isn't a big enough butcher to abort
his natural position.
Young was drafted as a shortstop, but
was shifted to second base at Double-A. Circumstances pressed him into playing short, and he isn't good at it. Beckham could theoretically find himself forced to play shortstop if Ramirez falters, so he should receive every opportunity to prove he can't play it in the minors. If he's shifted to second before the option is exhausted, the Sox could find themselves in the same costly situation the Rangers are in now.
Of course, he
will be blocking Robert Valido, but that's something we're just going to have to live with.
No. 2: Going back to
Beckham's MLBlog, if you've read it -- or at least tried to before blood leaked out your ears -- it'll be fascinating to see how he responds to the Chicago media, and how the media responds to him.
There are pretty narrow guidelines. You can't be any more laid back than Jermaine Dye, or else you'll be considered indifferent. Mark Buehrle is the boundary for "fun-loving," and beyond that is "flake" territory (see Brian Anderson and Nick Swisher). It's OK to be driven like Carlos Quentin, but that can be easily converted into a Frank Thomas-style selfish with a couple unflattering quotes. Paul Konerko, even though generally respected, works his way in and out of that area when he goes into Eeyore mode. Hell, Darin Erstad went from having a Midwestern work ethic to being uptight because he didn't perform.
Even staying quiet has its disadvantages. Joe Crede had it played perfectly -- until his back flared up and he didn't have any answers. I thought being Japanese worked, but Kosuke Fukudome blew that theory out of the water.
It's a weird cycle -- people complain about how athletes are coached to be homogenous, but that's because it seems to be far easier than the alternative. It's not just the media, because fans jump on it, too. That's why it'll be interesting to see if and/or how Beckham chooses to adapt, because "zany" generally doesn't play well in Chicago, which is unfortunate.
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Arizona Fall League roundup (Beckham aside):- Peoria 20, Scottsdale 9
- Cole Armstrong had a monster game, too: He hit his sixth homer, drew three walks and scored three runs.
- Jordan Danks went hitless in five at-bats for some reason. But he did contribute, drawing a walk, stealing a base and throwing out a runner at second.