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TEXAS - Alex Rodriguez 28 R/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 SEA 148 554 175 34 2 41 134 132 100 121 316 420 606 15 4
2001 SEA 162 632 201 34 1 52 133 135 75 131 318 399 622 18 3
2002 TEX 162 624 187 27 2 57 125 142 87 122 300 392 623 9 4
      There was a time, not long ago, when speciality stats were all the rage in the media. Broadcasters had at their fingertips an endless trove of obscure statistics ("Carlos Delgado is batting .328 in the late innings of one-run ballgames on grass turf vs. left-handed pitchers in the Pacific Time Zone during a full moon"), while, a player's batting average in clutch situations could have an impact on the MVP vote.
      I mention this because, during the long-winded A-Rod vs Tejada debate, I never once heard anyone introduce any specialty stats to try to prove "clutch" performance. Rodriguez hit .366 with 17 home runs with runners in scoring position; Tejada batted .375 with 9 homers in the same situation. In Close & Late Games, Tejada batted .327 with nine extra-base hits; Rodriguez hit .250 in the same situations, but with 14 extra-base hits and 18 walks.
      I'm not sure if any of this means anything or would influence any of the voters; I'm just curious that no one seems to care anymore. The biggest problem with these stats, I think, is one season's worth of numbers isn't enough to draw any conclusions about a player. Any player could hit .250 with runners in scoring position one year, and .350 the next; the numbers only start to even out over a period of years. And who has the patience to keep track of these things for more than a few months? Not many.
BOSTON - Nomar Garciaparra 30 R/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 BOS 140 529 197 51 3 21 104 96 61 50 372 434 599 5 2
2001 BOS 21 83 24 3 0 4 13 8 7 9 289 352 470 0 1
2002 BOS 156 635 197 56 5 24 101 120 41 63 310 352 528 5 2
      I don't care much for gossip, but who would have thought that, of the three star shortstops (Nomar, Jeter, ARod), Garciaparra would be the one to marry Mia Hamm? On the field, the wonky wrist must be in pretty good shape; Garciaparra played in 156 games and drove in 120 runs. Everything seems to be going extraordinarily well for him... except for that 'Curse Of Ruth' thing they have going on in Boston.
NEW YORK YANKEES - Derek Jeter 29 R/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 NYY 148 593 201 31 4 15 119 73 68 99 339 416 481 22 4
2001 NYY 150 614 191 35 3 21 110 74 56 99 311 377 480 27 3
2002 NYY 157 644 191 26 0 18 124 75 73 114 297 373 421 32 3
      Jeter's batting average and OPS tumbled for the third straight season; though he is still among the better players in the league, he is not close to the player he was at his peak in 1999.
      Jeter's career reminds me a little of Ryne Sandberg's. Sandberg had his brilliant MVP season at age 24; Jeter was 25 when he had his big season. The next four years for Sandberg were a long, slow decline; he was excellent in 1985, but in 1988 his average had dropped to .264. Jeter followed up his great 1999 season with an excellent 2000 season, but has dropped off the past two years.
      Sandberg, of course, recovered and reinvented himself as a power hitter, leading the league in home runs in 1990. If Jeter continues to follow the same path, he will have his worst seaosn in 2003, then lead the league in homers in 2005... no, I don't really expect him to do that, but I won't be surprised if Derek Jeter in his 30's is a distinctly different player than he was in his 20's. And still an All-Star.
OAKLAND - Miguel Tejada 27 R/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 OAK 160 607 167 32 1 30 105 115 66 102 275 349 479 6 0
2001 OAK 162 622 166 31 3 31 107 113 43 89 267 326 476 11 5
2002 OAK 162 662 204 30 0 34 108 131 38 84 308 354 508 7 2
      The strange thing about Tejada is that, despite the MVP Award and the ridiculous amount of hype he received in the media over the final two months of the season, he still isn't taken seriously as a great defensive player. This is despite the fact that his defensive statistics strongly suggest that he is an excellent defensive player, and the Athletics sure are stingy in giving up runs.
      That will change soon, of course; Tejada will win a Gold Glove either this year or next. When he was 22 years old, he had a reputation as a litterbug, and it takes time to for people to get past first impressions. Tejada's improvement with the bat will force people to reassess his prowess with the glove.
ANAHEIM - David Eckstein 28 R/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 AAA 134 474 122 28 0 4 94 39 69 46 257 372 342 16 11
2001 ANA 153 582 166 26 2 4 82 41 43 60 285 355 357 29 4
2002 ANA 152 608 178 22 6 8 107 63 45 44 293 363 388 21 13
      Everybody loves this guy, and why not? Eckstein is three months older than I am, and is the exact same height and weight as me. Why didn't I turn into David Eckstein? I was a scrappy and hard-nosed player, I didn't mind getting hit by pitches... of course, I have no eye-hand coordination, a slight deficiency.
      The problem with getting hit by all those pitches, of course, is that eventually you get hurt, especially if you don't wear protection. Eckstein's a solid player, but probably peaked last season. He'll hang around another 10 years in various roles.
CLEVELAND - Omar Vizquel 36 S/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 CLE 156 613 176 27 3 7 101 66 87 72 287 377 375 22 10
2001 CLE 155 611 156 26 8 2 84 50 61 72 255 323 334 13 9
2002 CLE 151 582 160 31 5 14 85 72 56 64 275 341 418 18 10
      Vizquel had never before had double-digits in home runs, but last year hit 10 home runs by the All-Star break. He made the All-Star team, but struggled in the second half, looking more like a 35-year-old shortstop whose best days were behind him. But he is still an adequate player, and he has enough positives to stay in the league a few more years. Vizquel is all the Indians have left from their glory days; if GM Mark Shapiro can get this ship turned around within the next five years, then my guess is that Vizquel will be back in the playoffs with the Indians before he retires.
MINNESOTA - Cristian Guzman 25 S/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 MIN 156 631 156 25 20 8 89 54 46 101 247 299 388 28 10
2001 MIN 118 493 149 28 14 10 80 51 21 78 302 337 477 25 8
2002 MIN 148 623 170 31 6 9 80 59 17 79 273 292 385 12 13
      The Twins had a great season, but Guzman was a disappointment, regressing after playing well in 2001. He got hot in August and had good numbers after the break, so maybe it was just a slow start. But even still, last season strongly suggested that he's going to miss out on future stardom; his plate discipline is poor and getting worse, and he his base stealing abilities are not improving. Guzman has the same basic skills and liabilities as Ozzie Guillen, except that he's beefed up to play in a 21st century brand of baseball.
TORONTO - Mike Bordick 38 R/R and Chris Woodward
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
BORDICK
2000 BAL-NYM 156 583 166 30 1 20 88 80 49 99 285 341 443 9 6
2001 BAL 58 229 57 13 0 7 32 30 17 36 249 314 397 9 3
2002 BAL 117 367 85 19 3 8 37 36 35 63 232 302 365 7 4
WOODWARD
2000 AAA 37 142 46 13 2 5 23 25 11 30 322 370 545 2 0
2001 AAA 51 193 59 14 3 11 29 31 16 40 306 360 580 0 0
2000 TOR 37 104 19 7 0 3 16 14 10 28 183 254 337 1 0
2001 TOR 37 63 12 3 2 2 9 5 1 14 190 203 397 0 1
2002 TOR 90 312 86 13 4 13 48 45 26 72 276 330 468 3 0
      Bordick set a record for consecutive games and chances at short without an error. After the season, there was some controversy when he did not win the Gold Glove at short. What's funny is that he had to set a record to become a Gold Glove candidate at all; Bordick has been an outstanding defensive player for over a decade, and has certainly had other seasons when he was more than deserving, but he got steamrolled by the Vizquel juggernaut.
      As for 2002... Bordick played only 117 games at short last year, and I think there is some logic to giving the Gold Glove to a player who plays a full season. Not that I'm pretending that that is the reason Bordick did not win; he didn't win because of his age and weak bat. But there are other fine defensive shortstops in the league, including Alex Rodriguez, and I'm glad the award was won by someone who played every day.
      Chris Woodward began the year on the bench, but became the Jays' regular shortstop after they lost interest in Felipe Lopez. He showed surprising power, though it has always been difficult to get a read on him since his career has been so chopped up. His 312 at bats with the Jays last year were the most he had had with any one team since he was at Dunedin in 1997. He showed impressive power with Syracuse in 2000 and 20001, but in so few at bats that I don't think many people seriously thought that the numbers were his real level of ability. Now, it looks as if he could hit 20-25 homers if he plays every day.
      I'm not really sure what the Jays are planning with their infielders; Bordick hasn't played a position other than shortstop in eight years. My guess is that Woodward will be moving around the infield, while Bordick will get into at least half the games at short.
CHICAGO WHITE SOX - Jose Valentin 33 S/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 CHW 144 568 155 37 6 25 107 92 59 106 273 343 491 19 2
2001 CHW 124 438 113 22 2 28 74 68 50 114 258 336 509 9 6
2002 CHW 135 474 118 26 4 25 70 75 43 99 249 311 479 3 3
      Valentin split his playing time last season between third base and shortstop. After the development of Joe Crede, the White Sox decided to let Royce Clayton go, and put Valentin back as the regular shortstop. I don't know how long he will last in the role; I have always thought that Valentin was underrated, but his batting average is going down, down, down and isn't coming back up. He's still erratic in the field and he's not such a good hitter anymore. I don't expect him to age well.
SEATTLE - Carlos Guillen 28 S/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 SEA 90 288 74 15 2 7 45 42 28 53 257 324 396 1 3
2001 SEA 140 456 118 21 4 5 72 53 53 89 259 333 355 4 1
2002 SEA 134 475 124 24 6 9 73 56 46 91 261 326 394 4 5
      Guillen showed a flash of something special last season, posting some very good numbers at the All-Star break.
         AB  HT DB  T HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLG SB CS
Guillen 247  71 15  4  7  48  36 30 46 287 362 466  3  3
Tejada  360 106 19  0 15  56  59 18 44 294 334 472  2  1

      Guillen missed some time in June with an injury, but otherwise played as well as the MVP the first half of the season. The second half... it was just awful, as was true for almost all of the Mariners. I've never thought that Guillen had great potential, and my guess is that last season was his chance to have a career year. Will be back among the middle of the pack in 2003.
BALTIMORE - Deivi Cruz 30 R/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 DET 156 583 176 46 5 10 68 82 13 43 302 318 449 1 4
2001 DET 110 414 106 28 1 7 39 52 17 46 256 291 379 4 1
2002 SD 151 514 135 28 2 7 49 47 22 58 263 294 366 2 3
      Cruz entered the season unsure if he would have a job, but ended up playing almost every day for the Padres. He had pretty much the same season that he had in 2001, solid evidence that his .300 average from 2000 was a fluke. Cruz doesn't have any positives with the bat; he doesn't hit for average, doesn't get on base, doesn't steal bases, has no power and hits into double plays. He is durable and a fine defensive player and a better hitter than Neifi Perez, and those are all his positives.
KANSAS CITY - Angel Berroa 25 R/R or Desi Relaford 30 S/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
BERROA
2000 A 129 429 119 25 6 10 61 63 30 70 277 337 434 11 9
2001 A 51 199 63 18 4 6 43 25 9 41 317 382 538 10 6
2001 AA 80 304 90 20 4 8 90 42 17 55 296 373 467 15 6
2002 AAA 77 297 64 11 4 8 37 35 15 84 215 277 360 6 4
RELAFORD
2000 PHI-SD 128 410 88 14 3 5 55 46 75 71 215 351 300 13 0
2001 NYM 120 301 91 27 0 8 43 36 27 65 302 364 472 13 5
2002 SEA 112 329 88 13 2 6 55 43 33 51 267 339 374 10 3
      When it rains, it pours. The Royals envisioned Berroa as a future star after he played extremely well in the lower minors in 2001. They acquired Neifi Perez to play for the big club while Berroa continued to work his up through the system. Unfortunately, Perez had a horrible season with the Royals, while Berroa had a horrible season with Omaha. Berroa also had two more years tacked on to his birth certificate, and it seems unlikely that he has any star potential.
      Nevertheless, Berroa will get a chance to play in 2003. And if he can't do the job, then Desi Relaford is on hand to take over. Relaford committed bodily harm against his career when he batted .215 in 2000, but has actually played fairly well the past two seasons. I think that Relaford is the better solution; he's only five years older than Berroa, and a much better player.
DETROIT - Ramon Santiago 24 S/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 A 98 379 103 15 1 1 69 42 34 60 272 346 325 39 12
2001 A 120 429 115 15 3 2 64 46 54 60 268 361 331 34 8
2002 DET 65 222 54 5 5 4 33 20 13 48 243 306 365 8 5
      You guessed correctly; Santiago is a switch-hitting shortstop from the Dominican Republic. He skipped a couple of levels of ball last season, and did a decent job filling in at short for the Tigers. He is fast, and should be able to get on base more often than he did last season. He's not going to make anyone forget his manager, Alan Trammell, but he will be OK. As long as he keeps his average up and doesn't lie about his age, the Tigers should be happy.
TAMPA BAY - Rey Ordonez 29 R/R
YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS
2000 NYM 45 133 25 5 0 0 10 9 17 16 188 278 226 0 0
2001 NYM 149 461 114 24 4 3 31 44 34 43 247 299 336 3 2
2002 NYM 144 460 117 25 2 1 53 42 24 46 254 292 324 2 2
      Exciting things are happening with the D-Rays, now that they have both Ben Grieve and Rey Ordonez in their lineup. Now, if they could just get Raul Mondesi and Fernando Tatis, they could contend for the wild card.
      I think that Ordonez is one of the most overrated players in baseball. He's a terrible hitter, and is not improving; he is also an exceptional defensive player, and if you are the Devil Rays then perhaps it is comforting to know that you have a player who does at least one thing well.


SHORTSTOPS - BOTH LEAGUES
1 Alex Rodriguez11 Cristian Guzman21 Deivi Cruz
2 Nomar Garciaparra12 Alex Gonzalez (CHC)22 Royce Clayton
3 Derek Jeter13 Barry Larkin23 Alex Gonzalez (FLO)
4 Miguel Tejeda14 Rafael Furcal24 Julio Lugo
5 Edgar Renteria15 Chris Woodward25 Cesar Izturis
6 Rich Aurilia16 Jose Valentin26 Tony Womack
7 Jimmy Rollins17 Carlos Guillen27 Angel Berroa
8 David Eckstein 18 Rey Sanchez28 Ramon Santiago
9 Omar Vizquel19 Ramon Vazquez29 Rey Ordonez
10 Orlando Cabrera20 Jack Wilson30 Juan Uribe