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The February 2006 Bonehead of the Month
by Asher B. Chancey, Baseball Evolution
February 27, 2006
Technically, this doesn’t qualify as the "Bonehead of the Month," because it wasn't written in February of 2006. However, the Baseball Evolution staff did not become aware of it until this month, so it will do, because while it does not qualify as "of the month," it certain qualifies as "Boneheaded."
The Sporting News released
an all new Top 100 list in 2005. While there are certain picks that we disagree with, from number 18 Johnny Bench to number 22 Roberto Clemente to number 42 Mel Ott to number 58 Lou Brock to number 72 Pie Traynor to number 98 Gaylord Perry, all of their picks are relatively defensible on some level or another. But one of the sub-features was absolutely reprehensible, an absolutely unforgivable gaff which represents a whole-hearted misunderstanding of the game of baseball.
On pages 164-165, the Sporting News has compiled its "All-Decade Teams." Its picks throughout each decade push the boundaries here and there, but for the most part they are solid picks. However, our gaffe appears in the 1990s.
The AL 1990s Team appears to be straightforward – Frank Thomas, Roberto Alomar, Cal Ripken, Jr., Paul Molitor, Juan Gonzalez, Ken Griffey, Jr., Ivan Rodriguez, Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, Mike Mussina. Molitor is questionable at Third Base, as he was really a DH for most of the 1990s, and Cal Ripken is questionable over ARod, but ARod played his first full season in 1996. A solid team all around, but you may have noticed that there is an outfielder missing. By now, you have probably already thought of several outfielders who you think were probably the third AL 1990s outfielder. You are wrong.
The Sporting News went with Joe Carter. JOE CARTER!
The way this happened is probably easy to figure out. First, he hit that big homerun in the World Series. Second, from 1990 to 1997, he hit 21 or more homeruns every year and drove in 100 in 7 out of 8 seasons. Of course, in 1990, he was a Padre, but 6 seasons of 21 homeruns and 100 RBIs ain't bad, right?
But what those easy to reference numbers obscure are how not good Carter actually was. In 1991, his on-base percentage was .330. This would be the last time his OBP was ever over .317 again in his career. His highest batting average from 1991 to 1997 was .273, and he hit in the .250s or lower four times. His strikeout to walk ratio was abysmal every year, he never scored more than 97 runs, and he only spent seven years in the AL. His OPS was only above league average about half the time.
Quick, see if you can name three outfielders in the American League in the 1990s better than Joe Carter. In fact, lets see if we can name ten. Let's see . . .
They already spotted us Griffey and Gonzalez. That's two. Kenny Lofton and Albert Belle? That's four that are obviously better than Carter.
Rickey Henderson spent just as many years in the AL in the 1990s as Carter did. Henderson scored runs, got on base, stole bases . . . I would take Henderson. Manny Ramirez only played five seasons in the AL in the 1990s, but did what Carter did in two fewer seasons. Kirby Puckett played six seasons in the AL in the 1990s, and easily outperformed Joe Carter. Tony Phillips played one more AL season than Carter in the 1990s and was
way better than Carter. Henderson, Ramirez, Puckett, and Phillips – that makes eight.
Tim Salmon was actually similar to Joe Carter in the 1990s, except that he got on base to the tune of .372 or higher every year while hitting the same number of homeruns and scoring runs. Chili Davis didn't have Carter's RBI totals, but he had better AVG, OBP, and even better slugging percentages. Even Brady Anderson had a more successful decade than Joe Carter.
I don't know why Joe Carter got so many RBI. Those Blue Jays teams scored a lot of runs. Carter generally batted cleanup behind guys like Devon White, Rickey Henderson, Paul Molitor, Tony Fernandez, and Otis Nixon. But whatever the reason he got his RBI, they are misleading. Carter's RBI totals lead the casual baseball observer to think Joe Carter was a great player. But the trained eye immediately realizes that these numbers mislead and Carter was less than great.
The Sporting News has been in business for over 100 years, and has been covering baseball the entire time.
Wouldn't we expect The Sporting News to be slightly more apt than the casual observer? Yes, we would. And for this reason, The Sporting News has been named the Bonehead Sports Analyst of the Month for February 2006.
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Disagree with something? Got something to add? Wanna bring up something totally new? Asher B. Chancey resides in Alexandria, Virginia, and can be reached at asher@baseballevolution.com.