Watching the Yankees made me reminisce about the pending end of two Hall of Famers careers.
What we have witnessed greatness in ARod 35 years old and Jeter 36 years old.
What a spectacle we have watched since 1995: The prima donna with a Minotaur complex and the loved one that dates starlets, the greatest shortstop ever and the media darling that plays shortstop.
Their careers have paralleled each other their entire career with completely different public images. Jeter was never considered to be near the player that Arod was, but he was considered the more valuable player for playing on great teams. This type of media perception irritates me in all sports, but tonight someone questioned me on the subject. So, I decided to document the facts.
Let’s do a comparison:
Before I start, let me be clear.
They both deserve praise and a bust in the Hall at Cooperstown.
Currently, Arod has played 8 more games than Jeter.
Jeter has 500 more at bats. We can cover part of this AB with the 200 more walks for AROD.
Jeter BA avg is 314 to Arod 303.
Both had good speed. Jeter had 323 SB CS 85times. Arod 301 he was caught 72 times.
OBP Jeter 385 vs Arod 387.
If we stopped here it would be a close discussion, but that would be like comparing Tony Gwynn to Albert Pujols.
Here is the rest of the game:
AROD has 613 HR to Jeter 234.
Arod 5043 Total Bases to 4218.
Arod SLG 571 to 452.
Arod Total Bases 5043 to 4218.
Arod Runs 1757 to 1685
Arod Rbi's 1831 to 1135
When you throw in the value to his teams the numbers continue to separate.
Arod accounted 33.6 more runs per year for his team than Jeter.
Crazy number considering how productive Jeter was offensively in his career.
Once and for all lets get rid of this defensive question.
I pulled the Fielding numbers on the two when they both played the same position.
Range and Fielding percentage.
Arod has 18% more range and a higher fielding percentage.
We should also address the clutch player in the playoff perception.
Jeter has been fabulous and being in 138 games provided a many high profile opportunities for the national media to witness.
Here are the playoff numbers.
Jeter OBP .383 SLG.479 BA.313
Arod OBP .409 SLG.568 BA.302
Runs Produced per playoff game. (Runs scored plus RBI's divided by games played.)
Arod 1.31.
Jeter 1.11
Point of reference Superstar Pujols 1.33.
I agree with many that Jeter has performed better in some high pressure situations. But, Arod has been much better than his media portrayal and actually more productive than Jeter.
If I would have compared Jeter to most Hall of Famers his numbers would stand out and show his greatness, but against steroid boy Arod he pales in comparison.
How can I ever forgive Jeter for not allowing us to watch maybe the greatest shortstop play out of position for part of his career. A question, did Jeter's arrogance and ego keep the Yanks from winning two more rings because of a lack of team chemistry and a less than average middle infield defense. Who Knows? (I hate the Yankees anyway.)
It all makes me think "What if" with Josh Hamilton.
j
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2 comments:
JC you are nuts, but I can't argue with any of it.
T
Great stuff. Very true that A-Rod's personality and career decisions have tainted the argument, in addition to his PED use (whatever it was). For me, he was one of that golden age of top draft picks and I always defended him until the PED revelation. Now I've pretty much erased him from my thoughts like Ramirez, McGwire, and the rest of the kings of the cheater era. I hope he rots. I won't forgive him.
As for Jeter, tonight I saw the classic Jeter at bat in the playoffs. Man on base, national TV, and Jeter dumps a flair into right for an RBI. That's what I'll remember about him. He was never in A-Rod's league, but neither was anyone else practically.
Hamilton should have been the Mantle/Mays of our generation, one of the all-time greats, a 100% true 5-tool superstar. But I'm convinced he'll be star-crossed. He'll be 30 next year and can't stay healthy enough to play a full year. He'll have a move made about him and we'll talk about him when we get old, but it will always be "what could have been".
S
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