Comments on: Ben Zobrist: MVP

By: Greg

Greg — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 21:05:10 +0000

@Bobby

So he's not a "super utility" player he is just a player that plays everyday at different positions. How is that not a utility player? Why does it matter whether you start or come off the bench? He still plays all over the place, that still makes him a utility player...

By: Bobby

Bobby — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 14:07:12 +0000

Zobrist is no longer a Super Utility. He is a MLB starter who happens to start at two different positions, and sometimes more.

By: [THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss A Rare Shields Win, Choate’s Big Outs And An Ugly Money Grab | Rays Index

Mon, 05 Jul 2010 11:46:31 +0000

[...] MVP might be a stretch, but Ben Zobrist is certainly valuable. [Baseball-Reference.com] [...]

By: Brandon

Brandon — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 11:08:12 +0000

Well I could argue that Omar Infante is in the same boat as Zobrist. Granted Zobrist has more "power", but Omar contributes in just about all the same ways as Zobrist. I think super utility guys are the "most valuable" players to their given team. However they won't get the recognition they deserve. I think Major League Baseball should come up with some type of Utility Award, maybe call it the Jose Oquendo award!

By: Thomas

Thomas — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 00:37:58 +0000

would the eyeball test suggest that you are watching every game of every player that doesn't match up with the "advanced" stats?

By: Nick

Nick — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 00:34:57 +0000

"Eyeball test" is what leads people to think that Torii Hunter is a elite defensive wiz in 2010

By: WanderingWinder

WanderingWinder — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 22:15:07 +0000

I'm simply not sold on the effectiveness of these defensive statistics. The flaws in the "normal" defensive stats are well documented; the "advanced" stats don't matchup with the eyeball test enough for me to trust them.

By: DavidRF

DavidRF — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 20:49:49 +0000

Give the MVP voters some credit. He did come in 8th. For a non-rookie multi-positional guy ("496/7835D") in his first full season and playing for a non-contending team, that's not bad.

Some of the voters had been looking at the advanced metrics evidently.

By: Johnny Twisto

Johnny Twisto — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 20:26:21 +0000

He did deserve MVP consideration last season. I think I put him 3rd or so on my imaginary ballot. This year, not so much, but there's a long way to go. I do agree that there can be a lot of value in being able to play multiple positions well and I'm not sure how best to quantify that.

By: Andy

Andy — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 20:25:02 +0000

Great point bringing up Oquendo. He had positive Rtot numbers for his career at SS and 2B, where he played a lot of games, and pretty much zero at numerous other positions. This made him significantly more valuable than his numbers otherwise showed, just like Zobrist. Not, however, the greatest player of all time.