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When it comes to playoff races, every edge matters. Yet all too often, managers and GMs fail to make the moves that could help their teams for reasons rooted in issues beyond a player's statistics, allowing sub-par production to fester until it kills a club's post-season hopes. Back in 2007, I compiled a historical all-star squad of ignominy for our pennant race book, It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over, identifying players at each position whose performances had dragged their teams down in tight races: the Replacement-level Killers. The concept has been revisited on a more or less annual basis here at Baseball Prospectus, both by myself and my colleagues, with an eye toward what teams can do to solve such potentially fatal problems. With the trading deadline less than two weeks away, the window for contenders to take their best shots at parlaying their resources into solutions are closing.

What follows is a quick trip around the diamond to run down some of the most glaring situations among teams with records above .500. I'm using WARP2, which adjusts for league difficulty but doesn't incorporate the scaling factor used for sub-162-game seasons. Not every position has exemplars whose WARPs are right at zero, but most of these are close enough that a bad week could get them there. All stats are through Sunday unless indicated.

Catcher: Gerald Laird (.180 TAv, -0.5 WARP) and Alex Avila (.235 TAv, 0.8 WARP), Tigers
The Tigers' backstop tandem has been the absolute bottom of the barrel, offensively speaking, combining to hit .203/.278/.295 even with a lefty-righty tandem that has split time more or less 50-50. While they've been above-average defensively (+7 FRAA combined), it's not as though they've been particularly impressive in handling the team's rotation, which ranks 12th in the league in SNLVAR, with every starter besides Justin Verlander carrying a sub-.500 Support Neutral Winning Percentage and an ERA worse than the park-adjusted league average.
Remedy (?): With no good options available internally, the Tigers are going to have to go on the market to upgrade. The Diamondbacks floated the possibility of a trade of Chris Snyder to the Red Sox when both Victor Martinez and Jason Varitek went down, though he's got a hefty chunk of money still on his contract (about $8.5 million including a 2012 buyout), and the Tigers are already carrying a payroll of roughly $134 million. A reunion with Pudge Rodriguez, who's got about $4 million remaining through next year with the Nationals, would be a less pricey hit. An even lower-impact but still sensible option would be to sign Mike Redmond, who was recently released by the Indians. Though he's 39, he hit a solid .310/.371/.389 versus lefties from 2007-09, and could pair with Avila in a slightly upgraded platoon.

First Base: Chris Davis (.192 TAv, -0.7 WARP), Rangers
A repeat offender from last season, Davis began the year as the Rangers' first baseman but hit just .188/.264/.292 before being farmed out in late April. After a couple months of mashing at Triple-A (.288 TAv), his window of opportunity has reopened thanks to the departure of Justin Smoak in the Cliff Lee deal. Thus far, Davis is 4-for-29 since returning, with three of those hits coming in one game. He's got plenty of pop (.218 career ISO), but serious contact issues, whiffing in 31.7 percent of his plate appearances in the majors, and his defense at first base (94 Rate2) is nothing to write home about, either.
Remedy (?): At the very least, the Rangers need a fallback option in case Davis continues his swishtastic ways of contact, and they're probably limited to lower-impact moves given their ownership situation and recent moves anyway. The Orioles' Ty Wigginton is available, and while Andy MacPhail isn't any more likely to land a shortstop prospect than his late grandfather is to return the Kaiser's ashtray, the O’s have enough other needs and the Rangers enough organizational depth to find a fit even after the Lee and Bengie Molina deals. Wigginton can spot at second base, third base, and left field if he's not starting at first base, keeping Texas' starters from wilting in the Arlington heat. Other palatable options include the Diamondbacks' Adam LaRoche, a notoriously slow starter who picks up the pace in the second half, and the Blue Jays' Lyle Overbay, who's hit a solid .290/.357/.472 since May 15 after a wretched start; both have less than $4 million remaining on their deals, and it's possible their teams could be persuaded to swallow salary in exchange for better prospects. Free agent Carlos Delgado, who's working his way back from hip surgery, is another option.

Second Base: Luis Castillo (.258 TAv, 0.2 WARP) and Alex Cora (.215 TAv, -1.3 WARP), Mets
Out since June 4 with heel problems, Castillo returned Monay night, but he's 34 years old, fragile, and a liability in the field, with just one season worth substantially more than one win out of the last four, and -38 FRAA in that span. Cora has been an atrocious backup, nine runs below average at the keystone in addition to the damage he's done with the stick. Young Ruben Tejada (.211, -0.2 WARP) hasn't been of much help either, though at least he played acceptable shortstop in Jose Reyes' absence.
Remedy (?): The Marlins' Dan Uggla may be available, but between his hefty price tag, an intradivision rivalry, and the Rockies' interest in him, it's unlikely he'll be heading to Queens. A better fit would be the Diamondbacks' Kelly Johnson. After losing his job with the Braves last year, he's rebounded to hit a robust .282/.376/.503 for the Snakes, who are in selling mode after firing manager A.J. Hinch and GM Josh Byrnes on July 2. Johnson is making just $2.35 million this year, so he'll command a higher price in prospects, but he'd be a legitimate boon to the lineup. His glove (-8 FRAA) might need a caddy, however.

Third Base: Nick Punto (.244 TAv, 1.5 WARP) and friends, Twins
The left side of the Twins' infield has been typically messy, with their third basemen combining to hit .230/.297/.298 and their shortstops only slightly better at .251/.301/.335, a line lifted by a brief hot streak from Punto. Manager Ron Gardenhire has used four players for at least a dozen starts at the hot corner (Punto, Brendan Harris, Danny Valencia and—here's one from out of right field—Michael Cuddyer), a situation complicated by Harris' complete failure to hit (.157/.233/.213) before being sent to Triple-A and by a variety of injuries elsewhere. Each of the other starting infielders—Justin Morneau, Orlando Hudson, and J.J. Hardy—has done a stint on the disabled list thus far, with Morneau's recent concussion pulling Cuddyer back across the diamond. Punto has long been shown to lack the bat to play the position, and while he's gotten just four starts at third since June 3, he's always in manager Ron Gardenhire's back pocket as a potential "solution," which makes him a hazard.
Remedy (?): Here's a situation that may be best solved internally. Valencia, while hardly a blue-chip prospect—he came into the year ninth on Kevin Goldstein's Twins list—has hit .333/.389/.379 in 68 plate appearances since his recall in early June but has played in just eight of the team's past 21 games, starting mainly against lefties. Furthermore, he's apparently in danger of being farmed out when Matt Tolbert, the owner of a Punto-like .246/307/.336 career line himself, comes off the disabled list. Better to give the rookie a shot at manning the position full time. Free Danny Valencia!

Shortstop: Orlando Cabrera (.230 TAv, 0.0 WARP), Reds
The well-traveled 35-year-old, who shored up the Twins' infield at the deadline last summer, is showing his age. He's having his worst season ever with the bat (.252/.293/.339 in a hitter-friendly environment) , and his normally reliable glove work has been subpar (-8 FRAA) as well. As if all of that weren't bad enough, Dusty Baker has been batting him in the first or second spot in the lineup, the latest manifestation of an ongoing problem.
Remedy (?): As Kevin Goldstein pointed out on Monday, Triple-A shortstop Zack Cozart (.252 TAv) offers plus defense and surprising power to compensate for his own shortcomings in the on-base department. If the Reds want to look beyond their own organization, the Nationals' Cristian Guzman is hitting .296/.343/.368; he's got about $3.5 million remaining on his deal. The Diamondbacks' Stephen Drew (.266 TAv, 1.3 WARP) won't be a free agent until after 2012; he makes much less than Guzman and might be worth trading an actual prospect for a multi-season upgrade. As a bonus, the Reds could take advantage of Cabrera's reputation as a mid-season savoir and flip him to a team convinced he's still got those essential veteran herbs and spices.

Left Field: Juan Pierre (.242 TAv, 0.8 WARP), White Sox
This one goes out to all of the pundits who celebrated Unlucky Pierre being freed from the tyranny of fourth-outfielderdom in Los Angeles. Even with his 33 steals, Pierre has the second-lowest True Average of any left fielder with at least 200 plate appearances. His mark is 32 points lower than the average left fielder, equivalent to a shortfall of 13 runs (-13 RAP). With the White Sox embroiled in a three-team race in a division that's gone to a Game 163 playoff in each of the past two years, they can ill afford to employ a player who costs them more than a full win in the standings.
Remedy (?): Just about anything short of sitting on their hands would be an improvement, though it will cost the Sox varying degrees of blood and treasure. Adam Dunn is the big game being hunted, and the likes of Cody Ross or Jose Bautista, both making relatively little in salary, could appeal as well. Hell, even The Return of Podzilla would be welcome; Scott Podsednik is hitting .302/.350/.376 and would of course satisfy Ozzie Guillen's need for speed, though the only thing really separating him from Pierre is a handful of balls in play falling for hits.

Center Field: Nate McLouth (.225 TAv, -0.5 WARP), Braves
Even with Jason Heyward in tow, Braves outfielders are hitting a combined .244/.324/.378 this year, and none has been worse than McLouth, who was hitting .176/.295/.282 when he went on the disabled list due to a concussion sustained via a collision on June 9. Given that Melky Cabrera is hitting just .259/.308/.352 against righties, the half-measure of a platoon to shield McLouth from lefties isn't really a palatable option, and while Gregor Blanco has hit .310/.394/.362 in 66 plate appearances this year, nothing in his track record suggests that's sustainable.
Remedy (?): The aforementioned Ross is a below-average center fielder (89 Rate2 over the past two years), but his .267 TAv would do a little to offset that, particularly given that Cabrera or Blanco could do some defensive caddy work if need be. Coco Crisp (.288 TAv) has been limited to just 91 plate appearances due to injuries, but he'd fit the bill as well, though the A's may be reluctant to deal him given his reasonable $5.75 million option for 2011. The Cubs' Kosuke Fukudome (.271 TAv) hasn't played any center field this year due to the arrival of Marlon Byrd and the emergence of Tyler Colvin; the Cubs would have to absorb much of the $19 million remaining on his contract through next year, though they might jump at any chance to trim their $144 million payroll and reduce their collection of eight-figure salaries.

Right Field: Jeff Francoeur (.253 TAv, -0.3 WARP), Mets
The end of the world appeared nigh when Frenchy walked eight times in his first 12 games, but he steered us clear of the apocalypse by drawing just six unintentional passes in his next 77 games, batting .227/.270/.332 along the way. During one 37-game, 137-PA stretch, he "hit" .146/.197/.228, yet manager Jerry Manuel didn't let a day go by without making sure he got a chance to take his hacks.
Remedy (?): With Carlos Beltran making his 2010 debut last week, the Mets' most productive outfielder, Angel Pagan (.300 TAv, +12 FRAA) was displaced from the position he's manned so capably all year. According to WARP, Pagan has been the team's second-most valuable player behind David Wright, with 4.1. The obvious solution if the Mets insist upon playing Beltran in center regularly—something that's probably not a good idea given his arthritic knee—is to shift Pagan to right and shoot Francouer out of a cannon. The second most obvious solution—which Manuel went with last week, though he wouldn't exactly come out and say it—would be to platoon the switch-hitting Pagan, who's much stronger against righties over the course of his career (.306/.360/.463) than against lefties (.252/.295/.416), with Francoeur (.300/.343/.480 vs. lefties, .256/.297/.406 vs righties), though that still means a bit more Frenchy than necessary when Pagan shifts to center to give Beltran the day off. If Beltran stays healthy and hits like the guy in the catalog, problem solved, but the Mets could probably use some anti-Frenchy insurance in case Beltran gets hurt and Pagan returns to center.

Designated Hitter: Hideki Matsui (.264 TAv, 0.1 WARP) Angels
Angels DHs have hit a combined .201/.289/.308, and while Matsui has been better than that (.249/.329/.393) thanks to some hot hitting in his rare journeys afield, his performance has validated the Yankees' decision to let their World Series MVP walk away as a free agent.
Remedy (?): Given that they're also scrambling to overcome the loss of first baseman Kendry Morales for the year, the Halos are a team that could really use a thumper such as Adam Dunn or Lance Berkman who could DH and spot in the field if somebody else needs a half-day off. Free agent Jermaine Dye, who's looking for work, is another option; he'd cost only cash, as would the aforementioned Delgado.   

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Oleoay
7/20
If a contending team considers Pudge Rodriguez or Christian Guzman as a starting lineup solution, that should disqualify them from being contenders.
jjaffe
7/20
Prorating his 2010, Guzman's been about a three-win player over the past three years, and he's got 25 FRAA over that span (Plus/Minus likes him as a defender, UZR less so). As a stopgap for a guy whose bat and glove have died this year, he'd be fine.

Rodriguez has a .252 True Average and +10 FRAA even at the age of 38. Contenders such as the Tigers, Rays, Cardinals, Rangers and Red Sox have gotten less value out of their catchers this year.
mmcma007
7/20
faced!
tduren
7/20
Just 1 comment regarding Chris Davis: He is a fantastic defensive firstbasemen. The Rangers think so, I watch every game and I agree with the Rangers. Defensive metrics still have a ways to go.
jjaffe
7/20
I keep hearing that he's a plus defender, and while I certainly agree that defensive metrics have a ways to go, UZR, Plus/Minus, Total Zone and FRAA all show him in the red at first base. So I'll hold off on giving him a Gold Glove.
tduren
7/20
None of those measure his incredible ability to pick up short hop throws and stretching at firstbase.
Ogremace
7/21
Given that he is good at this, can you say that it counters any range issues? Can you say that just because he's good at this it's worth enough to offset his bat?

As a Yankee fan I see something similar with Teixeira, who is rated negative but is really good at scooping throws. However, being able to see this doesn't mean we can pencil either in as positive - we can't pencil them in as anything other than "good at scooping."

The metrics have issues, but you can't make any kind of direct comparison between something put into numbers and scouting.
tduren
7/21
No one said anything about his obviously poor production - the subject was his defense.

And yes, scouts say his defense is excellent.
ScottBehson
7/21
There's probably a way to look at the defensive metrics of his 2B, SS, and 3B and see if there are fewer throwing errors and/or higher assist rates when Davis is in vs. Smoak or whomever else...
ClintRamone
7/20
No mention of John Buck as a fit for the Tigers? Arencibia hit his 28th home run last night, I'm sure the Jays wouldn't mind getting value for Buck while promoting Arencibia.
jjaffe
7/20
Very good point - perhaps an even better option than the ones I've listed, and something in line with the AL East prescriptions piece I wrote last week (http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=11479):

"...while catcher John Buck has 13 [homers] of his own already and is slugging .500. With 24-year-old catching prospect J.P. Arencibia mashing at a .319/.369/.661/25-HR clip in Triple-A (a .283 True Average), moving the pending free agent Buck makes more sense."

Synergy, Jaffe, synergy...
jdouglass
7/20
As a Cardinals fan, I'm always miffed when St. Louis players are wrongfully neglected in awards season. Brendan Ryan, you have been jobbed. Can we at least name Tony LaRussa the skipper of this motley crew? I think he'd do the nature of the team justice with his lineup management, stolen base attempt timing and platoon decision making.
jjaffe
7/20
With his .199 TAv, Ryan was certainly in contention, but I noticed that TeaLR had started Tyler Greene in eight of the team's past 11 (now 12) games, suggesting the team had at least begun to address the issue. Greene's no miracle worker (.245 TAv weighted mean PECOTA), and he's now dealing with a bone bruise in his hand, so yes, you could certainly argue the Cardinals should find a better solution.
kenfunck
7/20
Thanks, Jay. Now I keep hearing the voice of Grampa MacPhail in my head, explaining to the grandkids at Christmas that he had to steal the ashtray in retaliation for the Kaiser stealing the word twenty, and how his unit infiltrated the Dutch castle with onions tied to their belts, which was the style at the time. At least now I understand why Andy keeps explaining that the Orioles are building to contend in diggety-twelve.
asstarr1
7/20
With their ownership status in limbo, do the Rangers have the prospects and the moxie to go after Prince Fielder?
ScottBehson
7/20
they may have the moxie but they don't have the cash
jjaffe
7/20
Probably a stretch given their ownership/financial debacle, and it would gut their prospect core (no pun intended).
ScottBehson
7/20
As a Mets fan, it has been killing me (and their lineup) with their offensive voids at 2B, C, and RF. Throw in the pitcher, and there's 4 easy outs that don't even raise opponents pitch counts.
ScottBehson
7/20
...and not to mention they started the year with Mike Jacobs at 1B (batting cleanup!) and had Maine and Perez in the rotation.

Talk about stars and scrubs
dglawschool
7/20
Why not Austin Kearns as a cheap solution for these OF questions? Can he man CF effectively enough?
jjaffe
7/20
Kearns has just 19 games in center over the past five seasons, so I'm going to wager that his ship has sailed on that front. I considered including him in the potential corner outfield remedies. He'd be an economical fallback plan for, say, the Mets, but he's also a guy who's hit just .244/.333/.363 since May 1 after a hot start, so it's tough to get too excited about him.
Justice
7/20
I suspect that if the White Sox are able to acquire a hitter like Lance Berkman or Adam LaRoche, he would replace Mark Kotsay as the DH and not Pierre in LF.
FLeghorn
7/20
He's not a full-timer, but I'll tell you that everytime that Jim Tracy pencils Melvin Mora ( which is more often that you may imagine )into the lineup, including a game in Cincinnati a few days ago where he batted CLEANUP,it makes my stomach hurt. Yes, his average isn't terrible, but he can barely get the ball to the outfield anymore. Add to this the Helton saga, and the Rox are certainly being hurt by their addiction to veteran moxie.
jjaffe
7/21
But the Tracer is the smartest manager in baseball, or so he tells us!
Oleoay
7/21
The Rockies do quite a few weird things... they really should've flipped one of their outfielders since they have five quality players (Gonzalez, Hawpe, Smith, Fowler, Spillborghs) and only three positions. They fiddle around with Iannetta and Stewart while continuing their love affair with getting Clint Barmes into the lineup. And yeah, Mora is a symptom of that... they just did a post-game interview of Mora after his big day and spent most of it talking about how much he smiles and asking how it affects his hitting.

Btw the Rockies recently signed Kaz Matsui to a minor league contract so don't be surprised if he gets promoted and starts some games.
FLeghorn
7/21
Amusing sidenote that I had to follow up on...
Rockies playing tonight. Mora playing left field and batting third.
He's got a double, homer and 5 rbi.
I need to beef to BP more often.
So, Jay...maybe he is smarter than we are?
jjaffe
7/21
It's the trademarked Jaffe Reverse Jinx: http://tinyurl.com/36rq2nr. That or regression to the mean. Or a blind squirrel tripping over the damn acorn.

Oleoay
7/21
I'll call it the Waffle Jaffe Jinx.
Lespaul1
7/21
I had no idea Larry MacPhail was The Most Interesting Man in the World. What a life!
Oleoay
7/21
"I don't often trade for players, but when I do, I prefer ex-Cubs."