Scooter Gennett led the Major Leagues in AVG for August

[The stache]

In his first month as a starter, Scooter Gennett led all Major League hitters in the month of August with a .423 average. Scooter stroked 33 hits in 78 at bats with 4 doubles, a triple and 4 home runs. He scored 14 runs and drove in 9. Scooter finished the month with a .452/.654/1.106 slash line. He hit safely in 20 of his last 22 games. He was also outstanding defensively.

 

Pretty good production for a slap hitter.

 

Great job, Scooter!!!

[The stache]

http://img542.imageshack.us/img542/1541/fgyp.png

[jerichoholicninja]

I love how he's doing but this probably has bought him an incredibly long leash when he finally comes back to earth. The same way Yuni bought himself a starting position for most of the year with only 1 good month.

[Thurston Fluff]

He's been a consistently good contact hitter throughout his minor league career. That will give him a longer leash than a month of good hitting here. I don't know why people are so down on him. He might not have a lot of power but for a second baseman he provides enough offense to be productive.

[DuWayne Steurer]

He's been a consistently good contact hitter throughout his minor league career. That will give him a longer leash than a month of good hitting here. I don't know why people are so down on him. He might not have a lot of power but for a second baseman he provides enough offense to be productive.

 

I don't think it's that people are 'down' on him, I think it's that that people are only saying that he's a very limited player (2nd base only) with a few holes in his skillset (little power, and low OBP if he doesn't hit for high average).

[Fear The Chorizo]

I don't think it's that people are 'down' on him, I think it's that that people are only saying that he's a very limited player (2nd base only) with a few holes in his skillset (little power, and low OBP if he doesn't hit for high average).

 

Well, since his main competition in 2014 for a starting 2B is an injury-riddled guy making over 10 million bucks who can only play 2nd with many holes in his own skillset (low OBP because he can't hit for average, bad defensively, can't stay healthy), I'll take the guy making 450K to play there everyday that's hitting the prime years of his career over the guy that's a shadow of his former self. Unfortunately for the Brewers, I don't see how they can get out from paying Weeks' 2014 contract via trade...at this point I think it's a safer bet projecting Gennet to have a better 2014 offensively than Weeks. That's more of an indictment of Weeks' declining production than an endorsement of Gennet's ability. I think Gennet will be ok offensively as a 2nd baseman in the long run, and I think he's earned the opportunity to play everyday from here on out.

[torts]

I don't think it's that people are 'down' on him, I think it's that that people are only saying that he's a very limited player (2nd base only) with a few holes in his skillset (little power, and low OBP if he doesn't hit for high average).

 

Well, since his main competition in 2014 for a starting 2B is an injury-riddled guy making over 10 million bucks who can only play 2nd with many holes in his own skillset (low OBP because he can't hit for average, bad defensively, can't stay healthy), I'll take the guy making 450K to play there everyday that's hitting the prime years of his career over the guy that's a shadow of his former self.

 

[Thurston Fluff]

He's been a consistently good contact hitter throughout his minor league career. That will give him a longer leash than a month of good hitting here. I don't know why people are so down on him. He might not have a lot of power but for a second baseman he provides enough offense to be productive.

 

I don't think it's that people are 'down' on him, I think it's that that people are only saying that he's a very limited player (2nd base only) with a few holes in his skillset (little power, and low OBP if he doesn't hit for high average).

 

I think anytime someone uses Yuni for a comparison one can assume they are down on him.

[Baldkin]

He's been a consistently good contact hitter throughout his minor league career. That will give him a longer leash than a month of good hitting here. I don't know why people are so down on him. He might not have a lot of power but for a second baseman he provides enough offense to be productive.

 

He didn't slug over .400 in AA or AAA. I am simply shocked by his production and being a realist. The odds of him posting a .700 OPS in MLB for a full season is slim.

Again, for all the hatred Weeks got here all year, his .703 OPS over the last two seasons is higher than what Scooter posted in AAA this year.

[TURBO]

I'd like to see less people disappointed that Scooter has done so well, and more people just happy we aren't watching Weeks at 2B any longer... Not that I wanted to see Weeks hurt, just that watching that trainwreck of a player was simply more than I could take for much longer.

 

I know that when Scooter comes down to earth, there will be a lot of people who can't wait to say "see, I told you so" but for now, why can't we just celebrate one of our youngsters having success.

 

All the negativity surrounding Gennett is a downer... Watch and enjoy. We'll see what the future holds.

[pitchleague]

 

I know that when Scooter comes down to earth, there will be a lot of people who can't wait to say "see, I told you so" but for now, why can't we just celebrate one of our youngsters having success.

 

 

 

Because if there's one thing I've learned from this site and moderating this site, what you are asking people to do is just simply not allowed. (this was supposed to be in blue but the quote and edit functions aren't working.)

[homer]

I hope Scooter breaks the all time home run record.

[endaround]

I'd like to see less people disappointed that Scooter has done so well, and more people just happy we aren't watching Weeks at 2B any longer... Not that I wanted to see Weeks hurt, just that watching that trainwreck of a player was simply more than I could take for much longer.

 

I know that when Scooter comes down to earth, there will be a lot of people who can't wait to say "see, I told you so" but for now, why can't we just celebrate one of our youngsters having success.

 

All the negativity surrounding Gennett is a downer... Watch and enjoy. We'll see what the future holds.

 

Yeah an 1.100 OPS from a Brewer 2B for a month? You have to go all the way back to June to see that!

[Invader3K]

 

 

Yeah an 1.100 OPS from a Brewer 2B for a month? You have to go all the way back to June to see that!

 

How did Weeks do the rest of the year though?

 

Scooter has way more upside than Weeks at this point. It's too bad Weeks couldn't have stayed healthy the rest of the season and/or put up some respectable numbers so the Brewers could trade him this winter.

[TooLiveBrew]

 

 

Yeah an 1.100 OPS from a Brewer 2B for a month? You have to go all the way back to June to see that!

 

How did Weeks do the rest of the year though?

 

Scooter has way more upside than Weeks at this point. It's too bad Weeks couldn't have stayed healthy the rest of the season and/or put up some respectable numbers so the Brewers could trade him this winter.

Well, the rest of the year in AAA, Scooter posted a .697 OPS. So the talk of his upside being higher is just as likely wishful thinking as it is truth.

[Thurston Fluff]

He's been a consistently good contact hitter throughout his minor league career. That will give him a longer leash than a month of good hitting here. I don't know why people are so down on him. He might not have a lot of power but for a second baseman he provides enough offense to be productive.

 

He didn't slug over .400 in AA or AAA. I am simply shocked by his production and being a realist. The odds of him posting a .700 OPS in MLB for a full season is slim.

Again, for all the hatred Weeks got here all year, his .703 OPS over the last two seasons is higher than what Scooter posted in AAA this year.

 

Who ever said he could hit for power? More to the point who said every player has to hit for power to be a productive member of a good team? Jim Ganter had a career 670 OPS. Wasn't he a productive member of some pretty good teams?

[homer]

 

Who ever said he could hit for power? More to the point who said every player has to hit for power to be a productive member of a good team? Jim Ganter had a career 670 OPS. Wasn't he a productive member of some pretty good teams?

 

Check out the first post in this thread for an example. There's a vocal segment of the board that is saying "nanny nanny boo boo" to people who don't expect this level of power to continue.

[endaround]

Ganter was a below average player for the vast majority of his career. And that was during the low offense of the 1980s and with exceptional glove work.

[sveumrules]

I think its great that guys like Scooter and Khris are coming up and having success but ultimately I'm not going to change my projection on a player based on 100 some major league plate appearances. Whether his wOBA is .200 or .400 at the end of 2013 I'd still expect Ryan to put up something like 270/330/370 given 500ish plate appearances in 2014.

[Thurston Fluff]

 

Who ever said he could hit for power? More to the point who said every player has to hit for power to be a productive member of a good team? Jim Ganter had a career 670 OPS. Wasn't he a productive member of some pretty good teams?

 

Check out the first post in this thread for an example. There's a vocal segment of the board that is saying "nanny nanny boo boo" to people who don't expect this level of power to continue.

 

True. Since it was addressing a quote from me I figured it was directed at me. But I should have said - I never said he could have hit for power.

 

Ganter was a below average player for the vast majority of his career. And that was during the low offense of the 1980s and with exceptional glove work.

 

16 of the current 2nd baseman who qualify have an OPS above 700. That is the same number as last season. There were 13 in 2011, 13 in 2010...you get the picture. I think you are overestimating the average offensive talent level of second basemen.

[endaround]

So you agree then that a 700 OPS is below average? Ganter gained half a win from his very good fielding. Gennett will likely lose 0.5 to 1 wins with his fielding. It would be great of Gennett becomes an average 2B, but August doesn't really say much about that.

[Thurston Fluff]

So you agree then that a 700 OPS is below average? Ganter gained half a win from his very good fielding. Gennett will likely lose 0.5 to 1 wins with his fielding. It would be great of Gennett becomes an average 2B, but August doesn't really say much about that.

 

I would say the 700 mark it average offense on some years and some years it is slightly above average for second baseman. But I don't think it tells the whole story to begin with. I think some types of players have more value to a team than others. A lot depends on who is surrounding him. If the team has a lot of power but not much OBP I think an singles hitter has more value than a power hitter who strikes out a lot. You put him ahead of the power guys and get two runs instead of one more often. I think Aoki was a great example of that last season. He played a traditional power position but being on a team that had plenty of it his ability to make contact and get on base was a nice addition. As far as wins above replacement to predict someone's future/ability is a text book definition of misusing the stat. That would be if the whole idea of estimating the overall value, both offensively and defensively, in one number wasn't so terribly inaccurate to begin with.

[gregmag]

 

I know that when Scooter comes down to earth, there will be a lot of people who can't wait to say "see, I told you so" but for now, why can't we just celebrate one of our youngsters having success.

 

 

 

Because if there's one thing I've learned from this site and moderating this site, what you are asking people to do is just simply not allowed. (this was supposed to be in blue but the quote and edit functions aren't working.)

Right, because no one is saying "I told you so" based on Scooter's success thus far. (See, for example, the first post in this thread.) Sorry, but I can't work up any sympathy for a speculative complaint that some Scooter doubters may someday behave like some Scooter boosters are behaving right now.

 

I love that the guy is doing well. It's a joy. I've been a pessimist about him, and I hope this is the beginning of Scooter's proving me and other pessimists wrong. But you're saying you don't want people to discuss a player's future prospects based on the best honest insights they can bring to the discussion. On a baseball discussion board. I'm sorry if you guys can't sustain your desired buzz without everybody waving pom-poms around 24-7, but thankfully that's not how discussions work.

 

Fluff, two things: First, Gantner was a productive player for maybe five years. He hit a little when he was young; then his defense carried his bat for a little while; then he hurt the team for quite a few years. His .670 OPS certainly isn't a selling point, and it was less bad in that era than it would be in this one. That's exactly why I worry about settling for mediocre production, not so much next year -- we're likely to stink, so it will be a great year to take the measure of a risky prospect -- but for the five years after that if next year produces mediocrity. Second, I think you're misreading jerichoholicninja's Yuni comparison. The point isn't "Gennett is of the same general quality of Yuni." The point is "We run the risk of attaching too much significance to a small sample, as we did with Yuni (and arguably Segura)." I think that's a fair point, and of course I also think (know) that Scooter has a much better chance to be a good player going forward than Yuni does.

[Thurston Fluff]

That's exactly why I worry about settling for mediocre production, not so much next year -- we're likely to stink, so it will be a great year to take the measure of a risky prospect -- but for the five years after that if next year produces mediocrity. Second, I think you're misreading jerichoholicninja's Yuni comparison. The point isn't "Gennett is of the same general quality of Yuni." The point is "We run the risk of attaching too much significance to a small sample, as we did with Yuni (and arguably Segura)." I think that's a fair point, and of course I also think (know) that Scooter has a much better chance to be a good player going forward than Yuni does.

 

Have you seen the cost of mediocre on the FA market these days? In years and money? This is just my opinion but I think he has a skill set that is under appreciated in today's game. That should lead to a good value for production ratio. I am not saying he should be treated like a star in the making. He does look to be someone who can hold his own by playing consistent, if unspectacular, baseball at a position where that is the norm. And the norm costs money unless you produce one on your own. We are not going to have a lineup full of all stars. So we have to find people who can contribute something at a cost that allows us to fill real holes. So I guess my point is this is who we have. Whining about the fact he isn't ever going to be an all star seems to miss that most teams need to have those guys on their team so they can address areas where they have nothing. Guys like him allow the team to avoid a black hole like we had for a few year ago with short and third. Simply by being a cost effective mediocre player who allows the team to spend money on players like Ramirez, Braun and Lohse. Why bash a guy for being what he is if he is better than what you have and helps you get better elsewhere?

[JackNicholson1974]

Scooter Gennett - the anti-Keith Ginter