Notable Numerals: Joey Votto, Paul Konerko & the Philadelphia Phillies
By Brian Phair
It has been an interesting start to the 2011 MLB season already with some unlikely teams jumping out in front early and some others, like our beloved Red Sox, struggling to climb back near .500 (or even .300). The Baltimore Orioles are leading the AL East as of Monday morning and the Cleveland Indians are leading the AL Central. Both teams are big surprises, because they are perennial bottom-feeders over the past several years and are projected to continue that tradition. Besides those 2 teams, there have been some strong performances in this 1st full week of the season, so without further delay, here is this week’s edition of Notable Numerals.
Batting average for Joey Votto this past week. Votto has emerged as a superstar in baseball over the past few years, winning the NL MVP in 2010. He hits for power and average for the Cincinnati Reds and has gotten off to a hot start this season. In 6 games this week, Votto has 12 hits in 23 at-bats, including a home run and 4 RBIs. He has walked 5 times and has a stolen base, giving him one of the best weeks in baseball thus far. He has a .783 slugging percentage this week and continues to help his Reds win games, as they sit atop the NL Central with a 6-3 record. Votto is looking to defend his MVP in 2011 and has certainly gotten off on the right foot. Can the Reds make the playoffs in 2011? That answer may hinge on Votto remaining healthy and productive in the middle of the lineup.
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Home runs this week for Paul Konerko of the Chicago White Sox. Every time I think Paul Konerko may be reaching the end of his career, he rips a few monster home runs and proves me wrong. This week is no exception. At age 35, and with parts of 15 major league seasons under his belt, Konerko just continues to hit home runs at a ridiculous rate. Last season, he belted 39 home runs and drove in 111 RBIs while hitting .312 in 149 games. I said to myself, amazing, but he has to slow down, this is his last big year. In 6 games this week, he has 3 home runs and 8 RBIs while hitting at a .417 clip. Konerko is a respectable guy who is beginning his 13th season with the White Sox, an unheard of tenure in modern baseball. All power to him, I hope the hits keep coming (as long as they aren’t against the Red Sox).
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Ks for Jered Weaver in his last start this week. Wow. Weaver is a great pitcher, but 15 Ks in 7.2 innings is flat ridiculous. It is the 1st time since 2009 a pitcher has broken the 15 K mark and just the 14th time in the history of the MLB that a pitcher has accomplished such a feat. In 2 starts with week, Weaver is 2-0 with 21 Ks in 14.1 innings. He allowed just 2 earned runs on 7 hits, boosting himself onto the national scene as a dominant pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels. To put it in perspective, Weaver is now 3-0 and his team is 5-4, so he has been responsible for 60% of Angels victories in 2011 and he appears to be getting stronger with each outing. He has been a very good pitcher the past few seasons, but now with 27 Ks on the season, he is being jolted into the category of potential Cy Young candidates early in the year. The Angels are going to need Weaver to have a monster season if they want to overtake the red-hot Texas Rangers in the AL West.
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Runs per game for the Philadelphia Phillies this past week. In 6 games this week, the Phillies have been impressive at the plate. As a team, they have 15 doubles, a triple, and 6 home runs in 6 games. They have a team batting average of .327, which is .029 higher than the next best team, the Chicago White Sox. The Phillies were praised all off-season for their monster pitching rotation, but it appears their offense is going to be as good, if not better. The Phillies are atop of the NL East by 2 games early, with a 7-2 record, and are off to a strong start to the 2011 campaign. Many projected the Phillies and Red Sox to meet in the 2011 World Series, so at least half of most predictions seem to be strong at this point. The Red Sox have some work to do in order to be at the same level with the Phillies.
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BBs for the Pittsburgh Pirates this week. It is an all Pennsylvania team stats this week, with the Pirates just making the cut. Rarely do we see both the Phillies and Pirates in the positive stat column, but the Pirates earned their bid with a monstrous number of walks this week. They averaged 5.14 walks per game, an astonishing number that far surpassed every other team in baseball. The New York Mets were 2nd, 9 BBs behind the Pirates who have been finding ways to get on base, despite having a less than stellar offense. The Pirates have also limited their strikeouts, compiling just 42 on the season and their pitching staff has been solid, posting a 3.49 ERA. There is little margin for error with a lesser-talented roster, so despite some solid numbers, the Pirates are just 5-5 on this young season.
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Honorable Mention:
Saves for Chris Perez of the Cleveland Indians in 4 appearances this week. He allowed just 2 hits, walked 2, and struck out 3 in 4 innings.
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