Midseason Grades (Part 2)

More position players (until I give out -- to be continued):

Brian McCann

What a sweet swing the kid has. It was evident immediately upon his arrival last year, and I expected him to outpace his roommate in their soph seasons, but .353? I don't know what's more surprising -- that he's done it to this point, or that it looks like he could keep on doing it. I wouldn't put anything past the kid -- I think he can hit .340 one year, then come back the next year and hit 30 homers if he decides to do that.

Here's a question to ponder -- what impact do you think the catcher has on the effectiveness of the pitching staff?

Grade: A+


Andruw Jones

Finally, at long last, most of the bickering about Andruw seems to have ceased, and he's allowed to be what he is -- that is to say, "not Willie Mays". Maybe it was the big 2005, or maybe he's putting together another typical Andruw season without the wild fluctuations in his performance, but he seems to have reached the point in his career where you just pencil him in, forget about him, then see how well he does in the MVP voting.

Grade: A-


Jeff Francoeur

Unfortunately, Cox has also taken the "pencil him in and forget about him" approach with young master Francoeur, with decidedly less felicitous results. Yes, he's on pace to hit 30 HR and drive in 110 -- to the superficial observer, this will seem like a fine year. Prepare to be met with some eye-rolling as you attempt to explain to said superficial observer that Frenchy's RBI stats are largely a function of following four high-OBP guys in the lineup, and that a more telling stat might be that he's very nearly on a pace to break the major league record for most outs made in a season. His assist numbers have also taken a hit, but that's a function of opportunity as well -- nobody's testing his arm anymore, which means he gets credit for fewer extra bases taken.

Obviously, he could use some more seasoning, but obviously he's not going to get it. Despite his struggles, he's our best option -- I'd just like to hope he has a higher ceiling than Dave Kingman.

Grade: C


Ryan Langerhans

Ryan looks like a ballplayer, but was overextended as a starting LF. He plays great defense, but at the least important defensive position. He's got a nice-looking swing, but uses the same one seemingly regardless of pitch location. He's big and fast, but doesn't hit home runs or steal bases. He'll take a walk, but doesn't get nearly enough hits. So now he's in his born role of 4th/5th outfielder, where he'll be for a number of teams for several years and make a nice living.

Grade: D+


Matt Diaz

Although he's an outfielder, Diaz was basically replacing Julio Franco on the roster as designated lefty-masher, and has not disappointed. The pleasant surprise has been his performance against RHP:

2003-2005 2006
vs. LHP .333/.388/.486 .333/.369/.517
vs. RHP .128/.180/.255 .344/.377/.453

He's earned the additional playing time, and may get even more if Thorman's struggles continue. Since most of his offensive value is tied up in his ability to hit singles, as he neither walks much nor has great power, he'll need to hit over .300 to be a truly valuable player, but so far so good.

Grade: A