FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Guru welcomes back Deuce!!!!! said 05/05, 03:46 PM
Not much of a MLB TDer but i'll do my best...

My choice for the Current best outfielder in MLB,


Vladimir Guerrero

8 time MLB All Star
2004 American League MVP
7 time Silver Slugger Award Winner

A career .323 average, Vlade is known as a well rounded complete hitter and possesses one of the strongest arms in MLB. He consistantly hits for a high average and power. His vision and coverage around the plate is uncanny. Vlade rarely strikes out and has a career On Base Percentage of .391. To put that into perspective, his carerr OBP is better then Alex Rodriguez, Ichiro Suzuki, Matt Holliday, Tony Gwynn, etc. All great career hitters.

Guru welcomes back Deuce!!!!! said 05/05, 07:06 PM
"Manny being Manny"

Thats what YOU may call his stat line but lets talk about the real reason that phrase was coined. His LACK of enthusiasm and his SELFISHNESS is the real reason for that phrase.

"Manny being Manny"

Manny is all about Manny. He has never been a team player. I don't respect that in a player so he would never be on my "best" list. Baseball is a team game, on and off the field. His constant drama and his lack of concentration during games makes me a bit skeptical on choosing Manny.

Though Manny may possess the power, Vlad is widely known as one of the best ALL AROUND players in the game. Vlad is stronger defensively & mentally. Vlads highest/worse year in strikeouts (95 & 88) would be Mannys lowest total. That tells me Manny is Whiffin & Missin more then he is connecting. Vlad averages more Intentional Walks then Manny. Almost doubling, and sometimes tripling, Manny in many season. This shows me Vlad is more feared of a hitter then Manny.

Vlad has had 4 seasons with 200+ hits and 6 total where he had 190+. Manny? ZERO. In fact, there are numerous years where Manny had JUST AS MUCH Strikeouts then he had hits!

Guru welcomes back Deuce!!!!! said 05/05, 08:25 PM
Since everyone is so high on numbers, which I don't feel tells the whole story, I'll post some numbers up to satisfy everyone. This will hopefully show that Manny is not as good of a hitter over Vlad then many thought.

I'll start with posting numbers from Vlads full season as a starter, 1998.(minus his rookie year). Their numebrs are closer then everyone may think so OVERALL ability and character should weigh a bit more then just numbers alone.

Since 1998:

Vladimir Guerrero: Manny Ramirez
.325 batting average .316 batting average
1010 runs scored 1028 runs scored
1,150 rbi's 1,255 rbi's
346 doubles 347 doubles
39 triples 14 triples
166 stolen basses 15 stolen bases
356 home runs 387 homeruns
715 strikeouts 1,167 strikeouts
107 assist 77 assist

Vlad has hit for a higher average in 7 out of those 10 years. Winning an AL MVP in the process.