Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
I think the thread title is somewhat self-explanatory, though obviously the concept of being underrated is subjective and by mere mention here, these players are not really 'forgotten'. But I think you get what I'm going for. These are a players who would often elict an "oh yeah" reaction when brought up among top baseball hitters in history, as opposed to being listed or remembered outright.
Dolph Camili - In an era where walks were seen as unequal to hits and strikeouts as the ultimate sin, Camili's game had to infuriate purists who believe in hitting and making contact, not walking and striking out. From 1934 to 1941 he had a line of .286/.396/515/.911 and averaged 25 HRs, with two 1.000+ .OPS seasons. That's damn impressive, strikeouts be damned.
Sid Gordon - Sid Gordon played his first full MLB season for the New York Giants in 1943 at age 25. He spent 1944 and 1945 serving his country in the United States Coast Guard during World War II. Now 28 in 1946, Gordon put up a .290./386./481/.867 line from 1946-1954, up until his age 36 season. For his work he received anti-Semitism, a few token MVP votes, and just two All-Star appearances. He wasn't even an All-Star in his .960 OPS season of 1950, while Dick Sisler and Johnny Wyrostek were.
Cecil Cooper - Being only 23 years old, Cecil played before my time. I knew he was a former player but knew him simply as the Astros manager. I was pretty surprised to see what a good hitter he was, averaging an .851 OPS from 75-83 with a few Gold Gloves to his credit as well.
Rusty Greer - The man who inspired me to create this thread. He randomly popped into my head earlier and I decided to look at his numbers. Whoa. He only had 7 healthy seasons, 9 in total, but in those 7 seasons had a line of .307/.392/.486, good for an .878 OPS.
Tim Salmon - From 1993 to 2000, Salmon had a .928 OPS with 228 HR's. But he eclipsed the 100 RBI mark 'only' two times, and while he was Mr. Angel, he was often overlooked in favor of teammates Garet Anderson, Troy Glaus, and Mo Vaughn's RBI totals and Jim Edmonds similar game and hot dog catches. He never appeared in a single All-Star game and has only a 1993 Rookie of the Year and a 1995 Silver Slugger award to his name.
Richie Sexson - Nobody ever talks about 'Big Sexy', perhaps in part because he played in the 'unremarkable' markets (no offense intended) of Cleveland/Arizona/Milwaukee/Seattle during his career before finishing with a whimper in New York with the Yankees in 2008 at 'only' age 33. But before heading to Safeco field in 2005, Sexson had a career .877 OPS with 200 home runs by age 29. He had his flaws, but possessed a respectable batting average and obviously prodigious power. The HR's were still there in 05/06 with Seattle as he hit 39 and 34 respectively, but he cratered in 2007 and was out of the league before the end of 2008.
Carlos Delgado - It feels kind of silly to say a guy who had 477 career HR's and just retired 4 years ago is underrated, but I really think people tend to forget just what a dominant hitter Delgado was. A career .929 OPS with two ridiculously stat sheet filling seasons in 2000 and 2003 with a 1.000+ OPS
Magglio Ordonez - Daddy Mags always seemed to fly under the radar, but man could he rake. A career .309 hitter with over 2000 career hits, Ordonez's 2007 season sticks out with 54 doubles, .363 batting average, and a 1.000+ OPS. Jose Canseco has accused him of PED use, but Jose Canseco says a lot of things.
J.D. Drew - He never could live up the insane hype his 1998 rookie season generated, but for a guy reviled by multiple fanbases, he managed a damn good career while constantly battling injuries. A career .873 OPS with two seasons of a 1.000+ OPS and a near .400 OBP from 1998-2009. Probably deserves a rose or two thrown his way instead of the batteries.
Feel free to provide feedback or add your own hitters!
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
John Olerud was lights out. Eric Chavez has a ton of hits. Polonco had a really nice run.
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
That's a good list.
Al Oliver is someone that the younger RZer's probbaly know very little to nothing about. He ended his career with over 2700 hits and .303 lifetime average. He played the bulk of his career with the Pirates and Rangers. One of the best line drive hitters I ever remember.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/O/Poliva001.htm
Mike "Hit Man" Easler
His career wasn't as long as Oliver and probably not as good. But still a very good hitter. His best days were with the Pirates and Red Sox.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/E/Peaslm001.htm
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Tom Servo
Cecil Cooper - Being only 23 years old, Cecil played before my time. I knew he was a former player but knew him simply as the Astros manager. I was pretty surprised to see what a good hitter he was, averaging an .851 OPS from 75-83 with a few Gold Gloves to his credit as well.
Here is a nice SI piece from back in 1980 about Cooper's great season being overshadowed by George Brett. cooper was one of my favorite players back then. His later stance was open with the bat resting easily and loose in his hands- I copied it for awhile. He and Ben Ogilive both put up amazing numbers in 1980 for the Brewers.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/aw...80.shtml#ALmvp
Quote:
Cooper's weird batting stance is patterned after that of another hard-hitting first baseman, Rod Carew. "It's the same swing, same everything. Mine is just opened up more," Cooper says. "Before I found this one, I used to go through three or four different stances a game."
Cooper, wiry-strong at 6'2" and 190 pounds, has one edge over Carew—power; he had 21 homers at the end of last week. But until this season he never had a Carew-like average because he relied too much on his hands and wrists when he was hitting. Pitchers knew Cooper could be had by high, inside deliveries. Now he has moved an extra six inches away from the plate, enabling him to get his bat around on the pitches that were once his weakness.
Not that that explains his extraordinary season. As Cooper readily admits, when you're hot, you're lucky. "Everything has just fallen into place," he says. "There have been days when I was feeling awful. I got hits. Once I got brushed back and the ball hit my bat and rolled past the pitcher toward short. It was a perfect bunt."
As for underrated, there is always Albert Belle though maybe overshadowed by himself might be a better term. Oddly I would also say Frank Thomas is somehow underrated.
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Bill Madlock
Dick Allen
Richie Zisk
Ted Simmons
Ken Singleton
Kent Hrbeck
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Quote:
Originally Posted by
klw
Here is a nice SI piece from back in 1980 about Cooper's great season being overshadowed by George Brett. cooper was one of my favorite players back then. His later stance was open with the bat resting easily and loose in his hands- I copied it for awhile. He and Ben Ogilive both put up amazing numbers in 1980 for the Brewers.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/aw...80.shtml#ALmvp
.
After Madlock, Cooper was the first to come to mind. His problem was playing in Milwaukee and not receiving a whole lot of notoriety other than the AL pennant winning team in 1982. He was a great hitter though.
I just met him at an Indianapolis Indians game a few weeks ago. Very nice and funny man.
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Mickey Vernon
Roy Sievers
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Richie Zisk and Al Oliver were two that came to mind for me, as well.
Also:
Tony Oliva
Richie Hebner
Chet Lemon
Amos Otis
Reggie Smith
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
The Evanses - Dwight and Darrell. Walk machines with power.
Paul Konerko has quietly put together a nice career.
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
I thought Carew was going to hit .400 in '77. You also should mention Wade Boggs. He may not be forgotten, but definitely underrated.
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Mike Greenwell. Career line of .303/.368/.463 and an OPS+ of 121 but out of MLB by age 33. His biggest crime is that he played LF for the Red Sox and had the misfortune of not being Ted Williams, Yaz, or Jim Rice.
How about our very own Dmitri Young?
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Bob Allison - 6000 ab's - .255/.358/.471/.829 OPS +127
Tony Olivia - 7000 ab's - .304/.353/.476/.830 OPS +131
Re: Underrated or Forgotten Hitters
Howard Johnson
Kevin McReynolds
Andy Van Slyke
Don Mattingly
Jack Clark