It's not common but there are definitely players who have had some of, even most of, their best seasons over the age of 35. This not a prediction he will but just acknowledging the fact that it is very possible.Originally Posted by bullseye
It's not common but there are definitely players who have had some of, even most of, their best seasons over the age of 35. This not a prediction he will but just acknowledging the fact that it is very possible.
Scott Rolen put up some decent numbers at an old age. I remember Eddie Murray had some good numbers at his older years. It can happen but it isn't common.
At 37 Murray hit 27 homers and had 100 RBI's.
Looking through some numbers Scott Hatteberg, Steve Finley, Ken Caminiti and Darrell Evans all had most of their best years with the latter 3 having all-star seasons after 34-35.
Lewdog (02-25-2014)
I'm not saying you are wrong, but Ludwick is no Rolen or Eddie Murray.
I'm hoping for the best though.
bullseye (02-28-2014)
I think he will be respectable at the plate. Maybe a .265 with 20 jacks..
If he stays healthy I think he'll be fine. The big question is will he? I have some doubts.
I'm more concerned about the Ludwick/LF/middle of the order situation than I am about the Hamilton/CF/lead off situation.
We'll see.
Old school 1983 (03-02-2014)
We have question marks in LF, CF, 3B, SS and C.
I'm personally pretty optimistic about Hamilton, Mez and (to a certain extent) Cozart. I think all 3 of those guys will end up hitting more than most are projecting. Combined with strong defense, I think all 3 end up being above average overall.
LF is the one spot I am most worried about just because the offensive numbers we need from the position (and the league averages) are way higher than the other 3 spots and I just don't get a great feeling about any of the potential options. A guy like Cozart can put up an OPS in the low 700s and still help, but f we are getting low 700s out of LF, that is a major issue.
3B is kind of the wild card to me. I don't feel good or bad about Frazier, but I have a gut feeling he is either going to bounce back in a big way or struggle mightily with no in-between. If he is a legit middle of the order option like 2012, the whole lineup looks so much better.
Old school 1983 (03-04-2014),Wishbone C (03-04-2014)
Hamilton I am comfortable with. He wants to learn and is willing to change his approach, unlike Stubbs, when needed. Cozart, Frazier, and Mes are huge concerns. Just haven't seen any adjustments by those 3 over the past year to address their shortcomings. I think they try hard, but just seem stuck to their old habits.
Cozart and Mez have some reason for optimism. I don't expect either to be hitting in the middle of the order or anything, but you don't necessarily need that from your C or your SS. Especially a guy like Cozart who is good with the glove. You just want those guys to get on base a decent amount and hit 15 homers or so. I think both are capable of doing that.
Cozart had an OPS of .715 the 2nd half of the season in 2013. That is above average for SS.
With Mez, there's nothing stats based to hang your hat on, more of a gut fell. But he was a guy who always seemed to take a step back when he jumped up a level in the minors and then followed that up with a huge year once he got comfortable at that level. With some at bats under his belt and the job fully his, I think we should see a nice bump in his numbers.
Frazier, who knows? Ideally, you would like to get pretty good power production from your 3B. Frazier improved a good deal in the field in 2013, which was nice and he's a great locker room guy. But he really regressed at the plate and his power fell off big time. He went from a .500 SLG to a .400 slugger last season. If he stays at that level, he's going to be a below average starting 3B. If he could at least land in the middle of his 2012 and 2013 numbers and bounce back to .450 or so, I think he'd be a great every day option at 3rd.
Can Todd bounce back to .450 SLG? His minor league numbers were always .450 or above, so it isn't unrealistic. Though a lot of guys obviously can't translate that production to the majors over the long term. He could really go either way...
Old school 1983 (03-10-2014)
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