Studs and Duds: Jake Peavy, Bryce Harper, and Tim Lincecum Only Getting Runner-Up Honors
For this week’s Studs and Duds I wanted to start out a little different. I’m going to give you three players’ lines over the past week. Then, I’ll give you their teams’ records during that stretch (for the Studs). From there, we’ll break the players down and their value – or lack thereof in the case of the Duds – to come up with the Stud of the Week and the Dud of the Week.
First, as always, let’s start out with the studs. Last week we saw some familiar faces making strides. we also saw some new faces. Yesterday, Bryce Harper made his Major League debut by going 1 for 3 with an RBI and a double. Tim Lincecum bounced back with two straight wins. Jake Peavy tossed eighteen innings in the week and gave up just one run. The studs were a plenty this past week, but we’ll focus on three players. Here are their lines:
Player 1: 7 for 20, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 5 R (Team Record: 3-3)
Player 2: 8 for 21, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 6 R (Team Record: 4-2)
Player 3: 8 for 20, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 3 R (Team Record: 2-3)
Factoring in the performances AND the team records, player two seems to be the clear choice here. His 8 for 21 is good enough for a .380 batting average. His 3 HR led the three players considered, and his 9 RBI blew everyone out of the water. Then there’s the team record. His team went 4-2 last week, is now 16-5, and they own the best record in baseball.
Josh Hamilton is our Stud of the Week. Despite his tumultuous offseason and his contract negotiations, Hamilton has managed to start the year out on fire. Last week simply capped things off. And the Rangers weren’t playing cupcake teams either. They played the Tigers, Yankees, and Rays during the week.
So who are the other two players. Neither should surprise anyone. Player 1 is Matt Kemp. He has been the best player in baseball – hands down – all year long. He looks like a man on a mission to avenge his MVP snubbing from last season. His Dodgers are 15-6, sitting on the second best record in baseball. Player 3 is Derek Jeter. While Jeter doesn’t have the power of the other two, he has started this season perhaps better than any season he’s started before. Jeter is currently hitting .400 in his last seven days, he’s hitting .386 on the season, and he’s already collected 34 hits. His Yankees though went 2-3 during the week which helped bump Jeter out of the running.
The first month of the season has seen some of the most exciting performances in recent memory. However, the struggles of some big name players have been even more surprising.
Player 1: 4 for 25, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 5 R
Player 2: 3 for 21, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R
Player 3: 3 for 23, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1 R
Each of the three players on the duds list are All-Stars. They’ve all shown an ability to put up gaudy numbers. However, this year, and this week specifically, these players have struggles. Player 3 is one of the greatest players in history, the greatest player in a generation, and has not been able to find his swing with his new team.
Albert Pujols has not hit a home run all season long – the longest drought of his career. He has seen his average
drop from .296 on 4/19 to .226 after yesterday’s game. His Angels are sitting 7-14 and in dead last in the American League West. His struggles over the last week make Pujols the clear Dud of the Week. Back-to-back weeks on the Dud list is not something any future Hall of Famer strives for, but Pujols has left me little choice but to pick him again. (And I am admittedly a Pujols apologist)
Player 1, Jose Bautista, can’t seem to find his stroke despite the Blue Jays successes so far this year. He has just three home runs on the season including the one hit this week. Player 2, Ben Zobrist, has not been quite the caliber of the other players on this list. He has been successful in his career, though. This season, Zobrist has struggled mightily at the plate. Luckily for the Rays and Zobrist, he has been able to draw walks. His OBP is .337 so far this year.
There are plenty of players who could make the (dis)honorable mention list for Duds of the Week. Too many to list in fact. But discuss it among yourselves. Who did I forget? Who had a great performance? Who had an epically bad performance?
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