Best Angel Non-All-Star Seasons

by mattwelch on Jul 3, 2009 6:43 PM PDT Comment 13 comments

What were the best single seasons by Angels who didn't make the All-Star team? Here's a top 10 list, using Win Shares, with the guys who actually made the squad instead of them in parenthesis. "AA" in this chart is the number of Win Shares "above average," given the playing time of the Angel in question. "MVP" is where they finished in the MVP voting (all but Wally Joyner in 1991 was a top-16 finisher). And, as always when I do stuff like this, the Angel team seasons are pro-rated to 162 games, so that the impact-on-season playing field is leveled.

To give you an idea of what Win Share totals mean (or at least correspond to), here's a list of last year's AL leaders; basically anything above 30 puts you in the MVP conversation; 23-29 is All-Star material, 19-22 is a good regular player, 15-18 is a solid regular or spectacular reserve. Without further ado, and with hopes that it's readable:

G   AB   R  H   HR RBI SB/CS BB  BA   OBP  SLG OPS+ WS   AA MVP  
1) Tim Salmon, 1995 (Manny Ramirez, Paul O'Neill) 
143 537 111 177 34 105  5/5  91 .330 .429 .594 164 32.5  14   7
2) Bobby Grich, 1981 (Willie Randolph, Frank White)
100 352  56 107 22  61  2/4  40 .304 .378 .543 164 30.8  15  14
3) Tim Salmon, 1997 (Paul O'Neill)
157 582  95 172 33 129  9/12 95 .296 .394 .517 136 28.9  11   7
4) Doug DeCinces, 1982 (George Brett, Buddy Bell, Toby Harrah)
153 575  94 173 30  97  7/5  66 .301 .369 .548 149 27.5  11   3
5) Frank Robinson, 1973 (no DHs were selected)
147 534  85 142 30  97  1/1  82 .266 .372 .489 150 25.7  10  15
6) Orlando Cabrera, 2007 (Derek Jeter, Michael Young, Carlos Guillen)
155 638 101 192  8  86 20/4  44 .301 .345 .397  95 25.4   7  15
7) Wally Joyner, 1991 (Mark McGwire, Cecil Fielder, Rafael Palmeiro) 
143 551  79 166 21  96  2/0  52 .301 .360 .488 133 25.1   9
8) Brian Downing, 1982 (Rickey Henderson, Dave Winfield, Ben Oglive, Willie Wilson) 
158 623 109 175 28  84  2/1  86 .281 .368 .482 132 24.6   6  14
9) Vlad Guerrero, 2008 (Ichiro Suzuki, J.D. Drew)
143 541  85 164 27  91  5/3  51 .303 .365 .521 130 24.4   9  14      
10) Bobby Bonds, 1977 (Reggie Jackson, Ken Singleton, Richie Zisk)
158 592 103 156 37 115 41/18 74 .264 .342 .520 136 24.4   6  16

Win Shares has Toby Harrah slightly ahead of DeCinces in 1982, but with more playing time. Otherwise the top six on this list were the best in the league at their respective positions. Again, something to think about when people over-rely on All-Star game appointments in judging a player's career. Yeah, Bobby Grich only made six All-Star teams, but in 1981 he became the first second baseman to lead his league in home runs and slugging percentage since Rogers freaking Hornsby, so maybe don't bug me about his All-Star selections, mmmkay?

Poll

Weirdest thing about that list

Frank Robinson played for the Angels?

5 votes

There was a 3Bman within golfing distance of Doug DeCinces in 1982?

9 votes

Vladdie was really that good last year?

29 votes

B-b-b-b-ut Rod Carew's a HALL OF FAMER!

6 votes

Bobby Bonds played for the Angels?

7 votes

56 votes | Poll has closed

This Fan-Post is authored by an independent fan. Tell us what you think and how you feel.

0 recs | Comment 13 comments

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Comments

Vlad really turned it on after the break

It might be a little more indicative of how snubbed a player was by looking at his win shares at the all star break. In the first half, Vlad hit .286/.348/.483, still solid, but maybe not all star worthy. In the second half, he hit .330/.391/.580, which got him most of those win shares.
But still great work, very interesting

That'll only happen if that one prospect is the second coming of Christ and redemption for mankind can only be achieved by smacking many balls out of the yard.
-The Limey

by anaheim angels on Jul 3, 2009 10:32 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, I wouldn't call last year a "snub" for Vladdy

by mattwelch on Jul 4, 2009 4:51 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think Salmon was also a notoriously slow starter

Although he’s certainly one of the best players that nobody outside of southern California ever heard of.

by Nashdiesel on Jul 5, 2009 7:01 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Just a year ago

vlad was a potentially an all star. now he’s sucking. what a difference a year makes

Please get rid of Speier and Aybar. And Jepsen. R.I.P. Nick Adenhart, Marquis Cooper

by JoseGuillenSux on Jul 4, 2009 12:29 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

It's called an injury

It happens

by TheAntiSox on Jul 4, 2009 11:17 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

A year can make a big difference to an aging athlete.

I am the Iron Man

by 44FAN on Jul 4, 2009 12:23 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

all I know

is the older I get, the more often I get hurt and the loooonger it takes to heal.

This season just seems jinxed. If it can go wrong, it does

by Moondoggy on Jul 4, 2009 4:44 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You too??

I thought it was just me.

This getting old really sucks!!

by sothball on Jul 4, 2009 9:13 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I do recognize, however,

that it beats the most obvious alternative

This season just seems jinxed. If it can go wrong, it does

by Moondoggy on Jul 4, 2009 9:52 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Getting young?

We don't have a Bullpen. We have a Cowpen. Before we get to call it a Bullpen these guys gotta grow a pair.

by Stirrups on Jul 5, 2009 1:02 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

And Vladdy aged TWO YEARS this offseason.

I love this team.

by Downing Rules on Jul 6, 2009 8:32 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Before and After All-Star Game Splits

Comparing first half statistics with entire season statistics is like comparing apples to oranges. Several of the players on the list at the top of this posting did not have All-Star stats during the first half of the season. Bobby Grich in 1981 is one such example. In 1981 four players tied for the A.L. Home Run crown:

Bal Eddie Murray 22
Bos Dwight Evans 22
Cal Bobby Grich 22
Oak Tony Armas 22

That counts as a 0.25 home run title per player. If you consider a home run title to be four bases in 1981 the co-leaders got one base each. One is still better than zero (everybody else who did not tie for the home run lead). I have said it before and I will say it again: Bobby Grich had a better season in 1979 than he did in 1981. You cannot turn the Angels 110 game season in 1981 into a 162 game season. To do so would be fiction. Grich had 101 rbis in 1979, forty more than his 1981 total. Please don’t manufacture fourth dimension statistics.

According to BaseballReference.com the only other season that more than two players tied for the home run lead was the 1871 National Association:

Ath Levi Meyerle 4
Tro Lip Pike 4
Chi Fred Treacey (?) 4

I have no clue what the (?) after Fred Treacey’s name refers to. Perhaps the spelling?

An honorable mention goes to 1890. BaseballReference.com is apparently combining three leagues NL / AA / PL to get three home run co-leaders:

Bro Oyster Burns 13
NYG Mike Tieman 13
CHC Walt Wilmot 13

Perhaps “the world is your oyster” expression began with an Oyster Burns walk-off home run?

by Yetijuice on Jul 7, 2009 11:28 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

"You cannot turn the Angels 110 game season in 1981 into a 162 game season"

I can (and will!) if my aim is to measure a player’s proportionate impact on a given season. Which, in this case, it is.

That said, even though Win Shares gives Grich a great ‘81, it only beats ’79 by a nose, and I’ll take the Division Title mojo myself.

As for slow first halves and whatnot, you are correct about that in terms of figuring out how/why the selections are made (one useful thing would be counting first half of a year with the second half of the previous). But at the same time, my overall context for pointing this stuff out is the way people use All-Star selections as a proxy for Hall of Fame debates, in which case the seasonal notation is the currency we’re dealing with. (Also, I don’t feel like adding all those numbers up.)

by mattwelch on Jul 7, 2009 1:10 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs