Royals Catchers 2009 v 2010

by Bart41 on Aug 2, 2010 5:49 PM EDT

Just to further depress all of us that Kendall's getting everyday action and that we somehow chose the worst of 3 options this offseason (assuming there were only 3 options...) in giving Kendall the starting C job over Olivo and Buck, here's the 2009 and 2010 (projected) stats for our catchers. I'd say if anything, these are optimistic for 2010 because of the obvious wear on Kendall as he makes a run at the major league record for games caught.

The stats:

Offensively:

	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2009	72	162	32	8	31	99	6	3	30	167	0.270	0.310	0.504	0.814
2010 Projected	47	141	24	-	-	49	15	9	49	54	0.265	0.331	0.311	0.642
	(25)	(21)	(8)	(8)	(31)	(50)	9	6	19	(113)	-0.005	0.021	-0.193	-0.172

Defensively:

	PB	WP	SB	CS	CS%
2009	14	89	114	39	25%
2010 Projected	5	45	118	46	28%

So basically, we are MUCH worse off at the plate as we all probably knew, but we also probably overstated our disdain for the Buck/Olivo combination last season. Of all problems we had, getting a .270/.310/.504 out of the catching position wasn't exactly something that needed fixing. Of course, the other side of it is the MLB-leading 89 wild pitches thrown last season. This season's 33 are a little below the league average. I have no way to know how many of those are Olivo's, but from watching most of the games last year, I'd say a ton of them. There's no question we chose the worst of possible worlds with Kendall, but the atrocity that is his bat, especially in comparison to last year's production, is so egregiously one-sided, that no defensive contribution could really be relevant.

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I'll never figure out why John Buck was so hated.

I really disliked Olivo’s defense and Buck’s rag arm (Kendall’s arm has looked worse at times this year), but other than that, they were both at the upper end of the middle range for catcher offense. Yeah, the OBP was terrible, but the SLG more than made up for it.

by AxDxMx on Aug 2, 2010 7:39 PM EDT reply actions

It really saddens me

I recognized Buck’s deficiencies, but I couldn’t seem to get anyone on board with my “Buck teleports behind the plate” meme. Seriously, it seemed like you had to TRY to throw the ball away from Buck to get it past him, although he did have the occasional hiccup (all catchers do).

But Bucky really is fantastic at blocking balls in the dirt, even when they’re wild right or left too. Absolutely fantastic.

And now he’s hitting even better than last year (when he was above average). Breaks my heart.

I am now channeling Will McDonald's optimism.

by jonfmorse on Aug 2, 2010 8:18 PM EDT up reply actions

I dunno how true this is or not

but I imagine Buck’s status as part of the Beltran trade probably didn’t help him. Just a hunch, even though I’ve generally been a fan of his ever since he arrived in KC. Part of the reason I liked Buck more than Olivo was in part because I thought Buck’s noodle arm was more tolerable than Olivo’s awful defense.

As for Olivo, keep in mind that he has been playing half his games at Coors Field, and it definitely shows in his splits—at home, he’s hitting .389/.413/.678, and on the road, he’s hitting .202/.296/.336 (albeit in a slightly smaller sample size). Olivo’s road OPS is actually worse than Kendall’s season OPS.

Don’t take that previous paragraph as any kind of endorsement of Kendall—in fact, Kendall’s road OPS this year is a TPJ-esque .594. All I’m trying to say is that it is totally understandable to miss Olivo and Buck in light of the totally worthwhile display of veteranny grit we get this year, I think the far bigger mistake was in letting Buck go rather than Olivo.

by DarthYoshi on Aug 2, 2010 8:23 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah

I missed Kendall in the AS game too.. Buck was waaaay better that anyone gave him credit for.

Your killin me smalls....

by royalblue69 on Aug 2, 2010 8:04 PM EDT reply actions

OBP and Defense, baby!

by Tito42 on Aug 2, 2010 8:14 PM EDT reply actions

Any way to get a comparison

based on WAR?

-You play to win the game - Herm Edwards

by truebluetradition on Aug 2, 2010 9:28 PM EDT reply actions

Olivo, Buck, and Pena

combined for 2.0 WAR in 2009. Through 105 games, Kendall (1.2) and Pena (-0.2) have combined for 1.0 WAR (thus far) in 2010.

"Never get less than 12 hours sleep. Never play cards with a guy who's got the same first name as as city. And never go near a lady who's got a tattoo of a dagger on her body. Now you stick with that, and everything else is cream cheese." -Coach Bobby Finstock

by Sweep_the_Leg on Aug 2, 2010 10:40 PM EDT up reply actions