By Brian Waller - AngelsWin.com Columnist
For
years Howie Kendrick was touted as a future batting champ and
rightfully so, Kendrick did hit at least .360 at every level of the
minors. That promise however, never seemed
to materialize at the major league level. The reason you ask? Hard to
say, injuries have certainly played a role. Kendrick has also just been
flat out inconsistent at times. Whatever the reason though, the stars
seem to finally be aligning for him as he appears
poised to have a breakout season for the Angels in 2012. One might
argue though that Kendrick’s 2011 season could be classified as a
“breakout” campaign:
2011
AVG. HR RBI’s R’s 2B’s 3B’s SB’s OBP. SLG. OPS.
.285
18 63
86 30 6 14
.338 .464
.802
*Career High
My
next sentence will probably be heavily scrutinized but I’m ok with
that, it sparks conversation and debate. You guys ready for this…At 28
years old, Kendrick is well on his way to becoming
one of the greatest second baseman in Angels franchise history. I know,
I know, its blasphemy to compare any second baseman in Angels history
with the great Bobby Grich. I realize there are some of you right now
actually laughing out loud and others may have
quit reading all together but my claim does have merit! When you think
of great second baseman in Angels’ history, who comes to mind? Grich of
course, some may say Adam Kennedy, others might throw out Johnny Ray,
Bobby Knoop, Jerry Remy, Luis Sojo, or Damion
Easley as an honorable mention. The Angels have been around for over 50
years so fans certainly have options. For the purpose of this piece
however I am going to focus on the three most productive second baseman
ever to wear an Angels uniform; Kennedy, Grich
and Kendrick and discuss how Kendrick compares with them. Below you
will notice each player is listed, along with their stats and their
accomplishments while with the Angels. Let’s start by taking a look at
Kennedy:
Adam Kennedy
7 seasons 2000-2006
AVG. G HR RBI’s SB’s OBP. SLG. Fielding %.
.280 992 51 353 123 .334 .398 .983
*2002 World Series Champion
*2002ALCS MVP
Some
of you might remember that Adam Kennedy was traded from the St. Louis
Cardinals to the Angels along with Kent Bottenfield in exchange for Jim
Edmonds before the start of the 2000 season. Bottenfield was
coming off of an 18 win season and the Angels were looking for him to
solidify the rotation. He of course never came remotely close to18 wins
again and could be described as mediocre at-best for the remainder of
his career. Although Kennedy had success in
the minor leagues I honestly didn’t expect much from him moving
forward. I’m very glad to say I was wrong. Losing a player the caliber
of Edmonds is never easy, especially watching him go on to win multiple
gold gloves and make numerous All-Star game appearances
while playing for the Cardinals. The acquisition of Kennedy was
important though because Kennedy turned into something the Angels had
been lacking since Grich’s playing days, a regular everyday second
baseman. His career stat line is not staggering but it
is respectable. Kennedy was never meant to be the big bopper in the
line-up; he provided a quality glove and was a capable situational
hitter. Kennedy will always be associated with the World Champion 2002
team and will go down in Angels’ lore as the man who
clubbed not one, not two, but three home runs in Game 5 of the 2005
ALCS. On a side note, to this day I remember driving with my wife on the
57 freeway hearing the call on the radio that Kennedy had just crushed
his third home run of the game; she actually
made me get off the freeway and pull into in a Carls Jr. parking lot
because she claimed I was “freaking” out and going to wind up crashing.
You guys remember where you were? Good time… sorry, back on
topic…Kennedy was never selected to an All-Star team nor
did he receive individual awards during his time with the Angels but he
has one thing Grich and Kendrick don’t have, a World Series ring.
Bobby Grich
10 seasons 1977-1986
AVG. G HR RBI’s SB’s OBP. SLG. Fielding %.
.269 1,222 154 557 27 .370 .436 .984
*Selected to the AL All-Star Team in 1979, 1980, 1982
*Led league in HR in 1981
*First player selected to Angels HOF in 1996
*Made it to the ALCS in 1979, 1982 and 1986
Grich
not only is one of the greatest Angels’ second basemen of all time, he
is one of the greatest Angels period. I did not count any of Grich’s
stats from his years with the Baltimore
Orioles and as impressive as they are, I didn’t take into consideration
the four consecutive gold gloves he won pre-Angels from 1973-1976.
Grich could easily be described as fearless and hardnosed and a case can
certainly be made that he was the heart and
soul of the Angels’ during his playing days. During his time with the
club, Grich was selected to numerous All-Star teams and helped lead the
Angels to the ALCS on three different occasions. Although a World Series
trip always seemed to elude Grich, his gritty
style of play endeared him to Angel fans, so much so that in 1996 he
became the first player inducted into the franchise’s hall of fame.
Howie Kendrick
6 seasons 2006-Present
AVG. G HR RBI’s SB’s OBP. SLG. Fielding %.
.292 655 50 305 61 .329 .434 .988
*2011 All-Star
Great
things have always been expected from Howie Kendrick. Perhaps in
hindsight those expectations were a little too lofty as it seems he has
never been able to live up to them. Kendrick
has played 337 less games with the Angels than Kennedy yet his numbers
are fairly comparable already. When compared to Grich, there is a bit
more of a discrepancy when looking at the numbers due to Grich playing
567 more games. I was interested though in how
the two would compare at the end of Kendrick’s current contract with
the team so I estimated the next four seasons:
(Estimated totals for the next 4 seasons – 2012-2015)
AVG. G HR RBI’s SB’s OBP. SLG. Fielding %.
.292 596 56 276 56 .329 .434 .988
I
didn’t just randomly pull numbers out of a hat when I put together the
above stat line although it probably would have been easier; I averaged
the totals from Kendrick’s previous six
seasons, forecasted those numbers over a four year period and then
added them to get the above totals. When you add his estimated totals to
his current career numbers you get the below stats:
(Estimated career totals at the end of contract – 10 seasons 2006-2015)
AVG. G HR RBI’s SB’s OBP. SLG. Fielding %.
.292 1251 106 581 117 .329 .434 .988
As
you can see at the end of his current contract, Kendrick’s estimated
totals compare nicely with Grich’s. Keep in mind, the above numbers are
pre-Albert Pujols, his performance should
improve with Pujols batting behind him in the line-up. I honestly
believe Kendrick turned the corner last season, he was able to stay
fairly healthy and as I discussed previously he had career highs in
multiple offensive categories. Hitting in front of Pujols
should allow him to continue to improve and at the end of his contract,
I personally think his actual numbers will be higher than the estimated
numbers shown above and Kendrick will surpass Grich in every category
except OBP.
I
was one of those fans that went into every season hoping, praying and
expecting Kendrick to finally turn into the batting champ we were
promised by the scouts when he first came up.
Ok, maybe I wasn’t actually praying for it but I have always had pretty
high expectations for him. Every year I was disappointed when the end
of the year stats didn’t match the hype. I finally came to the
realization that Kendrick may never get a batting title
and that will be ok because he is turning into one of the most
productive second basemen in the game today and has the potential to go
down as one of the best Angels second basemen in the history of the
franchise.
I
realize when trying to gauge a players greatness you can’t simply go by
stats. Grich may have not hit as many home runs as some of his
teammates during his playing days but his determination,
hard style of play and dedication to the team made him more valuable
than any stat category can show and in my opinion, that sets him apart
from most other Angels. Although I just spent about 1,500 words doing
it, I realize it’s not fair to compare Kendrick
with Grich at this point in his career. Kendrick is entering his prime
and I firmly believe that he is poised for greatness in an Angels’
uniform. He has a ways to go to match Grich in the intangibles category
but he is well on his way and although he may
never become the batting champion he was touted to be the future is
still very bright.