Stat Speak: Wright in elite company at third

[cruzg24]

There are nearly 300 honored individuals in the plaque room at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. The first to play at least 1,000 games at third base and earn induction was Jimmy Collins in 1945. Collins played nearly 13 of his 14 seasons with both Boston teams (one from each league). By the time he was inducted into the Hall, 28 players, managers, executives and pioneers had already had their names and deeds etched onto plaques; those 28 included players at every spot on the diamond except third base.

Pie Traynor was the next third baseman to make the Hall of Fame. Traynor's induction in 1948 was then followed by Frank "Home Run" Baker gaining entrance in '55, Eddie Mathews being selected in '78 and Brooks Robinson earning his immortality five years after that. So as of 1983, five Major League third basemen had been deemed special enough to stand among the game's greatest.

In the past 28 years, four third basemen -- Mike Schmidt, George Brett, George Kell and Wade Boggs -- have been selected for induction. That's it for the hot corner: Of the nearly 300 players, managers, executives and pioneers to be called Hall of Famers, only nine were third basemen for at least 1,000 games.

ON WRIGHT PATH

The list below places David Wright's numbers in relation to his age (2010 was his age-27 season), indicates his rank among all third basemen through the same age season.

Stat Wright Rank All-time leader at 3B
H 1149 10th Freddie Lindstrom (1514)
R 639 9th George Davis (943)
2B 258 1st -
HR 169 9th Eddie Mathews (299)
RBI 664 5th George Davis (877)
XBH 443 4th Eddie Mathews (522)
AVG .305 13th Wade Boggs (.351)
OBP .383 9th John McGraw (.465)
SLG .516 4th Dick Allen (.554)

OPS+ 135 9th Dick Allen (163)
This small club will almost certainly gather a fair number of new members over the next couple of decades. One has to imagine that Ron Santo's obvious worthiness will, at some point, be acknowledged by enough members of the Veterans Committee to gain posthumous distinction. Chipper Jones, five years after he calls it quits, should glide into the Hall. Scott Rolen has certainly done enough to merit a serious conversation, and Alex Rodriguez, by the time his career is over, will have far surpassed 1,000 games at third (he's currently at 992) and perhaps have surpassed any number of all-time records (including those for home runs, RBIs and runs scored). And then there is the burgeoning case of David Wright, who in his first seven seasons has accomplished feats claimed by few.

In 2010, the Mets third baseman played in 157 games, compiled a 131 OPS+, hit 29 home runs, drove in 103 runs and was named to his fifth All-Star team. With that 131 OPS+ (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage, compared to the league, adjusted for ballpark), the best third baseman in Mets history became the fourth third baseman ever to have enough plate appearances to qualify for a batting title and put together at least a 120 OPS+ in six of his first seven seasons.

The other three are Baker, Mathews and Boggs, all Hall of Famers.

WRIGHT IN GOOD COMPANY
Below compares Wright's first seven seasons to those of the nine Hall of Famers with at least 1000 games at third base.

Player H R HR RBI OPS+
Jimmy Collins 1112 188 46 627 114
Frank Baker 1103 194 48 612 152
Pie Traynor 916 129 30 466 103
Eddie Mathews 1039 165 253 663 149
George Kell 940 161 18 349 109
Brooks Robinson 606 106 31 221 92
Mike Schmidt 810 158 190 552 138
George Brett 1082 211 74 460 130
Wade Boggs 1392 263 61 469 151
David Wright 1149 258 169 664 135

Wright's 2010 season increased his career totals to 1,149 hits, 258 doubles, 169 home runs, 664 RBIs, a .305 batting average, 135 OPS+, and 443 extra-base hits. Among third basemen over their first seven seasons, Wright ranks second in RBIs, extra-base hits and doubles, fourth in hits, 11th in runs, seventh in homers and sixth in slugging percentage.

My favorite player in sports and he is looking in a great position to make the Hall of Fame.

 

[Elite]

He certainly will be in the discussion when it's all said and done. He's been one of the few 3B to consistently play well. There simply aren't many out there at the position that can consistently put up numbers and it's know as an offensive position too.