
The St. Louis Cardinals have a wunderkind in their center fielder and the baseball world is taking notice. Will he win the Rookie of the Year for the NL?
The St. Louis Cardinals might have found themselves back in the race in the NL-Central, but the Atlanta Braves have battled themselves to the top the entire season. The Braves push was made easier by the addition of their own wunderkind in the form of Ronald Acuna, Jr.
Acuna has taken MLB by storm this season through impressive play all around. His batting line is outstanding at .289/.359/.570 with a .929 OPS. Just imagine how good the St. Louis Cardinals would be if Bader was slashing the same numbers!
Adding to his ROY campaign, Acuna is carrying a 3.9 WAR– the same as Bader.
Acuna’s range, speed, and fielding percentages pale in comparison to the St. Louis Cardinals center fielder, but remain respectable. Have a look:
Year | Age | Tm | Pos | Lg | G | GS | CG | Inn | Ch | PO | A | E | DP | Fld% | Rtot | Rdrs | Rtot/yr | Rdrs/yr | RF/9 | RF/G | lgFld% | lgRF9 | lgRFG | Awards |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | 20 | ATL | OF | NL | 86 | 85 | 75 | 744.0 | 148 | 142 | 3 | 3 | 0 | .980 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 1.75 | 1.69 | .986 | 2.09 | 2.09 | |
2018 | 20 | ATL | LF | NL | 80 | 75 | 70 | 660.1 | 114 | 109 | 2 | 3 | 0 | .974 | -4 | 1 | -7 | 2 | 1.51 | 1.39 | .987 | 1.86 | 1.86 | |
2018 | 20 | ATL | CF | NL | 11 | 7 | 3 | 61.2 | 24 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2 | 4 | 38 | 76 | 3.50 | 2.18 | .986 | 2.47 | 2.45 | |
2018 | 20 | ATL | RF | NL | 3 | 3 | 2 | 22.0 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2 | 2 | 97 | 115 | 4.09 | 3.33 | .984 | 1.96 | 1.97 | |
2018 | 20 | ATL | DH | NL | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
1 Season | OF | 86 | 85 | 75 | 744.0 | 148 | 142 | 3 | 3 | 0 | .980 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 1.75 | 1.69 | .986 | 2.09 | 2.09 | ||||
1 Season | LF | 80 | 75 | 70 | 660.1 | 114 | 109 | 2 | 3 | 0 | .974 | -4 | 1 | -7 | 1 | 1.51 | 1.39 | .987 | 1.86 | 1.86 | ||||
1 Season | CF | 11 | 7 | 3 | 61.2 | 24 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2 | 4 | 38 | 77 | 3.50 | 2.18 | .986 | 2.47 | 2.45 | ||||
1 Season | RF | 3 | 3 | 2 | 22.0 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 2 | 2 | 97 | 109 | 4.09 | 3.33 | .984 | 1.96 | 1.97 | ||||
1 Season | DH | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
1 Season | TOT | 86 | 85 | 75 | 744.0 | 148 | 142 | 3 | 3 | 0 | .980 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 1.75 | 1.69 | .986 | 2.09 | 2.09 |
Remember that Bader has a .993 fielding percentage with a 2.97 RF/9 in CF.
What stands out to me in the comparison between Acuna and Bader (actually between Bader and any of his competition) is the fact that Acuna is four runs below average at his position while Bader is an impressive 10 runs above average at his position.
Bader is clearly the defensive value that should be exemplified by the Rookie of the Year.