I haven’t heard Jason Varitek get booed at Fenway this season yet. Maybe it has happened and I just missed it. I haven’t heard it yet though.
The thing is, Varitek has been sort of…horrible…in 2008.
For all the Red Sox fans detest Julio Lugo (and they DO), if I had to pick the weakest link on offense for the Red Sox this season, it would hands down be Jason Varitek.
Julio Lugo had actually greatly improved from 2007 (before his injury) and raised his batting average to .268 (not great but respectable) and his On Base Percentage to .355 (same, quasi respectable).
Jason Varitek is batting .214 (I believe this was the same battign Average Richie Sexson had when the M’s cut him loose) with an On Base Percentage of .304.
Before you get mad at me for pointing out the obvious or hating on a Boston Sports Deity, please understand that I hate when Red Sox fans complain about everyone on the team not batting .300 with 30 Home Runs and 100 RBI as much as the next guy.
I get that in baseball, everyone on a team cannot be a hybrid combination of Pete Rose and Babe Ruth. Believe me, I understand (if you listen to sports talk radio around here it is quite clear that a lot of Red Sox fans don’t).
But…
What I expect from Tek, at a minimum, is a .245 batting average and a .325 On Base Percentage.
Those are NOT lofty expectations.
Jason Varitek is a career .263 hitter. His Career On Base Percentage average is .346.
I don’t expect Varitek to be a power source or to hit 30 doubles a season or to have 90 RBIs a year or anything. I just want him to get on base enough to contribute to the offense.
In 99 games Varitek has scored 25 runs this season. He only has 69 hits. 32 RBI.
His career averages here?: 70 runs, 105 hits. 65 RBI.
The guy just isn’t carrying his weight offensively.
And he’s in a contract year.
For the first part of the season I just assumed it was a slow start. He would pick it up eventually. Then I thought maybe he really was just aging. His Numbers have dipped a little the last couple of years.
Today I read that he just filed for divorce.
I guess that could explain some of it.
I just hope that he either retires from playing after this season and stays with the Red Sox as a coach or that he re-signs with the Red Sox at severely reduced pay. Tek has made $46 million in his career with the Sox. And is getting paid a career high $11 million this season.
And I know, he is a leader and he brings a lot of intangibles to the clubhouse.
It just seems like a lost season when I have to hope that Francona will pinch hit for the Captain during a playoff hunt.
August 14, 2008 at 1:19 pm |
Varitek will be a hot commodity during the free agency season… but not for his offense, but for being a good defensive catcher in a barren position in the MLB. Face it, he’s on the down slope of his career and there are not may good options at catcher that the Sox can really afford. Sure his offensive numbers are the worse they’ve probably ever been, but we need his defensive, ability to call pitches, and him being a cornerstone in the club house. I hope the same that he stays with the Sox for the next 2-3 years or until we can develop Cash or another minor leaguer and is willing to take a reduction in pay.
August 14, 2008 at 2:39 pm |
Oh CT.
You are right in a few regards. But as far as catchers in baseball go, there ARE more quality options than you think:
Top 5 catchers in baseball this season:
1) Brian McCann – ATL
2) Joe Mauer – MIN
3) Russell Martin – LAD
4) Ryan Doumit – PIT
5) Geovany Soto – CHC
Do you notice a trend here? 4 of the top 5 are in the NL. Soto has the lowest Batting Average of the 5 at .285 and the lowest runs at 47 but he has the second most home runs at the postion with 18.
Rounding out the top 10 catchers in baseball:
6) A.J. Pierzynski – CHW
Chris Iannetta – COL
7) Bengie Molina – SF
9) Ivan Rodriguez – NYY
10) Yadier Molina – STL
Only 2 of the top 10 catchers in baseball are in the AL. The AL is a weak league for catchers. There are still plenty of quality catchers around.
Varitek’s stats have him ranked as the 33rd best catcher in baseball this season.
And yeah, I agree he is great with the pitchers and has all the intangibles.
But catcher is a position the Red Sox have not had to even think about for the last 12 years. That might change this winter.
I hope he comes back too…but not at $11 million and not for more than a 2 year contract.
August 14, 2008 at 9:16 pm |
Varitek’s intangibles, including team and pitching staff leadership, FAR outweigh his offensive production. IT’s fairly obvious the Sox should try to sign him as a coach when he retires as every pitcher who he has caught has said nothing but stellar things about his knowledge and developmental help to the pitchers. I don’t mind him hitting .200, sure it’s on average one hit every 5 at bats which sucks but I don’t really care. He can hit 9th and I like the Sox chances this year. They have put up an extremely large amount of runs in this series which obviously won’t be the norm and Texas’s pitching just blows, but still this team can and will put up runs. They are not going to start Cash over him and they are not going to bring up Kottaras(who I feel will be a great overall catcher in 2-3 years), so talking about it is kind of pointless. Sure it sucks he isn’t hitting bombs and producing like the rest of the team but I just don’t care. He is worth more to the staff and defensively. His offensive production was just a bonus when he was int he peak of his career.