Rays shortstop
RAYS SHORTSTOP FULL
The current Twins skipper played in less than a full season's worth of games for the Rays as the franchise turned around through his age 23 to 26 seasons before departing for Boston, perhaps the biggest "what if" story in Tampa sports.īaldelli was on-and-off the disabled list throughout his tenure due to complications from a rare muscular and metabolic disorder and he retired at age-29. Through the first 81 games of their career, Wander Franco finished second on the Rays all-time hit list, at 100 hits, ten ahead of Akiniori Iwamura and just one behind the aforementioned Baldelli. in WAR by 1.3 (and still accumulating), destroys him in rBat, already leads him in home runs, likely will reach him in doubles and, barring a slump, will lead him in batting average, OPS, OPS+, SLG and on-base by a significant margin.Īlso on the list is the Woonsocket Rocket, Rocco Baldelli, who was a more refined hitter at an earlier age than Crawford, though he lacked the defense and baserunning prowess that Crawford provided that made Crawford the overall better player when the two arrived in the majors around the same time. The Rays have already committed more than that to Franco after just seventy games at the industry's highest echelon, rewarding him with the most extravagant contract in franchise history.įranco, through age, leads C.C. He's the best player on that list, a five-tool left fielder who'd become a four-time MLB All-Star and make approximately $170MM. The chart includes Carl Crawford, the first homegrown superstar to take the Tampa Bay area by storm-the 'Perfect Storm' as Rays fans christened him in 2003-who played in well over a full season for Tampa before his 22nd birthday. It's evident that there's something special. Franco is surpassing that pace still a long way from his prime. The median Hall of Famer averages five WAR shares per 162, or the equivalent of a full-season in the Major Leagues. Franco, considered a prodigy by many, is on-pace to have an eight win share via BBRef's WAR calculations. The above chart that I tweeted out, via StatHead, compares the five rookie sensations. UyHzWTPgKL- Jameus Mooney April 23, 2022 He’s by far the best-and he’s 21 the rest of the season. There are five Rays to play at least 81 games before the age of 22, including Carl Crawford, who played 214 games, and Delmon Young, who played in 192 games.įranco, so far, has accrued more value than all of them.īut here’s how #Rays Wander Franco, in just 83 games, fares against other Tampa players with at least 81 games played through their age 21 seasons. Franco turned 21 in March, meaning he'll be 21 the rest of the season.
![rays shortstop rays shortstop](https://sportshub.cbsistatic.com/i/r/2022/05/31/5a63ccef-c046-4d59-8616-3ee7b16fddc1/thumbnail/770x433/3e51b17ac65b40c0ff0ed74b43250d45/getty-images-wander-franco-rays.jpg)
But to put it into perspective, it's historic.
![rays shortstop rays shortstop](https://calltothepen.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/135/files/2013/12/6057854.jpg)
It's easy to get lost in what Wander Franco has done at the time of this being written, over his first 83 games.