Juan Gonzalez

[Jack of Arcades]

His first four seasons (1991-1994) were better than Albert's...

[siccjay]

[ QUOTE ]


is this a joke?.....Frank Thomas may be the best player in baseball after Barry Bonds over the last 15 years....

[/ QUOTE ]

lmao

I like Frank but come on.

[Jack of Arcades]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]


is this a joke?.....Frank Thomas may be the best player in baseball after Barry Bonds over the last 15 years....

[/ QUOTE ]

lmao

I like Frank but come on.

[/ QUOTE ]

Uh, no, it's not a joke, especially if we're talking about position players only. His competition from 1990 to present day is essentially, uh, Larkin, Alomar, and Griffey. They all edge him in career value, but only Griffey is still around - and he's not doing much - and Thomas's peak is better than theirs.

[Uston]

His competition from 1990 to present day is essentially, uh, Larkin, Alomar, and Griffey.

You rate Larkin higher than Biggio? Assuming this isn't an oversight I'd like to hear why.

[samjjones]

Larkin finished in the top 10 in MVP voting twice in his 19 year career. He has 2300 hits, and didn't even hit .300 for his career. I don't see him getting in until he reaches the veterans ballot.

[Jack of Arcades]

[ QUOTE ]
His competition from 1990 to present day is essentially, uh, Larkin, Alomar, and Griffey.

You rate Larkin higher than Biggio? Assuming this isn't an oversight I'd like to hear why.

[/ QUOTE ]

1) Larkin was a shortstop; Biggio was a 2B. Shortstops, on average, don't hit as well - yet, Larkin was a better hitter than Biggio.
2) Larkin was a wizard defensively; Biggio, well, Biggio was a fine second basemen, but he wasn't a wizard.
3) Larkin's best years stack up very well against Biggio's best; Biggio, even in playing more games, doesn't yet have the career value of Larkin...

Larkin = 7th best SS of all time (Behind Honus, Arky, A-Rod, Cal, Yount, and Banks). Two of the guys in front of him had SIGNIFICANT time at other positions (Yount, CF. Banks actually played more games at first than short). Cal, we know. A-Rod might end up spending a large amount of time at 3B. Larkin is actually one of the leaders at games played at short, I think...

[Jack of Arcades]

[ QUOTE ]
Larkin finished in the top 10 in MVP voting twice in his 19 year career. He has 2300 hits, and didn't even hit .300 for his career. I don't see him getting in until he reaches the veterans ballot.

[/ QUOTE ]

"Larkin finished in the top 10 in MVP voting twice in his 19 year career." What the [censored] kinda of sentence is that? He also finished in the top ONE in MVP voting once in his 19 year career. It also happens that despite the fact that Barry Larkin kicked total [censored] ass, the Reds won the division twice during his career - in 1990 and 1995. Oh boy, guess what? Those were the years he was in the top 10! What a [censored] coincidence.

"He didn't even hit .300 for his career" - yeah, how many shortstops have? I can think of, like, three. Honus, Arky, and Boudreau. Who am I missing?

Larkin should be a goddamned lock. It's a travesty he isn't.