Monday, October 27, 2008

Who's our homer hitter?

The Phils hit 214 HRs this season, second to the ChiSox' 235. The TBR's tied with Yankees for 9th with 180. Our beloved team finished 30th with 94. This post-season, the Rays bashed their way past the defending champs in the ALCS with 16 HRs in 7 games. The Phils are on a homer-binge, and seem poised for the big prize.

Now I realize you can be a good team and not hit a lot of homers. The Angels, for example, were 18th in home runs with 159, yet had a terrific season. But 18th means they hit more bombs than 12 other teams. And you can hit homers and be el-stinko. The Padres hit 154, good for 20th place. It should be noted that the MLB average is 163 HRs in 162 games. (q.v. here)

Back to the question: who's our homer hitter?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think the question is, "Can you construct a team based on several 15 - 20 hr, decent OBP hitters, without a big bopper?" Is so, how many do you need? Clearly, that is where we are heading unless we see some big changes via trades.

M.C. O'Connor said...

Who are our 15-20 guys? Rowand? Molina? Perhaps Lewis? Sandoval?

Lewis and Sandoval have no track record to show 15-20 HR power.

Rowand (106 HRs in 1001 games) and Molina (119 HRs in 1112 games) at least have shown that ability. Rowand is 30, Molina 33. I could see a "bounce-back" year for Rowand, but Molina I think has shown his peak value.

We are doomed.