Which Was Worse?
May 20, 2008The Ball’s In Your Court, Mr. Ferry
May 20, 2008Not all that long ago, we did a post on the Mets’ Ryan Church who is currently mashing with the best of them. Not many remembered Church even being a part of the Tribe, and when you consider the .236 team batting average – tied for second-worst in all of baseball – it stings a bit to see former outfielders of ours doing so well.
Enter Ryan Ludwick.
Ludwick was brought to Cleveland back in 2002 in a trade for Shane Spencer. He played for the Tribe between the years of 2003 and 2005, maxing out at 39 games played in a season. Ludwick was granted free agency in 2005 where he had a brief stint with the Tigers. He then floated about Triple-A, and now plays for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Oh, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that he is currently hitting at a clip of .350/.427/.772 through 123 at-bats. Yep, that’s an OPS of 1.199…
Known more for his pinch-hitting role, Ludwick is fresh off of a three-game stint in which he has gone 6-for-11 with four home runs, five runs scored, and seven RBI. He now has 12 home runs on the season, the fifth highest total in the National League, despite having 50 fewer at-bats than anyone above him.
The great VivaElBirdo’s has donned Ludwick with nicknamessuch as “Glovewick,” “Studwick,” and “Thudwick.” He’s entered into the All-Star talks, and currently has one of the best VORP rates in all of the MLB.
And he used to be an Indian.
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2 Comments
I’ve been seeing him on SportsCenter highlights recently and cringing. But honestly, I feel a lot like I do about Brandon Phillips with Ludwick…..The Indians gave him a good look, and he never showed ANYTHING that would make us think he was ever going to have a season like this. Too bad, though.
Just goes to show why evaluating talent in baseball is far more difficult than any of the other major sports.