Add new comment

NO ONE hit 500 doubles and 300 HRs from age 27 on...except Edgar Martinez.  Only one other person in history did, that, BTW.
NO ONE had a straight decade of 200+ hit seasons...except Ichiro.
Strange things happen.  Strange careers happen.  I agree with you, it's not the percentage play, but when you see an Ichiro play you can either say, "Man, that's a low percentage skillset for success, I should go with Chone Figgins as my leadoff man" or you can say, "If ANYONE can make that skillset into a world-beater, it's this guy."
I agree with you, if it's me I'd like a higher-percentage success rate if someone will give it to me for my volatile but highly-promising new CF.
If they don't...then they don't, and I run that kid out there because he's still got more upside and more chance of hitting that upside than Michael Saunders or Greg Halman, and Guti is dying on the vine as we speak.
Besides, what are you gonna say if he drops his Ks from 25% to 22% and all of a sudden tears up the league? "See, I told you he had to do that?"
I don't think Jack would argue with you that 22% is better than 25% in K rate, and that optimally Trayvon would get back to 22% or lower as he progresses in his career.
And he'd probably even say that he's betting Travon WILL.
~G