Absolutely. I mean I'd rather have his skillset at 2B, but he's not displacing Ackley, who's gonna be a monster, and sliding him to 3B is perfectly acceptable. Without regard to swing differences or handedness, I have Seager in the Todd Walker/Placido Polanco/Freddy Sanchez mold.
Walker: .290/.350/.435, .74 Eye, 36/4/13 per 162
Polanco: .302/.347/.409, .80 Eye, 31/3/10 per 162
Sanchez: .297/.335/.413, .43 Eye, 39/3/9 per 162
Their OPS+ numbers? 98 for all of em. That's what an approximate 100 OPS+ doubles hitter looks like, with a bit of a peak for the prime, which is what we'd have Seager under club control for.
So if Mattingly/Raines/Gwynn is the upper class of that division, and Walker/Polanco/Sanchez are the middle class...what's in between?
I include Brian Roberts as the ultimate version of that middle class, since he hits a few more homers while racking up doubles, but his decline phase should take him back to about where Walker and Polanco are.
I don't know that I would say there IS an upper-middle class. If you're a freak, then you're a borderline HOFer or better with that skillset. If you're not then you either start hitting HRs or you top out at Brian Roberts.
IMO, anyway.
I mean:
John Valentin - similar size and skillset, but hit 18 HRs per 162.
Orlando Hudson - firmly in the middle class of this batting type
Scott Hatteberg - 31/1/13, 101 OPS+. See Hudson, Orlando
Adam Kennedy is the bottom of this class with his 89 OPS+ career, because he just doesn't hit quite as many doubles as he needs to.
It's hard to hit > 40 doubles and
But it's a good, productive neighborhood to be in, whether at 2B or 3B. A perfect roleplayer-on-a-contender neighborhood...
~G
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