Robby Cano as 2B for 10 years?
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During the Angels' broadcast yesterday, Robinson Cano posted an attention-grabbing public service announcement. An Angels' caster asked him when he was going to be ready to move over to 1B or DH. I signed a 10-year contract TO PLAY SECOND BASE, Cano informed us all.
At SSI we had been wondering whether the transition would begin this year in spots, and that was before Dee Gordon came over from the NL. Cano has six (6) more years on his Seattle deal, and he's 35 now. The thought of Cano playing 2B next year was already rather alarming, and here we are talking about Cano at second six more years.
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The next play, a left hand batter came up and the Mariners shifted, as the M's are wont to do. (The impression at Fangraphs are that the Mariners are still hicks, obviously uninformed compared to, say, Fangraphs readers. Bill James posted a Twitter poll the other day: How many Havard graduates are smarter than you are? The top answer was "maybe 25%," and the second answer was the next-most-arrogant reply "half," with these two answers totalling 60%. Meaning James' readers as a group consider themselves smarter than the average Harvard graduate. Scary thing is, that's possibly true.)
Back to topic: fans in other cities don't realize it, but the M's are cutting-edge in Dipoto's analytical department and incidentally, the M's are at or near the top of the league in shifts. Just as the announcer informed us that Cano was 2B to stay, a shift appeared on the TV screen. (Fangraphs gives a mere +2.5 runs positional adjustment for 2B, suggesting already that perhaps the position isn't critical defensively. Dr. D wonders whether this number -- which Fangraphs arbitrarily changes every few years -- will continue to drop for 2B's, as the impact of shifts grows ever higher.)
Dr. D hasn't looked at it statistically, but ... how much could a 2B's range possibly matter here? If there are players 10 yards to his right and left, how often does a "marginal" ball come into play? I'll bet a few of you guys could play a little 2B, 5 yards back on the grass, with players standing a few yards to your R and L.
So with 30% of hitters being left handed, and many other plays limiting the relevance of the 2B's range (such as when Juan Gonzalez comes up), could 2B be the new 1B/LF? The place you "hide" an aging veteran?
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Robby Cano has a cannon arm for a 2B, allowing him to play deep. He has soft hands and an excellent turn; I'll bet you he fires DP's out by an eyelash, that a 2B with a weaker arm cannot. He is known for his range up the middle; he can charge over like a linebacker, swirl, and laser-shot the runner down from well behind 2B.
Fangraphs had Cano rated solidly plus the last two years, at +4 runs saved compared to the average second baseman. Dewan had him at -4 runs last year but +7 the year before.
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Obviously if you can get a MOTO hitter playing up the middle, you benefit from the "position scarcity." You already have your 2B Yahtzee slot filled and your #3 lineup Yahtzee slot filled, and you haven't even touched your 1B or DH or LF. At times it can almost play like having two DH's.
Anyway, I guess our 2B position is set for years here. I didn't expect that, but ... Cano is already well on-par comparing to other players already in the Hall:
- HOF Monitor = 155 of 100 (likely HOF'er)
- Hall of Fame Standards = 46 of 50 (avg HOF'er)
Robby is already the 8th-best career second baseman, and 35 is reasonably young for a first ballot HOF'er. Sometimes we look over there and forget about our mini-Edgar on the infield.
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ZEN BEAUTIFIC, Dept.
We used a word last year to describe Cano that Blowers picked up on: UNHURRIED. The first law of aikido is to relax, don't hurry, mirror your opponent's speed without effort. Ichiro was that way too. You bang a ground ball at Cano, he's got it covered, and he's not rushing. He moves quickly without hecticness. It's very Zen.
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Just so's y' don't hafta check: Robby is .333/.333/.455 to start the camp, and had the GWRBI against the pesky rodent Angels Sunday. We'll relish it in the game notes.
Enjoy,
Dr D