PERFECT GAME CROSSCHECKER'S TOP TEN LIST
WEEK 14: 4/7/08 - 4/13/08
 
HEAVY-HITTING CATCHERS
Thursday April 10, 2008
The 2008 major league season is barely a week old, but already a number of unlikely trends have been established. Who would have thought, for instance, that the Detroit Tigers, a favorite to win the World Series, would still be winless after seven games, or that the Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals, pegged by many to finish last in the American League East and Central, would have the AL’s best records at 6-1 and 6-2?

And who would have thought that two of the top three hitters to date are catchers? But Milwaukee’s Jason Kendall (.522) and the Chicago White Sox’ A.J. Pierzynski (.429) have been among the game’s hottest hitters in the early going.

That may not last as neither of the catchers has a recent track record of success at the plate, though Kendall is a career .297 hitter. But the fact that the Brewers have Kendall hitting in the No. 9 hole in the batting order—behind the pitcher’s spot, no less—is an indication that Kendall was signed more for his defense and leadership than for his bat.

History is also against a catcher being a dominant hitter over the course of a full season. Only three catchers have ever won batting titles—Cincinnati’s Bubbles Hargrave in 1926; Ernie Lombardi for Cincinnati in 1940 and the Boston Braves in 1942; and Minnesota’s Joe Mauer in 2006. The highest single-season average for a catcher with sufficient plate appearances to qualify for the batting crown is also only .362—held by the New York Yankees’ Bill Dickey in 1936 and tied by the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Mike Piazza in 1996.

Since the beginning of World War II, here are the 10 highest single-season batting averages posted by catchers:
 
Ranking Player, Team (Year) Batting Average
1 Mike Piazza, Los Angeles-NL (1997) .362
2 *Joe Mauer, Minnesota (2006) .347
3 Mike Piazza, Los Angeles-NL (1995) .346
4 Jorge Posada, New York-AL (2007) .338
5 Mike Piazza, Los Angeles-NL (1996) .336
6 Ivan Rodriguez, Detroit (2004) .334
7 Ted Simmons, St. Louis (1975) .332
  Ivan Rodriguez, Texas (1999) .332
9 Dave Nilsson, Milwaukee (1996) .331
10 *Ernie Lombardi, Boston-NL (1942) .330
* Won batting title
-- Allan Simpson Top Ten List Archives
MATUSZ, CROW LEAD STRIKEOUT RACE
Wednesday April 9, 2008
San Diego lefthander Brian Matusz and Missouri righthander Aaron Crow rank 1-2 among NCAA Division I strikeout leaders through games of last weekend. Matusz has fanned 71 in 52 innings, while Crow has struck out 67 in a similar number of innings.

Appropriately, the two pitchers rank 1-2 among the top college arms for this year’s draft. Both are projected to be selected in the first two or three picks overall.

Strikeouts—both the raw total and average per nine innings—are the one statistic at the college level that most commonly provides an accurate indication of a player’s professional worth, and that is the case this year. All but one player on the accompanying list of strikeout leaders is a junior and eligible for this year’s draft, and five of the 10 (actually 11) are projected to go in the top half of the first round.

Matusz (6-1, 1.57) and Crow (7-0, 0.69) have been dominant, as expected, but no pitcher has dominated the college ranks this season quite like Mississippi junior closer Scott Bittle, an unsigned 48th-round pick of the New York Yankees in last year’s draft. Bittle has gone 3-1, 1.27 with two saves for Ole Miss, but that doesn’t begin to tell the story of his dominance. In 35 innings, he has struck out 65—a nine-inning average of 16.79, best in the nation.

Following are the top 10 strikeout leaders in Division I through games of last weekend, with the projected round they’ll be selected in this year’s draft:
 
Ranking Player, Pos., School IP SO SO/9 IP Draft Status
1 Brian Matusz, lhp, San Diego 52 71 12.36 High 1st
2 Aaron Crow, rhp, Missouri 52 67 11.60 High 1st
3 Christian Friedrich, lhp, E. Kentucky 45 65 13.09 Mid 1st
4 Scott Bittle, rhp, Mississippi 34 64 16.79 4th-6th
5 Tanner Scheppers, rhp, Fresno State 45 64 12.89 High 1st
6 Wade Miley, lhp, SE Louisiana 54 64 10.61 2nd-3rd
7 Pat McAnaney, lhp, Virginia 50 62 11.09 6th-10th
8 *Kyle Blair, rhp, San Diego 43 61 12.86 Ineligible
9 Dan Hudson, rhp, Old Dominion 48 59 11.13 3rd-4th
10 Scott Gorgen, rhp, UC Irvine 51 58 10.17 3rd-4th
10 Shooter Hunt, rhp, Tulane 44 58 11.78 High 1st
* Freshman
-- Allan Simpson Top Ten List Archives