When it comes to people in the public eye, we often hear that certain ones are "polarizing figures", meaning that people become drawn to one of two very opposing opinions, like shards of steel to a bar magnet. Bill was one such figure, so was Newt, and Hillary still is. 43 is probably the most current example, with Mr. Delay gaining ground at a rapid rate.
And it seems as if in Philadelphia there is another very polarizing figure. No, I'm not referring to Mayor Street (thankfully, living in the Old Dominion, I am spared of his antics, but worry not, we have our own with which to deal).
I'm referring to Bobby Abreu, right-fielder for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Depending on who you choose to consult, Abreu is either one of the best all-around baseball players in the game today, or, he is a slacker, interested only in padding his individual numbers rather than team win totals.
Supporters of Abreu will point to the fact that in 2004, he had the fifth-most win shares in all of baseball. Similarly, others will point to the fact that over his career, extrapolating out to a hypothetical 162 game-average, Abreu presents a batting average over .300, 23 HR's, 94 RBI, and 29 SB, with a overall career 140 OPS+ (OPS+ is a scale, with 100 being the league average, and so Abreu's OPS is typically 40% better than the league average). Additionally, he has had two 30/30 seasons, a testament to both his speed and power.
No one can argue that based on solely on statistics, Abreu is not one of the best players in baseball. But when you begin to watch the Phillies and Abreu regularly, you really begin to wonder exactly where Abreu fits on the imaginary list of "Best Players in the Game Today" that we all have somewhere in our heads.
Last night's game against the Marlins was a perfect example. In the first inning, Abreu was quick to field a bouncing liner to his left, and just as quickly fired off an accurate throw to the cut-off man, which led to Lieberthal tagging out Luis Castillo at the plate. Perfect execution.
But several innings later, Abreu is on second, a grounder is hit to the shortstop and Abreu, rather than holding at second takes off for third where he is easily called out. It makes a fan want to reach right through the screen and knock on Abreu's head as he goes to the dugout, like Biff in Back to the Future, "Hello?! McBobby, is anyone in there?!"
And while statistically, Abreu's defensive numbers are adequate, watching him can sometimes be a bit disconcerting to say the least. The comedian Steven Wright has a routine where a girl asks him, "How are you feeling tonight?" To which Wright retorts in his dry, flat, monotone:
"You know that feeling you get when you are leaning back on a chair on two legs and you lean back and you get just a little to far back, and all of a sudden you feel like you are going to fall and then you catch yourself? You know that feeling? I feel like that all the time."
Well, that is the way I fell every time Abreu goes back to field a ball near the wall, which is certainly a regular event at Citizens Bank Park. Several issues are at work on such a play. For one, Abreu can rarely time his jump well enough to make a smooth catch. For another, he has no sense of where he is in relation to the wall. If the game is close and Abreu is trailing back, my stomach seizes up like a car's engine that was due for an oil-change twenty-thousand hard-driving miles ago.
Critics will also point to his effort level, and if there is anything that is inexcusable to a phan, it is a less than 100% level of effort. A perfect example is the manner in which Abreu approaches balls dropping in front of him. Many will point to a play and say, "He should have dove for it! What a lazy a%$#@~^!" But on the other hand, Abreu supporters will say, "He had no chance to get that ball, if he had dove, it would have turned a single into a triple!"
As I said earlier, polarizing.
Is it that Abreu is so talented that his effort doesn't appear to be 100% at times because it doesn't have to be? Or, is he really dogging it? Again, it depends upon who you are asking.
There is no doubt that Bobby Abreu is a very good baseball player, and there is no doubt that a lot of general managers would trade away many a good prospect in order to get a player like No. 53 on their roster. And really the bottom line is that the "never wrong but always wronged" fans in Philadelphia should go down on bended knee and give thanks for the fact that Abreu plays for the Phightin's.
But, deciding where Abreu fits into the spectrum of talent and value of all the player's in major league baseball is certainly no easy task, no matter how you much of an effort-level you use.
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More on Bobby Abreu:
- "Mediocrity for the Defense" from Swing and a Miss
- Reader commentary on Shallow Center
- "Vote for Pedro and Bobby" on B.S. & S.
