Comparing ROY Candidates

by JWO on May 4, 2010 3:02 PM EDT

Now that we have a decent chunk of the season out of the way, I thought I'd take a moment to compare and contrast two potential candidates for Rookie of the Year. I'm not going to tell you who they are at first, but I suspect you'll quickly figure it out...

Player	AB	AVG	Runs	HRs	RBIs	OBP	SLG	OPS	SO	BB
ROY#1	81	.272	13	7	23	0.388	0.580	0.968	26	14
ROY#2	81	.358	8	3	19	0.404	0.543	0.948	19	6

Who do you think these two mystery players are? The first is Mr. Jason Heyward, tearing it up for the Atlanta Braves. The second is the Cardinals very own Mr. David Freese, doing his best Albert Pujols impersonation. My question for all the VEB folks out there is which is more deserving of the ROY? These numbers after 24 games are VERY comparable. Heyward has been getting nearly all the love for the award from our national ESPN brothers. But Freese appears to have moved into the conversation over the past week with his ridiculous numbers.

Put aside your biases for a few moments, stop thinking about tasered Philly fans, and ask who wins. Frankly, I'm torn. The only possible tie-breaker I can think of is looking at their positions. Freese is playing unarguably the harder position at 3B. Does that give him the edge against the second coming of Willie Stargill?

What say you Redbird Nation?

Poll

Which candidate is most deserving of ROY for 2010 (as of 04 May 2010)?

1) Jason Heyward

54 votes

2) David Freese

28 votes

3) Some other guy

47 votes

129 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Small Sample Size

So far, Freese has been better than Heyward. As of May 4, you can give Freese the ROY. By the end of the season, I believe Heyward will have better numbers than Freese.

"The big possums walk late." - Harry Caray

by memphiscub on May 4, 2010 3:26 PM EDT reply actions

I knew someone would make this argument

And I’m not about to dispute it. Yes, we’ve only played about 1/6 of the total season. But I would argue that these two guys have thus far separated themselves from the field rather convincingly.

But I’m genuinely curious why you think Heyward will have better sustained success.

by JWO on May 4, 2010 3:40 PM EDT up reply actions

Nothing More Than A Hunch, Really

I figure Heyward has more raw talent than Freese. Over the course of the 162-game season because of that, Heyward’s got a better chance at winning the ROY than Freese. I have been surprised with how well Freese has hit the ball this season.

I’m not as high on Heyward as some are. I believe he’s going to turn out to be a player similar in quality to David Justice, if we are comparing current and former Braves players. I don’t think he’s going to be another Hank Aaron.

"The big possums walk late." - Harry Caray

by memphiscub on May 4, 2010 3:49 PM EDT up reply actions

I voted "some other guy" - our very own Jaime Garcia

I think Heyward has the best chance of keeping up his numbers (or something close to them) but based on the numbers so far I’d say Garcia is the hands-down NL ROY.

by BTown Birds fan on May 4, 2010 3:27 PM EDT reply actions

Garcia

He’s definitely been the best NL rookie pitcher. It’s always hard to compare pitchers with position players.

"The big possums walk late." - Harry Caray

by memphiscub on May 4, 2010 3:44 PM EDT up reply actions

difficult

but not impossible. without actually looking at the numbers – it appears that freese is around average, maybe a little better, as a third baseman (so far), while Garcia is an above-average starting pitcher (so far). So my vote also goes to garcia (so far).

by cdb on May 4, 2010 4:09 PM EDT up reply actions

Garcia is pretty clearly the most valuable Rookie so far

His ERA is 1.2 for fucks sake. That’s way more impressive than a .950 OPS.

by vivaelpujols on May 4, 2010 6:30 PM EDT reply actions

All three of them are sitting at

.9 WAR on Fangraphs right now.

Asshattery: it's an epidemic.
Also, Dave Concepcion.

by RiverRat on May 4, 2010 6:47 PM EDT up reply actions

FanGraphs use FIP for pitchers

Jaime’s been pitching better than his FIP

by vivaelpujols on May 4, 2010 7:10 PM EDT up reply actions

heyward, being their best player, is likely more valuable to his team

"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."

by cardball on May 5, 2010 12:10 AM EDT up reply actions

Is that what the ROY is for?

by vivaelpujols on May 5, 2010 12:58 AM EDT up reply actions

i'm not sure

i think a lot of voting is perception, though.

"Some days I feel like the hypotenuse in a love triangle; others as if my lucky number is pi."

by cardball on May 5, 2010 1:37 AM EDT up reply actions

Ike Davis

look at the difference in the Mets since he arrived. Th eteam is winning and he is hitting .300. Plus he is a very good 1B

by Rickfansince76 on May 12, 2010 11:57 AM EDT up reply actions

if I were voting on ROY right now, it'd be

1. Jaime Garcia
Honestly, I’m not sure how 1.04 ERA (as of April) doesn’t win in any category. He has equal WAR to Heyward, but I’d almost argue that’s more impressive since he’s a pitcher. I almost feel like they punished him for only two wins.

2. Jason Heyward
Would I like to see Freese here… yes… and I think the two are pretty dang close, but Heyward’s power and expectations probably raise the bar for me

3. David Freese
His accomplishments have been well-documented and recent… no need to expand here

Rasmus can hit lefties
cardinalred
St. Louis Sports blog

by stlcardsfan4 on May 5, 2010 1:16 AM EDT reply actions

very early to be getting into this

but Heyward is clearly the favorite, since he has all the hype and won rookie of the month for April, and probably is the best of the 3, considering his stats and minor league performance so far.

Garcia just missed out on winning ROY of the month, he has had a nearly astonishing start to the season. I like his chances for the year because he is a starting pitcher, and is very valuable.

David Freese has an outside shot at ROY, since his position is more valuable than J-Hey’s and he seems to be hitting very well lately, who knows he could pass up heyward in hitting before the season is over.

he is a bit eccentric

by Cards Fan in Chitown on May 6, 2010 12:52 PM EDT reply actions

ROY of the month.

I like it.

by WyoCardsFan on May 6, 2010 3:34 PM EDT up reply actions

heh

ROM

he is a bit eccentric

by Cards Fan in Chitown on May 7, 2010 1:00 PM EDT up reply actions

Rookie of the month of the month?

That’s too complicated for me to comprehend.

In football, the object is for the quarterback, otherwise known as the field general, to be on target with his aerial assault, riddling the defense by hitting his recievers with deadly accuracy in spite of the blitz, even if he has to use the shotgun. With short bullet passes and long bombs, he marches his troops into enemy territory, balancing this aerial assault with a sustained ground attack that punches holes in the forward wall of the enemy's defensive line.

In baseball the object is to go home! And to be safe! "I hope I'll be safe at home!"
-George Carlin (RIP)

by Taskmaster on May 8, 2010 9:54 AM EDT up reply actions