My vote went down to Markakis, Francoeur, and Vlad.
Of course from my name sake you could probably guess who I picked, but it wasn't just because I'm a fan that I voted for him, I seriously think he'll be the best RF (at least of those on the list) over the next 5 seasons. By then he'll be 36 years old, but even though his home runs might drop I believe his doubles will just grown as a result, while his 100 rbi totals never skip a beat. And oh yeah, he's averaged above .300 a season every year he's played (excluding his first 9 games season), I'm not sure if that streak will stop any time soon.
Markakis looked pretty good last season, and at age 23 I can only assume he'll get better. But where his stats are good, his lack of play at such a young age, have betrayed him. I couldn't, in all good conscious, turn my back on Guerrero for a guy who has only played one full season.
Francoeur is good, damn good, but many believe him to be overrated (my brother being one of them). His throwing arm is a cannon, and he's developing well offensively. He had his second straight 100 rbi season last year (I regard rbi's as the most important of all statistics, and why not), and while his home runs dropped he improved upon batting average and runs. At age 24, he's looking to be a pretty fine player of the future.
But in the end, "Vlad's The Man". I thought others could pass him at the position, when I first noticed him on the list, but his unchanging offensive ways and all around leadership of his team proved to me you can't keep a good Vlad down. You've got my vote Guerrero.
__________________ "Vlad's The Man"
"Correct me if I'm wrong, because I know I can't be right."
"Did they tell me how to pitch to (Ted) Williams? Sure they did. It was great advice, very encouraging. They said he had no weakness, won't swing at a bad ball, has the best eyes in the business, and can kill you with one swing. He won't hit anything bad, but don't give him anything good." - Bobby Shantz
Last edited by Vlad's The Man : 04-12-2008 at 04:14 PM.
At 24, Markakis is already, statistically speaking, a top three right fielder. He has solid power, good plate discipline, very good speed, and a cannon for an arm. Markakis improved in most every aspect of the game from 2006 to 2007 and has room for growth. For reference, here are his two seasons at the major league level:
I considered Hunter Pence and Vladimir Guerrero, but I don't think either is a more logical choice over Markakis. Pence already has a fairly detailed injury history, and is very green, to boot. And Guerrero, well, I can't picture him being able to play right field for the next five years.
Over the past three years, Guerrero has DH'd in 90 games, and his ability to play the field well is deteriorating year after year. He's made twenty errors over the last two years, with an overall FPCT of .959 (about .026 below the league average at the position). Moreover, his power numbers have gone down for four consecutive seasons. While he will likely continue to hit over .300, I cannot pick him over Markakis, Pence, and a few others on this list - simply put, I cannot imagine him contributing anything other than a solid average and doubles-power over the next five years. He cannot field, he's too fragile to run, and his power will continue to trend in the wrong direction.
I don't think Vlad is a terrible option - I just think he's below a few of the other options.
As I said in my earlier post, he's trending downwards in the field and in terms of power, and, due to his brittleness, is unlikely to be much of a factor on the basepaths. Within the course of these next five years, I'm fairly certain, at the very least, that Markakis will be better.
Vlad is 32 years of age will be 37 in 5 years and his game is already in decline! (his best years in mlb on paper have already occured) and being from the part of the world he is from there is a good chance he might be older then it says on paper)do not get me wrong I really feel Vlad was one of the best if not the best RF the last 6-8 years in baseball but he is showing a consistent downward decline so my guess in 5 years if i am a gm i do not want his contract on my teams books the way it sits now!
he peaked HR wise in 2004 And peaked with ops IN 2003... he is 32+
but if i had to pick a guy for this year in RF Vlad would be my man in RF period! but in 5 years the best upside i see in any of the RF's listed has to be the guy thats under 25 (is actually 20) and has 5 hr's so far this year is batting .415 with 11 RBIs and was a player that over a dozen teams in baseball was trying to trade multiple players/money to his team for his rights in the 2005 draft! & every gm would say has more potential upside value then any other RF player listed in the poll!
Last edited by teamera2008 : 04-13-2008 at 04:34 AM.
See, I was going to put Justin Upton in instead of Vlad, so as to have all sub-30 players, with oodles of potential. However, I felt as if people would complain a great deal if Vlad didn't make the poll - seeing as 5/8 votes have been for him, I feel that my assumption was justified.
Still, I agree with all of your points about Vlad - I just think your choosing Upton over Markakis or Pence (two younger players, already proven with room for growth) is interesting, but a bit awkward.
Best Right Fielder in Baseball
Best Right Fielder in Baseball
"Vlad's The Man"
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