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Familiar Face Leads MLB Top-40 Player Rankings
At RealGM, we use the Field Impact Counter (FIC) to objectively measure how effective players are performing and then use the Reina Value to evaluate their financial worth. The player with the highest FIC for the season, therefore, ?deserves? the highest salary, which is Alex Rodriguez?s $33 million contract for 2009. The player with the 308th highest FIC, 'deserves' Guillermo Mota's $2.35M contract for 2009. Click here for more information about the Field Impact Counter and the Reina Value. Player: FIC, Reina Value 1. Albert Pujols: 69, 129% As he was last season, Albert Pujols is atop our rankings by hitting .333/.457/.681 with seven homers through his first 72 at bats. 2. Jason Bay: 60, 206% Jason Bay is second in the MLB in OPS with a mark of 1.211 behind teammate Kevin Youkilis. 3. Zack Greinke: 57, 476% Greinke famously still hasn't yielded an earned run this season. 4. Kevin Youkilis: 55, 230% Youkilis is batting .414 and is one of the only hitters in the game who is capable of even thinking about sustaining a .400 average over a full season. 5. Ian Kinsler: 54, 501% Amongst players on this list, it is hard to argue that Kinsler hasn't been the best defensively. 6. Nick Markakis: 54, 467% Markakis is the midst of a 14-game hitting streak and is now hitting .382. 7. Raul Ibanez: 49, 165% Ibanez surprisingly is the first 2008-09 free agent on this list, but he is hitting for an OPS of 1.087 and has been very good in left field defensively. 8. Torii Hunter: 47, 5% Hunter is first in the league in slugging with a mark of .754; his previous career high came in 2002 when he slugged .524. 9. Chase Utley: 47, 66% Back from hip surgery, Utley is batting .333/.457/.576 with five homers. 10. Roy Halladay: 47, 30% Halladay has a modest ERA of 3.71, but is 4-1 with 32 strikeouts and just four walks in 36 innings. 11. Adam Jones: 46, 4038% Jones has elevated his OPS by 309 points thus far in 2009, though he has struggled defensively. 12. Andre Ethier: 46, 481% Extremely patient, Ethier sees 4.40 pitches per plate appearance. 13. Robinson Cano: 46, 183% Cano is the only Yankee in the top-40 and he came into the season as one of their biggest question marks, but he leads the team in OBP, SLG, homers, runs and RBIs. 14. Marco Scutaro: 45, 1414% Scutaro has a lifetime OPS of .709, but has it up to .874 through his first 79 at bats this season. 15. Orlando Hudson: 44, 393% Hudson has been the best free agent signing thus far, especially considering how cheap he is coming. This is a player that has had an OPS of at least .800 in each of the past three seasons. 16. Ryan Braun: 42, 1498% Braun has lowered his at bats per home run rate from 16.5 to 14.0 in the early going this year. 17. Dan Haren: 42, 107% Haren has a K/9 rate of 9.26, which would be his career best. 18. Chad Billingsley: 42, 3118% Billingsley has been brutally effective against righties, allowing an OPS against of just .353. 19. Zach Duke: 41, 592% Now is the time to be selling Duke, who is unlikely to maintain his BAbip of .283. 20. Johan Santana: 41, -21% Santana has a -0.556 SWHIP, which is best amongst starters. 21. Kyle Lohse: 41, 102% Even though he has struck out just 13 batters in 26 innings, Lohse has a 2.42 ERA. 22. Shane Victorino: 40, 380% Victorinto's 9th inning grand slam in Florida was a killer for the Marlins. 23. Victor Martinez: 40, 154% Healthy this season, Martinez is batting .390/.440/.634. 24. Brandon Inge: 39, 135% Inge was on his way to being discarded in Detroit like Pontiac, but he has rebounded extremely well and has an OPS of 1.130 with seven homers. 25. Mike Cameron: 39, 45% While still playing a centerfield as good as anybody not named Franklin Gutierrez or Carlos Gomez, Cameron is hitting .328/.429/.672. 26. Kosuke Fukudome: 38, 15% Fukudome began adopting some not so flattering nicknames related to his last name last season when he had an OPS of .546 in August, 577 in September and went 1-for-10 in the NLDS, but he is now hitting for an OPS of 1.078. 27. Carlos Quentin: 38, 2515% Quentin surprisingly has lowered his at bats per home run rate from 13.3 to 9.3 this season. 28. Manny Ramirez: 38, -40% Ramirez is batting a still not quite human .338/.464/.559 despite having a shorter spring. 29. Adrian Gonzalez: 38, 348% Gonzalez continues to be at a disadvantage playing for a team that many are disinterested in who also happen to play in a park that kills hitters. 30. Josh Johnson: 38, 900% Johnson has almost always been excellent when healthy and he is certainly healthy this season and has a K/BB rate of 5.80. 31. Grady Sizemore: 37, 194% The first batter in Yankee Stadium history has been hitting better for power than he has for average. 32. Jonathan Broxton: 36, 667% Broxton leads the MLB in SWHIP amongst pitchers with at least nine innings of work with a mark of -1.209. 33. Felix Hernandez: 36, 268% Hernandez has a 3.12 ERA and is keeping his walks down. 34. Adam Dunn: 36, 69% With an OPS of 1.082, there are a lot of teams that could use a bat like Dunn's in their line-up, especially considering how affordable he was and also because he has been solid in the field despite playing three positions. 35. Aaron Harang: 36, -4% Harang is 2-2 despite a 2.00 ERA through his first four starts. 36. Evan Longoria: 35, 2319% Longoria has improved his walk to strikeout ratio in the early going this season. 37. Armando Galarraga: 35, 2946% Galarraga is third in the AL in ERA with a mark of 2.00. 38. Aaron Hill: 35, 406% Hill had an OPS of .685 in 2008 and that has climbed to .971 through his first 93 at bats this season. He is well on his way to beating his 17 homers he hit in 2007 with five already. 39. Nyjer Morgan: 35, 3072% Morgan has a .407 OBP, which is a surprise to even the most optimistic projections for the former hockey player. 40. Erik Bedard: 35, 68% This is the pitcher Seattle was expecting; better than one strikeout per inning and an ERA in the top-15. St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Buy Tickets Pujols Becomes Second-Fastest To 1,000 RBIs
Pujols hit his second grand slam of the season against the rival Cubs to reach, and fly past, the mark, according to the Associated Press. Only Manny Ramirez reached 1,000 RBIs faster, doing so in 1,194 games (Pujols needed 1,257 contests). He now has 1,002 RBIs in his career. St. Louis Cardinals Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Buy Tickets Cardinals Afraid Of Pujols Doomsday Clock
Pujols has been fairly clear that his top priority is to play for a winner and he has lobbied the Cardinals to add more talent to their roster. ?I do know we have him guaranteed for three years,? William O. DeWitt Jr., the chairman and chief executive of the Cardinals, said Wednesday after the All-Star Game news conference. ?I?m not thinking beyond that. Three years is three years.? The Cardinals theoretically have only 480 games remaining until Pujols may leave via free agency. St. Louis Cardinals Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Buy Tickets Cardinals Apr 2009 Archive
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By Christopher Reina
Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols surpassed 1,000 RBIs for his career on Saturday afternoon, making him the second-fastest player in history to reach the mark.