A Comparison of the 2015 Team with its 1992 Predecessor
Part Two: Examining the Outfield
Earlier in Part One, I compared the make-up of the 2015 Toronto Blue Jays infield with its 1992 counterpart and concluded that the former is stronger than the latter. Here in Part Two, I will look into the two teams’ outfield composition.
Left Field: Ben Revere (2015) versus Candy Maldonado (1992)
Analysis: Both Revere and Maldonado are solid players but have different strengths; Revere hits for a higher average and possesses higher speed while Maldonado hits for more power. However, I am inclined to give the edge to Revere. Even though Revere has only played forty-three games for Toronto as of 18 September 2015, he has been the undisputed starting left fielder and a significant upgrade for the Blue Jays since 31 July 2015. Prior to his arrival at the trading deadline, the position of left field had been a “rotating door” as Toronto used four different players—Chris Colabello started thirty-three games, the now-departed Danny Valencia started twenty-seven games, Ezequiel Carrera started nineteen games, and Kevin Pillar started thirteen games before becoming the full-time centre fielder—to man the position. As a Blue Jay, Revere has put up impressive offensive numbers (.313BA, 1HR, 13RBIs, 5SB) in limited at bats (166), provided stellar defense, and has been a strong table setter as the leadoff hitter—replacing the speed element that was lost in the departure of José Reyes. While Candy Maldonado—who interestingly, much like Revere, was also a mid-season acquisition by GM Pat Gillick in 1991 designed to stabilize the volatile left field position—had an all-around strong season in 1992 offensively (.272BA, 20HRs, 66RBIs in 137 games)and had a decent glove, Revere has clearly been more of an impact player for Toronto. Of note, Revere’s impressive showing with the Blue Jays is by no means a fluke as he is a lifetime .294 hitter (in 632 games) who has already hit over .300 twice (.305 in 2013 and .306 in 2014) and stolen more 40 bases twice (40SB in 2012 and 49SBs in 2014) while leading the National League in hits (184) in 2014.
Verdict: Revere over Maldonado by a step
Centre Field: Kevin Pillar (2015) versus Devon White (1992)
Analysis: Initially penciled in to be Toronto’s fourth outfielder—behind projected starting centre fielder Dalton Pompey, projected starting left fielder Michael Saunders, and starting right fielder José Bautista—Pillar rose to the occasion and quickly moved up in Toronto’s outfield depth chart. He first became the Blue Jays’ starting left fielder after Saunders tore his meniscus in a freak accident in which the latter stepped on a sprinkler while shagging fly balls on 25 February 2015. Pillar then took over the starting centre fielder position from Pompey after the latter struggled offensively (batting .193 through 23 games) and defensively before being sent down to the minors (optioned back to Triple-A Buffalo) for further development on 2 May 2015. Since assuming the starting centre fielder, Pillar has provided Toronto with highlight-reel-defense while contributing offensively as solid bat (.261BA, 10HRs, 47RBIs, 19SBs in 145 games so far) despite being slotted to hit in the bottom of the Blue Jays’ high-octane line-up. Still, I give the edge to White here, as he is equally brilliant and steady with the glove—he won five consecutive gold glove awards from 1991–1995 at the centre field position as a member of Toronto—while giving the team better offensive output with the exception of batting average (.248BA, 17HRs, 60RBIs, 37SBs in 153 games).
Verdict: White over Pillar by a step
Right Field: José Bautista (2015) versus Joe Carter (1992)
Analysis: Tough call here. On one hand, Bautista, a six-time All Star from 2010–2015, has been the face and leader of Toronto since establishing a franchise record fifty-four home runs in the 2010 season. On the other hand, Carter, a five-time All Star (1991–1994 and 1996), has been an iconic figure since hitting his famous 1993 World Series clinching three-run homer. However, while both Bautista and Carter are proven sluggers who can consistently hit home runs and drive in runs, we are comparing the 2015 version of Bautista (.251BA, 35HRs, 102RBIs in 140 games so far) with the 1992 version of Carter (.264BA, 34HRs, 119RBIS in 158 games). If we project Bautista’s 2015 numbers to a full season, MLB predicts (using the Player Empirical Comparison and Optimization Test Algorithm) that his final line would be .253BA, 39HRs, 113RBIs in 155 games. All in all, the differences between Bautista and Carter are so negligible so I hereby declare a tie.
Verdict: Bautista ties Carter
Designated Hitter: Edwin Encarnación (2015) versus Dave Winfield (1992)
Analysis: Another tough call here. Encarnación, a two-time All Star in 2013 and 2014, has been one of the elite power hitters in the game since his breakout season back in 2010 (.280BA, 42HRs, 110RBIs in 151 games). In every season from 2010-2015, he has hit thirty-three or more home runs and drove in ninety-eight or more runs. His 2015 campaign is equally stellar (.275BA, 33HRs, 100RBIs in 132 games so far). Winfield, by comparison, is a twelve-time All Star (1977–1988), and a Hall-of-Famer, having amassed 3,110H, 465HRs and 1833RBIs in his twenty-two year career. Yet, even though Winfield appears to have had the more productive career, we are strictly comparing the 2015 version of Encarnación (projected by MLB to be .272BA, 36HRs, 110RBIs in 148 games) and the 1992 version of Winfield (.290BA, 26HRs, 108RBIs in 156 games). Therefore, whereas Winfield hits for a slightly higher average and Encarnación drives in a few more runs, Encarnación appears to win tiebreaker on the strength of hitting ten more home runs.
Verdict: Encarnación over Winfield by the slightest margin.
Final Words: We are virtually at a deadlock. By all account, the outfield talent of the 2015 Toronto Blue Jays is so evenly matched with its 1992 counterpart and vice versa (especially if we were to exclude the Designated Hitter position) that there is no clear winner here.
So, what about the Starting Rotation? Be sure to tune in to Part Three!