As mentioned before, catcher Mike Piazza might not quite be regarded as the worst defensive catcher in historybut he's pretty darn close. But I probably won't miss his defense. For many years with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Senators, Frank Howard was one of the premier power hitters in the game, leading the league twice in home runs and swatting 382 during his 16-year career. Kirby Puckett, CF, 1993 Twins (minus-29 runs), This one seems a little odd considering Puckett had won a Gold Glove the previous season. He made his lone All-Star appearance in 2016 and parlayed that into a six-year, $83 million extension in 2017. Even though Bichette hit 34 home runs and knocked in 133 runs, the Rockies traded him after the season. The official scorer of the game took pity on Jolley, actually only giving him two errors. Orioles are anywhere near the all-time worst. "Please, God, don't hit it to me," said Guerrero, who also played some outfield in his career in addition to first and third. Let's just get this out there right nowshortstop Julio Lugo was not Ozzie Smith. 1. However, at the major league level, while Jolley could hit a bit, he was clearly one of the most challenged players in the history of the game. During his time with the Texas Rangers, Incaviglia's nickname was "Oops," primarily because of the way he patrolled the outfield. His fielding percentage, which seems normal, is deceiving because he had such little range. Manny's "amazing" catch of a Johnny Damon relay is absolutely priceless. The AL East is setting up as a race for the ages, Albert Pujols' push for 3,000 powered by dominant decade, 'Ich-i-ro! Adam Dunn, 1B/LF/RF, 2009 Nationals (minus-43). Was he really that bad? It's time to unveil the 2022 MLB All-Underrated Team. Their frustration was understandable since 1979 was the first year in LeMaster's career that he had at least 20 errors and started a stretch where he had at least 20 errors in six of the next seven seasons. UZR includes errors as part of its calculation, too. When second baseman Steve Sax won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 1982 for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he was regarded as a player with a lively bat, great speed and decent enough defensively. February 1, 2018. ken scott actor after we collided. Maybe thats worth talking about another day. Or write about sports? Defensive metrics aren't as foolproof as some other numbers, so let's dig deeper into what may have caused these poor ratings. Teams: Toronto Blue Jays (198991), Cleveland Indians (199193), Chicago Cubs (199394, 1998-2000), San Francisco Giants (199597), Seattle Mariners (1998), New York Yankees (2000), Anaheim Angels (2001), Stats: 1,586 chances, 1,488 putouts, 41 assists, 57 errors. 32 friggin upvotes. In his 16 seasons in baseball, Dave Kingman was known for hitting some of the most prodigious home run shots in history, amazing fans and players alike with his sheer power. Here, then, is a list of 40 of the worst defensive players in MLB history. 41 victor street, boronia heights; what happened to clifford olson son; frank lloyd wright house for sale; most nba draft picks by college in one year; worst defensive runs saved all time First baseman/outfielder Brad Hawpe went down last year in June and required Tommy John surgery. It's not hard to see why he made all those mistakes. Lima died in 2010 of a massive heart attack. '", Teams: Cleveland Indians (197481), San Francisco Giants (198285), Stats: 4,542 chances, 2,000 putouts, 2,466 assists, 76 errors. Butch Hobson was a former quarterback for the University of Alabama and legendary coach Bear Bryant, but Hobson had some legendary struggles fielding a baseball. Offerman was statistically one of the worst shortstops in history. Well, that was an adventure as well, so with Sheffield's trade to the Florida Marlins from the San Diego Padres, he was moved to right field. Cap Anson played in the dead ball era, where errors were out of control, but theres still no way to get around his 976 errors. Defense, in 2018, was the ballclubs biggest detriment. Its totally fair to question the latter, since the numbers at Baseball Prospectus think the Phillies catchers have been slightly above-average, but I led with DRS, so thats the main focus. While the numbers above don't appear to be horrible, noted baseball statistician Bill James once said that Smith should teach a course in "defensive recovery and cost containment" since he spent so much of his time working on it. For example, if your pitching staff leads the league in strikeouts, every fielder is at a disadvantag. Rob Picciolo wasn't a terrible fielding shortstop overall. The Worst A.J. Bichette was fast enough to play a little center field early in his career, but by 1999 was 35 and lumbering. While his fielding improved over the course of his career, you can point directly to his early struggles in the outfield as one of the reasons the Oakland A's traded him after three seasons and an average of approximately -20 total zone runs allowed in that span. And not in a good way. Thats worth something, too. However, Madlock's prowess at the plate did not transfer to the field very well at all. The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Some defensive statistics Copyright Sports Info Solutions, 2010-2023. The Phillies gambled on a suboptimal alignment. But for now, just focus on the Phillies. Real or Not? Anyone who uses his noggin to aid in a home run definitely deserves a spot on this list. Check. In the sense that DRS assigns run values to defensive . It's true that this. Rdef. Follow Doug on Twitter, @Sports_A_Holic. He won four World Series titles, was a four-time All-Star, American League Rookie of the Year and even won a Gold Glove award in 1997. For example, a fielder who catches a 25% Out Probability play gets +.75; one who fails to make the play gets -.25. The Cubs moved Soriano to the outfield after he signed an eight-year, $136 million contract, but that did little to curb his defensive struggles. install package source. He was bad wherever teams tried to put him, and that's most evident when you look at his eye-popping 330 career errors. Orioles fielders have combined for negative-84 runs of defensive value compared with the average team, per the advanced stat defensive runs saved. What's impressive is that he's actually gotten better on defense over his career, and his real struggles in the field were mostly over his first six seasons. The table below shows a comparison between the top 10 shortstops in terms of fielding percentage and the top 10 shortstops in terms of defensive runs saved from 2002 to 2019 in MLB. This blend of rage-judging isnt welcome here. No, we cant measure defense precisely. Teams: Montreal Expos (1998-2003), Chicago Cubs (2004-07), San Diego Padres (2007-08), Toronto Blue Jays (2009), Stats: 6,741 chances, 6,115 putouts, 552 assists, 74 errors. Teams: Cleveland Indians (1993-2000), Boston Red Sox (2001-08), Los Angeles Dodgers (2008-10), Chicago White Sox (2010), Tampa Bay Rays (2011), Stats: 3,410 chances, 3,206 putouts, 129 assists, 75 errors. Teams: New York Mets (1999), Oakland Athletics (2000-03), San Diego Padres ( 2004), Kansas City Royals (2005), New York Yankees (2006), Stats: 1,711 chances, 1,646 putouts, 30 assists, 35 errors. It's one reason why Long had a .978 career fielding percentage playing center field with 21 errors. Yes, folks, there is a reason that the Chicago White Sox signed Adam Dunn strictly as a designated hitter, and they had better hope he snaps out of his slump this coming season. But when the ball did come his way it was hold-your-breath time. Now imagine if Stairs would've been able to field? He might be standing out there, sweating a little more than everyone else, not as locked in as you want, overthinking it. Teams tried to play Meyer for extended periods of time at left field, first base and third base, where he accumulated a whopping -57 total zone runs allowed for his career. It would be interesting to see how many of New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter's Total Zone Runs allowed occurred while playing next to Alfonso Soriano, a terrible defensive second baseman for the ages. Only Piazza's incredible offensive numbers make up for itPiazza has the seventh-best WAR among catchers all-time, despite the fact he has the second-worst dWAR of all time. Teams: Philadelphia Phillies (1983-89), New York Mets (1989), Los Angeles Dodgers (1990-92), Kansas City Royals (1992, 1995), Cincinnati Reds (1993), Detroit Tigers (1994-95), Toronto Blue Jays (1996-98), Stats: 7,048 chances, 3,572 putouts, 3,288 assists, 188 errors. Teams: Oakland Athletics (1995-2001), New York Yankees (2002-08), Oakland Athletics (2009), Colorado Rockies (2009-12), Cleveland Indians (2013-14), Stats: 11,742 chances, 10,989 putouts, 649 assists, 104 errors. Third baseman Bill Madlock was certainly a great hitter during his 15-year career, capturing four National League batting titles and ending with a .305 career average. With 13 All-Star selections, 555 home runs and a .312 lifetime batting average, it's easy to see why outfielder Manny Ramirez clearly has numbers that should qualify him for Hall of Fame status. Theyd be exceptionally slim if the Phillies had a good defense, and, well, they dont. Team Defensive Runs Saved. Theyll have a roster good enough to hang around. The other part is defense. Nothing has been catastrophic. Groom was a pretty solid left-handed pitcher who carved out a career in middle relief. Damon was able to read fly balls easily off the bat while Long, for the entirety of his career, would freeze or move in the wrong direction. We should all know Greg Luzinski's name an elite power hitter who played 15 seasons in the majors and had over 300 career home runs. Teams: New York Mets (1966, 1968-71), California Angels (1972-79), Houston Astros (1980-88), Texas Rangers (1989-93), Stats: 857 chances, 220 putouts, 547 assists, 90 errors. "We think Mark is a lot better than he's shown statistically. Still, that's nearly one fewer play every two games. His mobility declined rapidly, and he was in the negative for defensive wins above replacement for 14 straight seasons, bouncing between left field, right field and first base. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Do you have a sports website? By most defensive metrics used, McLouth was regarded as one of the worst defensive center fielders that year, which proves our point once again that voters are completely out of touch as to the significance of a Gold Glove Award. As for his range, BIS graded him particularly weak going to his right. But over the last . He made it in on the fourth try. Juan Samuel was one of the most aggressive hitters in baseball history the end result was 1,578 hits and 396 stolen bases. Just cant field em. In his first few seasons with the Yankees, Gary Sanchez was as bad at blocking pitches behind the plate as almost anyone in the modern history of baseball. People are still citing fielding percentage and what the hell is that based on? Groom's fielding percentage hovered around or below .900 for most of his career and finished at an atrocious .940 in 13 seasons. It was because Thomas, a former tight end at Auburn, said he didn't feel involved with the game and focused on hitting when he was DH. | Glossary", "What is a Defensive Runs Saved (DRS)? Make a guess now (Note: Baseball-Reference uses fielding runs below average, which can be drawn from two different sources depending on the year. He played 15 seasons for seven different teams that tried to make him an everyday player at six different positions. Teams: Minnesota Twins (199197), New York Yankees (19982001), Kansas City Royals (2002), Stats: 6,821 chances, 2,852 putouts, 3,844 assists, 125 errors. What's worse about Hill's defensive stats is he was shoved into the designated hitter role whenever teams had an opportunity to use him there to limit his defensive chances. While early pro baseball was plagued by errors (just look at the career lists for MLB), Browning's 414 errors in 13 seasons still stand out. Jeter is the worst defensive player of all time by advanced defensive metrics, with a career Defensive Runs Saved total of -155. Rank Team P C 1B 2B 3B SS LF . But they happened. Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. The power that Kingman generated with his body hindered him greatly in the field. It's also interesting that all 10 seasons here occurred since 1990, which is a reflection of more data available to grade defense. Even a few Hall of Famers. In this day and age, theres no reason not to explore further. He was pretty decent with his bat for most of his career, but his Total Zone Runs allowed of -65 is horrendous as well. Bogaerts rates six runs worse than average, 23rd among 24 qualified shortstops. In The Fielding Bible, Volume II, John Dewan takes the defensive metrics in the first volume and translates them into runsinto runs saved, that is, or Defensive Runs Saved. Teams: Detroit Tigers (197476), Seattle Mariners (197781), Oakland Athletics (198285), Stats: 5,259 chances, 4,562 putouts, 608 assists, 89 errors. Statistic Description: Defensive Wins Above Replacement for position players A defensive measure of wins above replacement, but given only the defensive stats of the player and his position adjustment. In other words, theyve been even worse than just Outs Above Average would indicate. Play-by-play data prior to 2002 was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted
worst defensive runs saved all time. While the surgery will no doubt help his swing, Hawpe had better hope that he can make the Rangers' 25-man roster with his bat. Maybe that's worth talking about another day. And his TZR allowed were among some of the highest in his career after the move, although he did finish his career with 412 home runs. Rafael Palmeiro won the American League Gold Glove Award in 1999 while playing only 28 games all year at first base, so controversy abounds concerning criteria for Gold Glove Award winners. Manager Buck Showalter told Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com that they had every intention of sticking with Reynolds at third. Jeff made Lookout Landing a thing, but he does not still write there about the Mariners. So all the metrics agreed that he just didn't have much range in this year. The Phillies might just land Manny Machado or Bryce Harper, and then theyll have a better lineup. Rays. He also was among the league leaders in passed balls and errors committed by a catcher on a regular basis. [1][2] Any positive number is above average, and the best fielders typically have a DRS figure of 15 to 20 for a season. Good plays and misplays runs saved: runs saved by heads-up-plays. Sorry, the RF variance is not enough to claim 1) Devers is better (certainly not offensively) and 2) Andujar has the worst DRS Evah, as you suggest. However, some would say he was a big hurt defensively as well. Throughout major league history, some players have built their entire careers on hitting, despite some, ahem, major defensive deficiencies. Overall, things have worked out okay, but they havent worked out well enough to win, and win consistently. On the flip side, Madlock won four National League batting titles and was a three-time All-Star. San Diego Padres (2011), Los Angeles Angels (2013), Stats: 1,816 chances, 1,695 putouts, 87 assists, 34 errors. michael klaper fasting; rising sign calculator Menu Toggle. UZR had Kemp at minus-26 runs that year, the worst total it has ever given a center fielder going back to 2002, so by all accounts Kemp was awful. Yet UZR doesnt have information for pitchers or catchers. Through the end of the 2021 MLB season, the highest DRS recorded in a single season was by shortstop Andrelton Simmons, who had a DRS of 41 in 2017, while the lowest DRS recorded in a single season was by center fielder Matt Kemp, who had a DRS of -33 in 2010.[10]. He ended up there because it lined up more with his offensive production than putting him at one of the corner outfield spots or at first base. Historically the Royals system has an uncanny ability to produce terrible shortstops. His career fielding percentage of .895 is comically low, but for most of his career, he was probably just surprised anyone was able to actually connect with one of his pitches. Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates (200511), Minnesota Twins (201213), Atlanta Braves (2014), Stats: 3,234 chances, 2,907 putouts, 285 assists, 42 errors. Infield Defense by Runs Saved Per 1000 Innings. Sanchez, who relies on unbelievable power at the plate to change games, improved on blocking pitches in 2019. Unfortunately, as a fielder he could boot a ball a country mile as well. Mike Piazza isn't the only Hall of Famer on this list, and his defensive liabilities only make us wonder how he would've stood up among the all-time greatest players (not just catchers) had he been able to throw out more than 23 percent of baserunners. By just about every defensive metric available, Escobar is a much better defensive option. And Luzinski's eventual trade to the White Sox. Even a few Hall of Famers. Check. To split it up a little bit, here are the biggest differences on ground balls between actual wOBA and expected wOBA allowed: This is a partial proxy for infield defense. There are two easy ways to explain Nolan Ryan's low number of chances over 27 seasons in the majors he's the MLB career leader in both walks and strikeouts. So the numbers certainly indicate that Dahlen was not necessarily bad in any way, but he does have the dubious record nonetheless. Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. His 11 defensive runs saved in the past three seasons are tied with J.T. Had it not been for two truly awful seasons in 2008 and 2009, Brad Hawpe probably would've been able to avoid this lineup. The Padres made the playoffs with Gomez playing shortstop in 1996 and 1998, so they apparently didn't think he was awful there. 8. His career batting average of .236 is barely above the Mendoza Line. He was marginally better at second, and even a little better at first, but his original time at shortstop was certainly memorable for all the wrong reasons. There's no doubt that third base is a tough position to play, but former MLB player Butch Hobson made it look like the toughest job in all of professional sports. Vaughn's best year was in 1918, when he won the Triple Crown, which was also coincidentally the year he posted a career-high .967 fielding percentage. Officially, the Braves have sewn up the NL East, after having completed a four-game weekend sweep of the Phillies. Through a 17-year career that isn't over quite yet, Jason Giambi has one a Most Valuable Player Award and clubbed 428 home runs. Wayne Gross finished his career with -19 total zone runs allowed for his time at third base, where he went over 20 errors in three of his first four seasons with the Oakland Athletics. Join our linker program. Fielding percentage is the statistic that has traditionally been used to measure defensive ability,[6] but it fails to account for a fielder's defensive range. He batted .284, hit 49 home runs and racked up 281 hits over that same stretch, including his lone All-Star selection in 2009. The Baby Braves might be ready ahead of schedule, Real or Not? The Phillies havent done enough hitting, and so theyll go into the offseason looking to make a major splash. Jedlovec included Ryan's best and worst plays from 2011-12, too. worst defensive runs saved all time ingredient in ice cream that causes diarrhea 3, 2022 how old was zacharias janssen when he died on worst defensive runs saved all time During his time in the National League, Dunn played left field, right field and first base, and none of them with any degree of skill. * Indicates MLB All-Star. Let's first give Buddy Groom credit for being really, really determined. The irony is that Andujar is definitely the better player this year, and perhaps in the future too. Ich-i-ro!' LeMaster never got out of the "twos" with his main-line hitting statistics, with a slash line of .222/.277/.289 in his career. Escobar, who signed with the Mets with a reputation as a decent defensive third baseman, finished with a career-worst -11 Defensive Runs Saved at third base in 2022. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. And if his unremarkable hitting wasn't enough, his defensive stats certainly don't suggest that LeMaster was being kept around for his defensive prowess, either. In theory, the Phillies might not end up in last place. ), 9. Buster Olney ranked his top 10 team defenses in his blog post Thursday, which got me thinking about bad defense. Hippo Vaughn only played 13 seasons but led the National League in errors five times. You know what the Rangers thought of that Gold Glove? But wait, there has to be a logical explanation for this. 4. He also was terrible at first base and in right field. Adrin Beltr recorded the most defensive runs saved in Major League Baseball during the 2003-2021 seasons. As you can see, the Royals are, quite literally, at the bottom of this list. "Range factor" isn't a terribly advanced metric it's basically "plays made per game (or per 9 innings)", not difficult to understand but subject to some systematic errors. As an outfielder, Incaviglia's play could certainly be described as hit-or-miss as well. There are just zeroes. Bichette was second in the National League in errors committed by an outfielder in 1998 and 1999, and oftentimes could be seen flailing in the corner as a ball caromed off a wall and between his legs. Realmuto and Sean Murphy for eighth among those with at least 500 . They talk about batting average and RBI, too, which are easy to discuss in the casual context of a game broadcast, but they are obviously not a good measure of a players full contribution to the game (even their full contribution to the offense). Despite a career filled with plenty of offense, Bichette's career WAR was 2.0, a telling sign of his defensive deficiencies. And his career fielding percentage of .964 is atrocious. In my terms, it basically means a whole bunch of guys who couldn't field if their life depended on it. Dahlen still holds the record for total chances by a shortstop, and oftentimes led the league in putouts and double plays as well. It's a shame the rule wasn't in place earlier; the DH position was truly made for Howard. Despite winning. You know your defensive struggles are pretty epic when they get their own name. Rank Team P C 1B 2B 3B SS LF . Im older than him, and I can barely catch the TV remote when my roommate tosses it to me (from a couple of feet away mind you lol). Thus, players of earlier eras who were noted for the defensive skillssuch as third baseman Brooks Robinson and shortstop Ozzie Smithwere not evaluated in this manner. Doug Flynn's 1980 Gold Glove is one of those times. When Juan Samuel first debuted for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1983, he quickly became known for a solid bat and tremendous speed, stealing 72 bases and leading the league in triples in his rookie season. Farewell to a Mariners legend. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. worst defensive runs saved all time. Teams: San Francisco Giants (1975-85), Cleveland Indians (1985), Pittsburgh Pirates (1985), Oakland Athletics (1987), Stats: 4,535 chances, 1,545 putouts, 2,811 assists, 179 errors. Through the end of the 2021 MLB season, the highest cumulative DRS for a career is 200, by third baseman Adrin Beltr, while the lowest DRS for a career is -165 by shortstop Derek Jeter. 6. He was better than the average shortstop during his day, and his dWAR number certainly indicates he was not exactly a liability on the field. The ability to handle a pitching staff, call a game, throw out baserunners and be a good receiver certainly can never be underscored. Frank Thomas was nicknamed Big Hurt for the way he punished baseballs, hitting 521 home runs during his career. No, the formulas havent remained consistent and identical over the past decade and a half. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. "Range factor" isn't a terribly advanced metric it's basically "plays made per game (or per 9 innings)", not difficult to understand but subject to some systematic errors. Defensive runs saved, a measurement developed by Baseball Info Solutions, paints an even harsher picture. Since then, theyve gone an NL-worst 14-28, while the Braves have gone 27-19. Baseball Info Solutions tracked him with 30 good plays and 39 misplays and it's worth noting that ultimate zone rating had him at minus-23 runs and total zone at minus-31 runs. Range is the most important component, absolutely, but arms matter, too, and the Phillies outfield arms, collectively, rank in the bottom five by both DRS and UZR. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Doumit's struggles came with pitch framing, where he cost his team about -7.3 runs per 1,000 innings, and with trying to throw out baserunners, where he had a caught stealing rate of 24 percent. Outfielder Smead Jolley was easily one of the great minor league players of all time, hitting 336 home runs with a lifetime .367 batting average during his 16-year career at the lower level. Martin, who was once investigated for bigamy in Nevada because he was married to two women at once, also had more errors (58) than assists (56) for his career. In a way it feels similar to Devers struggleshe has the tools but the execution is lacking. By just about every measurement available, either through STATS Inc., Baseball Prospectus, FanGraphs or Baseball Reference, there is no documentation anywhere that supports the fact that first baseman Mo Vaughn was anything close to a good fielder. He started over 300 games at three different positions and came up just six starts short of 100 at shortstop. There are a lot of times the Gold Glove has been handed out over the years, and we look back in confusion. But also consider that he's one of the worst defensive players of all time. Lasorda asked what else he was thinking. Hobson's 1978 season was a legendary blunder. Andujar, not so much. Part of Manny Ramirez's appeal was somehow his struggles in the field. Fans who sat behind the first base area at Dodger Stadium were known to wear helmets, not knowing where Sax's throws would land. He was an All-American forward at Ohio State selected by the Philadelphia Warriors in the fifth round of the 1958 NBA draft.