EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2005 Vitamin X compared players of the past in the NFL to players in the present. I thought it would be fun to do the same thing for MLB, and with similarity scores, its easy to do so. Generally I take the most similar player, unless there's an obvious player right underneath. Sometimes, in the case of a player such as J.D. Drew, there are too many similar players to make a good comparison. Also, I avoid the comparison if the player is an obvious contempory, such as Scott Rolen = Chipper Jones. Finally, I also didn't list a comparison if there are no similar players. For example, the most similar player to Alex Rodriguez is Ken Griffey Jr., and they are really not similar at all. A similarity score below 900 indicates playes who are not very similar. Todd Helton = Hank Greenberg Albert Pujols = Jimmie Foxx Adrian Beltre = Ron Santo Juan Pierre = Willie Wilson Adam Dunn = Reggie Jackson Bobby Abreu = Bernie Williams Carlos Beltran = Andre Dawson Miguel Tejada = Vern Stephens Vladimir Guerrero = Willie Mays Johnny Damon = Claudell Washington/Tim Raines Derek Jeter = Alan Trammell Ben Sheets = Joe Niekro David Ortiz = Tony Clark Ok, Ortiz and Clark are not similar really, but that one was too good to pass up. At 28, Clark was just one year removed from a period where he hit 30+ home runs three seasons in a row. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vern Gagne 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2005 How about Jeff Bagwell=Mel Ott. Different positions, and ones a lefty the other a righty. But, they're both relatively undersized power hitters, with very unique batting styles. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2005 They're not too dissimilar as hitters, but they don't show up on each others' comp lists. The main difference, besides the position, is 89 steals for Mel Ott, compared to 202 stolen bases for Jeff Bagwell. Neither player is truly similar to any other player in baseball history. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mik 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2005 Miguel Cabrera - Hank Aaron (Just by stats at age 21 alone) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DerangedHermit 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2005 Jason Giambi -> Mo Vaughn Juan Gonzalez -> Albert Belle Andres Gallaraga -> Orlando Cepeda Jeromy Burnitz -> Roger Maris Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2005 Miguel Cabrera - Hank Aaron (Just by stats at age 21 alone) Of course, Ruben Sierra looms one notch below, but Cabrera is a hell of a player. As an aside, looking over Aaron's stats, its possible to make a case that he's actually underrated. When MLB changed the strike zone and killed offense in 1963, Aaron's raw stats barely moved. He had 240 career steals, at a 76% success rate. It's scary to think what numbers he would've posted had he not played in the second dead ball era. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vern Gagne 0 Report post Posted January 28, 2005 How about Gary Sheffield and Frank Robinson? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 How about Gary Sheffield and Frank Robinson? Frank Robinson's clearly a better player, so its not the best comparison. It is fair to call Sheffield a poor man's Frank Robinson, however. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brett Favre 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Just throwing this one out there, and haven't compared the stats, but: Jim Rice and Gary Sheffield. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Jim Rice shows up on Sheffield's comp list, at number 7. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HarleyQuinn 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Some other comparisons as shown on BR... Barry Larkin = Alan Trammell Tom Glavine = Jack Morris Trevor Hoffman = John Wetteland Edgar Renteria = Johnny Logan Jose Lima = Mark Clark Jamie Moyer = Frank Viola Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rob E Dangerously 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 The 2004 Kansas City Royals! C: Benito Santiago = Lance Parrish (857) 1B: Ken Harvey = Reggie Jefferson [Harvey's #2 comparison is Andres Galarraga] 2B: Tony Graffanino = Bill Rigney 3B: Joe Randa = Jeff Cirillo SS: Angel Berroa = Julio Lugo LF: Dee Brown = Kevin Young CF: Carlos Beltran = Andre Dawson RF: Matt Stairs = Glenallen Hill DH: Mike Sweeney = Fred Lynn P: Darrell May = Jake Wade Brian Anderson = Sterling Hitchcock Jimmy Gobble = Brian Meadows Zack Greinke = Denny McLain Mike Wood = Blake Stein Hmm.. Greinke compares well Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bored 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Ironically enough for his career totals Mark McGwire's most similar batter is Jose Canseco, although they don't compare well at all with a score of just 807. McGwire's career numbers are very unique. Pete Rose has the most unique career numbers of any player with a similarity of score of just 674 with Paul Molitor. I've posted this before but Albert Pujols most similar batter by age for every year of his career so far has been Joe DiMaggio. His current Top 10 through age 24 also has Jimmie Foxx, Ted Williams, Frank Robinson, and Hank Aaron. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 I've posted this before but Albert Pujols most similar batter by age for every year of his career so far has been Joe DiMaggio. His current Top 10 through age 24 also has Jimmie Foxx, Ted Williams, Frank Robinson, and Hank Aaron. Similarity scores carries a penalty for positional differences, and since Pujols has played a slim majority of games in the OF, he gets grouped there. His hitting stats are close to Dimaggio, but I couldn't see comparing a great defensive center fielder to a first baseman. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarvinisaLunatic 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Miguel Tejada = Vern Stephens I recognize every other compared to player on the list, except for Vern Stephens? Who is he..? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bored 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Power hitting shortstop for the Browns and Red Sox during the 40's and 50's. You want really obscure, Bobby Crosby's most similar player thru age 24 is Jim Canavan, a utility player who lasted just five years in the late 19th century. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mik 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Good idea, Rob E. Dangerously 2005 Florida Marlins Most Similar: 1) Juan Pierre - Willie Wilson 2) Luis Castillo - Steve Sax (interesting) 3) Miguel Cabrera - Hank Aaron 4) Carlos Delgado - Willie McCovey (nice) 5) Mike Lowell - Carl Everett (T-Rex, no such thing) 6) Paul LoDuca - Brian Harper 7) Jeff Conine - Bob Watson 8) Alex Gonzalez - Alex Gonzalez (Whoa) 1) Josh Beckett - Chuck Dobson 2) AJ Burnett - Joe Decker 3) Dontrelle Willis - George Van Haltren 4) Al Leiter- Virgil Trucks 5) Ismael Valdez - Jamie Navarro A few glaring things, Alex Gonzalez most similar player is the other Alex Gonzalez. What an anomaly! Second, this just goes to show that the Marlins pitching staff is only young and full of potential and they really haven't accomplished anything yet. I haven't even heard of those guys. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Miguel Tejada = Vern Stephens I recognize every other compared to player on the list, except for Vern Stephens? Who is he..? I am glad you asked. Stephens was an excellent player for the St. Louis Browns in the 1940s, leading the team to its only AL pennant. Stephens reached the majors at 21, and played in his first All-Star game at 22. For six years while Stephens played for the Browns, he and Stan Musial were contemporary stars in St. Louis, and nearly equals in terms of baseball talent. In fact, through 1950, Stephens actually drove in more runs than Musial. As a shortstop. Unfortunately for Stephens, he developed back trouble and faded very quickly. He was done at 34. But Stephens had HOF talent, and was a heck of a player. Please note that this does not mean Tejada is likely to find a quick end to his playing days. It simply means that Tejada's numbers were similar at this point in Stephens' career. Quite honestly, that Tejada is similar to Stephens is an accomplishment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EVIL~! alkeiper 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 PHILLIES C- Mike Lieberthal (Jorge Posada) 1B- Jim Thome (Harmon Killebrew) 2B- Chase Utley (none available) SS- Jimmy Rollins (Frankie Crosetti) 3B- David Bell (Steve Buchele) LF- Pat Burrell (Jim Incagvilia) CF- Kenny Lofton (Ken Griffey Sr.) RF- Bobby Abreu (Bernie Williams) SP- Randy Wolf (Ron Bryant) SP- Jon Lieber (Shane Reynolds) SP- Vicente Padilla (Pedro Astacio) SP- Brett Myers (Jaret Wright) SP- Cory Lidle (Paul Byrd) CL- Billy Wagner (Mariano Rivera) UT- Placido Polanco (Adam Kennedy) Polanco's next best comp is Gil McDougald, a much more fun comparison. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bored 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Alright I see where this thread is going. 2005 A's (not many have played long enough to even have a similarity score) Pitchers Chad Bradford (Age 29) - Jeff Nelson Juan Cruz (25) - Shawn Hillegas Octavio Dotel (30) - Antonio Osuna Justin Duchscherer (26) - Paul Byrd Rich Harden (22) - Jake Peavy Ricardo Rincon (34) - Graeme Lloyd Barry Zito (26) - Mike Hampton Hitters Jason Kendall (30) - Thurman Munson Eric Chavez (26) - Scott Rolen Bobby Crosby (24) - Jim Canavan Keith Ginter (28) - Geoff Blum Scott Hatteberg (34) - Tim Teufel Marco Scutaro (28) - Jay Canizaro Eric Byrnes (28) - Brian Jordan Bobby Kielty (27) - Tom Grieve Mark Kotsay (28) - Amos Otis Erubiel Durazo (30) - John Jaha Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brett Favre 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 New York Yankees C: Jorge Posada (Mike Lieberthal) 1B: Tino Martinez (Lee May) 2B: Tony Womack (Mickey Morandini) SS: Derek Jeter (Alan Trammell) 3B: Alex Rodriguez (Ken Griffey Jr) LF: Hideki Matsui (Charlie Maxwell) CF: Bernie Williams (Dave Parker) RF: Gary Sheffield (Jeff Bagwell) DH: Jason Giambi (Mo Vaughn) Bench Player: Ruben Sierra (Paul O'Neill) SP: Randy Johnson (Roger Clemens) SP: Mike Mussina (Dwight Gooden) SP: Carl Pavano (Oil Can Boyd) SP: Kevin Brown (Orel Hershiser) SP: Jaret Wright (James Baldwin) CL: Mariano Rivera (Trevor Hoffman) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DerangedHermit 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 2005 Mets C - Mike Piazza (Yogi Berra) 1B - Doug Mientkiewicz (Sid Bream, hah!) 2B/SS/3B - too inexperienced for similarity scores LF - Cliff Floyd (Carl Everett - nice comparison) CF - Carlos Beltran (Andre Dawson/Bobby Bonds) RF - Mike Cameron (Ruppert Jones) SP - Pedro (Sandy Koufax or Roger Clemens) SP - Tom Glavine (Jack Morris) SP - Kris Benson (Jon Lieber) SP - Steve Traschel (Walt Terrell) SP - Victor Zambrano (Ramiro Mendoza) RP - Mike DeJean (Darren Holmes) RP - Felix Heredia (Alan Embree) RP - others are too inexperienced RP - Braden Looper (Kerry Ligtenberg/Keith Foulke) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Marlins pitching staff is only young and full of potential Al Leiter Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DerangedHermit 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Marlins pitching staff is only young and full of potential Al Leiter Haha... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mik 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Yeah, I wasn't really talking about him. I was talking about the top three who haven't proven anything yet - but everyone will conceed they have the potential. You would have expected them to have better comparable players. Way to totally miss the point. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vern Gagne 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Twins. Please note Mauer, Morneau, and Punto have no similiar players. So I'll use backups instead. C-Mike Redman-(Harry McCurdy) 1B-Mathew LeCroy-(Robert Fick) 2B-Luis Rivas-(Tony Taylor) SS-Juan Castro- (Chuck Cottier) 3B-Eric Munson- (Mike DiLonardo) LF-Lew Ford- (Charley Abbey) CF-Torii Hunter- (Kevin McReynolds) RF-Jacque Jones-(Ivan Calderon) DH-Shannon Stewart- (Darin Erstad) Utility-Mike Cuddyer-(Hal McRae) SP-Johan Santana-(Roger Moret) SP-Brad Radke (Scott Erickson) SP-Carlos Silva (Bob Wickman) SP-Kyle Lohse (Chris Carpenter) SP-Joe Mays (Pete "Were the Redfern Grows") Closer-Joe Nathan-(John Wyatt) RH Setup-Juan Rincon-(Manny Sarmiento) LH Setup-J.C. Romero (Mike Kilkenny) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Yeah, I wasn't really talking about him. I was talking about the top three who haven't proven anything yet - but everyone will conceed they have the potential. You would have expected them to have better comparable players. Way to totally miss the point. I got your stupid point, I just had to get the obvious jab in, geez Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cuban Linx 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Only player i feel like looking up for the Rangers, Mark Teixeira's most similar player at age 24 = Hall of Famer Willie McCovey. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mik 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Yeah, I wasn't really talking about him. I was talking about the top three who haven't proven anything yet - but everyone will conceed they have the potential. You would have expected them to have better comparable players. Way to totally miss the point. I got your stupid point, I just had to get the obvious jab in, geez Have you been watching Napoleon Dynamite or something? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted January 29, 2005 Yeah, I wasn't really talking about him. I was talking about the top three who haven't proven anything yet - but everyone will conceed they have the potential. You would have expected them to have better comparable players. Way to totally miss the point. I got your stupid point, I just had to get the obvious jab in, geez Have you been watching Napoleon Dynamite or something? maybe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
