Chipper Jones: Mr. Underappreciated

Last year though Chipper started to really get back on track. While he still missed time with injury, it wasn’t due to muscle strains and pulls, but rather a freak play at third base where he injured his hands. He still saw action in 134 games, and that was enough for him to prove he is still one of the elite hitters in all of baseball. He finished 6^th in MVP voting, despite playing on a 3^rd place team and missing nearly 30 games. Chipper led the league in OPS. The Braves were 73-61 with Chipper in the lineup, 11-17 sans the switch hitter. It could be argued that with a healthy Chipper Jones for 150 games, the Braves would have won the division.

Chipper has picked up in 2008 right where he left off in 2007. He is again among the league leaders in all meaningful offensive categories (save stolen bases) and has once again entrenched his place as among the most feared hitters in the game. He entered tonight’s game batting .422 with an OBP of .462. All he did was go for 3-3 and hit his 7^th home run, driving in his 20^th run. He’s made it quite clear that he intends to make a push for a second MVP trophy this season. One could argue that Chipper, since the summer off 2006, has been the best hitter in baseball. His start in 2008 has done nothing but further cemented his status as one of the game’s most feared hitters, and perhaps the most feared switch hitter of his generation.

It’s also further cemented his case to be a first ballot Hall of Famer. Chipper, in his entire career, has been a part of one losing team; he’s got a career average of .300, with five years of .315 or higher. His career OBP is .404, which is 40^th all-time, and he’s posted four seasons of .425 or higher. His .952 OPS is 22^nd all-time. He’s already got 2,000 hits, and he’s still counting. He’s now just seven long balls shy of 400 and he’s 13^th among active players in RBI. When it comes to being a professional hitter, few have been as good, for as long, as Chipper Jones has, and he’s not slowing down.

What should slow down though is baseball fans, particularly Braves fans. They should slow down and appreciate what Chipper Jones has brought to not only the city of Atlanta, but the game of baseball in general. He, like Smoltz, has been an icon in Atlanta, and has been a fixture in the Braves lineup. He’s among the greatest offensive 3^rd basemen to ever play the game, and among the greatest switch hitters to ever step into a batter’s box. People don’t realize just how great of a career Chipper has had, and how much of a treat it has been to watch him hit a baseball all these years. If the last year and half are any indication though, there’s still plenty of time to enjoy it.

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