The Quest for 100 Steals: Can Carl Crawford Do It? Part II

(Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

If you've read my first two articles, "The Stolen Base: A Lost Art. Will we ever see a 100 Steal Man Again?" and "Gimmie Five! Dexter "The Prowler" Fowler Steals Five Bases in a Game," then you know I am a fan of the stolen base and its return to baseball prominence.

Before reading this article, be sure to read part I of my season-long mini-series outlining the possibility of another 100-steal man in major league baseball, "The Quest for 100 Steals: Can Carl Crawford or Anyone Else Do It?"  

Around the first of each month until the end of the season, I will write updates on the progress of the major league leaders in stolen bases as well as their projections, and what they'd have to do in order to steal 100 (or at least a decent, non-pedestrian number like we've been fooled into thinking is "fast" in the past (see Soriano, Alfonso; Damon, Johnny).

July 1, 2009—here are MLB's top 5 stolen base performers:

1. Carl Crawford, Rays

He has 40 stolen bases in 47 attempts through 80 games (44-36 team record), on pace for 82.

Since the last update I wrote on June 16, Crawford has stolen only four bases in eight attempts in fifteen games. However, his team has went 10-5, meaning like always, winning will negate risk-taking and the Rays could possibly abandon their fun running ways in favor of boring "team first" baseball. You had to see this coming.

Crawford's steals by month:

April: 9

May: 21 (6 in one game vs. Boston)

June: 10

July ???

Crawford's going to have to kick it back into gear after basically taking half the month of June off. Inexcusable. Now he just has to do all the more work in July to make up for it (26 steals in July would get him back on a 100 steal pace.)

He desperately needs several multi-steal games like we've seen before. It's getting to crunch time where just a single steal each game or even every few days will no longer do it—not without a mix of 2, 3, or 4 steal games. Wake up, Carl!

2. Jacoby Ellsbury, Red Sox

He has 33 steals in 39 attempts through 77 games with the Boston Red Sox (47-30 currently), on pace for 71.

While Crawford's season pace has gone down, Ellsbury's has actually gone up from 69 on June 16 to 71 today. Since the last article he's stolen eight bases in eight attempts and his team has went 9-5.

Ellsbury's steals by month:

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