Biggest MLB Duds of Week 9, Position by Position
We're now officially two months into baseball's regular season, past the time when we can point at a player's lack of production and call it "early-season struggles," "rust" or whatever other excuse you can think of.
For some, Week 9 represents their first time on our All-Dud team, while others are making an unfortunate repeat appearance, whether it be as a starter or a dishonorable mention. This week's roster is full of star power, as members of this group have a combined 30 All-Star Game appearances between them.
Taking traditional and advanced statistics into consideration, here's a look at those who are going to need to turn things around—and fast—if they hope to add to that combined total of appearances in the Midsummer Classic.
Catcher: Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals
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Like fabled Delta Tau Chi alum John "Bluto" Blutarsky in his final semester at Faber College, Yadier Molina put up a big, fat zero in Week 9, failing to record a hit in 20 trips to the plate.
You have to go back three weeks, to May 13, to find Molina's last game with more than one hit, a 2-for-4 showing in St. Louis' 8-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Since then, he's hit only .092 (6-for-65) with one double, one home run, six RBI and a .321 OPS.
Dishonorable Mention
Buster Posey (SF): 7 G, .185 BA (5-for-27), 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 5 K
First Base: Hanley Ramirez, Boston Red Sox
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There's good news and bad news when it comes to Hanley Ramirez's Week 9 performance.
The good news is that his .317 OPS wasn't baseball's lowest last week. The bad news is that Ramirez put up a .317 OPS, the lowest among qualified first basemen, which proves that the funk he's been dealing with since mid-May remains fully intact.
That funk has Boston hitting coach Chili Davis at a loss.
“I don’t know exactly what’s going on with him,” Davis told Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald. “...He’s just working on things right now. He’s going through a little rut. ... Everyone goes through that.”
While that last part is true, it doesn't make Han-Ram's performance any easier for Red Sox fans to swallow.
Dishonorable Mention
Mitch Moreland (TEX): 6 G, .130 BA (3-for-23), 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, .461 OPS
Second Base: Chase Utley, Los Angeles Dodgers
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Chase Utley was fired up after New York Mets ace Noah Syndergaard threw behind him on May 28, perhaps as retaliation for his take-out slide of then-Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada in Game 2 of the National League Division Series last fall. After the third-inning pitch that resulted in Syndergaard's ejection, the Dodgers second baseman proceeded to hit a pair of home runs, including a grand slam.
Unfortunately for Utley, it appears he exhausted his bat of its magic in the process. He hit only .111 (3-for-27) with an equally unimpressive .222 OPS in Week 9, the latter of which was baseball's fourth-lowest mark over that span.
Dishonorable Mention
Johnny Giavotella (LAA): 6 G, .217 BA (5-for-23), 4 RBI, 4 K, .435 OPS
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Third Base: Adonis Garcia, Atlanta Braves
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When Atlanta recalled Adonis Garcia from Triple-A just before Week 9's action began, interim manager Brian Snitker hoped the 31-year-old would help spark the team's moribund offense.
“He’s swinging the bat really well,” Snitker told Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It’s just another piece, a bat off the bench. Or if we get him in a game, he will just be another guy to hopefully help maybe get us off the mat a little bit.”
Garcia started at third base in all seven of the Braves' games last week but contributed little to the cause. He hit only .120 (3-for-25) with one RBI, one stolen base and a .274 OPS, striking out eight times in the process.
Dishonorable Mention
Matt Duffy (SFG): 7 G, .091 BA (2-for-22), 1 2B, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K, .359 OPS
Shortstop: Alcides Escobar, Kansas City Royals
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With five qualified shortstops posting a Week 9 OPS below .500, there was plenty of competition for the starting spot on our All-Dud team. But no shortstop was quite as ineffective at the plate as Kansas City's Alcides Escobar, whose .374 OPS and minus-11 wRC+ (weighted runs created plus) were the worst.
Escobar, who carried a five-game hitting streak into last week, was able to extend it to nine games, yet he still finished the week hitting only .172 (5-for-29) with six strikeouts.
Dishonorable Mention
Didi Gregorius (NYY): 7 G, .208 BA (5-for-24), 1 2B, 1 RBI, 4 K, .458 OPS
Left Field: Michael Conforto, New York Mets
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Michael Conforto's two RBI against Miami may have helped guide the New York Mets to a 6-4 victory on Saturday, but the 23-year-old was otherwise missing in action for most of the week.
His eighth-inning, game-tying single off Marlins reliever David Phelps was his first (and only) hit of the week, leaving him with a putrid .053/.095/.053 Week 9 triple-slash line. Conforto also struck out nine times, giving him baseball's second-highest strikeout rate (42.9 percent) of the week.
Dishonorable Mention
Melvin Upton Jr. (SD): 7 G, .107 BA (3-for-28), 2 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K, .245 OPS
Center Field: Ben Revere, Washington Nationals
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In any other week, Ben Revere's .136 OPS probably would have been baseball's worst. But thanks to St. Louis' Yadier Molina, who likewise went without a hit in Week 9, Revere comes in next-to-last among all qualified position players.
Revere, who earned a starting nod on our May All-Dud team, continues to be the least effective center fielder in baseball. He's provided no spark atop Washington's lineup, and with the team's recent promotion of speedy shortstop prospect Trea Turner, he could soon find himself dropped from the order.
Dishonorable Mention
Joc Pederson (LAD): 7 G, .115 BA (3-for-26), 1 RBI, 6 K, .308 OPS
Right Field: Michael Bourn, Arizona Diamondbacks
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Believe it or not, Michael Bourn has actually shown signs of life in Arizona, hitting .298 with a .389 on-base percentage and .793 OPS over 16 games with the Diamondbacks. But Week 9 found the 33-year-old looking like the player that played his way out of both Cleveland and Atlanta.
He hit only .143 (3-for-21) with a double, one RBI and eight strikeouts, posting the lowest OPS (.440) and wRC+ (21) among qualified right fielders.
Dishonorable Mention
Paulo Orlando (KC): 7 G, .208 BA (5-for-24), 1 2B, 7 K, .490 OPS
Designated Hitter: Corey Dickerson, Tampa Bay Rays
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Corey Dickerson split time between left field and the designated hitter spot last week, so he could have appeared here at either position. But after spending all season highlighting the struggles of Texas DH Prince Fielder, the time has come to shine a light on someone else—for a week, at least.
Acquired from Colorado during the offseason to provide some pop in Tampa Bay's lineup, Dickerson has struggled to produce. He hit only .125 (3-for-24) with a .375 OPS in Week 9, though he did hit his ninth home run of the season and drove in five runs.
Still, you have to imagine the Rays expected more than the .196/.238/.429 triple-slash line he's provided through nine weeks of the regular season.
Dishonorable Mention
Prince Fielder (TEX): 5 G, .105 BA (2-for-19), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K, .406 OPS
Starting Pitcher: Francisco Liriano, Pittsburgh Pirates
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Francisco Liriano doesn't have any deep thoughts as to why he's gone from front-line starter to bullpen candidate over the season's first two months.
“Just going through a tough time right now,” Liriano told Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette after his latest debacle, 3.1 innings of 10-hit, seven-run (six earned) ball against the Los Angeles Angels. “I’m not making pitches, not executing pitches, and getting behind the count too much.”
It was one of two miserable outings for Liriano in Week 9, during which he allowed a total of 12 runs (11 earned), 16 hits and three home runs over 9.1 innings of work, walking as many batters (eight) as he struck out. That leaves him with a weekly 10.61 ERA and 2.57 WHIP.
Dishonorable Mention
Taijuan Walker (SEA): 2 GS, 0-2, 10.61 ERA, 2.25 WHIP, 9.1 IP, 15 H (5 HR), 11 ER, 6 BB, 5 K
Relief Pitcher: Luke Gregerson, Houston Astros
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While the struggles of his teammates Dallas Keuchel and Ken Giles have gotten more attention, Houston closer Luke Gregerson hasn't exactly been putting up All-Star numbers in the ninth inning.
The veteran reliever blew two of his four save opportunities last week and allowed at least one earned run in three of his four relief appearances, working only one perfect inning against Arizona this past Tuesday.
He finished the week with a 15.00 ERA and 1.67 WHIP, allowing five earned runs and four hits over only three innings of work.
Dishonorable Mention
Fernando Salas (LAA): 3 G, 0-1, 13.50 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, 4 IP, 7 H (2 HR), 6 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 0-for-2 SV
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs and are current through games on June 4. All contract information courtesy of Cot's Contracts (via Baseball Prospectus).
Hit me up on Twitter to talk all things baseball: @RickWeinerBR.
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