MLB Team of the Week: Kris Bryant, Gary Sanchez and Mookie Betts Star
On Aug. 12, Alex Rodriguez played his final game as a member of the New York Yankees and quite possibly his final game in the major leagues.
That doesn't qualify him for Bleacher Report's MLB Team of the Week, but we'd be remiss if we didn't at least give one of the greatest, most polarizing players of this or any generation a shout-out.
We've got more pressing work to do, however: namely, highlighting 10 players—one per position, including a starting pitcher and designated hitter—who busted box scores over the past seven days.
To qualify, a player needs to have made at least two starts at the position in question or one start in the case of pitchers. And while this is mostly about individual output, we award bonus points for gaudy stats that translated to ticks in the win column.
Replay your favorite (or "favorite") A-Rod memories, then proceed when ready.
Catcher: Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees
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As Rodriguez took his curtain call, the Yankees launched a youth movement.
Last Saturday, call-ups Aaron Judge and Tyler Austin became the only rookies in MLB history to hit back-to-back home runs in their first at-bats.
The week, however, belonged to Gary Sanchez, who went 8-for-18 with four homers and seven RBI and wrested the starting catcher mantle from veteran Brian McCann, per Sports Illustrated's Kenny Ducey.
"He's a future All-Star, year in and year out," McCann said of his 23-year-old teammate and heir apparent, per Howie Kussoy of the New York Post. "There's not many guys walking around with his talent. It's gonna be nice to see him grow into that player."
Honorable Mention: Russell Martin (TOR): 8-for-19, 2B, 4 HR, 8 RBI
First Base: Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
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The last-place Atlanta Braves are moving into a shiny new stadium in 2017, and they need an equally shiny face of the franchise to ease the transition.
Shortstop Dansby Swanson, who got a much-hyped call-up Wednesday, is one option.
How about Freddie Freeman, though?
Like the unrequited love interest in a romantic comedy, you may have forgotten about Freeman. But he's been there all along.
By way of reminder: The 26-year-old two-time All-Star went 8-for-18 this week with two doubles, three home runs and seven RBI. Plus, he made a second consecutive Team of the Week.
If that doesn't scream face of the franchise, what does?
Honorable Mention: Brad Miller (TB): 8-for-23, 5 HR, 9 RBI
Second Base: DJ LeMahieu, Colorado Rockies
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Rookie Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story grabbed most of the early headlines with his historic home run binge.
Now, with Story and his injured thumb on the shelf, ink is flowing toward his keystone combo partner, DJ LeMahieu.
This week, LeMahieu paced the pack with 15 hits in 24 at-bats, including a double, a triple and two home runs. Toss in four walks, and you're gazing at a cool .625/.679/1.000 slash line.
It doesn't matter for Team of the Week purposes, but LeMahieu is nipping at the heels of the Washington Nationals' Daniel Murphy for the National League batting title.
As Rockies manager Walt Weiss succinctly put it, per Nick Kosmider of the Denver Post, "DJ just keeps rolling."
Honorable Mention: Brian Dozier (MIN): 9-for-26, 2 2B, 4 HR, 7 RBI
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Third Base: Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs
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On Thursday, Kris Bryant went 5-for-5 with two home runs in a 9-6 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. That's the second time the Chicago Cubs star has done that this season.
For perspective, only 16 other players have accomplished the feat twice in their career, per ESPN.com's David Schoenfield.
Overall, the surging Cubbies went 5-2 and maintained their iron-clad hold on the NL Central.
"This guy's work ethic is incredible," manager Joe Maddon said of the reigning NL Rookie of the Year and present MVP contender, per Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago. "He's a very humble man, too. It's not all about me. I know his picture's everywhere, but he doesn't act that way. He takes his craft seriously. He loves to play the game."
Honorable Mention: Evan Longoria (TB): 11-for-24, 2 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 8 RBI
Shortstop: Troy Tulowitzki, Toronto Blue Jays
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The Toronto Blue Jays went 4-2 this week and own a slim lead in the wide-open American League East.
Toss some credit to Troy Tulowitzki, who went 9-for-24 with two homers and five RBI. That's welcome production from a once-fearsome guy who hasn't resembled himself for much of the year.
"It just looks like every time he takes a swing, he's on time," catcher Russell Martin said of Tulo, per Gregor Chisholm and Nick Suss of MLB.com. "He's hitting homers, he's hitting the ball to right field when he needs to. It just looks like he's seeing the ball extremely well right now. It's fun to watch when I'm standing on-deck, it kind of gives me confidence."
Honorable Mention: Francisco Lindor (CLE): 12-for-29, 3 2B, 5 RBI
Left Field: Alex Gordon, Kansas City Royals
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Hey, remember the Kansas City Royals?
Sure you do. They're the club that won back-to-back AL pennants in 2014 and 2015 and grabbed a Commissioner's Trophy last fall.
This week, K.C. went 6-1 to creep back above .500 and into the fringe of the playoff picture.
Left fielder Alex Gordon did his part, going 10-for-25 with a double, three home runs and six RBI.
"It just seems like we're having a lot of fun right now," Gordon said after launching a grand slam in an 8-1 win over the Minnesota Twins Thursday, per Jesse Newell of the Kansas City Star. "In the dugout out there, everybody’s just jelling together. Obviously, winning helps that."
Honorable Mention: Angel Pagan (SFG): 11-for-26, 5 2B, 2 SB
Center Field: Charlie Blackmon, Colorado Rockies
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Speaking of Rockies who rake, Charlie Blackmon did his deal again this week.
Yes, he went 10-for-25, good for a .400 average. Even more impressively, though, he tallied three doubles and six home runs among those 10 knocks while collecting six RBI and scoring 11 runs.
"I always say to him that he's a great hitter," right fielder Carlos Gonzalez said, per Nick Groke of the Denver Post. "I always tell him he could be a middle-of-the lineup guy."
That's mile-high praise from a hitter of CarGo's caliber. But it might be time to shift "could be" to "is."
Honorable Mention: Joc Pederson (LAD): 10-for-23, 4 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI
Right Field: Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox
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Recently, ESPN.com's Scott Lauber described the Boston Red Sox's Mookie Betts as "a freak, a blend of speed and power and ridiculous hand-eye coordination all wrapped up in a 5'9", 180-pound body."
Often, such descriptions are accompanied by a disclaimer. Something like: He's good, considering his size.
Betts, however, defies any equivocation.
He proved it again this week, going 12-for-29 with five home runs, 14 RBI and 10 runs scored.
"Mookie, he's the best player in the game right now," Boston reliever Brad Ziegler said, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. "Everybody stops to watch him hit."
Honorable Mention: J.D. Martinez (DET): 12-for-26, 2 2B, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Designated Hitter: Edwin Encarnacion, Toronto Blue Jays
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It was a close competition between the Jays' Edwin Encarnacion and the Red Sox's David Ortiz for the top designated hitter spot on this edition of Team of the Week.
Boston reeled off a 6-1 record, and Ortiz kept defying Father Time.
In the end, though, Encarnacion's numbers—9-for-24, two doubles, three home runs, six RBI—were just a tad better. And Toronto, as mentioned, finished the week in first place.
Honorable Mention: David Ortiz (BOS): 9-for-21, 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI
Pitcher: Homer Bailey, Cincinnati Reds
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Tommy John surgery comebacks are common, but they're far from guaranteed.
So the recent returns from Homer Bailey surely have Cincinnati Reds fans indulging in cautious optimism.
The 30-year-old right-hander made his season debut July 31. But he was especially impressive in two starts this week, yielding one earned run, nine hits and two walks with 17 strikeouts in 11 innings.
"I just want to pitch," said Bailey, who signed a six-year, $105 million deal with the Reds in 2014, per Colin Fly of the Associated Press (via WCPO.com). "When I get out, I get out. When I'm out there, I'm out there."
Honorable Mention: Matt Boyd (DET): 13 IP, 7 H, 4 BB, 1 ER, 7 SO
All statistics current as of Thursday and courtesy of MLB.com and Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.
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