Biggest MLB Duds of Week 19, Position by Position
In a sport in which those who fail 70 percent of the time are considered to be among the game's elite hitters, it's easy to forget how truly humbling baseball can be.
No matter his salary, track record of success or season stat line, every player inevitably finds himself in a funk at one point or another over the course of a 162-game regular season. And every player handles that funk differently.
Some dig into the batter's box a bit deeper than normal, while others arrive to the ballpark earlier (and stay later) to work on their swing. Some, like Houston's Carlos Gomez, take their frustration out on the bat, snapping it like a large twig over their leg.
Sadly, there's no tried-and-true method for breaking out of a funk. What works for one player won't work for another. But most are successful in leaving that funk behind and getting back to business.
Taking both traditional and advanced statistics into consideration, let's look at the players who can't wait to leave Week 19 behind and, they hope, move on to bigger and better things.
Catcher: A.J. Pierzynski, Atlanta Braves
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A week ago, you couldn't find a hotter backstop in the game than Atlanta's A.J. Pierzynski, who was looking to extend a 13-game hitting streak during which he was 22-for-51 (.431) with a .992 OPS.
Instead, his bat went cold, as the veteran backstop mustered only one hit in the four games he played last week, finishing 1-for-15 (.067) with a .192 OPS while grounding into four double plays.
Dishonorable Mention: James McCann, Detroit Tigers; Jonathan Lucroy, Milwaukee Brewers
First Base: Nick Swisher, Atlanta Braves
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The good news for Nick Swisher is that he's picked up a pair of extra-base hits in his first week as a member of the Atlanta Braves. The bad news is that those two hits are the only ones he's mustered as he begins his Braves career.
His enthusiasm and "over-the-top bubbly attitude" rubbed many of his teammates in Cleveland the wrong way—especially since he wasn't producing at the plate but was being paid good money ($15 million per year)—according to Zack Meisel of the Plain Dealer.
It's fair to wonder how long it will be before he loses the clubhouse in Atlanta if he continues to swing the bat the way he did last week.
Dishonorable Mention: Albert Pujols, Los Angeles Angels; Ben Paulsen, Colorado Rockies; Justin Smoak, Toronto Blue Jays; Adam Lind, Milwaukee Brewers
Second Base: Omar Infante, Kansas City Royals
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Another week, another appearance on our All-Dud squad for Kansas City's Omar Infante.
Infante, who earned a spot on Week 18's All-Dud team after hitting .150 (3-for-20), managed to outdo himself in Week 19, going 0-for-17, though he did drive in a pair of runs. Not only is his .529 OPS now baseball's lowest, but if the season were to end today, it would stand as the lowest OPS by a player who qualified for the batting title this century.
Alex Gordon can't get healthy fast enough for the Royals, who would then be able to use Ben Zobrist as their full-time second baseman, getting Infante and his putrid bat out of the lineup once and for all.
Dishonorable Mention: Anthony Rendon, Washington Nationals; Jace Peterson, Atlanta Braves
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Shortstop: J.J. Hardy, Baltimore Orioles
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Only a half game out of a wild-card berth and five games behind the New York Yankees in the AL East, the Baltimore Orioles' postseason hopes would be strengthened if they could get something—anything—out of starting shortstop J.J. Hardy.
But the 11-year veteran, who was on a 15-game hitting streak as recently as Aug. 1, has been a non-factor at the plate for the Orioles recently. Last week, he mustered only one hit in 19 at-bats (.053 BA), posting a .105 OPS that was the lowest in all of baseball, regardless of position.
Dishonorable Mention: Alcides Escobar, Kansas City Royals; Troy Tulowitzki, Toronto Blue Jays
Third Base: Brett Lawrie, Oakland Athletics
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While he split time between second and third base last week, Oakland's Brett Lawrie was too unproductive to avoid a spot on our All-Dud team. With Omar Infante entrenched at second, Lawrie gets the nod at the hot corner.
Lawrie hit .154 (4-for-26) with a .346 OPS last week, striking out nine times without drawing a walk. He was one of only seven players to strike out in at least 30 percent of his plate appearances without drawing a free pass.
Dishonorable Mention: Nick Castellanos, Detroit Tigers; Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays
Left Field: Marlon Byrd, Cincinnati Reds
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Weeks like this are part of the reason why Marlon Byrd, a candidate to be traded this month, remains a member of the Cincinnati Reds.
The 37-year-old, whose power from the right side of the plate would be a welcome addition on multiple contenders, flashed none of it last week, mustering only three singles in 23 at-bats, which was good for a .130 batting average. His .323 OPS was equally unimpressive, as were his eight strikeouts.
Unlikely to reach the 550 plate appearances he needs for his 2016 option to vest, Byrd needs a strong finish if he's to convince Cincinnati to pick up that $8 million option.
Dishonorable Mention: Shane Peterson, Milwaukee Brewers; Preston Tucker, Houston Astros
Center Field: Carlos Gomez, Houston Astros
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Carlos Gomez has yet to look anything like the All-Star that Houston thought it had acquired from Milwaukee at the end of July, and that frustration boiled over Friday when Gomez broke a bat over his thigh after striking out.
"I'm frustrated because the whole night and the last week I've been missing my pitches," Gomez told the Houston Chronicle's Jose de Jesus Ortiz. "When you go to the plate and you look at one specific area and one specific pitch and he throws you [it], you're not supposed to miss."
Gomez, who went 2-for-18 (.111) last week, is hitting .196 (11-for-56) with three extra-base hits, four RBI and a .510 OPS over his first 14 games in an Astros uniform.
Dishonorable Mention: Anthony Gose, Detroit Tigers; Jacoby Ellsbury, New York Yankees; Kevin Pillar, Toronto Blue Jays
Right Field: Hunter Pence, San Francisco Giants
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San Francisco might have won four of its six games last week to keep pace with Los Angeles in the NL West, but it's going to be increasingly difficult for the Giants to do so if Hunter Pence's bat doesn't soon wake up.
Pence, who has been limited to 50 games this season because of injury, hit only .160 (4-for-25) with eight strikeouts and a .440 OPS in Week 19. Sure, he hit his eighth home run of the season, a solo shot off Washington's Max Scherzer, but that did little to make his weekly numbers look any better.
Dishonorable Mention: Nick Markakis, Atlanta Braves; Jay Bruce, Cincinnati Reds; J.D. Martinez, Detroit Tigers
Designated Hitter: Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees
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Whether it's his age, that he missed the 2014 season or a combination of both, it was only a matter of time before Alex Rodriguez hit a wall. And hit the wall he has, going 2-for-23 (.087) with a .290 OPS for the New York Yankees.
His timing couldn't be much worse, with the team battling Toronto for AL East supremacy. In fact, A-Rod's issues date back to his 40th birthday on July 27, which was the last time he went deep—a span of 16 games. In 12 August games, he's hitting only .152 (7-for-46) with a .495 OPS.
Dishonorable Mention: Victor Martinez, Detroit Tigers; Grady Sizemore, Tampa Bay Rays
Starting Pitcher: Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners
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While Felix Hernandez mixed one solid start with one forgettable one last week, that the King tied a personal-worst by allowing Boston to put 10 earned runs on the board against him gives him the nod for the All-Dud squad.
"Embarrassing," Hernandez told MLB.com's Greg Johns of his performance after the Red Sox's 22-10 drubbing of the Seattle Mariners on Saturday. "I couldn't get the ball down. Every pitch I threw, they hit." As Johns goes on to point out, Hernandez hasn't been at his best recently:
"Hernandez retired only six of the 20 batters he faced. The only other time the 11-year veteran has allowed 10 runs was May 16, 2006, against the A's, and this was the first time he's given up 10 earned runs. The 12 hits were one shy of his career high, but it was the third time in his past four starts that Hernandez allowed double-digit hits.
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Hernandez's struggles are only a blip on the radar of what has been another disappointing season for the Mariners, but it has to be a concern that he's pitched to a 9.13 ERA and 1.99 WHIP over his last four starts, which have spanned only 22.2 innings.
Dishonorable Mention: Matt Shoemaker, Los Angeles Angels; Max Scherzer, Washington Nationals; Brett Anderson, Los Angeles Dodgers; Chris Archer, Tampa Bay Rays
Relief Pitcher: Greg Holland, Kansas City Royals
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Greg Holland hasn't been his usual dominant self for much of the season, and things seemingly came to a head last week when he blew his fourth save of the year. He failed to record an out while surrendering four hits, a pair of walks and four earned runs to the Los Angeles Angels.
"I felt really good. My fastball felt good, my slider felt good. But every time I made a mistake, it got hit. It was one of those nights," he told the Kansas City Star's Lee Judge. "I really don't know what to say. I made some bad pitches, and I had to pay for them tonight. We lost the game, and it was my fault."
Since he has a 4.04 ERA and 1.46 WHIP this season, there's certainly some reason for the Royals and their fans to be concerned about the two-time All-Star. That said, the team still holds a 12-game lead in the AL Central, and Holland's history of success should minimize the panic over his less than stellar efforts.
Dishonorable Mention: Ryan Cook, Boston Red Sox; Jim Johnson, Los Angeles Dodgers
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs and are current through games of Aug. 15. All contract information courtesy of Cot's Contracts.
Hit me up on Twitter to talk all things baseball: @RickWeinerBR
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