Biggest MLB Duds of April 2016, Position by Position
Baseball's regular season might be a marathon and not a sprint, but it seemed like we blew through April in record time, doesn't it?
The players in this list might disagree with that sentiment. All of them are struggling badly out of the gate and eager to leave the season's opening month firmly in the past. While there's plenty of time for them to turn things around, it doesn't make their struggles any less frustrating.
Taking traditional and advanced statistics into consideration, here's a look at those who failed to meet even the most modest of expectations over the season's first month.
Catcher: Derek Norris, San Diego Padres
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The good news for Derek Norris: His beard has retained its awesomeness. The bad news: His bushy companion didn't grow arms and swing the bat for him last month. It couldn't have fared much worse than Norris did at the plate.
Not only was the 27-year-old the most unproductive catcher around, but he was one of the most unproductive players in baseball, period. His .444 on-base plus slugging percentage bested only two other players last month—both of whom appear on our All-Dud Team—while only one player hit for a lower batting average.
"We know the bat is not far off, we know it’s coming," San Diego manager Andy Green told Dennis Lin of The San Diego Union-Tribune.
For Norris and the struggling Padres, it can't come fast enough.
Dishonorable Mention
Yan Gomes (CLE): .605 OPS, 6 XBH (3 HR), 11 RBI
First Base: Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds
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The reduced expectations surrounding the Cincinnati Reds don't extend to their first baseman, Joey Votto. Regardless of the state of the team around him, the 32-year-old perennial All-Star is always going to be counted on to produce.
Votto failed to live up to those expectations in April, hitting only .229 with a .640 OPS. While they weren't the worst numbers we saw from a first baseman last month, they're far from what fans expect of Votto—which is what landed him a starting spot on the All-Dud Team.
He's pulling the ball and keeping it on the ground more often than he ever has before and, as a result, hitting into defensive shifts far more frequently, as Owen Watson recently noted for FanGraphs. That's a recipe for disaster for any player, especially one that lacks speed like Votto.
Dishonorable Mention
C.J. Cron (LAA): .585 OPS, 3 XBH (1 HR), 4 RBI
Ryan Zimmerman (WAS): .603 OPS, 4 XBH (1 HR), 7 RBI
Second Base: Dee Gordon, Miami Marlins
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Early Friday, MLB announced via Twitter that Miami's Dee Gordon had been suspended for 80 games after "testing positive for performance-enhancing substances." Yahoo! Sports' Jeff Passan later reported via Twitter that Gordon tested positive for both testosterone and clostebol.
I had Gordon pegged as a candidate for April's biggest dud at second base before that news broke. He's looked nothing like the player who led the majors in hits and won the National League batting title a season ago.
But nothing makes a player a bigger dud than cheating, intentional or not.
Dishonorable Mention
Brian Dozier (MIN): .617 OPS, 8 XBH (3 HR), 10 RBI
Ryan Goins (TOR): .469 OPS, 4 XBH (1 HR), 4 RBI
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Shortstop: Erick Aybar, Atlanta Braves
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When Atlanta traded defensive wizard Andrelton Simmons to the Los Angeles Angels for veteran shortstop Erick Aybar and a pair of pitching prospects, Braves general manager John Coppolella said he thought "all three players in the trade will have an impact on our major league team for the 2016 season," per ESPN.
But this certainly wasn't the kind of impact he expected from Aybar.
Hitting .169 with a MLB-worst .391 OPS and 0 wRC+ (weighted runs created plus), Aybar has been as close to an automatic out as you can get. Thoughts of dangling him as trade bait later in the season have all but disappeared, at least until he shows signs of life at the plate.
If there's a silver lining in all this for the Braves, it's that they'll have no reservations about replacing Aybar with top prospect Dansby Swanson, who recently moved up to Double-A, when he's ready to make his MLB debut.
Dishonorable Mention
Alcides Escobar (KC): .515 OPS, 3 XBH (0 HR), 6 RBI
Didi Gregorius (NYY): .597 OPS, 4 XBH (2 HR), 4 RBI
Third Base: Chase Headley, New York Yankees
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It's become clear that Chase Headley's 2012 season—when he hit .286 with 31 home runs, an .875 OPS and a National League-leading 115 RBI for the San Diego Padres—was not a sign of things to come for the veteran third baseman.
But nobody could have predicted that he'd emerge from the 2016 season's first month as baseball's only position player without an extra-base hit (minimum 60 at-bats).
That wouldn't be an issue if he were hitting for average by loading up on singles and drawing enough walks to get on base consistently, but with a .150 batting average and .450 OPS, that hasn't been the case.
“It’s been tough for the whole team and for me personally,” Headley told Dan Martin of the New York Post. “We know we’re capable of scoring more runs, and I know I’m capable of doing more. It’s just not fun to go through.”
It's fair to say that it hasn't been fun for Yankees fans to watch, either.
Dishonorable Mention
Aaron Hill (MIL): .454 OPS, 3 XBH (1 HR), 7 RBI
Anthony Rendon (WAS): .596 OPS, 4 XBH (0 HR), 1 RBI
Left Field: Justin Upton, Detroit Tigers
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It looks as if Justin Upton may finally be waking up at the plate, hitting .385 (5-for-13) with a home run and four RBI over Detroit's final three April games, which were all victories for the Tigers. But three games don't make up for nearly a month's worth of unproductive plate appearances.
No left fielder struck out more often than Upton, whose 38.4 strikeout percentage trailed only Cleveland's Mike Napoli (39.3) for tops in the majors. His .329 slugging percentage sits behind the likes of Billy Burns (.371) and Adeiny Hechavarria (.347), who have hit a combined 18 career home runs.
You can bet the Tigers expected far more after signing the 28-year-old to a six-year, $132.75 million deal this past January.
Dishonorable Mention
Desmond Jennings (TB): .507 OPS, 3 XBH (1 HR), 6 RBI
Eddie Rosario (MIN): 577 OPS, 5 XBH (3 HR), 6 RBI
Center Field: Carlos Gomez, Houston Astros
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Ever since he arrived in Houston at last year's trade deadline, Carlos Gomez has looked frustrated at the plate. Injuries and inconsistency find the veteran center fielder hitting only .231 with a .617 OPS over 63 games with the Astros.
That includes a .213 batting average and .516 OPS this season, which is the lowest among qualified center fielders and one of baseball's worst this season. It's easy to understand why he snapped his bat like a twig over his knee after a recent strikeout against Boston's Henry Owens and then tried to make his batting helmet a permanent part of the dugout bench.
"It would be nice to get him heated up," manager A.J. Hinch recently said to the Houston Chronicle's Jake Kaplan.
That's going to have to wait, as yet another injury—soreness in his ribs, the kind of thing that can linger and add to his level of frustration—finds Gomez sidelined yet again heading into May.
Dishonorable Mention
Lorenzo Cain (KC): .589 OPS, 2 XBH (2 HR), 8 RBI
Austin Jackson (CHW): .573 OPS, 6 XBH (0 HR), 8 RBI
Michael Taylor (WAS): .535 OPS, 5 XBH (3 HR), 4 RBI
Right Field: Jason Heyward, Chicago Cubs
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Much of Jason Heyward's value comes defensively, not at the plate. And the fact that he remains one of the premier defensive outfielders in baseball will make some question his selection as the starting right fielder on the All-Dud Team.
But offensively, Heyward just isn't getting it done. Of the league's 27 qualified right fielders, Heyward is the only one to post a wRC+ below 91 with his 69. His .224 batting average and .604 OPS are also the position's lowest.
Like Detroit with Justin Upton, the Cubs expected more production from Heyward, who they signed to an eight-year, $184 million deal over the winter. That said, there's reason for optimism in Chicago, as Heyward is a notoriously slow starter. Statistically, April has always been his least productive month.
Dishonorable Mention
None
Designated Hitter: Prince Fielder, Texas Rangers
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How bad was April for Texas' Prince Fielder? His .310 slugging percentage ranks 178th among 196 qualified batters, while 107 of those players have hit more home runs than the hefty slugger, who mustered only two over nearly 100 April plate appearances.
No designated hitter is making less hard contact than Fielder, something Gerry Fraley of The Dallas Morning News believes has contributed to his April woes. And maybe he's right. Had Fielder delivered a more Fielder-like performance, Texas would likely lead the American League West by more than a half-game.
Dishonorable Mention
Kendrys Morales (KC): .637 OPS, 7 XBH (2 HR), 8 RBI
Albert Pujols (LAA): .627 OPS, 7 XBH (6 HR), 15 RBI
Starting Pitcher: Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals
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Only Milwaukee's Wily Peralta pitched to a higher April earned run average (7.40) than St. Louis ace Adam Wainwright, who posted a 7.16 ERA and 1.70 walks plus hits per inning pitched while walking nearly as many batters (11) as he struck out (14).
"Listen, you throw the ball down the middle of the plate, these big league hitters will punish you for it," Wainwright told MLB.com's Mark Sheldon and Joe Harris after Cincinnati tagged him for seven earned runs and 10 hits—five of them doubles—on April 16.
That punishment continued his last time out, with Arizona taking him deep twice in a 5.1 inning effort that saw Wainwright allow four earned runs and seven hits, walking one while striking out a season-high five batters.
Dishonorable Mention
Clay Buchholz (BOS): 6.51 ERA, 1.59 WHIP, 27.2 IP, 31 H, 13 BB, 19 K
Wily Peralta (MIL): 7.40 ERA, 1.81 WHIP, 24.1 IP, 32 H, 12 BB, 18 K
Relief Pitcher: J.J. Hoover, Cincinnati Reds
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Losing his job as Cincinnati's closer seems to be the least of J.J. Hoover's April problems. His numbers—a 15.58 ERA, 2.54 WHIP, 8.2 IP, 16 H, 6 BB and 6 K—are atrocious and among the worst of any pitcher, starter or reliever, in the game.
The adjustments he made toward the end of the month, which led the 28-year-old to tell Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer “I think we finally got it figured out,” don't seem to have worked. In his last outing, Hoover allowed two earned runs and two hits—a single and a home run—over an inning of work.
Dishonorable Mention
Sam Freeman (MIL): 7.88 ERA, 2.87 WHIP, 7.2 IP, 13 H, 9 BB, 8 K
Jason Grilli (ATL): 5.43 ERA, 2.25 WHIP, 8.0 IP, 10 H, 8 BB, 9 K
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs and are current through games of April 30. 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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