MLB Power Rankings: Top 10 Most Overrated Power Hitters in Baseball
MLB Power Rankings Which Power Hitters Get Too Much Credit?
With all the new advanced baseball stats, it is a lot easier to measure the worth of a baseball player, yet there are still those guys that teams tend to overrate and to be honest, it is mostly the power hitters that get too much credit.
So with spring training underway, we will be counting down the 10 most overrated power hitters in baseball right now.
Some of them are past their primes, some are just not efficient enough, but the fact remains that these 10 guys all get a little too much credit for doing the things that they do.
All of the guys on the list hit more than 25 homers in 2010 and are considered power hitters.
Who do you think is the most overrated? Let us know.
10. Paul Konerko, 1B, Chicago White Sox
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2010 Stats: .312 BA, 39 HR, 111 RBI, .584 SLG, 110 SO
Why He Is Overrated: Paul Konerko has been a steady force for the White Sox for most of his career, however, he has never been a real feared hitter in a lineup.
As good as the batting average, the homers and the RBIs look, he also strikes out a lot and is starting to get a little long in the tooth.
I do think Konerko has some value, but the fact that the White Sox have struggled to get into the playoffs with regularity really hurts his value in my opinion.
9. Matt Holiday, LF, St. Louis Cardinals
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2010 Stats: .312 BA, 28 HR, 103 RBI, .532 SLG, 93 SO
Why He Is Overrated: Ever since Matt Holiday was traded by the Colorado Rockies, his numbers have been dipping. Not only does that tell me that he thrived off the high altitude and thin air, but also that Holiday hasn't progressed like many would have hoped.
Holiday is also making a very steep $17 million this year and that seems a little high for the second best hitter on your team if you ask me.
It will be interesting to see how Holiday does this season with Albert Pujols' contract status up in the air.
8. Ryan Howard, 1B, Philadelphia Phillies
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2010 Stats: .276 BA, 31 HR, 108 RBI, .505 SLG, 157 SO
Why He Is Overrated: I'll say this once and Philly fans can give me all the crap they want: Ryan Howard is an average starter, not an All-Star.
Howard's average is decent, not great. His slugging percentage in 2010 was the worst it has ever been and he cut down his strike outs, but there was still a staggering 157 times that Howard was out on strikes.
Another stat to pull out when talking about Howard's value is Wins Above Replacement (WAR), which measures how many wins a guy is worth over an average replacement player. Howard's WAR is 2.1, which puts him as barely a starting level player.
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7. Adam Dunn, DH, Chicago White Sox
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2010 Stats: .260 BA, 38 HR, 103 RBI, .536 SLG, 199 SO
Why He Is Overrated: Adam Dunn had actually one of his better seasons in 2010 with the Nationals. He had his fifth highest batting average, despite setting a career high in strike outs.
Actually, the strikeouts are the biggest reason he is on the list. He has gone over the 190 strikeout mark three times in his 10 seasons.
Dunn also had one of his best seasons in terms of WAR at 3.6, but the season before, his WAR was just 0.9.
6. Adrian Beltre, 3B, Texas Rangers
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2010 Stats: .321 BA, 28 HR, 102 RBI, .553 SLG, 82 SO
Why He Is Overrated: Adrian Beltre is another guy that had a career year in 2010, but he is always someone to worry about after he gets a contract and the Rangers gave him a big chunk of change.
Beltre does have a tendency to disappear at the start of new contracts. He was terrible when he got a big payday in Seattle and I could see that happening again in Texas.
Beltre's 2010 WAR was a very good 6.1, but before that, he had WARs of 1.1, 3.5, 2.7, 4.6, and 1.9.
5. Nick Swisher, RF, New York Yankees
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2010 Stats: .288 BA, 29 HR, 89 RBI, .511 SLG, 139 SO
Why He Is Overrated: Nick Swisher really became a solid player for the Yankees in 2010, he had career highs in batting average and slugging percentage, but he didn't deserve to be voted to the All-Star game.
Swisher is another guy that strikes out far too much to be a feared hitter in the MLB.
His WAR for 2010 was 4.0, which is decent, but not what you would want from an All-Star power hitter.
4. David Wright, 3B, New York Mets
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2010 Stats: .283 BA, 29 HR, 103 RBI, .503 SLG, 161 SO
Why He Is Overrated: David Wright bounced back in 2010 after a very poor 2009 campaign, but despite the return of his power numbers, Wright's average took a dip and his strike outs went up.
While Wright's power numbers look good, he just isn't getting on base like he used to and in return, his team struggled in 2010.
Wright's 2010 WAR was just 3.9, meaning he is just an average starter in the MLB.
3. Dan Uggla, 2B, Atlanta Braves
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2010 Stats: .287 BA, 33 HR, 105 RBI, .508 SLG, 149 SO
Why He Is Overrated: Dan Uggla is one of the boom or bust hitters in baseball, meaning he has the tendency to either hit the ball in the seats or make an out.
Uggla strikes out a lot and often looks bad doing so.
His WAR numbers also point to the fact that Uggla is just average and not spectacular. He was at 3.9 for 2010 and just 2.4 for 2009.
2. Carlos Pena, 1B, Chicago Cubs
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2010 Stats: .196 BA, 28 HR, 84 RBI, .407 SLG, 158 SO
Why He Is Overrated: If Dan Uggla is a boom or bust hitter, Carlos Pena is the ultimate boom or bust hitter. Of his 95 hits, 28 of them went out of the park.
However, looking at Pena's numbers, how can he be considered a legitimate major league hitter? He hit just .196 and struck out 158 times.
Pena also had a WAR of just 1.1, meaning he doesn't deserve to be a starter.
1. David Ortiz, DH, Boston Red Sox
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2010 Stats: .270 BA, 32 HR, 102 RBI, .529 SLG, 145 SO
Why He Is Overrated: Big Papi has been prone to slow starts over the past few years, but he figured out his problems and seemed to have a decent year.
Ortiz struck out more in 2010 than any other year in his career and part of that had to do with the fact that he didn't have a lot of protection in the lineup, but he also had a WAR of just 3.3.
That WAR is a rise over the 0.3 he had in 2009 and 1.1 in 2008.
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