Look at Ray Ray Run

3 players since 1960. 3 players have done it - counting Frank. McGwire, Thomas and Bonds. 1 player came up 1 point short at 199. That player shocked me.

I posted the picture from insta - I know he looks good with his frame but that is not what a strong "lean" guy looks like at all.

By wRC+, he would have been one of only 3 players since 1960 to be above 200 - Bonds, Mcwire and Thomas. One player since then came within 1 point (199) of the 200 barometer. Can you name that player? I was shocked to see who it was.

It's sad because the strike deprived Thomas from a chance of having the greatest offensive season, not by Barry Bonds, post 1960. He still technically qualified, but it's not the same over 112.

Frank had 7 WAR. AS A -8 1st baseman, in 112 GAMES. 7 WAR, with negative base running and defensive value, in 112 games. It's one of the most absurd things in baseball history.

93 team had Bo too but his hip had already died by then. Still, he was there. 2006 probably the most exciting pre-season hype/excitement after 1993/94.

I literally just laid out that his batting average could go down 40 points and his overall production up.

Huh? Man, people need to slow down on the expectations. The odds of this team being as good as the 93 and the 94 White Sox is incredibly slim.

I have no problem giving mendick the chance to the back up IF'er with leury/engel being back to OF'er with leury helping at SS as well. I don't want to fill out the rest of the roster with vets. Would like to have one or two spots for the non-guaranteed everyday young guys.

93 team had: Ventura - 5.3 bWAR Thomas - 6.2 Tim Raines - 3.8 Karko - 3.2 Lance - 6.1 Burks - 2.9 Cora - 1.7 Ozzie - 1.8 Alvarez - 4.9 Bere - 2.6 Alex - 5.4 Berto - 2.6 Team was filthy.

Not sure I agree with this - 93/94 team was so stacked its absurd.

Eh, the balance of speed and power is what makes it so much fun. I'd say good luck getting Robert not to run; guy loves it. Can you blame him? If I ran like that I'd be stealing all day everyday.

Mike Cameron is the most underrated baseball player of the last thirty years. If Robert was as good as Cameron, that's a really great career and hes worth every dollar of his extension. I actually made the Robert/Cameron comp on this site during the middle of last year: so I'm with you here Caufield.

The thing people always ignore with BABIP regression is progression in other areas of the game; MQR is right in his thoughts on Moncada, and even if his BABIP goes back to sane levels of 350-380 that he likely warrants with his combination of speed/ex velo/LD%, he's still an incredible talent. That said, Moncada could add 2% to his walk rate back to 9% (where he was before), and that's 11 more times on base. If his BABIP regresses 30 points (3%), he loses 12 base hits from last year (with 406 balls put in play). That means, essentially his 2% increase in walk-rate would cancel out any BABIP regression from an OB standpoint. If he takes his ISO from 233 to 237, cuts down on his strike outs by an additional 2%, and now he actually is on base more and has more total bases than last year... simply by adding 2% to his walk rate, decreasing his k-rate by 2%, and increasing his ISO very slightly. He would actually be a BETTER player under the scenario above; ever so slightly. This is what people overlook so often. Anderson could have his BABIP come down to a 350-360 range, cut down on his strike outs again (from 21% to say 19%) while increasing his defense to 2018 levels, and his WAR would actually be higher than last year - his batting average would be lower, but he would actually be a better player. When guys start showing development, it's hard to gauge when they will stop showing significant improvement. Everyone who guarantees regression due to one or two stats (like BABIP) overlook a players overall progress and growth that is the true driving force behind their improvement.

I mean, guys. That isnt Torii Hunter on the left.

Mike Trout came up as a 6'2 220 lb CF'er. Luis Robert is coming up as a 6'2 220 lb CF'er. I'm not saying but I'm just sayin'.

Yeah, to use a football comparison. Robert is a little shorter but roughly the same size as Julio Jones - who is one of the most impressive physical specimens in the nation's most physical sport.

To put Robert's size in perspective, Buxton is about 6'1/6'2 190. Robert has 20-30 pounds on the guy but runs at similar top end speed readings.

Yeah, but he's 6'2 about 220 now. That is absolutely massive for a guy who probably has about 4% body fat. That is a lot of weight to carry with elite speed, and speed can diminish a bit more quickly when you're that size as a kid. He could still fill out a bit more too.

Right now Robert is a freak defensively. The concern is he's absolutely massive so people think he'll eventually size his way out of CF. Hes big and bulky but fast as all hell. Not something to worry about today though.

Yeah, I think this is related to the fact that he doesnt really know which pitches to target quite yet. When he guesses right and squares it up he's an absolute monster. When he doesnt pick the right pitch with his aggressive approach he induces himself into softer contact.

Yeah, but the issue with a guy like Robert is he had absolutely zero reason to change his approach. He was so dominant. Once he struggles a bit he may adjust quickly - hes clearly talented enough. Also, K/BB numbers dont correlate great from A ball to MLB. Franco is awesome and discipline matters but it's simply a skill that doesnt always transfer as you move up. You need to be able to hit the ball with authority in the big leagues to get the most out of good plate discipline.

There are so many ways in which Brinson and Robert are nothing alike though; which is why I hate how lazy the comp is. Also, every single player in the big leagues will have a "comp" that ended up being a bust. To compare the two, let's just start with their MiLB iso's. Brinson' best season had ISO's of 236 and 231. Robert had an ISO of 296 between three levels last year. Robert's wRC+ was 20 points higher than Brinson best year. Robert was the best player in MiLB last year; Brinson never held that title. The ONLY place they are similar is in their K/BB. It's a lazy comp.

It may be one of their only wheelhouses, but at least it's one they can call there's!

ZZZZZZ; there stubbornness with Luis Robert is just ludicrous at this point.