QUOTE (Greg Hibbard @ Jul 25, 2012 -> 10:20 AM)
I'm not trying to be drastic, but after the GIDP last night (that could have been a real momentum shifter back to the Twins), I revisited his stats.
I've always been a fan/apologist, but it seems that Beckham has really been sinking recently, and sinking badly, AGAIN.
Let me be clear - I don't recommend taking him out of the lineup - I think we live with him for the rest of this year. One hole in the lineup like this is is not going to kill us. However, I see no signs he'll finish any better than a .240/.300/.400/.700 hitter, and that's just not good enough.
For his career - four now severely subpar splits of .245/.311/.380/.691.
He's hitting as bad as he was in April in July - and July's almost over.
Since the beginning of the 2010 season, his OPS is around .660.
Can we live with this for his defense? I think at this point, we're pretty damned sure what we're getting. Slightly above AAAA offensive skill and a great glove. Average speed. Not enough power. Not enough plate discipline. Not enough of an eye. Not quite enough of anything else, really.
I feel badly, but I think we're watching the end of his career these next two months...
not a chance his career is over after this season unless he gets injured. it's possible he may lose his starting spot but at the very least he will stick around MLB as a utility IF for quite some time if his glove remains solid