All-Star Preview: First Base

This week, we're taking a look at the ABL's many potential All-Stars. Let's take a look at the many sluggers who man first base. I ended up writing a lot more on these guys than I planned. Why? With the exception of one player, I have no idea who should make the All-Squad. I tried to figure it out while going over the various players, but ... well, you'll see. Please help me figure this out by registering your opinion in the comments.

The Roberto Clemente League is the hitter's league, and first base is one of the positions where, on paper at least, the RCL holds a distinct advantage over their brothers in the Thurmon Munson League. Let's take a look at these mighty RCL first-sackers, keeping in mind that there is probably only room for two on the All-Star team.

PLAYER                   AB   R HR RBI   BA  OBP  SLG   OPS
Peter Blanchard, MIN    250  46 17  61 .368 .448 .648 1.096
Dave Hutchinson, NEW    260  43 19  60 .277 .355 .558  .912
Miguel Angel Ortíz, SDT 267  52 14  48 .326 .405 .554  .960
George Sanders, SEA     264  53  8  44 .356 .408 .568  .976
Keiran Simmons, GRN     292  47 17  60 .339 .351 .599  .950
Dale Watson, MIN        249  44 17  64 .297 .374 .566  .940

Peter Blanchard

Peter Blanchard is one of the most remarkable stories in the ABL. He is 18 years old, and he's already among the best hitters in baseball. (Do you realize that, if he stays healthy, Blanchard will be hitting his prime in a cool decade?) Has he been aided by the friendly dimensions of The Frozen Tundra? Yes, but his OPS on the road is 1.019. This kid is for real, and he's a safe bet to be starting the All-Star Game.

But who should join him? Blanchard's teammate, Dale Watson, has been Minnesota's designated hitter, but occasionally fills in at first base. His numbers more clearly show the influence of his home park's cozy dimensions: 12 of his 17 home runs have been hit at home, and his road OPS is .772.

Keiran Simmons

If Keiran Simmons learned how to take a pitch, he'd be unstoppable. As is, he might be the most overlooked player in the league. Not only does he lead all first basemen in hits (99) and total bases (175), but he also has the best road OPS (1.064). At 26, he's just entering his prime, and every team passed on him multiple times: Greenville drafted him in round 17.

Also drafted in round 17? George Sanders, though at 33 it's easier to understand how he fell so low. Is his success to due to cozy Sick's Stadium? It helps, but his road OPS is .955. His ability to line balls in the gap plays anywhere, and he leads the RCL in doubles (24).

Dave Hutchinson

Dave Hutchinson is your prototypical slugger. He leads all RCL first basemen in both home runs (19) and isolated power (.281), despite his home ballpark. His average (.277) is respectable, but it keeps his OPS (.912) a cut below the others. Were Hutchinson in the TML, he would have a good chance of starting the All-Star game. As is, he'll probably watch the game from home like the rest of us schlubs.

Miguel Angel Ortíz became the first player in ABL history to hit three home runs in one game. He's the complete offensive package, and his 2.9 WAR puts him second to Blanchard among first basemen.

It's tough to rank these guys, but Ortíz, Sanders, and Simmons probably have the best claim to backing up Blanchard on the All-Star team. All of them are worthy of making the team, but there's probably only room for one of them. Who will it be, fellows?

How much of the difference between the two leagues is due to the ballparks rather than player abilities? It's hard to tell. Looking at unadjusted statistics, there are some good-hitting first basemen in the TML, but there aren't any great hitters.

PLAYER                   AB   R HR RBI   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS
Patrick Goff, JER       269  47 22  53 .260 .313 .539 .852
José González, BOS      222  40  8  33 .266 .395 .437 .832

Vic Jennings, LAS       283  45 16  54 .322 .400 .519 .919

Joseph McKee, LOS       272  44 10  49 .324 .396 .489 .885
Jayson O'Neill, KAN     270  37 11  53 .315 .325 .522 .847
Dan Smith, CAB          271  51  9  48 .317 .374 .476 .850
Ray Stevens, LAS        277  37 13  62 .318 .374 .534 .908
Eric Ware, SFE          234  29 17  54 .274 .350 .526 .875

Vic Jennings

The two players with the highest OPS, Vic Jennings and Ray Stevens, are teammates for Las Vegas: Stevens serves as the team's primary designated hitter. Lucky 7 Ballpark is one of the few parks in the TML to be friendly to hitters, and few players have benefitted from their home park as much as Jennings: 12 of his 16 home runs have come at home, and his home OPS (1.192) is over 400 points higher than his road OPS (.746). You can't really fault a guy for taking advantage of his home park. Besides, some of this is probably the result of luck and small sample size. Stevens has had the same opportunity, but his splits are much more balanced: .960 OPS at home, .875 on the road.

Dan Smith

Okay then, which one of these players has the best road OPS? Would you have guessed ... Dan Smith? I wouldn't have. But sure enough, his OPS is .803 at home and .912 on the road. The funny thing about his splits is that Field de Los Layendas actually favors left-handed hitters like him. He's a rather balanced hitter who, at 27, is entering his prime. You'd think he'd be tearing the cover off the ball down in Cabo.

The questions don't get easier. What do we make of Jayson O'Neill? While being primarily used as a first baseman by Kansas City, O'Neill also splits time at catcher with teammate Freddy Castillo. In fact, catcher is his first position. He's a free swinger with power who has walked only six times all season: despite a .315 average, his .325 OBP is actually below the .330 TML average.

Patrick Goff

The most powerful hitter of the bunch is Patrick Goff, whose 22 home runs tie him for second in all of the ABL. His .539 slugging leads TML first basemen, but it's hard to overlook his .313 OBP.

Joseph McKee? He has the best batting average of the bunch, gets on base at a .396 clip, and plays in a tough stadium—though again the facts surprise as his home OPS (.911) is better than his road OPS (.854). He also hits like a pitcher when he faces a southpaw: in 64 at-bats against left-handers, his OPS is .668.

José González

José González has the opposite problem. He's murder on left-handers (1.134 OPS) but flails against right-handers (.722). The veteran certainly can take a walk: his OBP is .395 while his average is only .266. But he hasn't shown much of the prodigious power for which he is known. Surely playing in St. Sebastian's Cathedral is what's keeping his numbers down? Nope. His home OPS (.908) beats his road OPS (.746) by a comfortable margin. He plays the best defense of the bunch.

Last we come to Eric Ware. He plays in a tough ballpark, but his home/road splits are almost dead even. He doesn't hit for average, which keeps his OBP at .350—good but not great. He has plenty of power: his 17 home runs are second only to Goff. He's been a solid player for the best team in baseball. Is that enough to get him an All-Star nod?

Like I mentioned at the outset, this article is a lot more detailed than I originally intended. With the exception of Peter Blanchard, there are no clear choices, and I remain undecided. In the RCL, there is a surplus of amazing bats. In the TML, there are a whole bunch of very good hitters but no great ones (at least not so far this season).

Help me out, guys!