Everyone is well aware of the offensive exploits of Robinson Cano this season, but somewhat lost in the shuffle is that the Yankees could be sending two outfielders to the All-Star Game. In fact, the Bombers boast the American League’s best outfield combination, and that dynamic duo is Nick Swisher and Brett Gardner.
Not only are Swisher and Gardner best on the team after Cano in wOBA, but they are both in the Top 10 among qualifying AL outfielders (min. 200 PA). Swisher ranks 4th (.394) and Gardner is tied for 6th (.385). Only Toronto has two other OFs in the Top 10, and they are ranked lower than Swish and Brett.
Among OFs, Swisher is also 5th in OPS and Gardner is just outside the top 10, ranking 11th. Gardner being so high in OPS really speaks to the season he’s having, because OPS underrates high OBP, low SLG guys.
In that same pool, Gardner ranks 3rd with a .401 OBP and Swisher 7th at .383. To add to all of that, Swisher is 5th in Isolated Power, while Gardner is 4th in stolen bases at 22 in 26 attempts.
There is also an X-factor here: the blessing of the NoMaas offseason interview. We would like to take full credit for the strong play from Swisher and Gardner. We’d also like to take his opportunity to extend NoMaas knighthood to any players who could use the offensive boost — Tex, Arod?
We kid, we kid…but in all seriousness, Swisher and Gardner have had outstanding seasons so far — a performance that cannot be matched by any other AL outfield combo.
Nick and Brett have been killer.
* Stats as of games ending June 16th
53 Comments
Sean (really) June 19, 2010 13:49
Kind of agree with fafhrd, sadly. Crawford’s posted 3.1 WAR with a .293/.354/.465 line; Zobrist is at 2.4 WAR hitting .308/.373/.440. Swisher and Gardner have been very good, but to put them ahead of those guys is kind of insulting to Crawford and Zobrist (though I’m sure they wouldn’t cry about it).
The only combo I would dispute as being equal to the Yanks’ corner guys is Bautista and Wells. Vernon Wells has been very good but has dropped off significantly since his hot April, hitting .245/.298/.479 since the calendar turned to May. Bautista has hit for power but hasn’t done much else, and he’s an absolute butcher in the field. Gardner and Swish have been better to this point in the season, and I expect them to be even better from here on out.
Marshall Seymour June 20, 2010 02:24
Sean:
I get what you’re saying and it’s definitely a good point. I ultimately, for now, decided not to use WAR and just focus on hitting due to the larger sample size fielding metrics generally call for.
Sean June 20, 2010 05:53
Fair enough, and I appreciate your response. Believe me when I say I’m happy to have Swish and Gardner out there. Keep the hilarious photoshops coming (especially if they’re going to involve retired wrestling tag-teams).