Should Womack be leading off right now?

[Rob]

Why?

 

Tony Womack 2005:

 

.249/.276/.280

 

I guess what I'm saying is that he's a 36 year old player with no discernable skill besides speed. He can't take a walk. He can't hit for power. His fielding is sub-par, even if he can play multiple positions.

 

And that 2005 line?

 

That's the line of a player with no skills besides speed... but one that's lost a step.

 

Don't let a nice week or two fool you. I seem to remember Jose Macias stringing together a few good games in a row before, and I know I saw Neifi pull off a nice couple weeks at the end of '04.

 

That didn't make either one of them useful. And 25 plate appearances doesn't make Womack useful either.

 

Edit:

 

Maybe I'm being too harsh on Tony. Let's examine a best case scenario.

 

As recently as 2004, Womack hit .307/.349/.385 over 553 AB's. That a .734 OPS. As of the moment I'm writing this edit in (6th inning of the game) Ronny Cedeno has a .736 OPS. While it's not bad production by any means, it's not blowing the world away. That year, Tony's .734 OPS was worth 2 BRAA (Batting Runs Above Average). In the field that year, Tony came in with -11 FRAA (Fielding Runs Above Average). So in his best year in recent memory, he gave back all his gains at the plate back whenever he took the field... and then some. I guess Tony's best case scenario still isn't that great, huh?

[KyHen]

In summary, I like both Walker and Womack, which scares me a little bit.

 

Why does liking Walker scare you?

 

'cause I like a Cub? (as a Card fan)