Izturis vs. Lugo

[Schwarber Fan]

After reading through that "Best of the Worst" thread in BB Discussions, I was thinking - would you rather have Cesar Izturis or Julio Lugo if you HAD to chose one. Obviously, the ideal choice is neither.

 

Izturis: .242/0 HRs/8 RBI

 

Lugo: .197/5 HRs/40 RBI

[CubColtPacer]

Izturis. He is putting up better numbers this year, and he is only signed for the rest of the year-while Lugo is making 9 million this year and for the next 3 years after this one. Lugo's contract alone makes this an easy choice.

[UMFan83]

Kidding right? Lugo everyday of the week and twice on Sunday.

 

I know people will try to argue RGI's, but I don't think RGI's are as important as RBI's

[Flames24Rulz]

And to think I actually wanted Lugo in the offseason. I'm glad I was wrong on that.

[Drew Doughty]

dammit, i voted for the wrong one. i thought this was a "who's worst" poll. i voted for lugo. i'd much rather have izturis so far than lugo. i do think lugo will be better as we go along, though.

[anabiono]

lugo in a landslide decision

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Even if Lugo doesn't hit(which he in all likelihood will), he actually provides defensive value beyond reputation.

[NCCubFan]

Lugo. His past suggests that he has a chance to rebound and at least have a decent second half.

[CubColtPacer]

Are people taking contract completely out of play here? The original list did consider contract, and I'm shocked that so many people would rather take Lugo at his contract than Izturis at his.

[PrimeTime]

Are people taking contract completely out of play here? The original list did consider contract, and I'm shocked that so many people would rather take Lugo at his contract than Izturis at his.

 

I think were talking here as a player and potential..Lugo is a heartbeat..I dont care what theyre getting paid,Lugo is better than him offensivley and defensivley..Hes just having a off year

[abuck1220]

izturis did lead the nl in hitting for like two weeks that one time...

[cubweiser03]

How the hell does a guy batting .197 and slugging .298 get 40 RBIs?

 

Lugo-.197/.298=40RBI

Manny-.284/.465=45RBI

Ortiz-.314/.556=52RBIS

Youk-.328/.502=44RBIs

 

Youk has 4 more HRs and 4 more RBIS, so he isnt driving in anymore baserunners than Lugo. Manny has 6 more HRs but only 5 more RBI so Lugo is actually driving in more baserunners than Manny. Ortiz has only driven in 3 more baserunners than Lugo.

[jersey cubs fan]

How the hell does a guy batting .197 and slugging .298 get 40 RBIs?

 

Lugo-.197/.298=40RBI

Manny-.284/.465=45RBI

Ortiz-.314/.556=52RBIS

Youk-.328/.502=44RBIs

 

Youk has 4 more HRs and 4 more RBIS, so he isnt driving in anymore baserunners than Lugo. Manny has 6 more HRs but only 5 more RBI so Lugo is actually driving in more baserunners than Manny. Ortiz has only driven in 3 more baserunners than Lugo.

 

.185 .275 .287 with nobody on.

.238 .272 .345 with RISP.

.357 .375 .571 with bases loaded.

.333 .364 .476 with man on second.

 

He's also hitting leadoff on a team that is getting a 350 OBP out of the 9 hole.

 

So, he's getting lucky with the timing of his hits and getting a lot more opportunities to hit with men on than he is providing the guys behind him.

[killthegoat06]

Izturis did have that one game-winning hit...

[Schwarber Fan]

Izturis did have that one game-winning hit...

 

2 in his Cub career

[soapy]

Are people taking contract completely out of play here? The original list did consider contract, and I'm shocked that so many people would rather take Lugo at his contract than Izturis at his.

I considered contract and still chose Lugo. It's not particularly close either.

[YearofDaCubs]

How the hell does a guy batting .197 and slugging .298 get 40 RBIs?

 

Lugo-.197/.298=40RBI

Manny-.284/.465=45RBI

Ortiz-.314/.556=52RBIS

Youk-.328/.502=44RBIs

 

Youk has 4 more HRs and 4 more RBIS, so he isnt driving in anymore baserunners than Lugo. Manny has 6 more HRs but only 5 more RBI so Lugo is actually driving in more baserunners than Manny. Ortiz has only driven in 3 more baserunners than Lugo.

 

.185 .275 .287 with nobody on.

.238 .272 .345 with RISP.

.357 .375 .571 with bases loaded.

.333 .364 .476 with man on second.

 

He's also hitting leadoff on a team that is getting a 350 OBP out of the 9 hole.

 

So, he's getting lucky with the timing of his hits and getting a lot more opportunities to hit with men on than he is providing the guys behind him.

And this is why I hate Izturis:

 

.283 .336 with nobody on

.191 .240 with RISP

.125 .125 with bases loaded

.178 .221 with men on.

 

Abysmal.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

Poke in the eye with a sharp stick

 

or

 

Stomp on the face and genitals with a track shoe

[CubColtPacer]

Are people taking contract completely out of play here? The original list did consider contract, and I'm shocked that so many people would rather take Lugo at his contract than Izturis at his.

I considered contract and still chose Lugo. It's not particularly close either.

 

So you'd trade Izturis for Lugo right now? I certainly wouldn't. Izturis is horrible yes-but the Cubs can get rid of him in 3 months!

 

Lugo on the other hand has put this up on the last 2 teams he has been on:

 

LAD: 146 AB's, .219/.278/.267

Boston: 299 AB's, .197/.270/.298

 

While he likely will bounce back somewhat eventually, those are awful numbers over almost a full year's time now. Add to that he'll be 32 in November, and Lugo's best days are almost certainly behind him. Plus, he'll be making 9 million dollars for the next 3 years-so he could easily be a 34 year old making 9 million with a .600 to .650 OPS. His defense and stolen bases help the equation, but it still boils down to this:

Do you want to hand the starting SS position for the next 3 seasons to a player who has been below a .600 OPS for the last full calendar year, is almost 32, and will be making 9 million every single year. That's a waste of resources, and would be a much bigger problem than giving a backup infield position to Izturis for the rest of 2007.