Jimmy Rollins' Struggles

In 1968, American Bob Beamon pulled off one of the most extraordinary accomplishments in athletic history. He won the Olympic gold medal in the long jump in Mexico City with a jump of 29' 2 1/2". This was 21 3/4" more than the previous record. Beamon himself had never jumped even 27' and he never would again. The new record was to last for 23 years. Even allowing for the benefit of Mexico City's altitude, it was astonishing. Which naturally leads us to Jimmy Rollins.

Rollins' early-season struggles at the plate are well documented and much discussed. But has J-Roll fallen victim to his own Beamon-like moments? In 2006, Jimmy batted .277, just about his career average, but he broke out with 25 hr. Then came his epic MVP 2007 season when his numbers approached the surreal: .296 average, 41 stolen bases, 94 rbi, 139 runs, 20 triples, AND 30 hr. Out of the leadoff spot! But then came last year's fairly pedestrian output and this year's nightmarish beginning.

Aside from 2006-07, Rollins has never hit more than 14 hr and one can't help but think that those 25-30 long ball seasons were an aberration that Jimmy should not try to replicate. Without even trying to go long, Jimmy would probably hit 15-20 hr a year, and that should more than enough for the team if he got on base more often with the opportunity to put his legs to use, particularly given the abundance of power in the current Phillies' lineup.

Ricky Henderson, Rollins' boyhood idol, routinely did things as a leadoff man bordering on the supernatural with an unprecented combination of speed, power and average. It is understandable that Jimmy would want to pattern his game after his hero. But even the legendary Henderson, who hit almost 300 career home runs, only broke the 20 hr mark three times in his 26 year career. Rollins has already done it twice in 8 full seasons. There is no need to do it again.