Carlos Beltran vs. Shane Victorino - Who is More Valuable?

If you were going to mass produce a major league outfielder, Carlos Beltran of the Mets would be an excellent prototype. 6 ft 1 in, 190 lbs, excellent foot speed and base stealer, solid defensively, switch hitter with tape measure power on both sides. To top it all off, it does it all effortlessly. After Beltran turned the baseball world on its ear in 2004 while with the Astros, hitting 8 home runs in the post-season, the Mets signed him to the biggest contract in franchise history to that point, 7 years for $119 million. After watching the young man from Puerto Rico play, you wonder how he does not hit .350 and 50 HR every year. It's unfair that anyone should be so talented.

But in his four years with the Mets, he has not hit .350, nor .320 or .300. His best was .282. His highest home run total, 41. He has averaged over 100 rbi and it's true his production has been limited by injuries, but it would be hard to argue that he has lived up to his potential. And there is the nagging question of his effort, which often appears sub-maximal if not downright lackadaisical. While it might be difficult to distinguish Beltran's effortless style from apparent disinterest, we have seen balls get past the center fielder where he exhibits no sense of urgency in tracking them down. While that may not hold up in court, it is pretty convincing evidence.

Contrast Beltran with his Philadelphia counterpart Shane Victorino. While the New Yorker is poetry in motion, Victorino takes the whirling dervish approach, in constant motion. Shane is 5 ft 9 in and 160 lb whose arm, speed and defense are the cornerstones of his game - as good as there is in the big leagues. Hitting is another story. Victorino will not be making any batting instructional videos; at least, they won't be best-sellers. He is a switch-hitting slap hitter who has to fight the urge to pull away from every pitch. But despite breaking every hitting fundamental - Ted Williams must roll over in his grave - Victorino somehow manages to hit .290 with double digits in home runs. That he can achieve this in such an unorthodox manner is a tribute to his own athleticism, strength, and toughness.

And there is absolutely no questioning Shane Victorino's effort. He treats every throw, every stride, every swing as if it was his last. One of his most impressive stats last year was scoring 102 runs, despite frequently hitting in front of his team's weakest hitters. He was often in the middle of late inning rallies. In the 2008 playoffs, Shane led the Phils' offense with 14 hits and 13 rbi and showed the rest of the country his high-energy style. In other words, Victorino overachieves while Beltran underachieves. And if you want to run a cost-benefit analysis, the Phillies are making out like bandits. In the last three years, Victorino was paid less than $500,000 and in '09 will make 3.1 million. Where is Ryan Howard's agent when you need him?

You can make the case that, for a fraction of the cost, the Flyin' Hawaiian has been at least as valuable to the Phillies as Carlos Beltran has been to the Mets. More importantly, the man from the Pacific has one more world championship than the man from the Caribbean. The lingering concern is that one of these years, Beltran is actually going to reach his potential. And with the steps the Mets have made to bolster their bullpen, that would have major implications for the Phillies and the rest of the National League.

The Suicide Squeeze

Milwaukee at Philadelphia in an important late-season game. The Phils had a 3-1 lead going into the bottom of the 7th but their 7th and 8th inning relief pitching has been increasingly unreliable. An insurance run or two would be most welcome so they could hand a lead to their indomitable closer, Brad Lidge, in the 9th inning.

In the 7th, the Phillies' fleet center fielder, Shane Victorino, was on second with no outs. So far so good. Pedro Feliz was next up. He is an inconsistent hitter with power, prone to the strike out. Somewhat surprisingly he bunted and the sacrifice was successful. Victorino advanced to third base, now with one out. The next batter was Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz is an excellent defensive catcher with a batting average barely above .200 all season. However, in recent weeks, his hitting has been showing signs of life. On his way to the plate, Ruiz matter-of-factly asked a teammate the sign for the squeeze. Manager Charlie Manuel, who has not called for the squeeze all year, heard this exchange and was somewhat bemused.

The relief pitcher for the Brewers was right-hander Carlos Villanueva who was pitching from the windup with Victorino on third. So the stars were aligned for a successful squeeze: fast runner on third, a right-handed batter to block the catcher's view, a pitcher using the windup, a good bunter, and presumably the element of surprise. A left-handed pitcher would have been even better, but what does it matter because Charlie Manuel NEVER squeezes anyway?

Ruiz worked the count to 2 and 1, and one of the balls was a pitchout - so much for the element of surprise. Villanueva then started into his windup. Victorino held his ground momentarily but then broke hard for the plate. In the meantime, Ruiz did not show bunt until the right-hander released the pitch. It was too late for the Brewers to react. Ruiz's bunt was soft and up the third base line, much better than was needed. Victorino scored easily, the Phils had their insurance run, and they went on to win. And Charlie Manuel was still bemused.

Baseball's suicide squeeze - a beautiful thing.