Freddy Sanchez - Scrappy or Crappy?

The last 2 seasons, I have been simply mortified that Freedy Sanchez has made the all-star game. Around the league, baseball analysts everywhere have been salivating over Freddy Sanchez because of his incredible ability to hit for a middle infielder.

The main reason people believe this is purely myth. Because Freddy Sanchez constantly hustles and "plays the game the right way" while posting very good batting averages he has gained the reputation as one of the games best hitters.

Of course, this method of evaluating players is very flawed. Obviously, Sanchez gets plenty of hits, but he does this while sacrificing plate discipline and power. Even with all of his hits, he still fails to get on base at an acceptable rate and has the power of a small child.

Last season Sanchez mostly got lucky. He blooped and grounded hits conveniantly out of the way of fielders. Don't get me wrong, Sanchez can get the bat on the ball and can hit line drives, but last season he got all the breaks. That's about the only reason that he managed to have an above average season. His luck is pretty evident from his unsustainable .370 BAPIP.

Come 2007, and the poorly hit balls gave stopped falling in. Instead of posting an OBP of .378, he's posting a number of .340. A rate simply unacceptable for a player with such minimal power. 6 homers without the ability to find 1st base isn't a particulary attractive brand of baseball.

Sanchez can continue fooling people into believing that's he's a fantastic hitter, but he does little to put runs accross the plate. He doesn't get on base enough for the likes of Jason Bay to drive him in, and his sheer lack of power prevents him from knocking in his teammates. The whole world of baseball can continue to love him for his scrappy play, but when it comes down to it, the Pirates have found a way to turn a useful back-up infielder into their "premier" player. This says more about the Pirates than it does about Sanchez. Even with his ability to make consistent contact, Sanchez is a poor offensive player being used in the middle of a weak Pirates line-up. He's lucky to be getting a starting gig, let alone finding a way on to the all-star team.