Buster Posey making another case for NL MVP
by Randy Holt
At this point in the season, it’s going to be very difficult for anyone to
overtake Bryce Harper in the race for the National League Most Valuable Player
award. He’s not only having a breakout season for the Washington Nationals,
but a historic one as well. If there’s anyone that can do it, though, it’s
perennial MVP candidate Buster Posey.
今年的Bryce Harper,不只是為國民打出一個破繭而出的球季,他甚至打出一個歷史級的球
季.如果說有誰能夠取代Bryce Harper成為今年國聯MVP的領先者,那就是一直以來的MVP候
選人-Buster Posey.
The San Francisco Giants slipped up recently in their pursuit of a wild card
spot, and possibly the division, out of the NL West, having dropped four in a
row to the Chicago Cubs, but they still find themselves in a solid position as
we prepare to head into the home stretch. Right in the middle of it all is
Buster Posey, who has three times finished in the top 11 in MVP voting (and
another year in which he finished 20th) including winning the award back in
2012.
舊金山巨人最近面對芝加哥小熊苦吞四連敗,使他們的戰績有點下滑.不過考量到接下來的
主場賽程(也就是上一個對太空人的系列賽以及現在對上國民的系列賽),他們仍然是競爭國
聯西區龍頭與外卡的有利人選.(截至8/15,巨人在分區僅落後洛杉磯道奇2.5場).在這之中
多虧了Buster Posey,這位曾經三次在MVP票選中名列前11(另有一年第20),其中在2012抱回
年度MVP的殊榮的強打捕手.
For a Giants team that has come as close to an MLB dynasty as anything in
recent memory, Posey continues to shoulder the bulk of the load. While the
offensive burden has been lightened with the breakout years from guys like
Brandon Crawford or Matt Duffy, any road to success for the Giants runs through
Posey and what he can accomplish.
近年來,Buster Posey一直在建立偶數年王朝的舊金山巨人隊肩負著攻守兩端的重任.雖然
今年多虧了破繭而出的Brandon Crawford, Matt Duffy和其他人,進攻端的負擔已經稍微減
輕,但是一直以來,巨人隊的成功與Buster Posey都是密不可分的.
And he’s continued to do exactly what we’ve come to expect from him.
然後他今年也一如預期的繳出預期中MVP級表現.
Posey currently ranks third in the National League in WAR, trailing only Harper
and Paul Goldschmidt, the latter of which he ranks behind by only 0.1. He’s
slashed .332/.391/.505/.896 for the season, lacking the outlandish BABIP that a
guy like Goldschmidt (.395) features, at .328. He’s gone for a wRC+ of 154, a
figure which is tied for the fifth highest in baseball. His ISO, at .174, falls
right in line with his career average, which comes in at .178.
Posey的WAR在國聯排名第三,只落後給Harper和Paul Goldschmidt(兩人的差距僅有0.1).
Posey的打擊三圍長這樣: .332/.391/.505/.896,而他並沒有像Paul Goldschmidt一樣誇張
的BAbip(.395 vs .328).他的wRC+是154,並列全聯盟第五.他的ISO是跟生涯平均.178相距
不遠的.174.
Although he hasn’t quite demonstrated the ability to draw the walk that his
counterparts at the top of the NL leaderboard have, at a 9.4% clip that ranks
sixth among the top ten players in wRC+, he doesn’t strike out like his
counterparts either. He has a K% of just 8.2% for the season, which is the
third lowest mark currently in the National League.
雖然他不像對手Goldschmidt, Harper那麼會領保送,但Posey 9.4%的保送率在wRC+前十的
選手中排名第六.此外,他也不像對手一樣擁有高三振率.Posey的三振率只有8.2%,排名國聯
第三低.
As the temperature has heated up in these summer months, so has Buster Posey.
Since the beginning of July, he’s hitting .409 and reaching base at a .436
clip. His wRC+ averaged between the two months is at 182. Even better for the
Giants, Posey is hitting .342 in high leverage situations and a very solid .281
in counts that feature two strikes against him. If clutch was a thing that
existed, we could certainly classify him as such. Nonetheless, he does sport
some pretty favorable splits on the year.
隨著夏季氣溫升高,Buster Posey也越來越火燙.從七月起算,他的打擊率和上壘率躍升到
.409和.436.兩個月的平均wRC+是182.更好的是,Posey在高張力的情況有著.342的高打擊率
;而在球數絕對落後時有著還不錯, .281的打擊率.儘管他有一些有利的splits,但如果說
"關鍵"是一種東西,Posey就是.
Any way you shake it, Buster Posey is always a threat at the plate. He has a
35.0% hard hit rate, and hits to all fields, going opposite field 26.8% of the
time. He’s maintained a very good 88.4% overall contact rate for the year,
including a 92.6% figure on pitches inside of the zone, with a swinging strike
rate of just 5.5%.
不管你橫看、側看,Buster Posey都是進攻的威脅.他有35.0%的強打率,而且擊出的球平均
散布在球場(他有26.8%球會到反方向).他有非常好的88.4%打到球率,其中好球區內提高到
92.6%,同時揮空率只有5.5%.
Overall, you’re talking about a player that ranks third in batting average,
sixth in on-base percentage, seventh in wOBA, and sixth in wRC+. And that’s
not even mentioning his defense. His 9.0 Def rating on FanGraphs has him ninth
overall in the National League and tops among catchers. Baseball Prospectus has
him second, behind Yasmani Grandal, in extra strikes and framing runs added by
call. If there’s an underrated element of Buster Posey’s game, his ability to
handle himself defensively behind the plate is it.
整體來講,他是一個在打擊率排行第三,上壘率排第六,wOBA排第七,還有wRC+排第六的打者.
我們甚至還沒講到他的防守.Posey 9.0的防守評價排在國聯第九,範圍縮小到捕手的話會是
第一.Baseball Prospectus將Posey偷好球的能力排在第二,只落後給Yasmani Grandal.(最
會framing的不是A.J. Pierzynski嗎XD).Posey的防守能力被低估了.
Not that any of this should come as any sort of surprise. Posey has been as
steady an offensive presence as they come in the National League throughout his
career, while bringing that steadiness behind the plate from a defensive
perspective as well. Again, it’ll be very difficult for him to overcome the
likes of Bryce Harper, or perhaps even Paul Goldschmidt even with his club
landing far short of a playoff berth. But we’ll see Buster Posey in the mix,
for sure, as he continues to add to what could already be potentially
considered a Hall of Fame resume.
其實上面所說的,都不會讓人感到太驚訝,因為Posey一直都是那個能提供的進攻火力同時也
能穩穩守住本壘板後方的MVP級捕手.也許很難超越Bryce Harper,甚至超越不了進不了季後
賽的響尾蛇一壘手Goldschmidt,但我們還是會看到Posey出現在今年的MVP候選人討論中,與
此同時,我們也會在往後的球季中,繼續看到這位全能捕手邁向可能的名人堂之路.