Independence Day has long been considered the unofficial halfway point of the baseball season. It actually comes a bit past half, but why mess with tradition?
I’ve calculated the base values for all batters who made at least 150 plate appearances as of July 4, and I’m going to unroll the results over the next three weeks on a position-by-position basis. (A player was required to play at least 50 percent of his games at his listed position.) Consider it a rundown of first-half excellence.
Overall base value is a comparison of the bases reached by a given batter (through hits, walks, hit batters, stolen bases, and sacrifices) with the number that an average hitter would have attained under the same circumstances.
Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees had the highest OBV in the American League on July 4, a reading of plus-142. Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers led the National League at plus-121. Neither will be seen in this week’s installment, since Judge is an outfielder and Ohtani is a designated hitter.
Listed below are the top five players in both leagues at all four positions. The American League’s best infield, scanning from first base to third, consists of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Jose Altuve, Gunnar Henderson, and Rafael Devers. Their National League counterparts are Bryce Harper, Ketel Marte, Elly De La Cruz, and Alec Bohm.
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1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays, OBV 38
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2. Josh Naylor, Guardians, OBV 28
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3. Vinnie Pasquantino, Royals, OBV 13
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4. Nathaniel Lowe, Rangers, OBV 10
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5. Carlos Santana, Twins, OBV 9
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5. Ryan Mountcastle, Orioles, OBV 9
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1. Bryce Harper, Phillies, OBV 77
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2. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers, OBV 71
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3. Christian Walker, Diamondbacks, OBV 41
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4. LaMonte Wade Jr., Giants, OBV 34
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5. Michael Busch, Cubs, OBV 29
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1. Jose Altuve, Astros, OBV 34
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2. Jorge Mateo, Orioles, OBV 8
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3. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Blue Jays, OBV 4
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4. Edouard Julien, Twins, OBV 3
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5. Enmanuel Valdez, Red Sox, OBV -8
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1. Ketel Marte, Diamondbacks, OBV 51
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2. Brice Turang, Brewers, OBV 36
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3. Jonathan India, Reds, OBV 30
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4. Bryson Stott, Phillies, OBV 17
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5. Nick Gonzales, Pirates, OBV 5
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1. Gunnar Henderson, Orioles, OBV 104
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2. Bobby Witt Jr., Royals, OBV 78
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3. Carlos Correa, Twins, OBV 42
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4. Corey Seager, Rangers, OBV 24
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5. David Hamilton, Red Sox, OBV 22
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1. Elly De La Cruz, Reds, OBV 67
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2. Mookie Betts, Dodgers, OBV 60
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3. CJ Abrams, Nationals, OBV 48
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4. Trea Turner, Phillies, OBV 33
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5. Francisco Lindor, Mets, OBV 27
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1. Rafael Devers, Red Sox, OBV 62
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2. Jose Ramirez, Guardians, OBV 59
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3. Isaac Paredes, Rays, OBV 36
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4. Josh Smith, Rangers, OBV 35
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5. Jordan Westburg, Orioles, OBV 32
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1. Alec Bohm, Phillies, OBV 36
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2. Joey Ortiz, Brewers, OBV 30
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3. Mark Vientos, Mets, OBV 29
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4. Ryan McMahon, Rockies, OBV 23
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5. Max Muncy, Dodgers, OBV 18
I didn’t miss the opportunity to identify the players who are struggling at each infield position, as indicated by their negative OBVs.
Think of these infielders as anti-All-Stars. The American Leaguers, from first to third, are Anthony Rizzo and Spencer Torkelson (a tie at first base), Nicky Lopez, Javier Baez, and Gio Urshela. The National Leaguers are Elehuris Montero, Jeff McNeil, Tim Anderson, and Jake Burger.
Look below to see the bottom three at each position in each league.
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1. Anthony Rizzo, Yankees, OBV -25
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1. Spencer Torkelson, Tigers, OBV -25
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3. Dominic Smith, Red Sox, OBV -14
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1. Jake Burger, Marlins, OBV -31
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2. Santiago Espinal, Reds, OBV -28
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3. Kike Hernandez, Dodgers, OBV -27
Pitchers are averaging slightly more than six walks a game in 2024 — 6.18 for both teams combined.
Does that seem unusually wild to you? It isn’t. This season’s walk rate is actually a bit better than usual for the past century.
If we look at 10-year intervals between 1924 and 2024, we see that pitchers have issued between 5.76 and 7.30 walks per game, a relatively tight spectrum. Here’s the trendline:
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Today’s quiz keeps with the theme of July 4 stats, though it focuses on teams, rather than individual players.
Can you identify the top teams in five categories as of Independence Day? Take a shot at the questions, then scroll to the bottom of this newsletter for the answers.
1. Which team has blasted the most home runs?
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A. Baltimore Orioles
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B. Los Angeles Dodgers
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C. New York Mets
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D. New York Yankees
2. Who has the highest team batting average?
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A. Houston Astros
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B. Milwaukee Brewers
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C. Philadelphia Phillies
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D. San Diego Padres
3. Which club is averaging the most runs per game?
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A. Atlanta Braves
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B. Baltimore Orioles
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C. Los Angeles Dodgers
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D. New York Yankees
4. Which team has drawn the most walks from opposing pitchers?
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A. Chicago Cubs
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B. Los Angeles Dodgers
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C. Milwaukee Brewers
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D. New York Yankees
5. Let’s make one visit to the flip side. Which club has hit the fewest homers?
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A. Miami Marlins
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B. Tampa Bay Rays
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C. Toronto Blue Jays
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D. Washington Nationals
Pete Rose is best known for two things: (1) He pounded out 4,256 hits, the most in major-league history. (2) His gambling addiction kept him out of the Hall of Fame.
But here’s another distinction that is rarely mentioned. Rose hit 746 doubles during his 24-year career, the largest output of two-base hits during baseball’s Modern Era, which began in 1961.
Below are the era’s 10 leading producers of doubles, as tabulated by Baseball Reference. Their career spans are in parentheses:
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1. Pete Rose, (1963-1986), 746
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2. Albert Pujols, (2001-2022), 686
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3. Craig Biggio, (1988-2007), 668
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4. George Brett, (1973-1993), 665
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5. Carl Yastrzemski, (1961-1983), 646
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6. Adrian Beltre, (1998-2018), 636
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7. David Ortiz, (1997-2016), 632
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8. Miguel Cabrera, (2003-2023), 627
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9. Paul Molitor, (1978-1998), 605
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10. Cal Ripken Jr., (1981-2001), 603
The 1984 Detroit Tigers — destined to be ranked as the best team of baseball’s Modern Era (1961 to the present) — should have toyed with the Chicago White Sox in early July.
Detroit entered the three-game series with a 55-22 record (easily the best in the majors that year), while the Sox were puttering along at 37-40. Yet Chicago easily swept the Tigers, winning by a combined score of 24-8.
The next stop on the road swing went better, but only slightly. Detroit split four games with the Texas Rangers.
Their disappointing 2-5 week left the Tigers with a 57-27 record at the All-Star break, which fortuitously arrived on July 9, 1984. Yet they still led the American League East by seven games over the runner-up Toronto Blue Jays.
The 1962 New York Mets, who were on track to suffer more defeats than any other club in the Modern Era, added five more losses to the bank during the week of July 2-8.
And they were ugly losses. New York dropped three games to the San Francisco Giants and two to the St. Louis Cardinals by a total score of 49-11.
Not that there weren’t some high points. The Mets played two doubleheaders during the week, affording them an opportunity to notch three wins. The most dramatic came on July 7, when first baseman Marv Throneberry smashed a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth for a 5-4 come-from-behind victory over the Cards.
The All-Star break began on July 9, and the National League standings made for discouraging reading. The Mets were last with a 23-59 record, 31.5 games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers.
1-A. (The Orioles hit 142 homers through Independence Day. The Yankees were a somewhat distant second with 127.)
2-A. (The Astros topped the majors with a .264 BA, followed by the Padres at .262.)
3-B. (It’s the Orioles again. They were averaging 5.14 runs per game through July 4. The Dodgers were the runners-up at 5.03.)
4-D. (The Yankees had 349 walks after the action on Independence Day. The Dodgers came next at 334.)
5-A. (The Marlins had only 69 homers through July 4, putting them slightly behind the Nationals’ 71.)
