Simon: Legend of Vlad Guerrero goes way beyond his numbers
From SABR member Mark Simon at ESPN.com on December 30, 2016:
Take first-year Hall of Fame candidate Vladimir Guerrero’s most basic numbers — a .318 batting average and 449 home runs in 16 major league seasons with the Expos, Angels, Rangers and Orioles — and hold them up to the statistical spotlight.
He is one of six retired players (plus one active player, Miguel Cabrera) to pair a batting average that high with at least 400 home runs. The others are five of the greatest players of all time: Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig and Stan Musial.
Guerrero also had 250 intentional walks, a total that ranks fifth since the stat was first tracked in 1955. The four players ahead of him are Barry Bonds, Albert Pujols, Hank Aaron and Willie McCovey, another group that includes some of the best players ever.
Read the full article here: http://www.espn.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/77157/legend-of-vladimir-guerrero-goes-way-beyond-his-numbers
Originally published: December 30, 2016. Last Updated: December 30, 2016.