I put Pujols before MCab simply because Pujols has been the better hitter at the same age in their career. Pujols is only 3 years older than MCab so it isn't like there is that much of an age gap. Granted, MCab could make that jump to even it up, I just think Pujols is a superior hitter.
"Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that." ~George Carlin
I don't understand where all the love for MCab is coming from. Yes he is a great talent, but he has never once hit more than 35HR, let alone 40HR. Now I am not saying he wont reach that number, but he hasn't yet. He does not steal bags. His glove leaves much to be desired and is destined for 1B. DWright has only hit the 30HR plateau once in his career, but he has a decent glove and can steal bags. And while the DET lineup may be conducive to scoring runs this season, they are all getting up there in age, while the Mets have a younger lineup that will be on base for Wright to drive in for years to come. Where is this infatuation with MCab coming from? I mean he is my #3 behind Pujols, but still...What am I missing?
But why isn't anyone mentioning guys like Rios, Sizemore, Braun, etc. in 2-3 years they have a good shot to be where the Arods and Pujols' are now...
Those other guys aren't being brought up because 1) They can't produce like the other players mentioned and 2) Haven't done well long enough to warrant being in the discussion.
Braun could possibly enter the discussion, but I want to see more than one year of production from him. To me, Braun's K/BB rate is troubling, 112/29, and I'm not sold yet he can consistently have a +1.000 OPS (Not that many can). While Rios and Sizemore have very good hitting stats, they just aren't in the same category as a Miggy Cab or Pujols.
...Boston papers now and then suffer a sharp flurry of arithmetic on this score; indeed, for Williams to have distributed all his hits so they did nobody else any good would constitute a feat of placement unparalleled in the annals of selfishness. -Updike
You guys can have any of the players named up to this point, but for the next five years the only guy I'd want on my team is Prince Fielder. Why? Because the guy hit 50 HR at age 23!
That means in five years from now, fielder will still only be 28 years old. The guy hasn't even finished his peak years by that point, and he's already shown himself to be able to hit 50 HR. The guy has the next five years to develop the rest of his game. And I believe he will. His numbers are beautiful; .288 avg, .395 OBP, .618 SLG. Seriously! At 23 he had a .618 SLG.
A healthy Pujols would have been my pick for the next five years; but you guys are looking at these players from too much of a fantasy perspective. Fielder has the makeup of a guy whose going to be a team leader, an offensive spark for years to come. He's going to be a devestating power hitter, who could be posting Bonds-esque OBP numbers by his mid 20's with the kind of fear he will pose in pitchers. (without the Bonds attitude!)
We've seen some great things out of him; and honestly, we don't really know where his ceiling is. Does he have a 60 HR season looming in the next 2-3 years?
Granted, his fielding isn't going to be getting him Gold Gloves in the next two years, but he can continue to work towards mastering that aspect of his game. He will only be 24 at the start of this season, and has a great start on putting up HOF numbers.
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by bigh0rt » Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:48 pm 
