Mott the Hoople
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Steven Kwan Appreciation Thread
- Thread starter Mott the Hoople
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CBBI
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Pierre Pan
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Stellar tidbits from ESPN article that selected Kwan as the Guardians’ most intriguing player:
Cleveland Guardians: Steven Kwan
Can he do it again? Kwan hit .298/.373/.400 and scored 89 runs in a sublime, better-than-expected rookie season. He had more walks than strikeouts. He was a throwback to a couple decades ago, producing nice offense despite not hitting the ball very hard as he ranked in the first percentile in hard-hit rate. I don't think it's silly to suggest that if Tony Gwynn played today he would look a lot like Kwan. In some fashion, Kwan breaks modern metrics, as his expected batting average based on quality of contact was just .268. The projection systems see him hitting in the .275-.285 range. Let's hope it's a .300 season; we need more players who can play this style of game.
Fun fact: Kwan was the seventh rookie position player in Cleveland history with a 4.0-WAR season. Two of the previous six are Hall of Famers (Joe Sewell and Earl Averill). Kenny Lofton and Francisco Lindor could get there. The other two are two of the great what-if stories in MLB history: Al Rosen, whose career ended early due to back problems, and Hal Trosky, who hit .317 while averaging 30 home runs and 126 RBIs from age 21 to 26 but was forced out of the game due to debilitating migraines.
Cleveland Guardians: Steven Kwan
Can he do it again? Kwan hit .298/.373/.400 and scored 89 runs in a sublime, better-than-expected rookie season. He had more walks than strikeouts. He was a throwback to a couple decades ago, producing nice offense despite not hitting the ball very hard as he ranked in the first percentile in hard-hit rate. I don't think it's silly to suggest that if Tony Gwynn played today he would look a lot like Kwan. In some fashion, Kwan breaks modern metrics, as his expected batting average based on quality of contact was just .268. The projection systems see him hitting in the .275-.285 range. Let's hope it's a .300 season; we need more players who can play this style of game.
Fun fact: Kwan was the seventh rookie position player in Cleveland history with a 4.0-WAR season. Two of the previous six are Hall of Famers (Joe Sewell and Earl Averill). Kenny Lofton and Francisco Lindor could get there. The other two are two of the great what-if stories in MLB history: Al Rosen, whose career ended early due to back problems, and Hal Trosky, who hit .317 while averaging 30 home runs and 126 RBIs from age 21 to 26 but was forced out of the game due to debilitating migraines.
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bob2the2nd
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another jab that kenny lofton has been cheated out of the HOF
and not only cheated out of it, but removed from the ballot after the first damn year
sportscoach
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I could see Lofton not 100% getting in, but to vote him off in the first season, that's ridiculous since he was a very good player... He's short on numbers, but deserved to get votes
Though 68 bWAR should have gotten him in...
bob2the2nd
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I was going to say I feel like this board has had this conversation and the answer always ends up that he wasn't a sure thing HOFer but he should have gotten in based on his numbers and the numbers of others in the hall
sportscoach
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He lacks numbers in a single category that is an automatic bid into the hall...
His overall work though actually should get him in since he has numbers in everything but HRs and RBIs. Problem is the hall voters are narrow minded and if someone doesn't hit all the boxes, they won't go in period even if they hit 99% of them...
CDAV45
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Funny you accuse someone/others of being narrow minded. Kenny isn't in because Kenny doesn't deserve it, and that's coming from someone that loved Kenny Lofton and how he played. He fit that team perfectly IMO. This entire HOF nominee is getting a bit watered down. Ken Griffey Jr. is a HOF caliber CFer. Kenny Lofton was just a very good one. Mike Trout will be a HOFer when he's done. Kenny had a career OPS+ of 109 and that's not good enough. Griffey Jr. had a 22 yr career with a 136 OPS+ weighed down heavily by his last 3 years. Trout in his 12 yr career has an OPS+ of 176. Buxton is not on a path to be a HOFer with his numbers either. Same with Mullins. If Reynolds continues to play CF then he might one day get the vote if he maintains his production, but I don't see him as a CFer to be honest. Nimmo has provided surprising production and could have the numbers to get in one day if he can maintain his level of play for a few more seasons. Rodriguez is certainly the type of player worthy of HOF discussion if he continues what he did last season. See the difference yet?
sportscoach
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Lofton has 68 total bWAR over his career...
Ortiz had 55...
Lofton played 300 less games...
Don't tell me via the actual baseball numbers Ortiz deserves to be in over Kenny, cause in truth Ortiz doesn't deserve to be in...
Edgar Martinez and Kenny Lofton have the exact same total bWAR. One was just a pure hitter the other was a long term playing top flight CF...
macbdog
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Using players who shouldn't be in the Hall to justify adding other players just doesn't make sense. Picking the lowest hanging fruit' in the Hall as comparison is actually insulting the player you want in.
Anyhoo, this is the Steven Kwan Appreciation thread. Let's keep it about Steven, ok? Because by the end of his career, it won't be a question of whether he belongs in the Hall or not. Start up a Hall of Very Good thread for the Loftons of the world. Save this thread for Tony Gwynn 2.0.
Anyhoo, this is the Steven Kwan Appreciation thread. Let's keep it about Steven, ok? Because by the end of his career, it won't be a question of whether he belongs in the Hall or not. Start up a Hall of Very Good thread for the Loftons of the world. Save this thread for Tony Gwynn 2.0.
Gson
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Lou Brock had WAR less than 50... he got in..
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Which teams hat will Mr. Kwan be wearing on that beautiful bronze plaque?
sportscoach
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He came up to old and doesn't actually have the skill set to get to the hall...
He will get into the Guardians Hall of Fame though at this pace especially if we get a World Series soon...
Mott the Hoople
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Everybody thinks the Hall of Fame is for Ruth, Cobb, Mays, Feller.
But there's plenty of guys in the Hall that make me SMH.
Harold Baines (22 seasons 38.8 WAR) is in the Hall of Fame.
Kenny Lofton (17 season 68.4 WAR) is not.
That's total bullshit.
But there's plenty of guys in the Hall that make me SMH.
Harold Baines (22 seasons 38.8 WAR) is in the Hall of Fame.
Kenny Lofton (17 season 68.4 WAR) is not.
That's total bullshit.