A quick post this morning on the defense from 2002-2008. Thanks to FanGraphs for making bUZR publicly available. I’ve really had a lot of fun looking through the data.
I decided to use bUZR from the years 2002-2008 to find the best and worst defender on each Giants team in each year. My criteria was fielders who played at least 600 innings in the field. It’s a small-ish sample size for one season, but not many players field over 1,000 innings in a season unless they are playing 150 games or more. I’m also using bUZR/150 or bUZR scores prorated to 150 games in a season. This will give you an idea of how good or bad a player would have fielded his position if given the chance to play 150 games.
First, let’s check out the best defenders.
| Year | Name | bUZR/150 |
| 2008 | Winn | 18.9 |
| 2007 | Feliz | 26 |
| 2006 | Winn | 15.3 |
| 2005 | Feliz | 23.3 |
| 2004 | D. Cruz | 8.3 |
| 2003 | Bonds | 15.3 |
| 2002 | Sanders | 13.7 |
Most shocking inclusion on this list has to be Deivi Cruz who played a +8.3 shortstop for the Giants in 2004. Cruz was really a nice little pick-up that season. He got 400+ AB’s with the Giants that year and hit: .292/.322/.421 while playing above average defense at shortstop. I remember his arm being pretty weak but bUZR thinks he did a better than average job. Randy Winn and Pedro Feliz both make the list twice, they’ve been some of the better defenders for the Giants in recent memory. Feliz was arguably the best defensive third baseman in the game for a couple of seasons and Randy Winn has been one of the best — if not the best — defenders in right.
In 2003 Bonds could still play LF quite well. He saved +15.3 runs over the average National League left fielder. It seems that 2003 was his last year as an outstanding defensive left fielder. In 2004 he dropped to a bUZR/150 of +4, he was hurt in 2005 and when he came back in 2006, he was a -1.9 defender in left. In 2007 he was a -8 defender. For all the flak that Bonds got for being “an immobile object” in left field by sportswriters, most of it wasn’t deserved. Even on one good leg Bonds was a much better defender at his position than present day lumps Carlos Lee, Pat Burrell, and Adam Dunn. Reggie Sanders was “a good Giant”. He hit well in 2002 and played very good defense in right field, but much like through his career, Sanders was gone after the season ended. From 1999-2003 Sanders played with 5 different teams. For a pretty good player, he moved around a lot.
You might have expected Omar Vizquel to show up on this list. He just barely missed the cut in 2007 when he scored a bUZR/150 of +20.2. In his four seasons with the Giants, Omar always could field. He had bUZR/150′s of: +10, +7.4, +20.2, and +13.8.
Now, let’s check out the worst defenders:
| Year | Name | bUZR/150 |
| 2008 | Rowand | -11.1 |
| 2007 | Roberts | -15.5 |
| 2006 | Bonds | -1.9 |
| 2005 | Alfonzo | -12.6 |
| 2004 | Grissom | -15.5 |
| 2003 | Alfonzo | -3 |
| 2002 | Snow | -18.2 |
Most shocking member of team iron glove? I would say that Snow making the list might upset a few people. JT was always a fan favorite for his gold glove defense at first base. But, for whatever reason, he didn’t do well in bUZR for his 2002 season. It could have been something in the system that didn’t like Snow, because a bUZR/150 of -18.2 runs seems shockingly out of whack for his defensive reputation. He fielded over 1,000 innings at first in 2002 but bUZR says that Snow had terrible range. His scores from 2003-2005 seem more accurate. He had scores of: +8.9, +6.9, and +3.1.
Edgardo Alfonzo was a disappointment on both the offensive and defensive ends of his contract. After posting strong offensive seasons in New York, he lost a huge chunk of his power once coming to San Francisco. From 1998-2002 he never posted an ISO under .149, but with the Giants, his ISO’s fell to .132, .118, and finally .068. The final ISO looks like something Omar Vizquel could do. It also looks like he had trouble playing defense. His 2003 score of -3 runs isn’t terrible, it’s very close to being average, but in 2005 someone should have taken his glove away. Does anyone remember him being that bad? I’ve blocked out most of my memories of Fonzy.
I can’t say that I’m surprised to see Grissom pop up for his 2004 season in center field. I can’t tell you how many blooped singles I watched fall in front of Grissom while he was roaming CF for the Giants. He would always run in full steam but watch helplessly as the ball landed 4-5ft in front of him. Every-single-time. He was a pleasant surprise with the bat but he probably didn’t belong in center field at this stage of his career. The Giants picked up him up when he was 36-years-old. In 2001 and 2002 teams started to transition Grissom to LF but the Giants picked him up and played him in CF for 148 games in 2003. In 2004, at 37-years-old, he played 142 games in center. His 2003 bUZR/150 is actually respectable for a player on the last legs of his carer at a defensive position. In that year, Grissom was about average defensively with a score of -2.9 runs. It appears that there’s a fine line between being a useful defensive player and turning into a statue. Marquis crossed that line between 2003 and 2004.
Trying to play Dave Roberts in center was an ugly experiment in 2007. He really had no business playing that position. Rowand’s rating will scare the hell out of pessimists and other people concerned with how he’ll age. If he continues to post double-digit negative run scores in CF, the Giants will have a headache on their hands. He looked slow at times in 2008 and the less we talk about his throwing arm, the better.
Comment Starter: Your favorite all-time Giants defender? Your most hated all-time defender?
I’ll start this one because it’s a fun topic to talk about.
For the bad defenders, a lot of people will probably bring up Velez as a recent example. He’s painful to watch at times. I always remember Glenallen Hill moving very stiffly in the outfield. Nothing he ever did seemed smooth, but he could crush a ball now and then. Jose Castillo was frustrating to watch last year. Marvin Benard? He’s probably a popular pick with fans who’ve seen bad defenders in center field, I never hated him like most did.
Good guys? The Shinjo period in SF was short lived, but I remember him being rangey and smooth in CF. Jose Cruz Jr. — if you block out that one play — seemed to play RF well, sporting a strong throwing arm. I never got to see LeMaster play, but he could supposedly pick it. Same with Kuiper, who was supposed to have been a whiz at second. Fred Lewis was fun to watch last year. His routes are debatable, but he usually gets the ball.
My heart would always skip a beat anytime a ball was hit to the left when Roose was over at third – luckily that didn’t last long.
The guy who I used to love watching pick it was Royce. Don’t have stats to back it up, but my memories of him were of a smooth-fielding short who could make some dazzling plays, peppered with some youthful indiscretions. Billy Mueller also brought some glove at third, maximizing his abilities even if he didn’t have all the range and the arm.
Also can’t forget about Darren Lewis, who could flat out fly early on.
Royce was a great defender, I think it’s why he stuck around for so long. It sure wasn’t because of his bat.
Russ Davis, who is that? I don’t remember any Russ Davis. /blocks memories
Lewis is a good choice, but I don’t remember him as much because I was younger. I think David Bell was an underrated defender. Kinda gritty, but had great hands. I remember him making quite a few nice stops.
The Good since 1990: I definitely can’t fault Clayton or Lewis though. I think I’ll go with Cruz’s regular season in RF. He made plays out there that reminded me of Gary Maddox roaming the ‘Stick. The old quote of 2/3rd of the planet is covered by water and the rest by Maddox seemed less absurd then it sounds. When Cruz was not wore out from lack of rest he was phenomenal.
The Bad. Alfonzo at third. As a Giant he just always seemed to be in pain. And I rarely saw any of the smoothness that was there as a Met.
The Ugly: Kent’s first year or so here at second. No stats to back it up but he look borderline spasmodic out there – a lot. To his credit he never stopped hustling and trying and things did not remain that way.
Loved Shinjo, I can still see that play where the RF muffed the ball in the alley, Shinjo grabs it, spins around and tosses it no-look: a strike to home. I still think he was mis-used by Dusty.
Yeah, LeMaster was pretty good with the glove, horrible with the bat.
For bad, how about Candy Maldonado? He was pretty bad, cost us a chance for the World Series with that sliding catch attempt. Maddog Bill Madlock was a bit stiff at 2B but a great hitter. But I like your choice of Spiderman Hill.
Oh yeah, Gary Maddox was an excellent defender, back in the day!
Favorite Defender: Maybe it’s cliche, but I gotta go with J.T. Some of his acrobatics at first base were simply jaw-dropping. Shinjo was also fun to watch. Would have been nice if he could hit, though.
Most Hated: Russ Davis was maybe the worst third baseman I’ve ever seen. Glenallen Hill was bad, but in a comical way, so you kind of had to like him even when the routine fly balls were dropping like a meteor shower.
Oh, and I wasn’t alive back then or anything, but apparently when the Giants tried Dave Kingman at third base one year, it was a disaster of epic proportions.
Nice post. Deivi Cruz? Wow, I just remember bounding balls skipping past his range. Then again, I recall the penultimate game of 2004, the horrific clinching loss vs. the Dodgers. Cruz made a sweet play on Beltre to end the 8th inning and preserve the 3-0 lead. And then Felipe replaced him for the 9th with Cody Ransom, who proceeded to commit the worst E6 in Giants history.
As for great Giants defenders: We’ve had the privilege of seeing some beautiful outfield defense, from D-Lew to Bonds to D. Hamilton to Winn (honorable mentions to Calvin Murray, E. Burks and even a washed-up Finley). OF defense may be an SF Giants tradition extending back to Mays, who was supposed to be the greatest of them all.
Reminds me of a quick story: Mays once was breaking in a new glove in BP and dropped a couple fly balls. He proceeded to shred the glove into pieces. When asked if maybe it wasn’t the glove’s fault, he hissed, “I don’t drop fly balls.”
@Paulie
I would have payed good money to watch Kingman play third. One of the weirdest baseball players ever. Had loads of talent.
Joe Poz has a fabulous recent article on him. Check it out if you haven’t already seen it, it’s a good read.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/joe_posnanski/12/02/dave.kingman/index.html
@Gigantor
Yeah, I was pretty surprised too. I never thought of Cruz as anything other than a below-average defender.
The Jeffrey “Hac-man” Leonard was a fine LF. Under-appreciated on some wretched teams. Robby Thompson was an excellent fielder in my (admittedly biased) memory. Mike Matheny was a joy to watch behind the plate–superb footwork, always balanced, great hands. Matt Williams had the same combo at 3B.
OF defense is indeed a Giants tradition. I remember in HS watching the Gary Matthews Sr.–Gary Maddox–Bobby Bonds trio. Those guys nailed everything.
I did see Dave Kingman play LF. Adam Dunn channels Dave Kingman.
Mark I will back you up on Thompson. I barely remember Titio Fuentes so I don’t count my memories of how good he was as reliable but I would say Robby was the best defensive second base man the Giants have had since Fuentes. The next guy on the list is not even close.
I will not even get started on Williams. He is tied with Willie Mac for my favorite all time Giant and I’m way too much fan to be allowed to comment much on him. Needless to say I think Mueller & Feliz had nothing on him defensively.
OCG & Mark thanks for the confirmation on Maddox. The memory can be funny thing after couple decades. I remember Willie Montnez be horrible at first. If it was not between his belt and his shoulders forget it. I think the Montenez think sums up nicely why I am happy to see a UZR stat, and Tango Tigers work, so readily available.
I know this was not the thrust of your post, Chris, but if you adjust for position, Omar pretty clearly had the best defensive season.
@Kenshin
Good point, if we added positional adjustments to our players, Omar would come out ahead because he’s competing against a much more athletic player group than guys like Randy Winn and Pedro were competing against.
It’s pretty amazing that even with his total collapse on offense, his defense still makes him a better than replacement level player.
Darren Lewis’ streak of 938 chances without an error deserves some recognition. That’s just absurd.
Just because I’m bored. All-time Giants defensive team (note the obvious skew toward recent players):
C – Molina (stud)
1B – Snow (those numbers above can’t be right. Snow was a magician)
2B – Frank Frisch (supposedly was a beast,and I can’t think of anyone else)
3B – Matty Williams (pure nostalgia, gets the nod over Feliz)
SS – Shawon Dunston (what a fucking cannon!)
LF – Barry Lamar Bonds (noodle arm, but horribly underrated)
CF – Mays
RF – Winn (no one plays their park better than Winn plays The Phone)
P – Fat Freddy Fitzsimmons (see note on Frisch)
@MrLomez
I like your list but I think I’d replace Molina with Matheny or Manwaring. Both are much better defenders in my opinion. Molina was better last year, but he seems to have really bad range at times. Especially when he was to go get a ball that’s up in the zone.
Yeah, you’re probably right. I guess my thinking with Molina has to do with his “pitcher-handler” reputation. I’ve also never seen someone frame a pitch quite like Molina. He catches more balls in the heal and the very nose of his glove more than any guy I can remember.
But that’s sooo subjective. Catcher is easily the hardest position to evaluate.
Yeah, true. After his first season I was pulling my hair out at times. He tied the NL for passed balls in 2007. He was better last year, though.
Matheny looked solid when he was here, good throwing arm, good ability to frame pitches, etc. Manwaring was solid, too. Before Matheny won the Gold Glove, Manwaring was the last Giants catch to bring home the gold.
edit: Also, I think I’d knock off Shawon on your list in favor of Omar. By the time he came to the Giants, he wasn’t much of a SS anymore. He started 78 games at SS in 1996. He was more of a PH/OF/1B player when he came back in 2001-2002. Omar was still a whiz during his years with the Giants. Probably the best ever defensive Giants SS.
Jack Clark has to be on any list of bad Giants defenders. He started out in the low minors as a third baseman, and anybody sitting in the stands in the vicinity of first base had to be alert anytime he fielded a ball. He truly had no idea where his throws were going. It was hilarious! Of course, he could absolutely rake at the plate, so they converted him to the outfield. Fans at every MLB park should have thanked them for that move, as it helped ensure their safety.