Andrew McCutchen Could Be Baseball’s Best
Major League Baseball is nearing the end of the regular season and talk is focused on teams fighting for a postseason bid. One such team is the Pittsburgh Pirates that are currently in second place in the National League Central, but hold the second wildcard spot in the league.
One of the reasons Pittsburgh has battled back this season to be in playoff contention is Andrew McCutchen the reigning MVP in the National League.
Most are of the opinion that Mike Trout is the best overall player in baseball today, while some will tell you it is Clayton Kershaw, if you take into account pitchers.
However, while baseball fans acknowledge that McCutchen is a great player not often is his name mentioned in the same sentence as Trout’s.
The big question is why.
On Wednesday, Pittsburgh defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 6-3. McCutchen had 2 hits in 4 at bats including an inside the park home run.
Since McCutchen missed 15 games to start August due to a fractured rib, he is batting .313 with 6 homers over a 20-game stretch, while playing through the rib injury.
When comparing Trout and McCutchen it is easy to see Trout holds an advantage in power but McCutchen gets on base more often.
On defense, neither is the No. 1 defensive player in center field and if either has a slight weakness in their game, it would be on the defense.
On base, Trout this season has not run as often. He has 14 steals in 16 attempts, while McCutchen has 17 steals in 19 attempts.
Trout has taken an extra base in 59% of the opportunities presented to him while McCutchen has done so 42% of the time. Overall, Trout has a slight edge in base running, with both players being so close in stats at the plate, on the bases and in the field.
One reason that McCutchen is underrated is his play does no draw jaw-dropping reactions.
His home runs are not mammoth shots like those of Giancarlo Stanton, he is not a gazelle on the bases or he does not roam centerfield the way Juan Lagares does.
In 2012, McCutchen hit 31 home runs, last season he hit 21 and this season he currently has 23.
At the same time, two seasons ago at 20 Trout had numbers that were rarely ever seen in the majors and he did that last year at 21 as well.
This season Trout’s numbers look a bit more human-like nevertheless, he is the American League leader in runs scored and RBIs. However, his steals are lower, his defense slightly down, his batting average is lower and his walks are down. He has a higher strikeout rate as well this season.
Regardless of the numbers, Trout is still the best player overall in the American League, but when comparing him to the National League he has competition. At the front of the line in that competition with the NL, is none other than Pittsburgh’s McCutchen.
