Let's cut right to the chase here: PITCHERS AND CATCHERS report next weekend! Arm-stretching, mitt-popping, seed-spitting SPRING TRAINING! Gah! Who's ready for a twelfth consecutive losing season?! You better be! Man, who cares? It doesn't even matter. Baseball is poetry, holmes. Spring is approaching. Warm weather, mating season, rebirth. Whether the Birdies actually have a chance or not, they have a chance, ya know? That doesn't make sense. Baseball is poetry.
I thought it would be neat, as 2009's MLB season is upon us, to take a look back at some quality O's teams of the past. More specifically, some quality O's players. More specifically, some of the best offensive seasons any hitter in black and orange has put together. Baseball, with all its miles of measurable on-field production, is a sport intended for statistical analysis. In my research I was able to utilize some pretty neato analytical measures to help me compile this list of the 10 greatest individual offensive seasons in Bird history. Fret not, I won't bore our faithful reader (Hi, Mrs. Susan!) with methodology. If you're curious, leave a comment, and I'll explain further.
Anyway! Enough stalling! On to the list!
#10. Eddie Murray, 1984
Ah, 1984. A year removed from the Birds' third World Series title, Joe Altobelli guided the team to an 85-77 record, good for fifth in the AL. Steady Eddie hit .306/.410/.509 with 29 homers, 110 RsBI, and he scored 97 runs. He finished fifth in MVP voting, won a Silver Slugger, and was selected to the All-Star team.
Did you know Eddie Murray finished in the Top 6 in MVP voting for six
consecutive years, from '80-'85? I mean, MVP voting can sometimes make
you scratch your head confusedly, but that's a pretty serious bit of baseball hitting!
By the way, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "Wait, didn't Ed put up better power numbers in '82 and '83?" To which I'm counter-thinking, "Well, yeah, but only a teeny tiny bit better. And he got on base more frequently in '84, and that's the big difference." Then I'd remind you to trust me completely because I am, in fact, a doctor. Then I'd prescribe this medication.
#9. Boog Powell, 1970
BOOOOOOOOO--you make delicious barbecue--OOOOOOOOG! The Birds, after finishing first in the AL East with a 108-54 record, won their second World Series by wrenching the Big Red Machine, 4-1. John Wesley Powell was an All-Star and won the MVP by hitting .297/.412/.549 with 35 homers and 114 RsBI.
In the time before Moneyball, Boog was a Moneyball player. When he wasn't earning a base-on-balls (104 times in '70), he hit for power. Boog was Earl Weaver's type of player: a big sonofabitch who crushed three-run homers.
So now you're like, "How could a dude who wins the MVP in a year when we win the World Series be so low on the Top 10 list?" All right, first, don't say "we." You didn't win the World Series with the team. You probably weren't even born then. Second, remember that MVP voting is done by sportswriters. Sportswriters are concerned with which teams are successful when they vote for MVP. That's not my concern. For this exercise, I don't necessarily care if the team was good. I'm just trying to isolate the best pure offensive seasons in O history. Which is not to say that Boog's MVP wasn't meaningful. It totally was -- just not critical in my list here.
Also, sportswriters get things wrong -- this fella, by ANY AND ALL accounts a wretched defensive ballplayer, wins gold gloves (plural!).
Good talk.
#8. Ken Singleton, 1977
Earl Weaver propelled Baltimore to a 97-64 record, 2.5 games behind the Yanks for first in the AL East. No bother, Ken Singleton's '77 was huge. He hit .328/.438/.507 with 24 homers and 99 RsBI. Uh, that getting on base 43.8% of the time is the best in Oriole history for a single season. He finished third in the MVP voting and was selected to play in the All-Star game.
Kenny had slightly better power numbers in '79, but -- yup, you guessed it -- he didn't get on base nearly as frequently. You're learning, baby, you're learning!
It saddens me to know that Ken works as a broadcaster for the YES network. They can't find a spot for him at MASN?
Hey, guess who Ken Singleton is cousins with! Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers! Fun!
#7. Frank Robinson, 1969
Frank Robinson was so good at baseball it makes me want to puke. In '69, Earl of Weaver and his Birds captured the AL Pennant behind a 109-53 record and an ALCS sweep of the Twinkies. But the O's lost to the Miracle Mets in five World Series games. Regardless! Frank, also an All-Star, finished third in MVP voting by hitting .308/.415/.540 with 32 jacks and 100 ribbies and 111 runs scored.
Guess who was second in MVP voting that year. Booger Powell. Why? More dongers and ribs (37, 121).
Guess what MVP voters weigh heavily. Dongers and ribs. Why? 'Cause they always have. It's tradition.
Guess whether tradition is right or not. It's not right. Why? 'Cause, in this case, it's wrong.
Seriously, let's think about this: RBI's are fundamentally tied to how well the other players on your team are doing. You can't accumulate many RBI's if no one ever gets on base in front of you. So, like, it's important to hit people in, yes. But it's more important to get the chance to hit them in, you see what I'm saying? Boog had a wonderful year in '69, but Frank's was better. He got on base substantially more than Boog, and he still hit for crazy power. Not quite Boog power, but crazy.
Also, slavery was tradition in this country at some point. So was not allowing women the right to vote.
Man, this is fun!
#6 Melvin Mora, 2004
"What?! Melvin Mora?! Dude, there's no way!!" Please don't call me "dude." And, yes, Melmo had a sick nasty year in '04 (apologies). I mean, let's be honest, there's like a 50% chance he was on steroids, but take a look at his numbers: .340/.419/.562 with 27 homers and 104 RsBI. Not to mention 41 doubles and 111 runs. He won the Silver Slugger. I can think of no better phrase for that kind of a year than sick nasty.
And, yeah, the Birds finished 78-84 under Lee Mazzilli, so this was a crappy year. But we can't let that influence our understanding of just how great Melmo was in '04. He was on base all the time and he hit for serious, serious power.
By the way, guess how many kids Melvin Mora has! A thousand.
...
All right, let's cut it short right here. I have to do things that actually matter now. I'll move on to #5-1 achingly soon, I promise! Keep checking back!
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