FanPost

3 questions about Carlos Pena

Ok I dont know if this is worthy of a fanpost, so I apologize if it isn't

1) I guess the first question is more about the statistic known as Range Factor. I was reading Carlos Pena's Wikipedia entry and stumbled upon this..."In 2007, he had the lowest range factor of all AL league first basemen, 8.73."...so seeing how I dont know much about Range Factor as a measuring stick, but I do know that Carlos Pena is highly athletic for a 1B and has atleast better than average lateral movement at the position, I searched the exact definition of Range Factor. I found this..."It is calculated by dividing putouts and assists by number of innings or games played at a given defense position...some positions (especially first baseman) may have substantially more putouts because of a superior infield around them, that commits fewer errors and turns many double plays, allowing them to receive credit for more putouts."

So I guess my question is, was Carlos Pena's Range Factor negatively effected by the worst defensive infield in baseball that year, or is something else wrong with Range Factor as a statistic to accurately judge someones defensive skills? I dont want to discard that stats relevance, but I was shocked when I read that about Carlos Pena

 

2) Would Carlos Pena's 2007 season have earned him the MVP award over Dustin Pedroia in 2008? Pena hit .282 46 HR 121 RBI had a .411 OBP and a .627 SLG % to go along with 103 walks and great defense. He only had 490 ABs in about 135 games started and couldve reasonably hit 50 HR with 140 RBI over a full year

Pedroia had 110 more plate appearances in 2008 than Pena had in 2007. He hit .326 17 HR 83 RBI had a .376 OBP and a .493 SLG % to go along with 50 walks and great defense

 

3. Should Carlos Pena be invited to the World Baseball Classic to back up Albert Pujols for the DR?

This post was written by a member of the DRaysBay community and does not necessarily express the views or opinions of DRaysBay staff.