And Sometimes Myths Are Real

by R.J. Anderson on Jun 20, 2008 5:45 PM EDT

Jonny Gomes is a fan favorite, people love his attitude, his demeanor, his crafty way with the English language, and they also love the fact that he can hit massive homeruns as well as throw punches. One of the folk tales about Gomes is that his struggles are all based on a lack of playing time. Well with a little push from Tommy Rancel I set out to determine whether playing continuously actually helped Gomes or not, and here's what I found.

First things first, I used Baseball Musings day-by-day batting log database to draw into Excel. After sorting by only the games Gomes started I manually, and tediously, went through looking for chains of at least three consecutive games with a start. We ended up with roughly 286 combined games, and after adding together the statistics found this:

Gomes	BA	OBP	SLG	HR
3+ Games	0.246	0.341	0.480	55
Career	0.241	0.335	0.463	63

Essentially when Gomes plays three or more games in a row his OPS rises by 0.023 points, which is pretty significant if you think about it, and essentially the difference in performance this year between Evan Longoria and Miguel Cabrera.

Now obviously there are some reserves to this methodology, beginning with the question is he playing good because he's playing more or playing more because he's playing good? A large chunk of these games were also pre-injury in 2006, and also we can't ignore the excessive splits Gomes has as a DH and in the field.

While this is hardly a definitive answer, it does give us the idea that maybe Gomes is a bit more valuable than he's given credit for.

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He reminds me of Alstott

I really like Jonny Gomes, it’s obvious that he’s a commanding clubhouse presence and the team concept he brings is extremely valuable to this team, but I’m not convinced that more playing time will make him a better player. I’d like to see a bit more out of his batting average, but his strikeout pace is way way down from his career norms and without me investigating too deeply into his power numbers, he looks close to his career pace for homers (~15 for 300ABs).

I don’t see his improvement in strikeouts as a result of a change to his approach at the plate though. To me, every time he comes up, he gives me the impression of a savage, lumbering, knuckle-dragging neanderthal with a massive wooden club, and he swings the bat just like it. It all appears to be because Maddon is using him as part of the platoon and keeping him away from righties that he’s striking out less.

Gomes needs to realize that he doesn’t need to try to vaporize the ball every time he swings at it. He’s more than strong; he’s retard strong, but that doesn’t mean he needs to swing the bat like one. If he could develop a smoother, rangier swing, he’d get more hits and it would be a lot harder to argue against him getting full playing time. Yeah he’d hit fewer home runs per at bat, but I’d take a full season of 550AB with .265/25HR/90RBI over a half season of .230/20HR/40RBI.

by kericr on Jun 20, 2008 6:14 PM EDT 0 recs

People like him because he is a dumb animal that starts fist fights constantly. It’s the same reason hockey and nascar are so popular in the south.

by putupyourDUKES on Jun 20, 2008 7:01 PM EDT 0 recs

Gomes is not dumb

He is loyal. There’s a difference. He plays with a lot of heart and passion. Don’t mistake that for a lack of intelligence. He is not blessed with the physical tools of some players but he overcomes a lot with his hustle. When did Gomes start a fight? Not in spring training – that was Duncan. He didn’t start with the Sox – that was Crisp.

Hockey is popular in the South? Really? Have you heard of Canada? Get a map and check out the HUGE country above North Dakota and Maine. Hockey’s kinda of a bigger deal there then down here in the South.

by stpetelawyer on Jun 20, 2008 7:16 PM EDT up 1 recs

Exactly

P.S. Gomes is from Cal-E-Forn-E!!!

by GomesSweetGomes on Jun 20, 2008 7:34 PM EDT up 0 recs

I don't even know why you guys bothered to respond to this guy.

Look at his posts. He’s a troll.

by kericr on Jun 20, 2008 11:13 PM EDT up 0 recs

You're a dumb animal and no one likes you.

by floridaroar on Jun 20, 2008 10:50 PM EDT up 0 recs

Interesting...how many games has he played in each category?

Also, his first year he was really successful and played a lot of games.

9 = 8

by websterjtc on Jun 20, 2008 7:20 PM EDT 0 recs

Don't ask me why, but Jonny Gomes reminds me of this bouncer at a club I just went to

by Rays Rule on Jun 20, 2008 8:01 PM EDT 0 recs

Gomes was on with JP Peterson this afternoon

Once again, it was an absolutely outstanding interview. I don’t remember ever having heard one with Gomes that wasn’t awesome. My favorite part was their discussion about his “Rally Robe.” He said it looked like an oversized jersey. Just another tidbit that he has provided us with. He is also quite baseball savvy, and I fully expect to see him coaching one day like he hopes to. He has always seemed to be one of those guys who doesn’t get the respect he deserves and I think it would be a shame if he doesn’t end up staying with the team once everyone gets healthy.

Blake
USF--Class of '09

by usfraysfan on Jun 21, 2008 12:43 AM EDT 0 recs

Fan favorites tend to have certain things in common

they aren’t blessed with enormous natural talent
they play as hard as they can
they are more concerned with winning than with their individual numbers
they are well-liked by their teammates
etc.

basically they tend to be good people and that’s why fans respond to them.

by Gator80 on Jun 21, 2008 8:49 AM EDT 0 recs

I think to determine the answer to this question

he needs a bigger sample size than we will ever get him. He will end up elsewhere eventually, and some 60-70 win team will give him every day ABs at DH or RF and that is when we will see how he plays everyday.

I dont think he has had many chances in the last 4 years to get into a rhythm. It’s not our fault, because eventually you have to earn the right to playe veryday. But someone will give him that chance without earning it, and my guess is he has a real chance then to prove his worth in this league

an d at that point everyone will bash the Rays for getting rid of Gomes and “never giving him a chance” and they will all be wrong

by blazinrayz on Jun 21, 2008 4:35 PM EDT 0 recs

Only if people look at the move with full hindsight.

by R.J. Anderson on Jun 21, 2008 5:35 PM EDT up 0 recs

I’d say over 1,200 at-bats constitutes a real chance, whether every day or not.

It’s not like he’s sitting behind Robert Fick and Damian Rolls on the depth chart and given 30 major league at-bats before being waived like Matt Diaz. That sounds more likely the fate of Justin Ruggiano than Jonny Gomes. It’s about twice as many at-bats as Jose Guillen got before he was waived.

I’m not dogging Gomes, he remains a valuable half of a platoon, but he’s had and continues to get chances.

Longlorious.

by RATW on Jun 22, 2008 4:03 AM EDT up 0 recs