Fun With Games Played

A few nuggets based on career games played—A-Rod, the Veterans Ballot and historical comparisons.

There’s a growing amount of hoopla concerning Alex Rodriguez and his odds of catching Barry Bonds in the all-time home run race. It’s surprising, therefore, that the occasion of his 2000 ^th career game played on August 8 ^th passed by with little fanfare. After all, only 213 players in major league history have played in 2000 games (Garret Anderson and Carlos Delgado will join the club by season’s end); Pete Rose is the all-time leader with 3561. Though it’s been established through common practice that no excuse is necessary for scrutinizing & dissecting Rodriguez’s career and/or life, this is a good opportunity to note his progress in pursuing Bonds and the other greats ahead of him.

First of all- A-Rod turned 32 on July 27 ^th , two weeks before playing in his 2000 ^th game. In the history of baseball, only two other players have played more games before turning 33. The first is Mel Ott, who debuted for the Giants in 1926 at the age of 17, and who was just 30 years, five months when he played in number 2000 in 1939. The second is Robin Yount, who debuted for the 1974 Brewers as an 18-year-old. Yount was older than A-Rod when he played his 2000 ^th game (32 years, eight months), but he also lost about 60 games in the strike-shortened 1981 season. Both Ott and Yount, of course, were obvious Hall of Fame selections.

Returning to A-Rod, it’s remarkable how durable he’s been for the first portion of his career. Playing in the A.L., as well as moving to third base, have probably helped contribute to this, as well as improved sports medicine and conditioning, along with a fair amount of good fortune. Here is a fast comparison of A-Rod and the other home run legends through their respective age 32 seasons:

Rodriguez comes out of this comparison looking like two hundred seventy-five million bucks, give or take. He’s got the best of both worlds, with the most games and plate appearances as well as a rate much higher than those of Aaron or Bonds. Keep in mind that Ruth was pitching for the first few years of his career, depriving the Red Sox of a lot of offense.

Obviously, the three other hitters on this list all dealt with their ‘decline’ phases in different ways. A-Rod still has that to look forward to, and he’ll especially need to avoid the first major injury of his career.  Discussion of his career has always focused more on what he hasn’t done—win a World Series, hit in the clutch, sign for fewer than nine digits—than on what he has done, and the player he is. Before administering the annual tar and feathers treatment for the Yankees’ disappointing season, ( too late on this site ), it’s worth taking a breath and noting what a historically exceptional baseball player Alex Rodriguez is.

On a different note, Rodriguez should pass Sherry Magee on the all-time games list sometime early next season. As you may know, Magee was included on the Hall of Fame Veteran’s Committee ballot released last week . Most historians of early baseball name Magee, Bill Dahlen, and Deacon White as the most deserving of the nominees, with Carl Mays and Joe Gordon also receiving some support. Magee has some excellent credentials, all of which are outlined in Tom Simon’s excellent article from SABR’s Baseball Research Journal, Sherry Magee: Psychopathic Slugger. In twelve full seasons, he recorded an OPS+ over 120 ten times. His surly, explosive behavior (as witnessed by the title of the article) made him few friends during his playing days, but is beyond the remembrance of today’s voters. He’s not an overwhelming choice, but if the committee chooses anyone, he’s likely to be included.

Lastly, a few more career games tidbits. Here are some pairs of players, active and retired, who have played in approximately the same number of games. Who would you rather?

Frank Thomas: 2322 games, 521 home runs, .301/.419/.555. Five-time All-Star, two-time MVP.

Jimmie Foxx: 2317 games, 517 home runs, .325/.408/.609. Nine-time All-Star, three-time MVP.

I bet you didn’t expect their numbers to be that similar, did you? They have been essentially even in games and home runs, but it’s impossible to discount Double X’s advantage in the rate stats. Consider that Thomas has played more games as a DH (1311) than in the field (971), and there isn’t really much of a contest, after all.

Omar Vizquel: 2659 games, .272/.338/.354, 384 steals. 4.28 range factor ( league—4.10).

Rabbit Maranville: 2670 games, .258/.318/.340, 291 steals. 5.80 range factor (league—5.29).

According to baseball-reference.com, these guys are actually a pretty good comparison for one another (885 out of 1000). Maranville played in a period in which this particular set of skills was probably more valuable than they are today, and he also won a World Series ring. Still, when Vizquel appears before the gates of Cooperstown, his supporters are likely to point to Maranville, Class of ’54, as a precedent.

Jeff Kent: 2294 games, 376 home runs. .289/.349/.499. Five-time All-Star, 2000 N.L. MVP.

Alan Trammell: 2293 games. 4.41 range factor (league—4.05). .285/.352/.415. Six-time All-Star.

Alan Trammell has always had a lot of backers for his Hall of Fame candidacy, and with good reason. From 1975 to 2000, only Cal Ripken Jr. had better offensive numbers as a shortstop, and Trammell also won four Gold Gloves (Kent has none). Still, Kent’s offensive numbers are so superior that it would be difficult to explain keeping him out if Trammell were to get in first.

www.baseball-reference.com was, as usual, indispensable in researching this article.