First Go at It: Pujols, etc.

I've been a stats nut since as long as I remember, with a special affinity for baseball numbers. I can lose myself for hours compiling and analyzing obscure stats like most doubles per 100 at bats, or brother records, single year or career. But I always scribbled this stuff on notebook paper, never compiled it in any organized fashion, and never shared it with other stats freaks (I'm told there are lots of you out there!) So this blog is my attempt to share with the world the fruits of my compulsive labor of love. Here goes with the first one:

Alfonzo Soriano (member of my Yahoo fantasy baseball team, btw), just became the first player not named Bonds to have 4+ 30-30 seasons (30+ homers and 30+ stolen bases). Though 30-30 has become much more common in recent years, it looks like Soriano of the Washington Nationals will be the only player to achieve the feat in 2006.

My hero Albert Pujols of recently struggling St Louis Cardinals can't quite shake the effects of an early June injury that had him out for a little over 2 weeks. Prior to the injury, on June 2, he hit 25 dingers in 185 AB's, for an incredible rate of one every 7.4 AB (he was threatening Bonds' single season record of 73 at that point). Since then, although he has raised his average from .308 to .326, he has only hit 11 HR in 201 AB, a rate of one every 18.3 AB. He may not even break his personal best of 46. Even so, what he has done in his first 6 seasons is incredible: at age 26, his career numbers are .332 avg. with 237 HR, 719 RBI, 19 runs, 253 doubles, and a .628 slugging average, currently 4th best all-time, behind some guys named Ruth, Gehrig, and Ted Williams and AHEAD of Barry Bonds. All this, and no steroid alegations!