February 9, 2010

Players A to Z, Yunel Escobar

Yunel Escobar plays shortstop for the Atlanta Braves. He’s a very good offensive shortstop, hitting for average, drawing walks for a great OBP, and hitting enough doubles for a decent slugging percentage. Over the last three seasons, only Hanley Ramirez and Derek Jeter own better OBPs while playing short.

As is often the case with shortstops who can hit, he’s not the greatest defender. He’s not bad however, just neutral. As long as he keeps his OBP up and makes most of the plays, he’s a valuable player for the Braves to keep at shortstop. He’ll be 27 this season, so look for a big year from Escobar.

One other thing that highlights his career so far is his hitting with runners in scoring position. His slash line in that situation is .337/.424/.526 in 374 plate appearances. That’s a small sample. Batting at the top of the order, he doesn’t get many RBI opportunities, but he seems to make the most of them.

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