Around The Horn

Whenever a Yankee pitcher records a punch out, Jorge Posada throws the baseball around the horn where it reaches some pretty legendary hands. That baseball hits the leather owned by Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano and Mark Teixeira, otherwise known as possibly the greatest infield in baseball history.

The members of this infield have already accomplished some impressive feats: Jeter and Cano are the first double-play combination to both record 200 hits, Alex Rodriguez recorded his 12th straight season with 30+ HRs and 100+ RBIs, that's a record in itself, and Mark Teixeira is already notching switch-hitting records. Each of these are pretty amazing in themselves, however it's the combination of the three that separates this infield from those of years past.

Sure you could make the case for Murderer's Row, the Big Red Machine or even the 2008 Florida Marlins (who each hit at least 25 HRs), but none come anywhere close to the power that is the 2009 Yankees infield. A-Rod and Captain clutch are both first-ballot Hall of Famers, and Teix and Robbie could theoretically join them. All four have/are putting up incredible numbers in their career and I doubt I need to go into much detail there. If you add in the great defense of all of them (and the World Series ring they could possibly receive this season) it puts them over the top as the greatest of all time.

Personally, I wonder if Jorge, Jose, or even Francisco Cervelli ever thinks about who he's tossing to when he throws around the horn.

How Good Is Jesus Montero?

Earlier today, EJ Fagan wrote a story on just how good Jesus Montero is. I'd like to add to that by showing you the minor league statistics of two catchers:

Player A:

G: 257

PA: 1071

BA: .325

H: 318

2B: 65

HR: 37

RBI: 176

OBP: .379

SLG: .509

OPS: .888

Player B:

G: 285

PA: 1210

BA: .330

H: 350

2B: 62

HR: 9

RBI: 169

OBP: .407

SLG: .426

OPS: .807

Now I know what you're probably thinking: these players are almost equal. Player A seems to hit more for power and player B hits a little more for average, but they're almost the same. Well guess what. Player A is Jesus Montero, and player B is none other than MVP-to-be Joe Mauer. (Keep in mind these are the career minor league stats for both players).

Yes, in fact, Jesus Montero has outhit the great Joe Mauer. Despite playing in 28 less games and notching 141 less plate appearances, Montero has a whopping 28 more HRs than more, he's driven in 8 more runs, hit 1 more double, and his OPS is .081 points higher than Mauers. Now that's pretty damn impressive if you ask me.