The Dodgers, winners of a National League record 11 straight at home to start their season, look to tie the 1911 Tigers tonight with their 12th straight win. One way these two teams are similar is the production from their outfield.
The 1911 Detroit Tigers featured two Hall of Famers in their outfield, 31-year old Sam Crawford in left and 24-year old Ty Cobb in center. Cobb was amazing, leading the league in batting average, hits, doubles, triples, steals, runs, RBI, slugging percentage, total bases, OPS, OPS+, and wOBA, on his way to winning the MVP award. Left field featured a platoon with Delos Drake and Davy Jones, but in total this outfield didn't Monkee around.
This year's Dodgers feature an outfield that is tearing up the league, leading all of baseball in hits, runs, doubles, homers, RBI, walks, total bases, batting average, slugging, OBP, OPS and OPS+.
Here is a breakdown of the starting outfielders for both teams.
Player | PA | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS+ | wOBA |
Cobb, CF | 654 | .420 | .467 | .621 | 196 | .524 |
Crawford, RF | 648 | .378 | .438 | .526 | 163 | .456 |
Jones, LF | 391 | .273 | .354 | .302 | 80 | .335 |
Drake, LF | 343 | .279 | .324 | .375 | 91 | .340 |
Tigers Totals | 2036 | .355 | .412 | .489 | 146 | .435 |
Player | PA | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS+ | wOBA |
Manny, LF | 112 | .360 | .500 | .663 | 201 | .481 |
Ethier, RF | 119 | .316 | .429 | .571 | 159 | .423 |
Kemp, CF | 108 | .298 | .380 | .532 | 135 | .404 |
Dodgers Totals | 339 | .324 | .437 | .586 | 164 | .436 |
It's certainly too early in the season to put the 2009 Dodger outfield on par with one that featured two Hall of Famers. However, in the early going, Manny, Kemp, and Ethier have certainly done their best imitation, and that's a major reason why the Dodgers have the best record in baseball.
Of course, to match the 12-game home winning streak of those 1911 Tigers, there is the little matter of tonight's game. Max Scherzer and Jeff Weaver face off at Dodger Stadium at 7:10pm on KCAL.
Get your guesses in for "Just A Bit Outside" here.