2005 Flashback I – Doubles and Homers

What better way to start off 2006 than with…one last look at last season. Yes, this is the stuff I was promising at the end of last season, but, well, better late than never.

Brad Wilkerson and Marcus Giles hit a lot of doubles in 2005, with 42 and 45, respectively. But, contrary to what you’d think (like everything I ever write about, come to think of it!) they had below-average power, with only 11 and 15 homers. With both of these guys hitting 30 more doubles than homers, it got me thinking…is that historically significant? So I went back the ol’ players database and came up with the following list of seasons with the largest double/homer discrepancy, and it turns out that 30 is not exactly historic. Since 1950*, there have actually been 18 seasons of 40 or more doubles than homers.

Player              Year  2B  HR  Diff
Mark Grudzielanek   1997  54   4   50
Wade Boggs          1989  51   3   48
George Kell         1950  56   8   48
Brian Roberts       2004  50   4   46
Jeff Cirillo        2000  53  11   42
Dave Cash           1977  42   0   42
Ferris Fain         1952  43   2   41
Pete Rose           1980  42   1   41
Lou Brock           1968  46   6   40
Jody Reed           1990  45   5   40
Ozzie Smith         1987  40   0   40
Craig Biggio        1999  56  16   40
Chuck Knoblauch     1994  45   5   40
Wade Boggs          1988  45   5   40
Matty Alou          1969  41   1   40
Pete Rose           1975  47   7   40

Grudzielanek takes this one hands down. You know, it’s tough to hit 54 two-baggers and not even slug .400, but Grudzie did it, slugging only .384 that historic year. But that’s not all. He also tallied more doubles than RBIs, an even rarer feat. Since 1950, this has only been done 10 times (min. 400 AB).

Player             Year  2B  RBI   Diff
Frank Baumholtz    1953  36   25    11
Mark Grudzielanek  1997  54   51     3
Billy Hatcher      1990  28   25     3
Ron Hunt           1972  20   18     2
Jody Reed          1989  42   40     2
Frank Taveras      1980  27   25     2
Don Blasingame     1959  26   24     2
Mickey Morandini   1997  40   39     1
Eric Young         2002  29   28     1
Eric Young         2001  43   42     1

Grudzie almost takes this one, too. But a dude named Frank Baumholtz destroys the comeptition in this bizarre category. Just how is it possible to bat .306 with 159 hits--including 36 doubles and a league-average .778 OPS--and only drive in 25 runs all year? His few stolen bases and unimpressive runs scored totals tell me that he probably wasn’t a leadoff hitter. Too bad we don’t have the batting-with-men-on-base splits for the Fifties! And by the way, in true Esoteric style, he never came close to duplicating that “magical” season (his second best was 19 doubles and 30 RBIs in 1948).

As usual, we ended up a ways away from where we started. You just never know where the Esoterica will take you! Tune in next time for some top-notch--and some decidedly lower-notch--baserunning from 2005. It was a delightfully Esoteric year in both directions!

*1950 is somewhat arbitrary, but when comparing home run stats, I prefer modern-day comparisons.

Extra Esoterica
Oddly, four years after his landmark 1997 campaign, Grudzielanek's put up only 21 two-baggers, but "exploded" for 13 dingers (a difference of only 8!), both career extremes for a full season.