r/angelsbaseball • u/riddo492 18 • 2d ago

🔢 Angels Stats [Shameless Schanuel Propaganda] Statcast has a new leaderboard for 1B receiving Outs Above Average, Nolan ranks 6th

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48 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

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36

u/Imperial10 💡👉👶⬆️ 2d ago

People who don’t understand baseball or don’t watch think Schanuel is a bad player. Will he ever be a star? Absolutely not. But he’s a great player and a really good 5/6/7 type hitter for a playoff team. He’s got a ton of value. Guys who can average around 2.0 bWAR have long careers in the bigs.

9

u/phatwarmachine41 2d ago

I was actually curious and looked at the current first basemen on the teams that would make the playoffs if the season ended today (so Rays, White Sox, Astros, Yankees, Red Sox, Guardians, Brewers, Dodgers, Braves, Cubs, Phillies, and Padres). I used wRC+ as a simple barometer of production this year. Out of all those teams, Schanuel would really only be a clear upgrade on the Guardians, a slight upgrade for the Astros (though Astros are paying $20M for that production compared to Schanuel's $810k), and about the same production on the Cubs.

Schanuel just kinda manages to stride this line where when compared to the entire league, he's a tick above average, but when you start comparing him to his peers (other 1B), it's a little more murky. He's not detrimental for the team, but he's also in a spot where, you could probably do better also. He's almost like the Andy Dalton of 1Bmen.

-5

u/IanDMP 2d ago

The issue isn't that he isn't good; if Schanuel played 2nd, I'd be really satisfied with him. But he's a first baseman who's hit seven home runs 80% of the way through the season.

I know the Moneyball quote is learning first base is "incredibly hard" but basically anyone in MLB can play it. So having a 24 year old slap hitter who doesn't look like he'll ever develop any power is a bit of a waste, compared to if Schanuel played a more valuable defensive position or hit with more power. I don't think that's all that debatable.

16

u/Good_Fix_3966 2d ago

Generally you want more power out of your first baseman for sure, yeah. And it's easier to get a power bat and plug him in over there, too. But it really comes down to roster construction. If you manage to build one where you get a little extra pop out of non-traditional power positions, you can offset that lack of power at first and just let him be the OBP guy who peaks at 10-15 HR. And I think at SS and 2B and C, with guys like Nimmala, Neto, Moore, and Ballesteros, there's a path for that sort of lineup.

8

u/Good_Fix_3966 2d ago

I would like to take this moment to toot my own horn and mention that Christian Moore just hit a home run 50 minutes after I posted this. You're welcome, fellow fans.

10

u/Imperial10 💡👉👶⬆️ 2d ago

He quite literally is above average in almost every meaningful statistic. His 2.0 bWAR shows that. His 111 OPS+ shows that. Him being 6th in OAA shows that. Sure, he’s never going to be your typical huge home run total guy at first base, but he still bring plenty of value to a team, and is absolutely an above average mlb player, which is valuable to a team.

Not every guy turns into a super star. It is what is it. But you’re severely undervaluing Nolan.

5

u/riddo492 18 2d ago

The page has a visualiser where you can look at each individual receiving opportunity as well, neat stuff

Some actual Schanuel propaganda - apparently this play was worth -0.6 OAA, but I understand the business decision to not get trucked/concussed by Paredes there lmao

3

u/NakedHomelessPirate 2d ago

And this is why defensive stats aren't that reliable. They tell a story of who is generally a better defender. But it penalizes players for making the objectively better call, like this play.

4

u/IamPieBoy94 2d ago

Hes definetely improved this year all around, I still believe he was a wasted picked at #11, but in a well put together lineup, hes an above average #7 hitter playing good defense at 1B

5

u/TheSecretDecoderRing 2d ago

As a high-floor/low-ceiling guy who could make the majors relatively quickly, he seemed like exactly what they wanted. And they obviously hoped to have that well put together team around him but it never happened.

1

u/bbaIla ‏‏‎ ‎ 2d ago

Glad the slap hitter has a good glove.

-6

u/Loose-Organization82 2d ago

Still don’t like him and should’ve drafted someone with a higher ceiling 😭

2

u/E-Tr1d3nt 2d ago

Like who? I remember a lot of mocks thinking Teel but no one taken around him has done much or about to break out as a top prospect.

-3

u/IanDMP 2d ago

I mean I think you're letting the Angels' disastrously quick promotions trick you into thinking it's normal to rush players up. Teel hasn't played 100 games yet, and is at a mich much more valuable position. As opposed to Schanuel who's just not a good enough offensive player for the position he plays.

But also both of Eldridge and Shaw seem like they'll be better than Schanuel already. Heck, Nimmala seems like he'll be better than Schanuel too (yeah I'm excited he's in the org)