Howard Starting September Strong
Posted by Tim Malcolm, Tue, September 09, 2008 01:45 PM | Comments: 14
Posts
I was quick to admonish Ryan Howard earlier this season. If you remember, he started poorly and has had an uphill battle restoring his batting average to something respectable.
To be sure, Howard is not the .313 hitter who won the NL MVP in 2006. And yes, his slugging percentage is way down from even last season. But Howard is still having a very productive 2008. And lately, he has picked up the slack for the Phils.
Before Friday, Howard hit safely in 10 consecutive games, and overall has hit safely in 15 of his last 17 games. So far in September, he’s hitting .346 with an .846 slugging mark, his best by far this season. Best of all is he has hit four doubles already in September (he hit six in August). To me, Howard is at his best when he’s lacing doubles into the gaps. If he’s getting his swing down enough to rope those balls, he’s seeing everything. If the Phillies are to get to the playoffs this season, Howard has to keep this type of production going.
Posts: 0 MS
i’m not going to blindly defend his batting avg, but i have thought this for some time — with the NL MVP basically wide open with 3 weeks to go, how can the guy with the most HRs and RBIs not be in the coversation. he’s leading 2 out of 3 triple crown categories. i’m just saying, if the Phils overtake the Mets, he should be up for consideration.
in that scenario my vote, though is Brad Lidge.
Posted: 01:58 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 RiVLez
As a Mets fan, I believe he should be up for consideration regardless of the division. I think it would be crazy for him to not even be top 3 in MVP voting.
Posted: 02:17 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 christopher
the offense will balance itself out down the stretch for the phils… howard and rollins will go cold again here and there but victorino, burrell and feliz will warm up at times too. utley will continue to produce, with guys like werth, stairs, ruiz, coste, and dobbs as the real x-factors.
Posted: 02:29 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 Evan
If the Phils don’t win the NL East, Howard probably won’t win MVP. HRs and RBIs aside, his defense has lost some games and if the Phils can’t wrestle the division from the Mets its gonna come down to those games. Conversely, if Howard keeps having a good month and can lead the Phils to the playoffs he’s gotta be high up on the list for MVP.
Posted: 03:06 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 Paul
Some people here like to bash Howard, but how many other hitters can match up with him HR and RBI wise? Very few.
And if he starts putting the bat on the ball more consistently? Watch out!
Posted: 03:29 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 NJ
Couldn’t agree more Paul about the latter part but will he adjust his game? He’s been willing to hit the ball to left in September but we he put his 50+ HR ego aside and dedicate himself to becoming more disciplined around the zone, he does that at he joins guys like Pujols in the ranks of future HOFers.
Posted: 04:03 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 KM
Evan – valid point about howard’s defense costing us a few games. In my opinion, Howard will be in the conversation for MVP whether the Phillies win the division or not – A-Rod won a few MVP trophies with the last place Rangers, so it shows you that the team means nothing, just the gaudy stats.
Personally, if I am voting for MVP I don’t put Howard in the convo, sure the huge power numbers are there, but I could never vote for someone who has that many strikeouts and can’t field his position, although he has played good defense lately.
Posted: 04:09 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 Eb
Paul…I agree to an extent but his RBI numbers are more a testament to how good the people are in front of him. How many RBIs does he have NOT RESULTING FROM HOMERS?
As multiple people have said he needs to adjust his swing, the sad part it any Lefty with a fast ball/slider can beat Howard easily, Pitch away, Pitch away, Pitch away. 6 time out of 10 he will swing and miss, 3 out of 10 ground ball, 1 time out of 10 it will be a HR.
Posted: 04:10 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 NJ
The thing thats clear about Howard this year is he’s not dedicated to making adjustments, in any count he hacks at an area of the zone believing the pitch will be there rather than seeing the pitch and swinging accordingly. It’s frustrating to see someone with such talent wasting his opportunity to be a legitimate superstar, the Phils will give him his superstar market deal.
Posted: 04:21 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 Smith
Howard is, what, a .230 hitter this year? And he has, what, 190 strikeouts? He’s a 1-dimensional player who is obviously too stubborn to make adjustments. It’s scary how good he could be, but so disappointing how dreadful he has been this season.
Posted: 04:33 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 Evan
Smith – I don’t know if he needs to be making adjustments to his overall approach. Yeah his BA is low and he has a lot of strikeouts, but he’s there to get RBIs and HRs and he gets them by the handful. Its hard for me to call the NL RBI leader dreadful.
What Howard needs to do is learn situational hitting so that when there are 2 men on in a crucial spot, he can swing with less power for a better avg. He can strike out as much as he wants when there’s a good lead, no one on base, or a big deficiet. But when its a close game with a RISP, that’s when he needs to change his approach.
Posted: 04:43 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 Don M
They showed that he’s hitting the cover off the ball with Runners in Scoring Position during one of the games last week. I foget what the number is but somewhere around .300 …..and I would say that MOST of his homeruns are either solo, or 2-run shots.. so its not like David Ortiz hitting 3-run bombs all the time, and not doing anything else.
He does lead the league in K’s and Erros, but also in HR and RBI …. and his defense has definitely improved as of late, no question about it
Posted: 05:00 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 Georgie
Smith-dreadful? C’mon , that’s just not accurate, and you know it! Even his defense has been better than average lately.
Posted: 05:42 PM on September 9, 2008
Posts: 0 mikemike
Does anyone know the lowest Mvp batting average.
Posted: 06:34 PM on September 9, 2008