MLB Network’s Greg Amsinger released a list of his first-half MVPs earlier this week, and he was crushed by Chicago Cubs fans online because Pete Crow-Armstrong was omitted from the nine players that he ranked. You’ve seen how incredible the Cubs center fielder has been, making history almost once a week for the past month, but apparently being the best position player in the game heading into the All-Star break isn’t MVP-worthy for the MLB Network analyst.
However, this little tiff reached even higher preposterous levels on Thursday, when Amsinger doubled down on his idiotic take. But first, his list.
Greg Amsinger 1st Half MVPs
1. Shohei Ohtani
2. Yordan Alvarez
3. Junior Caminero
4. James Wood
5. Kyle Schwarber
6. Otto Lopez
7. Jordan Walker
8. Miguel Vargas
9. Dillon Dingler
In his explanation for not including Crow-Armstrong, Amsinger listed the following factors he considered when compiling his list of MVPs.
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- Player’s team winning
- Take into account the entire first half, not just recent success
That was the entire criterion, which was then backed up by a graphic that displayed Crow-Armstrong’s stats from his first 58 games of the season compared to his last 35. Admittedly, it painted the Cubs outfielder as a player who has been carried by his performance during the past seven weeks or so.
Here’s the thing, though, Greg, you need a better intern to come up with these stats for you because all it did was make you look even worse. You want to play the cherry-picking game with stats to make a point? Well, it actually turns out, and if you’re a Cubs fan, you already know this, that Crow-Armstrong has actually been really fucking good for most of the season.
Sure, there was a twinge of panic until the middle of April, as the results were brutal for Crow-Armstrong at the plate. However, looking back, we can see that he was only bad for 16 games to start the regular season, and since then, in his last 77 games going into Friday night’s series opener against the Cincinnati Reds, or 83% of the season, Crow-Armstrong hasn’t simply been great; he’s been the best player in MLB.
Pete Crow-Armstrong: First 16 Games vs. Last 77 Games
First 16 Games: .203/.239/.266, 1 HR, 4 SB, 35 wRC+, 0.0 fWAR
Last 77 Games: .317/.417/.606, 20 HR, 19 SB, 179 wRC+, 5.9 fWAR
I’ll add the video below, but Amsinger begins his defense by saying Crow-Armstrong was one of the worst players on the Cubs through 58 games. That takes us to May 29, when, yes, because of the dreadful first three weeks, the offensive numbers were subpar (90 wRC+), but they were climbing, as Crow-Armstrong had a .747 OPS from April 14 to May 29. It wasn’t great, but strides were being made; oh, and he was the second-most valuable player on the team by then, at 1.5 fWAR.
So, that first claim was flat-out wrong: Crow-Armstrong was not one of the worst players on the team.
Amsinger really harps on the consistency of the players he listed, banging the drum that Crow-Armstrong has only been good for 35 games. Once again, the numbers above show that his last 77 games, or most of the year so far, have produced the best offensive and defensive numbers in MLB. And again, you can look at the overall numbers as well, including those first 16 games that were terrible, and see that Crow-Armstrong is the fifth-best hitter in MLB, he’s the only 20/20 player in MLB, leads everyone in fielding run value and is second to Bobby Witt Jr. in outs above average on defense.
Also, regarding the player’s team winning? The Cubs are 52-41; that’s the fifth-best record in MLB. The only players on the list who have a better team record are Shohei Ohtani and Junior Caminero. So, what the fuck are you talking about, Greg????
