When Curtis Granderson exploded out of the gate early in the season I analyzed his performance and concluded that it wasn’t sustainable. At the time his ISO was higher than what Alex Rodriguez had posted in 2007, suggesting that his power was due to wain. A bit later on in the season, I followed up on the prediction and concluded that I was correct, Granderson’s ISO had indeed come down and he was struggling. Where does Granderson stand now?
I am happy to report that this is the most sustainable Curtis’ performance has been all season. After last night’s game he’s batting .274/.366/.571. He was batting .270/.339/.622 when I first examined him in May, with an unsustainable .352 ISO and .263/.337/.570 when I followed up again in June. His numbers have improved across the board since that second check up. Most importantly, he’s picked up .029 points of OBP. That’s a big jump and he brought his AVG and SLG up (just a bit) in the process. While his SLG has come down tremendously from where he was, his current line is preferable for the long haul. His ISO of .297 is still amazing, but also sustainable for the remainder of the season given the way Granderson is playing.
It would be an understatement to say that Granderson’s performance to date was unexpected after his mostly frustrating 2010, but this is exceeding even the most optimistic projections of what Curtis would do. So far this is his best season, better even than his .395 wOBA 2007 when he hit .302/.361/.552. While earlier in the season Curtis was sticking out for all the home runs he was hitting, now he has settled into an all around groove, still hitting for power, but also getting on base in other ways. The sum total is that Curtis has been the best Yankee not named CC Sabathia from start to finish this year. As it stands, his .400 wOBA leads the team, and his 4.5 fWAR is better than his season totals from 2010, 2009 and 2008. Austin who?
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5 Responses to Another check up for Curtis Granderson
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TIQ IQ
The Granderson trade is looking pretty good for all parties involved. The Yankees now have an elite CF until 2013 on the cheap. The Tigers have a decent CF and middle of the rotation starter. And seemingly the D-Backs made out like bandits with Ian Kennedy becoming a very respectable starter in the NL West.
One of the few trades that works out that way.
Do you see any possibility of the Yanks declining Granderson’s option for 2013 unless he gets horribly injured.
So long as Granderson remains a productive player the Yankees will exercise his option. Right now he’s the best player on the team.
Not so bad when you consider Ajax has been basically a replacement level player this year after his BABIP came back to earth. He may still be a solid player at some point, but certainly not something to cry over.
Ian Kennedy ? That may be another story, though its hard to say how much of that performance would translate over to the AL East.
Last, Phil Coke hasn’t evolved into anything more than he was seen to be 2 years ago, though that may be the Tiger’s fault more than anything. The Phil Coke as starter experiment is over for now.