- Thread starter
- #1
[MENTION=1741]darocker80[/MENTION] proposed the question last week that asked us to rank the top 50 Bowman Chrome Autographed RC's (1st Autograph) of all-time, so naturally I decided to create a list based on merit.
After taking his list I ventured over to baseball-reference.com and started researching each player's average WAR per season (Career WAR / Number of Years). It's not a perfect, but I think when you look at the list you will find that it is a pretty good measure for who really has been a great player and who has maybe been a little overrated during their career.
One factor that you have to take into consideration is the number of years each player has played. Obviously Abreu is working on a smaller sample size while Pujols has accumulated some years. I think it all evens itself out and is a pretty good representation of who really owns the greatest Chrome Autos of all time...
50. Ben Revere 0.88 WAR/Season
49. Matt Moore 1.12
48. Allen Craig 1.26
47. Aroldis Chapman 1.54
46. Billy Butler 1.60
45. Matt Garza 1.72
44. Sonny Gray 1.80
43. Starlin Castro 1.92
42. Anthony Rizzo 2.10
41. Stephen Strasburg 2.16
Chapman and Strasburg jump out at me as the biggest names that I wouldn't have expected this low. Chapman is essentially striking out EVERYONE he faces this year and still can't muster a high WAR. More and more the closer role seems to be a Larussa manufactured position that really can be manned by anyone. Chapman needs to be traded to a great team, or move to the starting rotation. He's being wasted where he is currently.
40. Matt Kemp 2.27
39. Mat Latos 2.33
38. Prince Fielder 2.33
37. Gio Gonzalez 2.34
36. Madison Bumgarner 2.41
35. Bryce Harper 2.43
34. Jose Bautista 2.47
33. Brian McCann 2.48
32. Freddie Freeman 2.50
31. Justin Upton 2.59
Kemp really stood out to me here. I thought his WAR would be much higher but he really hasn't put many years together. Also Bautista and Fielder are consistently in the HR leader category but have failed to produce in other areas that equate to a higher WAR.
30. Jordan Zimmerman 2.63
29. Tim Lincecum 2.83
28. Jacoby Ellsbury 3.08
27. David Price 3.17
26. Kevin Youkilis 3.27
25. Hunter Pence 3.30
24. Manny Machado 3.43
23. Ryan Zimmerman 3.45
22. Alex Gordon 3.48
21. Jon Lester 3.51
Couple things that jump out at me here: Lincecum was flat out DOMINANT for a couple of years and has now produced 3 straight years of NEGATIVE WAR. He would be way up this list if he hadn't have fallen off the last three years. Youkilis, Pence and Gordon are much higher than I expected. Youk and Pence are grinders that are hustle type of guys while some tout Gordon as one of the best defensive Left Fielders ever. Side note: Youkilis is the only retired player on this list.
20. Paul Goldschmidt 3.55
19. Hanley Ramirez 3.56
18. Giancarlo Stanton 3.66
17. Buster Posey 3.73
16. Jose Fernandez 3.75
15. Josh Donaldson 4.00
14. Jered Weaver 4.02
13. Justin Verlander 4.10
12. Joe Mauer 4.17
11. Yasiel Puig 4.30
Josh Donaldson is a WAR machine. I had no clue that he would have been this high on the list. Also Jered Weaver has put together a very nice career and has shown some sustained dominance that I didn't realize.
10. Yu Darvish 4.37
09. Chris Sale 4.42
08. David Wright 4.50
07. Ryan Braun 4.50
06. Felix Hernandez 4.55
05. Jose Abreu 4.80
04. Jason Heyward 4.88
03. Clayton Kershaw 5.66
02. Mike Trout 6.80
01. Albert Pujols 6.92
When all is said and done, the original is still on top. The man who started the craze is still the king of this chrome castle. It's astonishing that Pujols has averaged essentially an MVP season EVERY YEAR since 2001!
The second thing I took away from the top of the list was Jason Heyward's astronomical numbers. He's quietly racked up some major WAR points while falling from the hobby heavens. Maybe he's a decent buy based on his sustained performance.
After taking his list I ventured over to baseball-reference.com and started researching each player's average WAR per season (Career WAR / Number of Years). It's not a perfect, but I think when you look at the list you will find that it is a pretty good measure for who really has been a great player and who has maybe been a little overrated during their career.
One factor that you have to take into consideration is the number of years each player has played. Obviously Abreu is working on a smaller sample size while Pujols has accumulated some years. I think it all evens itself out and is a pretty good representation of who really owns the greatest Chrome Autos of all time...
50. Ben Revere 0.88 WAR/Season
49. Matt Moore 1.12
48. Allen Craig 1.26
47. Aroldis Chapman 1.54
46. Billy Butler 1.60
45. Matt Garza 1.72
44. Sonny Gray 1.80
43. Starlin Castro 1.92
42. Anthony Rizzo 2.10
41. Stephen Strasburg 2.16
Chapman and Strasburg jump out at me as the biggest names that I wouldn't have expected this low. Chapman is essentially striking out EVERYONE he faces this year and still can't muster a high WAR. More and more the closer role seems to be a Larussa manufactured position that really can be manned by anyone. Chapman needs to be traded to a great team, or move to the starting rotation. He's being wasted where he is currently.
40. Matt Kemp 2.27
39. Mat Latos 2.33
38. Prince Fielder 2.33
37. Gio Gonzalez 2.34
36. Madison Bumgarner 2.41
35. Bryce Harper 2.43
34. Jose Bautista 2.47
33. Brian McCann 2.48
32. Freddie Freeman 2.50
31. Justin Upton 2.59
Kemp really stood out to me here. I thought his WAR would be much higher but he really hasn't put many years together. Also Bautista and Fielder are consistently in the HR leader category but have failed to produce in other areas that equate to a higher WAR.
30. Jordan Zimmerman 2.63
29. Tim Lincecum 2.83
28. Jacoby Ellsbury 3.08
27. David Price 3.17
26. Kevin Youkilis 3.27
25. Hunter Pence 3.30
24. Manny Machado 3.43
23. Ryan Zimmerman 3.45
22. Alex Gordon 3.48
21. Jon Lester 3.51
Couple things that jump out at me here: Lincecum was flat out DOMINANT for a couple of years and has now produced 3 straight years of NEGATIVE WAR. He would be way up this list if he hadn't have fallen off the last three years. Youkilis, Pence and Gordon are much higher than I expected. Youk and Pence are grinders that are hustle type of guys while some tout Gordon as one of the best defensive Left Fielders ever. Side note: Youkilis is the only retired player on this list.
20. Paul Goldschmidt 3.55
19. Hanley Ramirez 3.56
18. Giancarlo Stanton 3.66
17. Buster Posey 3.73
16. Jose Fernandez 3.75
15. Josh Donaldson 4.00
14. Jered Weaver 4.02
13. Justin Verlander 4.10
12. Joe Mauer 4.17
11. Yasiel Puig 4.30
Josh Donaldson is a WAR machine. I had no clue that he would have been this high on the list. Also Jered Weaver has put together a very nice career and has shown some sustained dominance that I didn't realize.
10. Yu Darvish 4.37
09. Chris Sale 4.42
08. David Wright 4.50
07. Ryan Braun 4.50
06. Felix Hernandez 4.55
05. Jose Abreu 4.80
04. Jason Heyward 4.88
03. Clayton Kershaw 5.66
02. Mike Trout 6.80
01. Albert Pujols 6.92
When all is said and done, the original is still on top. The man who started the craze is still the king of this chrome castle. It's astonishing that Pujols has averaged essentially an MVP season EVERY YEAR since 2001!
The second thing I took away from the top of the list was Jason Heyward's astronomical numbers. He's quietly racked up some major WAR points while falling from the hobby heavens. Maybe he's a decent buy based on his sustained performance.