Comparing Stanton, Morrison, and Heyward (Revisited)

Earlier this season Michael Johng took a look into a comparison into three promising second-year players. These three players, Mike Stanton, Logan Morrison, and Jason Heyward. These were the numbers that the three were putting up at the time of the comparison. I did change a few of the stats that Michael had to adjust them better to my knowledge of sabermetrics (I’m not as big of a nerd as him ;)).

Michael had this to say when he made this original comparison

"Just looking at these numbers, it’s tough to say any one of those hitters is “clearly” better than the other. Of the three, Morrison has done the best so far in his career, but the figures aren’t all that far away from each other, and Morrison has played the least over the course of his career. Heyward, who has had the most experience, has looked the best through his rookie year, but has “struggled” a bit down to a .361 wOBA so far this season. Clearly, however, fans of any team would be happy with any of these three players on their team when it comes to their bats."

A look at their early peripherals results:

Interesting numbers by each player, as they showed plenty of promise in their rookie seasons. Now let’s flash forward to the 2011 season, each players second MLB season, first full ones for Mike Stanton and Logan Morrison. Each player in 2011 has dealt with pesky injuries this season that has slowed them down. Let’s take a look at their career numbers, thus far, with just two months remaining in the 2011 season.

Mike Stanton has shown remarkable consistency in his first two seasons in his numbers. His defense has actually has not been as impressive as last season, but he has plenty of time to improve on that. Heyward is having a down season and it is obvious as his numbers since the initial comparison have gone down. Logan Morrison is in the same boat as Heyward with his struggles this season. Heyward however is still posting above replacement level defense. On the other hand, Morrison has continued to be atrocious out in left field. As Michael has alluded to many times, it may be best for the Marlins to deal Gaby Sanchez and move Logan Morrison over to first base, where his defense wouldn’t hurt the Marlins as much. Heyward and Morrison are too good at the plate to keep hitting as poorly as they have this season. Heyward is being held down with a .247 BABIP as opposed to his .335 BABIP last season. Morrison owns a .264 BABIP this season compared to a fluky .351 BABIP last season. Morrison has shown much improved power this season though.

Mike Stanton is showing improvement in his K% and walking a bit more then he did last season. His power has improved from his rookie season and he is going to be a force to be reckoned with. He’s hitting homers at a great rate. For more details on Stanton’s season, here’s Michael’s take on Stanton’s season. Logan Morrison is not walking as much and striking out a lot more. He got off to a hot start to the season but has struggled in the months of June and July. Jason Heyward has dealt with injuries all season, including spending a great deal of time on the disabled list. He is looking like he’s finally getting his swing back and is improving at a very important time for the Atlanta Braves (hate them so much!), as they make a big playoff push.

All in all, Mike Stanton has continued to impress everyone in baseball with his stellar play. He’s growing as a player and is close to being a big named superstar all around baseball. He looks like the real deal. Logan Morrison this season has regressed overall. His defense has never been too good and the Marlins may be better off having him switch positions, otherwise his defense will offset his offensive production. Jason Heyward is recovering from a season full of injuries and is starting to improve.  For Logan Morrison and Jason Heyward, the question will pop up, are they suffering through a sophomore slump or are have they just been a tad bit unlucky this season with injuries and BABIP? What do you guys think?

NEXT WEEK: I know I said I’d have the Marlins pitching situation in 2012 posted this week, I will instead be saving that for next week.