In Praise of Utility

Before I go on about my actual topic, it may not have escaped your notice that Chien-Ming Wang got shelled – again – in his last start. He went on the DL afterwards. And while I’m not the first one to note these figures, it is still interesting to note that:

• Opposing hitters are hitting .622 against him
• He came into game three with a 28.93 ERA, and saw it rise to 34.50
• If he can pitch 48 and two-third consecutive scoreless innings (Orel Herschiser’s ML consecutive-scoreless-innings record is 59 innings), he can get his ERA back to his career average

So onto my actual topic.

There are a lot of reasons baseball is my favorite sport. The losing team will always get a chance to catch up. It has a long history of people playing essentially the same game. Among American sports, it is the sport best set up for analysis. There is a voluminous literature about the sport, written by very talented and passionate writers.

Another reason I am such a fan of baseball is the existence of the utility player. In a game of millionaires with outlandish talent, utility players offer a connection - imaginary, sure, but a connection - to fans. They are regular players in regular bodies. I think to myself perhaps I could have been one of those guys had I shown a lot more initiative, way more talent, and a good deal more luck. Their skills are not jaw-dropping; to the contrary, their skills look frankly pedestrian.

Then there's the name "utility player." Who would object to that title? I hope that people in my life at least consider me useful, if not a star or a headline-grabber.

They toil in near anonymity. This too is like most of us, good enough at what we do to make some kind of living but not leaders in our chosen field.

(How anonymous? Both of the readers of this site are probably familiar with the Red Sox, so let’s play Name That Red Sox Utility Player.

Player A played for the 2003 Red Sox. It was his only season with Boston, although he played 11 seasons in the majors. The greatest number of his starts came at second base, but he also played a lot of games in center. During the course of the season, he played at first, second, third, shortstop, left, center, and right, and even DHed 7 times. He made about $4.1 million in his career.

Player B played for the 1999 Red Sox, his second of three seasons for Boston. Offensively in 1999 he was merely bad; he would later become awful. In 1999, he played at second, third, shortstop, left, center, and right, and DHed 3 times. In center and right he was quite a good defensive player. He made about $1.75 million in his career.

Answers at bottom.)

Even though anonymous, they are easy to find, thanks to sportwriters' clichés. If you want to know a team’s utility player, search on "(team name) utility man." For instance, at one point or another, someone has referred to Laynce Nix, Jamey Carroll, Jeff Baker, Clint Barmes, and Greg Norton as the "Rockies utility man."

If you like The Blue Jays, Jose Bautista is your man. He's played 1B, 2B, 3B, RF, CF, LF, and DH. He sports a career .239 average with some power but very little plate discipline, and yet has found gainful employment with Baltimore, Tampa, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, and now Toronto. Miguel Cairo (first, second, third, short, right, and left) has less power and less plate discipline and is currently working for his eighth team. Geoff Blum (first, second, third, and short) is filling the role in Houston, after stints with four other teams. The list goes on and on.

So the next time a veteran late-inning defensive replacement comes in to a game, look him up. See where he’s been and what his skills are. And cheer for the guy to keep proving his utility for as many teams as will take him.

Next time, I’ll have a short history of the ultimate utility player: the pinch-pitcher.

Answers:

A: Damian Jacques Jackson

B: Donnie Lamont Sadler