Dodgers News: Freddie Freeman Compared to Padres Legend by Dave Roberts
When you think about the word "reliable", which baseball player comes to mind?
I think one name on everybody's list should be Tony Gwynn, right?
Over a 20-year career, "Mr. Padre" led the league in batting average 8 times, and struck out less in a season than some people strike out in a month.
In the 1995 season alone, Gwynn only struck out 15 times!
So when Dave Roberts calls Freddie Freeman the "modern day Tony Gwynn", people should listen:
“In the batter’s box, he is the modern-day Tony Gwynn,” Roberts said Monday morning. “I’ll say that and I stand by that. … I knew Tony as a friend. I think Tony would take that as a compliment, for me saying that. ...
“It’s striking, given how much he can still slug, how much teams prepare for him. Hitting is harder than it’s ever been, because of the stuff, the matchups. So for him to be able to do that, it’s remarkable. It really is.”
via The Athletic
Like Roberts said, hitting has only gotten harder as the game has evolved, and Freeman's approach at the plate has evolved with it.
In this day and age, you need to be able to slug a little bit more than in the 90's when Gwynn played, and that's the side of the game that Freddie has figured out.
He still picks his pitches carefully, and he's a very patient hitter at the plate, but Freeman's slugging percentage is even a little bit higher than Gwynn's
Freeman's career SLG % (Over 14 years): .515
Gwynn's career SLG % (Over 20 years): .459
One department that shows just how much the game has evolved is in the stolen base category. Gwynn hit for average, which Freeman can too, but where Freddie can hit the long ball, Gwynn could steal bases:
Gwynn's career SB (Over 20 years): 319
Freeman's career SB (Over 14 years): 82
To be compared to one of the game's greatest should be an amazing honor, and no doubt Freeman sees it that way, but his numbers actually back up what Dave Roberts is saying.
So what do you think, is Freddie Freeman the modern day Tony Gwynn?
