For some reason, Ben Zobrist remains vastly underrated by not only the casual fan, but by a majority of the hardcore baseball fans and writers as well. Since 2009, Zobrist’s first season in a full-time role, only one player in the American League has a higher WAR (Wins Above Replacement) according to Fangraphs.
The only player ahead of Zobrist is his teammate Evan Longoria. The only National League players with a higher WAR than Zobrist’s 13.8 mark over that time span are Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, Joey Votto, and Ryan Zimmerman. Being the sixth best position player in baseball over a three year span should make Zobrist a near household name, but he most certainly has not reached that status.
The amazing part about Zobrist’s performance is that he had a relatively bad year last season. He hit only .238 but was able to walk in 14% of his plate appearances, which allowed his on base percentage to sit at a respectable, but far from tremendous, .346. Despite the problems he had with the bat, he still remained a top notch fielder in right field and at second base.
Not many players have the ability to go on the tear that Zobrist is currently on, either. Over the past 17 games, Zobrist has reached base in every game and had a hit in all but one. He has five home runs, eight doubles, and a triple since the start of this streak. 14 extra base hits in 17 games is just tremendous, and his slash line during the streak is .409/.468/.788.
For some reason, Zobrist is recognized more as a really good player than a superstar. I do not really understand why. Zobrist is a switch hitter that has the ability to hit for power, get on base via the walk, and field multiple different positions extremely well. Simply put, the guy does it all.
