Monday August 20th, 2012

                                                                              (Image Courtesy of Businessinsider.com)

Jonathan Hacohen: For all the talk of Mike Trout as the sure bet for this year’s A.L. ROY and possibly MVP awards, a name that does not get thrown around enough is that of Yoenis Cespedes. Heard of him? I’m sure you have. The Cuban sensation, who went almost overnight from a YouTube prospect star to the A’s best hitter. The baseball world has not forgotten about Cespedes. But it seems like for all the attention Mike Trout is getting, Cespedes is not getting enough baseball love. Given Trout’s numbers, it’s not hard to see why. The kid hailed as the next Mickey Mantle has delivered and then some. Trout leads the league with a .343 average. Scored 96 runs and stole 39 bases. Obscene numbers for any MLB player in August, let alone a 21-year old. What makes Trout even more incredible is that he is doing it at home and on the road. Check his splits- almost identical. But then Trout does get to enjoy the lineup protection of Albert Pujols, Kendrys Morales, Torii Hunter and the rest of the Angels lineup. 

I am not even going to begin to try to compare Trout and Cespedes. Apples and oranges. Trout is much younger (6 years) and he clearly has the superior numbers. In any other year though, Yoenis Cespedes would have been the shoo-in Rookie of the Year in the A.L. and would have garnered MVP votes as well. But just because Trout is so good, we shouldn’t let Cespedes not get his time in the sun. The man has been a one-man wrecking crew for the A’s and the team’s overall record with him in the lineup is part of the proof of his greatness.

Ok, so perhaps Cespedes hasn’t done it entirely on his own. But really as he has hit, so have gone the A’s. The A’s record sits at 65-55, a whopping 10 games over .500. The team is 5 games back of the Rangers and only 0.5 games behind the Orioles for the 2nd Wild Card position. Did you imagine in your wildest dreams saying that in late August? When the A’s got Cespedes back in the lineup on a full-time basis, they have been nearly unstoppable. Pretty amazing stuff when you view the A’s statistics as a hitting team overall. Despite the presence of Josh Reddick, Chris Carter and company, the A’s are dead last in baseball with a team .232 average. The Angels are 4th (.272). Home runs the A’s are 11th (134). The Angels are 4th (152). OBP? A’s are 27th (.306). In SLG, A’s sit 23rd (.388). The Angels? 6th in OBP (.330) and 4th in SLG (.436). So while Trout is clearly getting the lineup support, the numbers suggest that Cespedes is sitting on the island all by himself.

Again, this is not a Trout vs. Cespedes debate. But the numbers become very interesting when you consider how Trout is performing relative to his team’s offensive numbers, and then take a look at Cespedes. The A’s as a team were expected to be a poor offensive club, playing in a pitcher’s park. The stats do equate in that manner. The A’s have one of the best pitching teams in baseball, while their offense for the most part is fairly weak. While the A’s have been exciting in the 2nd half and playing historic come-from-behind baseball, this offense is clearly not the Rangers. So how is Cespedes doing it? And why is he not getting more attention as one of the “best” players in the game?

Attendance plays a big part in the Cespedes equation. People are not going to watch the A’s. They play on the West Coast, which presents a problem for many eastern viewers. But the fans hate their home park. So they stay away…in droves. So the A’s continue to win and Cespedes continues to excel, but not enough attention is shown. Sunday night game of the week? Not on your life. Fans are not giving the A’s attention like they did back in the late 80’s. While he may be the second coming of Jose Canseco (less the insanity and juice), the baseball world is not taking enough notice. It’s not cool to like the A’s like it once was. Fans want to see Trout and the Angels, as well as Harper and then Nationals. As a result, the A’s and their young star are forgotten to a certain extent.

Not convinced? The fact that the A’s are a playoff contender with Cespedes in the lineup and a bottom-dweller without him should speak volumes. But let’s take a look at the numbers. My favorite comparison: the home/road split. Remember the cries of the poor hitting park in Oakland? Clearly Cespedes has not received the memo. At home: .329 average, 9 home runs in 46 games, .408 OBP, .565 SLG. In Oakland. Imagine what this guy would be doing if he played in Texas or Toronto, known as hitting havens. What about those hot-shot rookies that get tired as the season goes on and pitchers figure them out? Not Cespedes. Second half: .376 average, .435 OBP and .608 SLG. As a rookie in Oakland. Cespedes is making the impossible look possible.

While I may not compare him to Trout, I will bring in one interesting comparison point. My favorite home/road split guy: Carlos Gonzalez. Again, the numbers don’t lie. The man who I call a product of Coors has one of the most extreme home/road splits you will ever see. This year at home:  .387 average, 13 home runs in 58 games, 56 RBIs, .454 OBP and .652 SLG. On the road? CarGo goes down to a .242 average, 7 home runs in 50 games, .312 OBP and .414 SLG. CarGo will be 27 this year (almost same age as Cespedes). CarGo though has spent parts of 5 seasons in the majors, while Cespedes is a rookie. Considering what Cespedes is doing in Oakland and CarGo is doing in Coors (and on the road), you can already see the curve ahead that Cespedes is at. If CarGo is the benchmark for the young MLB superstar, then Yoenis Cespedes is well on his way to being there.

For 4-years, $36 million- the A’s bought themselves a legitimate superstar. A future perennial All-Star, MVP candidate and possible home run king. He wasn’t free…but damn Cespedes is great value. Remember Michael Ynoa, at a $4+ million signing bonus by the A’s once upon a time? The kid will soon be 21 and stands 6’7″. He also started 4 games this year in low-A and 6 games in rookie ball. The numbers? A combined 6.10 ERA and WHIP close to 2.00. When a team pays big money for international players, there are never any guarantees. The Twins found that out the hard way with Tsuyoshi Nishioka. As many teams have found out with countless international players in the past and will continue to find out in the future. But then a rare player comes, a once-in-a lifetime kind that raises the bar and explodes on the scene. Yoenis Cespedes has proven to be that type of player.

The bottom line: I will be shocked if Mike Trout doesn’t end up being named the A.L. Rookie of the Year and likely Most Valuable Player. Whether the Angels end up going to the playoffs or choking, Trout should get his due. If he continues his current pace, he will finish as a batting champion, stolen base king and have a 30-30 season. The numbers speak for themselves. But in giving Trout his due, do not forget about Yoenis Cespedes. Baseball does not have to rotate around Trout and Harper alone. The game has room for many superstars. While A’s fans continue to avoid attending games like the plague, the rest of baseball should not ignore Cespedes in the same manner. Turn on more A’s games. Read the numbers. See what this Cuban superstar is doing. Watching him hit bombs in person or on television is something that you don’t want to miss.

The stats are there for Cespedes. But there is something even more remarkable about watching him with your own two eyes. He entered baseball with a great deal of hype. Now that he has proven to be the real deal, let’s start talking Yoenis Cespedes on a daily basis. I hate to stereotype, but if Cespedes was on the Yankees or Red Sox, the man would be on the cover of Time magazine. Check him out- you will be blown away by his greatness. The stats don’t lie: Yoenis Cespedes is a superstar and the straw that stirs the A’s drink.

 (*The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of mlbreports.com*)

Jonathan Hacohen is the Founder & Lead Baseball Columnist for MLB reports:  You can follow Jonathan on Twitter (@JHacohen) 

 Please e-mail us at: mlbeports@gmail.com with any questions and feedback.  You can follow us on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.  To subscribe to our website and have the daily Reports sent directly to your inbox , click here and follow the link at the top of our homepage. Follow @mlbreports