Congratulations, Miguel Olivo

by Jeff Sullivan on Sep 13, 2011 10:33 AM PDT in Seattle Mariners Stats

Last night, Miguel Olivo clubbed what we assumed to be a meaningless two-run homer, turning a 9-1 laugher into a 9-3 romcom. It wasn't even the most notable thing Olivo did in the game, as earlier he'd struck out with one down and the bases loaded. I'd wager a significant portion of the audience didn't realize Olivo homered at all, as by that point few were still paying attention.

But, oh! It was not such a meaningless home run after all! For the homer was Olivo's 18th of the season, tying the single-season franchise record for a catcher.

(1t) 18, 2011 Miguel Olivo
(1t) 18, 2006 Kenji Johjima
(1t) 18, 1996 Dan Wilson
(4) 15, 1997 Dan Wilson
(5) 14, 2007 Kenji Johjima

You can really get a sense for how productive Olivo has been this year by comparing his current numbers to those other catcher seasons:

	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS+
Olivo, 2011	0.226	0.258	0.389	81
Johjima, 2006	0.291	0.332	0.451	103
Wilson, 1996	0.285	0.330	0.444	94
Wilson, 1997	0.270	0.326	0.423	96
Johjima, 2007	0.287	0.322	0.433	101

Oh right, the .258 OBP. It's the third-lowest OBP in baseball, and presently the fourth-worst single-season OBP in Mariners history among regular players. It's lower than Jose Lopez's 2010. It's lower than Omar Vizquel's 1989. It's lower than Brian Hunter's 1999. It's higher than Bob Kearney's 1984, by one point.

Miguel Olivo is a catcher. Catchers aren't held to the same offensive standard as everybody else, for good reason. But still, he's treated the individual bases like they're active noxious fumaroles, good for a quick peek but bad for lingering. As advertised, Miguel Olivo has brought his power bat to Seattle. And, as advertised, that's been his entire offensive game.

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Comments

I never thought I'd miss Johjima as much as I do now.

I mean, I think I’d rather have 2012 Johjima over 2012 Olivo…

M's fan newly relocated to SF My homepage

by lailaihei on Sep 13, 2011 10:36 AM PDT reply actions

I miss Dan the Man

In Mariners commercials, Wilson catches Jamie Moyer. In contrast, Olivo catches Tic-Tacs.

by Westside guy on Sep 13, 2011 11:44 AM PDT up reply actions

Big difference. Jamie Moyer can throw 10 mph faster than a tic-tac can.

"Perhaps the worst comment I've ever seen on LL." - sanford_and_son.

by Ride the Apocalypse on Sep 13, 2011 2:27 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs

My favorite part is how his peripherals (excluding BABIP) are pretty much in line with career norms

we got the exact Miguel Olivo we thought we were getting and he is bad.

by seattlebruin on Sep 13, 2011 10:39 AM PDT reply actions

Which is why some of us weren't thrilled about getting him.

by abender20 on Sep 13, 2011 7:03 PM PDT up reply actions

Two years, seven million and the alternative was Adam Moore

really? It was fine. It’s not like anyone was excited, either

by seattlebruin on Sep 14, 2011 9:45 AM PDT up reply actions

There were better external options, as it turned out,

but Olivo’s contract isn’t a burden or anything

by Matthew on Sep 14, 2011 11:08 AM PDT up reply actions

Although his defense was also unexpectedly bad.

...and now I'm here

by CapSea on Sep 13, 2011 7:23 PM PDT up reply actions

Fan: "I want a home run bat!"

Response: “But, Miguel Olivo…!”

by ThundaPC on Sep 13, 2011 10:58 AM PDT reply actions

Noxious fumaroles?

Farm team before players move up to the Las Vegas 51’s?
Best ska band you never heard of?
Poorly made specialty sushi?

Damn you for making me google new vocabulary words, like fumarole.

by Chris_FB on Sep 13, 2011 11:16 AM PDT reply actions

I bet you found the answer surprising!

by Jeff Sullivan on Sep 13, 2011 11:17 AM PDT up reply actions

Steam vents for bases would pep up the last 2 weeks of the season

Then throw some random landmines into the outfield and call it good.

by Chris_FB on Sep 13, 2011 11:55 AM PDT up reply actions

I thought Olivo was a Noxious Fumarole!

But maybe “Geyser” is a better analogy – given the infrequent bursts of power, followed by staring at an empty hole in the ground for an undetermined length of time.

by NWade on Sep 13, 2011 11:32 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs

Dan Wilson was just the worst

by Poochie on Sep 13, 2011 11:37 AM PDT reply actions

I actually have to come clean and admit that I really didn't like Johjima while he was here...

In my defense, I was a lot less of an educated (i.e. more dumb) fan back then. I still can’t feel any excitement about the way he seemed to work with the pitchers; but the stat-line sure looks nice in comparison to what we’ve had since he left!

by NWade on Sep 13, 2011 11:40 AM PDT up reply actions

You can't question his work ethic.

I remember a story they did on him when he first arrived in 06. It was also the year of the first WBC, and this guy left the chance to play for his country to work with our pitchers in spring training, learning English and Spanish in the process. That’s really something else if you think about it.

"I know football doesn’t mean shit in the real world, but my life is small, petty and mean, and I live this tiny span, this sixty years of cognizant life if I’m lucky, pouring my time and energy and money into believing in the Seahawks. And right now, I see a logo, a decal, an identifying set of colors, that I suffer for the sake of someone else’s incompetence." - John Morgan

by EequalsMc2 on Sep 13, 2011 6:49 PM PDT up reply actions

O-O-Olivo!

Sorry, couldn’t help myself.

by Westside guy on Sep 13, 2011 11:41 AM PDT reply actions

18 home runs. Big deal.

How many runs have come in against us because of all his passed balls? Not just scoring on a passed ball, but moving up a base and subsequently scoring on a hit they wouldn’t have scored on if there hadn’t been the passed ball? He’s a sub-par defensive catcher. I’d take Dan Wilson in an instant; even though I do admit Wilson’s mediocre offense was mitigated by having Junior, Jay, and Edgar in the lineup.

Common sense isn't.

by Bald Eagle 1313 on Sep 13, 2011 12:07 PM PDT reply actions

11 passed balls and 51 wild pitches.

Using The Book’s run values, he has allowed 3.08 runs from passed balls and, if we give him half of the blame for wild pitches because who knows, 6.63 runs from wild pitches, for an estimated 9.71 runs. Note that I don’t know if this is the proper way to dole out run values for wild pitches.

by Mariner John on Sep 13, 2011 12:43 PM PDT up reply actions

He's below average this year

but was equally as above average last year. For his career, he’s been roughly average. For his recent career (2008-11), he’s been roughly average.

by Matthew on Sep 13, 2011 2:33 PM PDT up reply actions

Okay, so he's a below average starting catcher.

That’s still better than Rob Johnson, a below average backup catcher that got the playing time of a starting catcher for 2 years.

Baseball Reference has Olivo at 0.3 WAR for the season, while Fangraphs more generously gives him 1.1 WAR. Rob Johnson’s best season according to Baseball Reference was in 2010 in Seattle, when he was worth 0.1 WAR. Fangraphs gives him 0.5 WAR in ’10. Adam Moore fares even worse. So does Josh Bard.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not exactly pleased with Olivo’s performance, this year. But, he hasn’t been awful. He’s been mediocre. And mediocrity is a breath of fresh air after 2 years of Rob Johnson.

"Perhaps the worst comment I've ever seen on LL." - sanford_and_son.

by Ride the Apocalypse on Sep 13, 2011 2:41 PM PDT reply actions

Rob Johnson years are like concentrated Miguel Olivo years

by lemonverbena on Sep 13, 2011 2:59 PM PDT up reply actions

It's not hard to find a catcher that's "not the worst player in baseball."

We shouldn’t give credit to a player that performed slightly better than another player that had no business in the major leagues.

Also, not to poke holes in your argument, but Rob Johnson was worth .5 WAR in 200 plate appearances. Miguel Olivo, 1.1 in 462. Had Rob Johnson received 462 plate appearances and performed at the same rate, he would have been worth 1.1 WAR. WHOOPS!

...and now I'm here

by CapSea on Sep 13, 2011 6:30 PM PDT up reply actions