A little late for the Tuesday Wrap-Up, but here you go anyway. David Pinto rules.
Top: Joe Crede
Top Everyday Player: Joe Crede
Bottom: Rich Aurilia
Bottom Everyday Player: Edwin Encarnacion
Mariners: Adrian Beltre, 5th out of 37
Looks good to me. Freddy Sanchez flies under the radar because he plays in Pittsburgh, yet not only did he hit .344 last year, but he was also - by this metric - the second-best defensive 3B in the league.
(Seriously, check out Sanchez's line drive rate. MLB-best 27.5% this year, 24.5% in 2005. That's suggestive of a repeatable skill. He won't be .344-good again, but still, talk about an underrated player.)
...anyway, the other thing to notice is that Beltre was the second-best 3B in the AL last season, narrowly edging out Brandon Inge. Safe to say that, with this in mind, PMR is higher on our 2006 infield defense than THT. The results here aren't anomalous, either, as UZR had Beltre at +12. He's a legitimately spectacular glove (+71 in UZR since 2002), better than Eric Chavez (-4 in 2006, +14 since 2002) regardless of what some people might believe.
Adrian Beltre may not hit as much as we'd like him to, but he's a very good player who helps the Mariners win from an important position. Those who call him a bust simply don't know what they're talking about.