Jose Altuve vs. Craig Biggio

I assume a big piece is that Biggio played catcher for 3 years and thus wouldn't have played everyday.

 

Here's some of his stats the two yrs prior to him leaving to fight in the war:

HR's
'41 37
'42 36

RBI
'41 120
'42 137

BA
'41 .406
'42 .356

OPS
'41 1.287
'42 1.147

Missed '43, '44 & '45.

 

And he lost the better part of 1952 and 1953 in the Korean War.

 

Had he not gone to war, everything after that would be completely different and you can't assume he would've put up the same stats. :grin:

 

Touche salesman.

 

why can't great hitters pitch anymore? softies. and the great gambino was drunk half of the time.

 

His first four yrs after coming back:

HR's
'46 38
'47 32
'48 25
'49 43

RBI
'46 123
'47 114
'48 127
'49 159

BA
'46 .342
'47 .343
'48 .369
'49 .343

OPS
'46 1.164
'47 1.133
'48 1.112
'49 1.141

 

He could've been hit by a bus in 1944. He could've been beaned in the face and never played again. He could've Mantled himself on a hole in the OF.

 

He "could've" but the fact of the matter is he wasn't.

 

He also didn't play baseball those years instead of going to war.

 

Over 60 million people died in WW11. I would say he had a higher chance of dying in combat compared to getting hurt playing baseball if he was playing those three yrs he was in the war.

 

Also, Ted Williams hits buses. Not the other way around. He could hit anything... fastballs, sliders, greyhounds. You name it.

 

And people were also hit by busses and killed during those years. WWII may not have got him, but that bus could have.

My point, which honestly was just a sarcastic jab at bobrek because he's the one who likes to take the point in a debate, is that you can't just assume everything else would've been the same if you change some other fact.

 

Didn't catch all of this thread--has anyone mentioned defense? Because, Tuve has a little ways to go before he can carry Biggio's jock defensively.

 

@theaceofspaeder: First 668 career games

#Astros Jose Altuve - 25 yrs old
830 hits & .305/.343/.415

#Reds Pete Rose - 26 yrs old
800 hits & .297/.353/.415

 

he already has more hits in 2 playoff games than post season biggio+ bagwell all through the 90s.

 

I thought it was funny that they said the last Astro to get 3 hits in a playoff game was Brad Ausmus, say what what!

 

Yea these new Astros 'aint your old Astros.

 

Altuve's playoff legacy is going to have a huge impact on the eventual Biggio vs. Altuve discussion. Biggio is the better player, no question. But the big stain on Bidge's record has always been his piss-poor postseason performance.

If Altuve can keep up what he started last night and become a playoff beast, uttering Altuve and Biggio in the same sentence might not seem so crazy 10 years from now.

 

hilarious. He hesitated, and I was going through names in my mind...didn't think it'd be biggio or bagwell, but also didn't think it'd be Ausmus. Only less likely guy would be Everett..