He’s not just a little spark plug. The runs created stat tries to incorporate some of what you’re looking for.
I mean he's a MVP among other multiple accolades, so we know that. I meant little more in stature, not production. Somehow I knew someone would take that the wrong way. Interwebz! I'll check it out.
Not taking it the wrong way... just saying that if you look at him simply as an MVP, and replace your words with MVP (instead of little spark plug)... the statement seems more self-explanatory than a question. "Amazing how one MVP can change the dynamic of the team..." Well, yeah... that's why he was the overwhelming MVP last year! There's also the cascade effect he creates on the lineup which was discussed in last night's game thread. Bregman gets more hittable pitches if Altuve is on deck. Correa gets more hittable pitches if Altuve is already on base. Kemp or anybody at the bottom of the order getting on gives him a for-sure RBI opportunity.
Being fair, Altuve was the "overwhelming" MVP last season partly because Trout got injured. The fact he "blew away" Judge in the voting was partly due to Jose's great '16 and Judge being the new guy.
