Every time I look up, he has another multiple hit game. He's almost to 100 ab's for the season and is well above .400. His rbi's aren't quite what you'd want for such a stellar ba and ops but those can be partially attributed to his spots in the batting order. So is he a Tony Gwynn style hitter in the making? or more of a one hit wonder?
Not as bad as he was last year, not as good as he's been this year. He's probably right around a league-average player. It's pretty rare for a guy his age to burst upon the scene and become a really good player.
He's never had a single 0.300 season, and he's always been extremely old for his level. He didn't do anything special until 2004, which he split between High A and AA as a 26-yr old. He may prove me wrong, but it's just would be an extremely atypical career arc for him to turn out to be better than average.
He has hit .298 and .299 the last 2 years at RR, and IMHO has finally discovered what he can do at the plate. He is a .325 major league hitter for his career now....which is amazing after his slow start last year. I think his confidence is there, and he KNOWS he belongs, we are DUE for a guy to actually find "IT" after watching Hidalgo, Ensberg, and now Lidge...lose .."IT". DD
I was curious just how rare it was for older players to break out, so I did a bit of research and the numbers were even stronger than what I thought. I went back and looked at MLB debut ages for every year since 1986. Over that time, only 7 players who debuted after their 26th birthday made an All-Star appearance, and two of them were All-Stars in Japan (Ichiro and Hideki Matsui). The other five are Chris Sabo, John Jaha, Ron Coomer, Paul Lo Duca, and Melvin Mora. Of those five, I only consider Sabo, Jaha, and Mora to be above-average hitters. So you're banking on Luke Scott doing something that only 3 players in the past 20 years have done - find "IT" after starting their big-league career so late. I just don't see it.
Well he did sit out his first season after undergoing surgery. Then you could probably discount the next season after that as well. Taking that into account, then he really isn't that old for his level. You also have to take into consideration that in many instances, especially for position players, the Astros take their time in developing their prospects. But really, what does age have to do with anything? He's got the patience and confidence now to go with his power.
He is the Ted Williams of the 21st Century. Quite possibly the greatest ever. (I'm going a little too far I know ). But in all seriousness, I am convinced that he is not a fluke. I just wish his fielding was as good as his batting.
Many great baseball minds say there will never be another .400 hitter, but the only question with Luke Scott is - can he hit .500?
I dunno, Luke Scott cracks me up. I'm always like watch this... CRUSH!!! He is just not letting up and it's fun to watch him up there.
2 more knocks last night, now hitting .433, I have never seen anthing like this, the guy is amazing at the dish...amazing. DD
I saw it during the September call-up last year. He was all glassy-eyed at the beginning of the season, but in September/October, he really put it together. He has that approach, that confidence that hitters have. Chris Burke (who's 26 himself) had it, even when he was flirting with the Mendoza line. Luke Scott can hit.
