DJ LeMahieu: A Legit Top 10 Second Baseman?

MLB Network has been running a series on the Top 10 players at every position for the past few weeks and the most recent one focused on second baseman around the league. When you look around the league, there are many great second baseman. There's Jose Altuve in Houston, who has not only become the best second baseman in the league but a superstar within the game, Daniel Murphy, who doesn't get nearly as much recognition as he should, Robinson Cano, Brian Dozier, and another underrated candidate, Jonathan Schoop. However, one name that you rarely hear about and an individual that often gets overlooked is Rockies second baseman, DJ LeMahieu.

Granted, it could be the fact that he plays at Coors Field and many writers are afraid to admit that he is talented enough to be in the Top 10 or the fact that his home numbers are better off than his road numbers. Either way, you can't deny the fact that LeMahieu doesn't get enough credit and is a critical component of the success that the Rockies have experienced as of late.

Circling back to MLB Network's series on the Top 10 Second Baseman in the game right now, Brian Kenny and Harold Reynolds didn't have LeMahieu on their list. However, the Shredder did and thats where the idea of factual information from a computer versus human perception comes into play and needs to be eliminated as much as possible.

The Shredder takes into account a number of different factors including a player's age, their on-base percentage, how many hits, home runs, RBI, and walks a player had during a given year, and even looks at the controversial, Wins Above Replacement (WAR) statistic as well. All of those things are taken into account when these lists are made and obviously DJ LeMahieu has done enough throughout his career to this point otherwise he wouldn't be on The Shredder's Top 10 list. On the other hand, many humans and journalists alike, immediately eliminate LeMahieu from the conversation because they believe he isn't the same hitter when he's at home compared to on the road and they don't realize his value to the Rockies overall. For comparison's sake, let's take a look at the home-road splits.

Sure, LeMahieu does a better job hitting overall when he is away from Coors Field, but not every
statistical category is higher on the road compared to at home for him. Take into account, the number of at bats LeMahieu record last season, for instance. On the road, he recorded 309 at bats, while at Coors Field he recorded 300. Furthermore, on the road LeMahieu recorded 16 doubles in that span compared to 12 at home and also hit 5 home runs on the road versus 3 at Coors Field. Granted, the numbers aren't all that different, but even his on-base percentage (OBP) is nothing to turn your nose up at either. Over 300 at bats at Coors Field, LeMahieu recorded a .396 OBP compared to a .352 OBP on the road. Forget the fact that he performs well at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Chase Field in Phoenix, and Petco Park in San Diego as well. All of which he recorded an average and OBP above .300.

So then the question becomes: what does LeMahieu need to do to garner more respect throughout the industry? He can't physically change the writers minds or skew them towards picking him every season, but the one thing he can do is continue to focus on performing at a high level even if it might go unnoticed and under-the-radar. From a team perspective, LeMahieu had the highest OBP, based on at bats, behind only Charlie Blackmon and has a cumulative Wins Above Replacement (WAR) rate of 14.4 over his 7-year big league career.

Of course, LeMahieu, who is currently 29 and will turn 30 this July, won't play up to the caliber of Jose Altuve, Daniel Murphy, Brian Dozier, or Robinson Cano over the remainder of his career, but he is nothing to shake a finger at and punish either all because of where he plays and the team he plays for. LeMahieu has been a staple of the Rockies infield and lineup since 2012 and has one more year left on his contract before he hits free agency.

Time will tell if his future is with the Rockies or how he will do in free agency, but he looks primed for another impact year this coming season. Projections have him hitting: .310/.376/.429 in 538 at bats with 166 hits, 26 doubles, 3 triples, 10 home runs, 62 RBI, 10 stolen bases, 55 walks, and 92 strikeouts. Overall, any team would sign up to have a bat like that hitting second for them every night.

For now, the debate will continue to rage on as to whether or not LeMahieu should be ranked as a Top 10 Second Baseman, but if you study the data at a further level and look at his previous track record, the answer is clear. LeMahieu easily ranks within the Top 10 list and deserves a lot more respect and recognition than he has gotten over the years.