Soriano rated best left field arm in 2008

Soriano was rated as having the best left field arm in MLB in 2008.

I thought this was a very interesting article measuring the arms of MLB outfielders.

about 3 years ago cowsarecool220 19 comments 0 recs |

Comments

The real question is

how does his stupid hop rate among left fielders? Or his fear of the wall? Or his inability to lay off a low-and-away slider?

Seriously, he does have a great arm, and very accurate.

His arm angle seems a little bizarre, but hey, whatever works!

I have nothing funny or creative to write.

by Canadian Cubs Fan on Jan 23, 2009 1:05 PM CST reply actions

Yeah, he still throws like an infielder

meaning, he must have a really strong arm

Okay, just so I understand it... in your wildest fantasy, you are in hell. And you are co-running a bed and breakfast with the devil.

by bren on Jan 23, 2009 1:20 PM CST up reply actions

You have to

Catch it before you throw it

by Clutche on Jan 23, 2009 1:08 PM CST reply actions

Amen brother !

by BLou on Jan 23, 2009 1:13 PM CST up reply actions

I'll never forget

the game last year in St. Louis…boots two fly balls that lead to runs, then hits the tying HR off Izzy in the 9th. Vintage Soriano.

I have nothing funny or creative to write.

by Canadian Cubs Fan on Jan 23, 2009 1:17 PM CST up reply actions

I remember that too

take away the HR and he would have been compared to Brant Brown for that game

"I like coconuts, you can break them open and they smell like ladies lying in the sun" Widespread Panic

by Cubbie-Tim on Jan 25, 2009 1:33 PM CST up reply actions

Funny...

But very true. His glove sucks out there, but his arm is unreal…

by AeroZach on Jan 25, 2009 12:22 AM CST up reply actions

it’s a little bit of the Hester factor…. where some teams opt not to kick to him in certain situations….. with Sori, some teams I think hesitate to send the runner, or some runners hesitate to stretch it an extra base. Plus as much as we love hustle and diving plays, let’s leave those to Reed Johnson and such, he wont cost us 18 million. Furthermore, Sori already has some DL time scheduled for ’09 for other things not related to his defense.

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by tony412 on Jan 23, 2009 1:45 PM CST reply actions

Because of That Arm..

Soriano is not the worst defensive left fielder in the game. As far as getting good jumps on balls and catching the ball, he’s not so wonderful. I know there’s no way Soriano will ever be a good defensive left fielder, but I hope he will concentrate more on the leather and become an average defensive left fielder.

"The big possum walks late." - Harry Caray

by memphiscub on Jan 23, 2009 2:19 PM CST reply actions

Good call

If he were average with the other stuff, the arm might make him one of the best overall defensive LFer’s.

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by Brett Taylor on Jan 27, 2009 3:35 PM CST up reply actions

Soriano Vs. Mario

I think Soriano’s hop rates only second to Mario’s from the orginal Super Mario Brothers. Regardless, he does have a canon for an arm and that is fun to watch.

by TheHawkRules on Jan 23, 2009 2:56 PM CST reply actions

and there are

Vines in the OF for him as well…

"I like coconuts, you can break them open and they smell like ladies lying in the sun" Widespread Panic

by Cubbie-Tim on Jan 23, 2009 7:13 PM CST up reply actions

what would they rate his glove though?

i’ve got no problems with his arm, i LOVE the way his arm throws. i hate how he hops and misses routine catches.

There's nothing wrong with this team that more pitching, more fielding and more hitting couldn't help......"--Bill Buckner

by laidbackliam on Jan 23, 2009 10:46 PM CST reply actions

It would be interesting

to see Soriano pitch sometime. Not in a real game, mind you, but I for one would like to see his arm from 60’6" away just for fun. Maybe he missed his calling. ;-)

"They say we live and learn. Often what we learn is what damn fools we have been." ~Thomas Sowell

by Goodie1969 on Jan 24, 2009 8:48 AM CST reply actions

Dunston

was the same. There was a rumor (not sure if true or not) that when Dunston was selected before Gooden, the Cubs had said he had a better arm than Gooden, just not the same control.

"I like coconuts, you can break them open and they smell like ladies lying in the sun" Widespread Panic

by Cubbie-Tim on Jan 25, 2009 1:32 PM CST up reply actions

For anyone still paying attention to this thread...

…I finally got around to reading this entire article this morning on the train, and here are a couple other Cub-related notes from it:

1. Kosuke Fukudome was ranked 12th among qualifying right fielders. His Kill+ (works the same way as ERA+ and OPS+) was 80, meaning he was below league average in throwing out runners trying to advance. But his Hold+ was a few ticks above league average at 106. This pretty much jibes with what I think I saw, which is that Dome wasn’t quite the sharpshooter I’d hoped for, but opposing runners nevertheless did seem to respect his arm.

2. New Cub Slappy Joe Gathright made it as 14th among qualifying centerfielders. His Kill+ was a robust 114; whereas his Hold+ was a close-but-no-cigar 96. All in all, I found this an encouraging assessment of our new fourth outfielder.

Consistent. Championship. Tradition.

by daver on Jan 27, 2009 9:57 AM CST reply actions