The other day, Pat and Keith were talking in fawning terms about Darwin Barney. Then later, I heard Len and Bob saying similar things. I have seen people singing his praises on BCB. And it got me thinking back to 2006 when the Cubs called up Ryan Theriot.

Like Barney, Theriot had been a hard-working college player who had impressed at AAA. There were people talking about how they loved his hustle, his scrappiness. But over time, as his batting average declined and his deficiencies were revealed, his popularity plummeted. We all know what happened then. (And for what it is worth, it seems it is roughly the same career path of David Eckstein with the Angels.)

So, my question for the group is this:

At what point does Darwin Barney stop being the happy, overachieving success story and become "that overrated guy whose scrappyness and determination doesn't offset the fact that he is hitting .265 with a .303 OBP?" is there any chance he avoids this fate, or is it just a matter of time?