If hitting a baseball is the hardest thing to do in sports, hitting for power is especially unique.
Few can eschew specialty pitching and defensive shifts to put up numbers that make most players envious. Let’s take a look at today’s magnificent seven.
7. Carlos Gonzalez
Coors Field today isn’t the way Coors Field used to be. Humidors aside, the park remains a hitter’s haven. Any player who dons a Rockies uniform – especially a slugger – is examined differently, thanks to the benefits he still reaps from the thin air. Gonzalez is no different. But critics aren’t his biggest obstacle – injuries are. With 40 homers and 97 runs driven in over 153 games, Gonzalez showed what he’s capable of when he’s healthy enough to play a full season. And even when considering the environment in which he plays, his stats are still impressive.
6. Josh Donaldson
In Oakland, Donaldson became an All-Star – attaining career-highs for homers and RBI during the 2014 season. In just one year with Toronto, he became a superstar. The trade executed by the Blue Jays front office last winter proved to be one of the soundest investments of the off-season. Donaldson easily surpassed the accomplishments of the previous year with 41 home runs, a league-best 123 RBI and 41 doubles – as the franchise reached the postseason for the first time since 1993.
5. Nelson Cruz
Once he made the move from Camden Yards to cavernous Safeco Field, the easy assumption would be for an understandable drop-off. Falling under the category of “you can’t predict baseball,” Cruz’ power numbers actually improved from his lone season as an Oriole, highlighted by 44 home runs – the most he’s hit during his 11-year career. And for the first time, he was named to the Silver Slugger Award team. It’s a shame the others who made up the disappointing Mariners lineup didn’t follow his lead.
4. Nolan Arenado
Like CarGo, Arenado is not immune to the criticism of his mile-high home-field advantage. However, of his 42 home runs in 2015, he hit two fewer in Denver. The 24-year-old third baseman shared two of the three Triple Crown categories in the National League (HRs and RBI) and tallied an impressive 43 doubles along with 354 total bases as he vaulted into the short list of elite players. In fact, you could argue no one in baseball (not even Bryce Harper) made a bigger leap up into the hierarchy.
3. Chris Davis
The Baltimore first baseman couldn’t have finished 2015 much better. With 12 home runs after Sept. 1, Davis’ final number was 47 – placing him at the top of the MLB leaderboard. That’s certainly a far cry from just a year prior, as he couldn’t have ended 2014 much worse. His premature departure likely fueled his revival, which included 150 hits and 100 runs scored. Those numbers certainly mask his high strikeout totals, and should garner much interest from other teams as he enters free agency.
Chris Davis has led all of baseball in HR twice. Every other #Orioles player in history (est 1901) combined led all of baseball in HR twice.
— Ace of MLB Stats (@theaceofspaeder) November 11, 2015
2. Mike Trout
The comparisons made to the legends of the game – Mickey Mantle, for one – are quite lofty…and accurate. In just four seasons, Mike Trout is forging a path that few can share. He may not have been at his best during 2015, but he continued to be better than most. Trout led the AL in slugging percentage (.590) and OPS (991). He racked up a third straight year of at least 30 doubles and his 41 homers were a career high. Toss in his Gold Glove-caliber play in the outfield along with some efficient baserunning, and you have the premiere overall player in baseball – a title he’ll hang on to for years to come.
1. Bryce Harper
As Harper collects his first MVP award, he’s already collected stereotypes from all directions. Some claim him to be a punk. Some – even those in his own dugout – claim him to be occasionally half-hearted in his play. Both claims are unequivocally false. What is true is that he’s now, at just 23 years old, the game’s best at the plate. And after what we saw in 2013, it’s clear that talent matches the hype. The 42 home runs and 112 runs scored are each tops in the NL. The .649 slugging percentage and the 1.109 OPS he posted were unmatched. His team’s future is certainly in doubt. Harper’s outlook, however, couldn’t be better.