Napoli makes his case for increased action
The Rangers have no catching controversy, manager Ron Washington said. The stats, however say differently.
Mike Napoli, supposedly the backup to Yorvit Torrealba, on Monday made his strongest statement yet that the roles should be reversed. Napoli had two home runs and five RBI in Texas' 11-5 win over Tampa Bay. It came a day after he homered as a first baseman and then scored the winning run -- as a catcher -- in the Rangers' first walk-off win of the season. And that followed a night in which he was the middle man in back-to-back-to-back homer trio.
"It will balance itself out pretty well," Washington said. "But when you've got a guy with a hot hand, you've got to ride it a little bit. He's done a good job, and he's swinging the bat pretty well right now."
Right now, there is a major imbalance offensively and when it comes to handling pitchers.
On offense: Though a streaky hitter, Napoli is also disciplined. He has supplemented a .229 average with 22 walks for a .364 on-base percentage and a .875 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. His OPS ranks second only to Michael Young on the team. Torrealba has a .586 OPS, which ranks 106th of 114 players in the AL.
Behind the plate: Napoli's catcher's ERA in 15 starts is 2.15. The Rangers also are 11-4 when Napoli starts at catcher. They are 18-20 with Torrealba, who is currently carrying a 4.39 catcher's ERA.
Copyright (C) 2011 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.
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