Youkilis, for instance, is 29 — four years older than Wright — and had a big year this year that wasn’t even as good as Wright’s. Youkilis, in two other seasons as a starter, drove in only 155 runs total, though he has come up big in the playoffs (five series over the last two years, two of them huge, three of them not so hot).
As for Longoria, it is way too early to know what he is. I think he is likely to be one of the best at his position, but what does that mean? Can we expect a .300 batting average, 30 homeruns and 100 RBIs? How is that better than Wright?
Consider: Wright is the only third baseman in baseball to hit better than .300 each of the last four seasons — his first four full seasons in the majors. during that time, Wright has 444 runs batted in, second among third baseman only to Alex Rodriguez (510), and 116 home runs — third behind A-Rod (172) and Aramis Ramirez (122, with 424 RBIs).
Has Wright been good with the chips on the line? No. But he was not as bad as people are saying, his performance in clutch situations being decent (according to the numbers), though his failures have come in the highest profile situations. He did hit .330 in the second half with a good September and a .375 average over the last week of the season — but with no RBIs or extra basehits.
But let’s be honest: No other third baseman belongs in the conversation if the conversation is about who the best at the position is.
Hank Kalet 