2010 Season In Review: Third Base

Casey Blake
Casey Blake's 2010 was an absolute disaster. Coming off of a career year in 2009 at the age of 35, there was really nowhere for him to go but down. And down he went. Blake's numbers took a precipitous drop across the board. His OBP (.363/.320), SLG% (.468/.407), ISO (.188/.159), BB% (11.2% down to 8.4%), UZR (12.1/6.8), and WAR (4.6/2.8) all declined from the marks he reached in that career year. Casey's performance after the All-Star Break (234/.298/.383/.681) was worse than his pre-Midsummer's Classic line (.259/.339/.427/.766), and that takes into account hot months in May and August.

Though Blake's abysmal season does not portend to a brighter future, he's not without his use, even heading into his age 37 season. That 6.8 UZR at the hot corner still holds value, especially with the Dodgers lacking a viable replacement in the immediate future (thanks Ned!) and Jerry Sands no certainty to stick as he learns to play third in the AFL (he won't, which came to light after I wrote this back in November). Blake can also play first base and the corner outfield spots, though of course just because you can play a position doesn't inherently mean you can play it well.

However, Blake's versatility can be used to the Dodgers' advantage if they transition him into a platoon player/corners super-sub, playing him in favor of Andre Ethier or James Loney on days when there is a tough lefty on the hill. Blake crushed lefties in 2010 to the tune of a .314/.388/.507/.895 slash line, with a strikeout to walk ratio of just a shade over two to one. This, in comparison to a strikeout to walk ratio of over three to one against righties, with a line of just .222/.294/.369/.663, which is in line with his career numbers.

In a perfect world, Blake and James Loney would form a platoon at first base, playing to their advantages against lefties and righties, respectively.

Russ Mitchell
Three other Dodgers saw time at third, most notably Russ Mitchell, the career minor leaguer who started six games down the stretch after the Dodgers' fate had been decided. Mitchell, in an obviously very small sample size, was barely above average at third defensively - a 0.4 UZR - and was a hot mess with the bat, registering a truly horrific line of .143/.140/.286/.426. And yes, your eyes do not deceive you; his on-base percentage was actually lower than his batting average.