Baltimore Orioles: The Left Field Fiasco of 2015

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Jun 15, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Orioles left fielder David Lough (9), center fielder Adam Jones (10) and right fielder Nolan Reimold (14) run off the field after defeating the Philadelphia Phillies 4-0 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

It is generally believed that the Baltimore Orioles had a terrible season in 2015 at the corner outfield positions. Just how bad was it?

This is the second of two articles examining that claim more closely, beginning previously with right field.

In the prior article, certainly most Orioles fans were a bit surprised to see that the actual numbers from right field were not that bad, including a .275 batting average. But the statistics today will likely prove to be every bit as terrible as expected, and likely even beyond the imagination of most readers.

So this is your warning to jump out if you do not want to see some ugly statistics.

The revolving door of players through left field was as bad as in the other corner outfield position. Baltimore played 11 different people out there behind Machado and Hardy.

When all is totaled, Orioles left fielders were rather definitively near the bottom of the American League in every offensive category except home runs, and even there they were only ranked eighth.

The following chart lists seven offensive statistics, followed by the average stat for that category among AL teams, followed by the total number produced by Orioles left fielders, and finally listing how the O’s ranked in the entire league.

StatisticAL avg.O’sAL Rank
Batting Avg..251.21014th
On Base Pct..313.28713th
Home Runs19188th
Hits15112113th
Runs777111th
RBIs715314th
Xtra Base Hits534214th

That is a pretty ugly graph. When preparing this chart and placing today’s numbers in it to replace the previous right field stats, it was interesting to see that left field is definitely less offensively productive throughout the American League. In most categories it was about 85-90% of what right fielders produced.

Even so, the sort of numbers we are seeing here are really quite horrific. There is no way that Hyun Soo Kim can be anything but a very massive upgrade, even if he does have some adjustment struggles with American MLB pitching.

Here is a chart of what individual Orioles produced when playing left field in 2015 …

NAMEGPABHHRRBIBAOBP
David Lough49781712.218.256
Steve Pearce4011725614.214.301
Travis Snider381192629.218.321
Nolan Reimold3610423516.221.319
Alejandro De Aza19721236.167.211
Henry Urrutia830916.300.344
Gerardo Parra728400.143.226
Junior Lake414200.143.143
Delmon Young28200.250.333
Ryan Flaherty14100.250.250
Jimmy Paredes11000.000.000
Totals1625751211853.210.287

That is simply brutal to look at. It is almost as if there was a curse upon anyone who stepped into left field for the Orioles. The only one who seemed to avoid it was Urrutia, though it only amounted to 30 at-bats. Actually, Urrutia probably deserved a longer look and greater opportunities. One has to wonder if it is ever going to happen for him.

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At least Reimold and Pearce gave the Orioles some power at the position. But even that was at the expense of very much production in other aspects.

Orioles fans can look for 2016 to be a better season in left field. It has to be, and it will be … hopefully much, much better. Unlike right field, left field truly was a fiasco.