Indians Report Card: Third Base
Aaron Boone
.198 9 29
This is where writing a midterm report card gets hard.
Like my algebra teachers in high school who liked me as a person but had no choice but to fail me for substandard performance, I bring to the reader the case of Aaron Boone.
Aaron Boone, coming into this season, had never hit .300, never hit more than 26 homers in a season, and never drove in more than 96 runs. He has been an average player; rarely an all-star level performer.
Off the field, Boone IS an all-star. He is by all accounts a wonderful human being who has character and is a leader in the clubhouse. He did us all a favor by telling Hal McCoy not to retire, and it was a sad day in Cincinnati when he was traded.
Because of this, I have not wanted to be too critical of him. You had to hope his slow start was just that. But as April turned to May and May became June, the reasons to be patient began to wear thin.
Boone would have three-day spurts where it looked like he was coming out of it, then be right back where he started.
The funny thing is, Boone's power numbers are about what you'd expect. He has hit nine, and is on pace to drill 17. But he will also only drive in 55 runs, a number small for a corner position.
Boone has not been too high above .200 this year, and unless he can find something at the plate, expect Casey Blake to take over at third more often. Great.
Boone, of course, did have his second reconstructive knee surgery, and with that in mind, I can't fail him.
Here's hoping for a better second half Aaron, you certainly deserve it.
Grade: D