The Boston Red Sox are now 81-34, have the best record in baseball and have won six straight and 10 of their last 11. Stars like Mookie Betts, Chris Sale and J.D. Martinez have been all talked about as potential MVP candidates, and rightfully so. Andrew Benintendi is proving to be the perfect number two hitter in a stellar Boston Red Sox lineup. He is providing coverage in a lineup behind Mookie Betts and is also setting the table for J.D. Martinez. Andrew Benintendi is not getting enough credit and the 24-year-old is on pace for a stellar season that is getting over shadowed.
The Numbers:
Benintendi is hitting .305 with a .388 on-base percentage and a .512 slugging percentage in the 108 games he’s played in this season. Compared to last season where he appeared in 151 games, he has drastically increased all three numbers.
He is on pace to get more hits, knock in more runs, steal more bases and hit more home runs than all of last season. Despite being in just his second whole season, Benintendi is on pace to have a career year for one of the best teams in baseball.
Taking a slight backseat:
Benintendi is seventh in the American League in hitting. He is trailing both Martinez and Betts and gets overshadowed because of that. However, Benintendi started the season hitting very poorly. He has hit safely in his last seven games and in two of those games he has three or more hits. In those seven games, he is 12-for-28 from the plate.
He has been on base a total of 187 times which is sixth in the American League. He helps set the table for the big bats in the middle of the lineup. At home this season he is hitting .327 and possibly the most important statistic for Red Sox fans, he’s hitting .353 against the Yankees, who he has hit against more than any other team. The Boston Red Sox top five hitters have been fantastic this season. They have all seemingly complemented each other and have been on a torrid offensive pace.
Coming in the clutch:
One of the more impressive statistics that Benintendi has this season is how good he is when hitting with runners in scoring position. He is 15-for-42 with runners in scoring position and two outs. He has 18 runs batted in and nine doubles in those at-bats. All in all, he is hitting .357 in those situations. This proves that he is refusing to let a Red Sox rally end and that he rarely leaves runners stranded on base.
With under two outs, he is hitting .368 with runners in scoring position. He also has multiple game-winning hits this season including a recent one of recent against the New York Yankees.
All around game:
Benintendi is charged with one of the toughest tasks. He defends the green monster more than anyone in baseball. To his credit, he is very good at doing so. He has a .987 fielding percentage, only two errors and eight outfield assists.
What doesn’t show up on the box score is truly how well he plays the monster. Many different visiting outfielders over the years have shown just how unpredictable hops off the monster can be. Benintendi continually cuts doubles into singles, saving runners from getting into scoring position and cutting down runs scored for the opposition.
He also has 20 stolen bases this season to go along with 14 home runs. Benintendi is what most baseball fans call a five-tool player. He can basically do anything on a baseball diamond. Despite being overshadowed by two brighter bats, Benintendi is putting together a great season and is continuing to be one of the brightest spots in the Boston Red Sox loaded lineup.
Featured image from NESN.com.
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