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Luis Gómez
The fun, absurd and surprising history of the Blue Jays worst position players
4. Luis Gómez, SS, 1978-1979, -1.1 WAR/150
Remember Alfredo Griffin? Well, Gómez was his predecessor as the Blue Jays’ everyday shortstop, and when you look at the difference between his 1978 numbers, and the ones Griffin put up in 1979, you start to understand why Griffin meant so much to the fledgling expansion franchise. Though Griffin would ultimately have an uneven career, his AL Rookie of the Year campaign in ’79 saw him hit .287 and play the best defense of his career, leading to a 2.2 WAR as a 21-year-old. That’s genuinely exciting stuff — especially back then. Gómez in ’78, however, was already in his age-26 season, played worse defense, and managed to slash just .223/.280/.254.
Blue Jays manager Roy Hartsfield ran Gómez out there 153 times in 1978 alone. Such was the reality for expansion teams back then. But his poor performance at the plate couldn’t have exactly been unexpected. Per his Wikipedia page, “no non-pitcher since Bill Bergen retired in 1911 has had as many plate appearances as Gómez with an OPS of .500 or less. (Gómez’s lifetime OPS is exactly .500.)”
Wikipedia also points out that Gómez played 89 games for the Twins in 1975 and failed to collect a single extra-base hit, “breaking a record held since 1916 by Mike McNally, and which still stands.” He also “appeared in 609 major league games, the most among non-pitchers who never hit a home run.” Gomez, in fact, didn’t hit a single home run at any level of pro ball.
I must give him credit for something, though. Making me feel ashamed for not realizing the Blue Jays had this kind of connection to such historical offensive ineptitude. Incredible! - The Athletic
Here ya go, Amazin'
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