And Erick Aybar? The shortstop whom we were told wouldnt be much of a dropoff from Andrelton Simmons because Aybar would be better offensively? Well, hes been an unmitigated disaster so far, even worse at the plate than hes been in the field.
In fact, its not an exaggeration to say Aybar has been arguably the worst position player in all of baseball this season. He was out of the lineup for a second consecutive game Monday as manager Fredi Gonzalez rested him in light of his current struggles and bad career numbers against Red Sox righty Rick Porcello.
Among those with enough plate appearances to qualify, Aybar has a majors-worst .159 on-base percentage, a National League-worst .136 batting average, an NL-worst .182 slugging percentage, and a majors-worst .341 OPS. (Tampa Bays Brad Miller, at .409, is the only other hitter within 100 points of him).
That about covers it. But wait, theres more with Aybar. Consider: With runners on base, Markakis is 14-for-26 (.538), second-best in the majors, while Aybar is a National League-worst 2-for-32 (.063) with one walk and five grounded-into-double-plays.
And with runners in scoring position, Markakis .588 (10-for-17) is tied for third-best in the majors, while Aybar is tied with four other qualifiers for worst in the majors at 0-for-13, including three GIDPs.
When a left-hander is pitching, the Braves thus far would have been better off if Aybar had stayed home: Hes 1-for-22 with no walks and two GIDPs against lefties.
