M. Bradley, GP, 2003-2008: 539
J. Crede, GP, 2003-2008: 721

Bradley gets 3 years at $10M/year, which is actually not a bad deal for the Cubs if he stays healthy. Yet, Crede can be an equally impactful player and will have to take a far inferior deal. Both of them have health issues that can not be hidden at their positions: Bradley’s knee (speed in the outfield) and Crede’s back (agility at the corner).

“Is it just me or is anyone else out there sick of hearing about players being underrated or overrated? It seems like every other day we hear about someone with plenty of value yet a lack of media attention deserving said attention. Along similar lines, the players without as much value who garner the spotlight have their credentials shot down. What does this even mean? Seriously, how do we define an underrated or overrated player? And does it matter?

As far as I can tell, in laymans terms, a player is deemed underrated if he has value and the vast majority of fans have little or no idea that he plays major league baseball. On the other hand, one is considered overrated when large quantities of the baseball fandom can recite stats and biographical information when the numbers do not truly support such acclaim. Does it matter, though? It would seem that whether or not a player garners the under- or overrated classification lends itself more to personal taste than a set standard.

The funny thing is that an underrated player actually becomes overrated by certain groups, while overrated players become undervalued by others. The best examples I can give for this are Derek Jeter and Adam Everett, both of whom spend their time captaining the infield. Jeter has been a solid offensive presence in his career but the defensive metrics peg him as a very poor fielder. Despite these defensive shortcomings and, in turn, decreased value, he is a surefire hall of famer and one of the most popular and recognizable athletes of the last 25 or so years.

More casual fans tend to exaggerate his value based on his intangibles, thus technically overrating him. Statheads tend to undervalue his credentials because his defense is not up to par with the rest of the league. The solution is in the middle ground. Any stathead who discusses Jeter lacking value is one whose work I really do not want to read. Granted, the story might be different now than five years ago, but to say he lacks value is utterly ridiculous. He might not be a +5-win player like some casual fans would have us believe, but he is by no means a scrub.

On the other hand, Adam Everett is undervalued by more casual fans because defensive metrics are in no way as prominent as offensive numbers. Those who study the numbers intently will easily point out how amazing Everett has been with the glove, but his lack of commercial of appeal and poor skills with the bat leave little to be desired with certain groups. These fans tend to underrate his skills by not understanding all aspects of player valuations. Those who do understand these aspects tend to overrate his production.

The reason for both cases really seems to be some form of equilibrium. Statheads tend to get so angry that others don’t understand the true value of a player like Everett that they take up his cause and overrate him in the process. While more casual fans see him as perhaps a +1 win player, and he is actually a +2 win player, those in his corner exaggerate his worth to seem closer to +4 wins. The same can be said of Jeter: he may be a +3 win player, and a +5 win player in the eyes of those who love him, but those who get angry at how others do not grasp his poor defensive skills tend to talk about him as if his value is +1.5 wins.

With that in mind, it appears like nobody can ever really be underrated. By virtue of exposing someone’s underratedness, we are eventually going to overrate that player by hopping on the bandwagon. And players who are overrated will eventually become underrated by virtue of certain groups of fans forgetting production levels in other aspects of the game. From now on, can we please try to avoid referring to players as underrated or overrated? We can talk about their production, their intangibles, or even how David Cameron is attracted to men, but please no more ratedness classifications.”