Why it is Unfair to Compare Pedroia to Cano

When reading Boston and New York newspapers, I’ve seen Dustin Pedroia and Robinson Cano placed side by side a lot. It kind of makes sense since they both play second base and they play on rival teams, but I think it’s really unfair to compare the two, and here’s why:

1. Their purposes to their team: Statistically, Pedroia most of the time scores more runs than Robinson Cano. Conversely, Robinson Cano drives in more runs than Dustin Pedroia. To me, that means they serve two completely different purposes in their respective line-ups. Pedroia tries to get on base hitting in front of Adrian Gonzalez and Kevin Youkilis, and Cano tries to protect and drive in the likes of Derek Jeter, Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez.

2. Their approaches at the plate: This is more of a 1a, but it is very evident statistically that their plate approaches are different. For their careers, Dustin Pedroia’s walk rate (bb%) is higher than Robinson Cano’s, while Robinson Cano’s isolated power (Slugging % – Batting Average) is higher than Dustin Pedroia’s. In my opinion, theses differences also has to do with their purposes in the lineup, but I also think that they just are different when it comes to their plate approach.

3. Their power-speed combo: This discrepancy has come out more in the 2011 season than historical. This year, Robinson Cano has 18 HR’s and 8 SB’s. Dustin Pedroia has 15 HR’s and 25 SB’s. Now, of course, you can argue that Dustin Pedroia has just as much power as Cano and more speed, but I’ll just say again that Robinson Cano has more isolated power than Dustin Pedroia (.211 for Cano, .170 for Pedroia). This is 100% due, in my opinion, to the fact that they are very different players.

4. Their fielding: This point is probably the most subjective one I will make, for it is based solely on my observations. They are both golden glove caliber second baseman, but they have very different their style of play. Pedroia, to me, seems more aggressive when he plays second base, using his quick feet and his all-out style to make sure the ball does not leave the infield. Robinson Cano, to me, has more of a smooth style, and uses his strong arm to turn double plays extremely well. I share the opinion with a lot of experts when I say that Cano can be an extremely good shortstop, and I honestly think that when Derek Jeter retires, Cano, not Eduardo Nunez or anything else the Yankees can bring in, should move over to shortstop. However, to me, I don’t think Dustin Pedroia can play shortstop. What Cano has in arm strength and grace, Pedroia has in range and grit. That’s why, to me, their fielding styles are very different.

Now, having said all that, it is easy to turn to the one universal stat that Bill James has given the world, Wins Above Replacement. However, their Career WAR’s are extremely close (22.4 for Cano to 24.5 for Pedroia). You can argue that Cano has played more seasons than Pedroia, but also Cano’s WAR has been more consistent during his career than Pedroia’s. Therefore, I think that it is arbitrary to put Pedroia and Cano’s name side by side.

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