Sweezo wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
Ehhh...I'm still very much on the fence about Vidro at second defensively.
Which is better....300 hitting 2B with poor defense or .260 hitting 2B with perfectly fine defense? I think I prefer starting Lopez, benching Vidro, and having him on the bench for situations where we could use a switch-hitter.
The difference is 100 points of OPS. Vidro is about 760 and Lopez is down below 660. Since the all-star break, Lopez's line is .167/.191/.189 (you read that right: an OPS of .380). At minimum he needs some time off to figure things out.
On the flipside, I recently read that Lopez is on track to break the team record for fielding percentage by a second baseman. That's impressive, as the M's have had some pretty distinguished fielders at that position over the years (Cruz, Reynolds, Cora, Boone).
Of course, Lopez's offensive struggles correspond precisely to the time I've had to have him in my fantasy lineup. I had some injuries (I.Kinsler and B.Hall), and Lopez went into my lineup. I really suffered for it. Kinsler and Hall are both back, but I need Hall to play 3B for me while E.Chavez and H.Blalock are both on the DL. Lopez remains my only active backup middle infielder, so I'll be in trouble if there are more injuries.