Joe Soriano
O.J. Lewis10/2011 Historical Player Profile: Tom Goodwin
October 17th 2011 14:47
For 14 seasons, centerfielder Tom Goodwin tore up the basepaths and played some solid defense as well. Although he was a poor hitter with almost no power, he had some terrific inside-the-park home runs (like the one against the Braves). Goodwin played for the Dodgers, Royals, Rangers, Cubs, Padres, and the Giants.
In truth, however, Tom Goodwin was actually a horrible hitter who had a career wRC-plus of just 79 and never had a season worth two WAR. Regardless, he was still well-liked and hit a good amount of triples with his speed. Only weighing 175 pounds, his main asset to a club was his devastating speed and was a speed demon in every sense of the word. Goodwin played good D and was among the league leaders in sacrifices, as he was definitely a "small ball" player over his career.
His best season was either in 1998 with the Rangers or in 2000 with the Rockies and Dodgers. With the Rangers, he had 102 runs (he was a pretty good table-setter), 38 steals, a surprisingly high OBP (.378), and Goodwin also played above-average defense.
In 2002, he bettered his other 1.9 WAR season offensively with a 92 wRC-plus compared to the previous 90 wRC-plus he posted in '98. Tom Goodwin had 55 steals, 94 runs, and he also had a career-high 58 RBIs. He actually wasn't as good offensively this year, but he had his best year defensively. Goodwin was all over the place in center showing terrific range. I would personally take the 1998 version of Goodwin, however, over his 2000 duplicate.
The biggest problem with Tom Goodwin as far as scouting goes, is that he struggled when pitchers changed speeds on him. Now, he isn't a good hitter to begin with, but he really struggled against changeups. His small-ball approach led him to be a solid hitter against sinkers, but the point remains that he really struggled against off-speed pitches (and fastballs). However, Goodwin was a key player in high-leverage situations over most of his career and had a terrific line drive rate to make up for a lack of power.
In summary. Tom Goodwin was an average player over his career, as his defense and speed made up for his lack of power. He struggled as a hitter because of a variety of things such as strikeouts and a lack of power. Although his strikeout rate wasn't egregious, it was terrible for a non-power hitter.
In truth, however, Tom Goodwin was actually a horrible hitter who had a career wRC-plus of just 79 and never had a season worth two WAR. Regardless, he was still well-liked and hit a good amount of triples with his speed. Only weighing 175 pounds, his main asset to a club was his devastating speed and was a speed demon in every sense of the word. Goodwin played good D and was among the league leaders in sacrifices, as he was definitely a "small ball" player over his career.
His best season was either in 1998 with the Rangers or in 2000 with the Rockies and Dodgers. With the Rangers, he had 102 runs (he was a pretty good table-setter), 38 steals, a surprisingly high OBP (.378), and Goodwin also played above-average defense.
In 2002, he bettered his other 1.9 WAR season offensively with a 92 wRC-plus compared to the previous 90 wRC-plus he posted in '98. Tom Goodwin had 55 steals, 94 runs, and he also had a career-high 58 RBIs. He actually wasn't as good offensively this year, but he had his best year defensively. Goodwin was all over the place in center showing terrific range. I would personally take the 1998 version of Goodwin, however, over his 2000 duplicate.
The biggest problem with Tom Goodwin as far as scouting goes, is that he struggled when pitchers changed speeds on him. Now, he isn't a good hitter to begin with, but he really struggled against changeups. His small-ball approach led him to be a solid hitter against sinkers, but the point remains that he really struggled against off-speed pitches (and fastballs). However, Goodwin was a key player in high-leverage situations over most of his career and had a terrific line drive rate to make up for a lack of power.
In summary. Tom Goodwin was an average player over his career, as his defense and speed made up for his lack of power. He struggled as a hitter because of a variety of things such as strikeouts and a lack of power. Although his strikeout rate wasn't egregious, it was terrible for a non-power hitter.
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