Absolutely INSANE Statistic: Will Smith Wins A 5th Straight World Series
Baseball has the coolest statistics and it's not even close. The anomalies and happenstances and random occurrences are simply too big/strong/fast for other sports to compete with and this one is no different.
Cheeky? Maybe a little for the lads out there. But really more just impressive that for 5 straight years, a baseball player named Will Smith is on the 26-man roster that wins a World Series. Especially considering that names like Ted Williams, Tony Gwynn, Wade Boggs, Barry Bonds and so many other superstars never won a championship. The kinda statistic that makes you both sad and aware that it's remarkably difficult to be a champion.
Icon Sportswire. Getty Images.Go Birds.
Kinda funny to think about all of the data analytics and sabermetrics and biomedical testing involved in constructing a baseball team. All the weird stuff and weird people involved in roster decisions at the MLB level working 24 hours a day trying to find the next edge when literally all you have to do is put a Will Smith on the roster. Any other algorithm on the matter appears to be complete and total bullshit.
Maybe that's a sign for life in general? So many apps and tools and gadgets to improve the quality of life. So much information and technology out there to help us best optimize our miserable existence. Just download REFRAME 2.0 and you can easily track your progress towards a midlife crisis. It's so easy.
Or maybe you could just hang out with your buddy Gary more often and drink a couple beers in his garage. Maybe a couple loose cigs and XL Rosati's with the fellas is all you need. Maybe it's just as simple as having a guy named Will Smith on the roster?
That's how I like to think about this kind of statistic…. absolutely no sense in complicating anything so obvious.
In related news, Will Smith is on pace for a better career than 2024 Roberto Clemente award winner, Salvador Perez. And recently Salvy has picked up a lot of Hall of Fame steam, especially relative to where he was just two years ago.
So my question (thus) is whether or not the Dodgers' Will Smith has any path towards Cooperstown. He just finished age 29 season and has about 20 WAR and 111 homers and career 124 OPS+.
For context, Pudge was a 106 OPS+ in his career with triple the WAR at about 4x the amount of games played.
So if Will Smith stays on pace next 4 years as he performed the last 4 years, then he's already around Salvy's career at 34. Figure the Dodgers platoon and inject him correctly, he could go another 8 seasons and I think over 45 career bWAR is enough to get HOF votes. Especially assuming the Dodgers win at least another WS with Ohtani under contract.
1st ballot would take divine intervention. 2nd probably too. But maybe there's a path in later votes and committees if Will Smith can stay on pace of the career 124 OPS+ while also staying healthy. I know it's crazy but catchers get extra credit for World Series championships and he's already got 2.
Mediapunch. Shutterstock Images.I have 5.
And now that I've introduced Jorge Posada, I would like to walk back most of my earnest consideration towards Will Smith's Hall of Fame candidacy.
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Will Smith's numbers extrapolated over 7,000 plate appearances would dwarf Posada but he's probably not going to get there and as I type this, I realize I don't really know how we got here in the first place. So let's table HOF discussion for mid January when I need a good argument for the sake of a good argument.
For now lets just agree that your GM probably sucks and not signing a Will Smith only makes him worse.
Unless you're a Dodgers fan then by all means, please enjoy this fine selection of championship merchandise:
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