Hey, I love a good gag as much as the next guy. So yeah, it's fun to read about
Geovany Soto striking out a ton:
Soto didn't just have a Golden Sombrero on Saturday. No, No, he has a Platinum Sombrero (5 at bats, 5 strikeouts) and he did it in a nine inning game.
To put it in perspective, that feat has only been matched 47 times in the history of the game. It does seem to be occurring more frequently with quite a few current players on the list (Jim Thome, Andruw Jones, Adam Dunn, Scott Rolen, Richie Sexson, Preston Wilson).
Dick Allen is the only player to achieve the Platinum Sombrero twice in his career (1964, 1970).
So we can agree that the Platinum Sombrero is pretty damn embarassing, but it gets worse for Soto. He actually achieved this feat against the Worst Team in Baseball, the Washington Nationals. Let's make it even more embarassing. Four different pitchers on that vaunted staff, each struck out Soto during that game (Matt Chico, 1st and 3rd; Joel Hanrahan, 5th; Chad [Cordero], 7th; Jesus Colome, 9th). FYI, the Nationals are the 14th ranked pitching staff in the NL.
But wait, there's more. Soto, actually almost had a Golden Sombrero on Friday night, when he went 0-3, 3K, 1BB. So in his last 8 at bats, Soto has 8 strikeouts (all against the Nationals - Odalis Perez got him all three times on Friday). His only saving grace is the one walk he got in his last plate appearance on Friday Night. But not let's give him too much credit. He didn't even earn that walk -- because it was intentional to load the bases to set up a potential inning ending double play.
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Like I said, this is all good fun, and I enjoy talking about the Sombrero as much as anybody. I still remember where I was
the night Sam Horn struck out six times. But I'm thinking we should probably take this moment to mention something I noticed this morning: Soto's having an
awesome season.
Yes, in 22 games Soto's struck out 22 times. He's also batted .316, slugged .544 and OPB'd (sorry) .415. Soto's out-hit every catcher in the National League, including stars
Brian McCann and
Russell Martin. Soto's out-hitting all the American League catchers, too. By a lot.
Remember when Dusty Baker managed the Cubs? In his four seasons at the helm, the Cubs ranked 14th, 14th, 16th, and 16th in the 16-team National League in walks. This was their single biggest failing. I'm not sure if we can blame all of that on Baker, though, because in Lou Piniella's first season (2007) the Cubs were 15th in the league.
This year, though? Thanks in part to Soto and his 14 walks, the Cubs have vaulted all the way to No. 2 in the National League. And I'll promise you this: If they stay in the top three or four all season, they're going to be really, really tough to beat. No matter how many Golden Sombreros Soto winds up wearing.
Rob Neyer
