Maybe age has humbled Gary Sheffield. Maybe during his injury shortened 2008 season, or even as recently as last month during his stint with the Detroit Tigers, Sheffield realized he’s not Gary Sheffield anymore. The 1996, 2000 or 2003 Gary Sheffield, that is. The .320, 40 HR, 120 RBI, .430 OBP, .620 SLG, 1.000 OPS in 150+ games Gary Sheffield.
“He is a tremendous young hitter who makes adjustments during the at-bat. That is very rare for a young hitter, to be able to make adjustments during the at-bat, to be able to spoil pitches, tough pitches, and get that deep into a count. I’m not comparing him to this, but that at-bat he had reminded me of some of those Frank Thomas at-bats. That’s impressive for any hitter, and he’s young.” — Jerry Manuel on Daniel Murphy
Early last month, Mets manager Jerry Manuel announced Daniel Murphy would be the starting left fielder. The plan to platoon Murphy with right-handed hitter Fernando Tatis was scrapped.
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