First to Third: Is A-Rod Clutch?

The New York media and Yankee fans alike have lambasted Alex Rodriguez for his inability to "hit in the clutch" since Rodriguez arrived in New York in time for the 2004 season. After A-Rod went deep twice this weekend against the Red Sox, one game-winner and one to give the Yankees the lead, I decided to take a closer look at Rodriguez's numbers to really evaluate his ability to hit "in the clutch." I'm going to compare A-Rod's "clutch" numbers to Derek Jeter, someone New Yorkers can agree is clutch. I'm not going to define clutch in this space, but instead, I will consider batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage in six different categories: Career, Runners in Scoring Position (RISP), Two out and RISP, Baseball-Reference.com's "Late & Close", versus the Red Sox, and postseason.

Situation ............................A-Rod........................ Jeter
..........................AVG/ OBP/ SLG ............ AVG/ OBP/ SLG
Career ............. .304/.389/.576 ..................316/.386/.457
RISP ................ .301/.404/.547 .................309/.403/.432
Two Out, RISP .... .272/.405/.480 ..................315/.417/.450
Late & Close ... .....280/.380/.545 .................293/.388/.423
v. Boston .......... .280/.375/.506 .................290/.355/.408
Postseason .........279/.361/.403 ..................309/.377/.469

I think the goal of this exercise is to examine the player compared to his career stats. What we learn from the numbers is that each player's batting average dips in each of these situations and they each stay within a reasonable distance of their career OBP. Not surprisingly, their OBP rises with runners in scoring position, a sign that the opposition respects their hitting ability. The only difference between the two is that A-Rod sees a 100 point drop in his slugging percentage with two out and RISP and in the postseason, whereas Jeter's slugging either stays the same or increases. They each experience similar drops in each situation and I don't think it's fair to say A-Rod isn't clutch because of the difference. The New York media and Yankee fans, on the other hand, will have to start seeing A-Rod produce in October for him to lose the label of inable to perform in the clutch.

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