DP Combos thriving throughout MLB
You have to go down a bit to find this an ex-Rattler:
The real deal?
Three shortstops who may find their own 2007 splashes tough acts to follow:
• Troy Tulowitzki, Rockies -- Now that people know him, can he be as good with everyone watching?
• Orlando Cabrera, White Sox -- In his 11th season, he hit .300 for the first time, yet the Angels still dealt him away. Can he prove that was a mistake?
• Ryan Theriot, Cubs -- First he made Cesar Izturis disappear from the lineup, then he made him disappear from Chicago. Can the Cubs' fifth different Opening Day shortstop in as many years make himself at home?
And three second basemen:
• Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians -- May rank pretty low on the AL Cabrera totem pole (behind Miguel, Orlando, Melky, perhaps even Daniel), but the Tribe went 28-12 with him in the starting lineup.
• Aaron Hill, Blue Jays -- His offensive numbers increased across the board for a third straight season, and he topped MLB at the position in assists.
• Placido Polanco, Tigers -- Zero errors in 141 games ... good luck trying to top that.
Cabrera ('05) figures more prominently in the story at the Indians site.
The 22-year-old Cabrera, meanwhile, will try to avoid the sophomore struggles that hamstrung both Peralta and Barfield. His .283 average and 22 RBIs in just 45 games down the stretch of the '07 season -- to say nothing of his outstanding defensive play at both second and short -- were major sparks to an Indians team locking up a division title. Not only did Cabrera take over second base, he took over the No. 2 spot of the lineup, as well, putting together a .354 OBP.
Of course, having seen what's happened to [Jhonny] Peralta and [Josh] Barfield the past two seasons, the Indians know they must temper their expectations for Cabrera in '08.
"We certainly understand," Shapiro said, "that there's some volatility to be expected in a player that doesn't have that much experience."
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