BAY AREA BREAKOUTS
Is Crawford the best Giants shortstop ever?
SAN FRANCISCO >> Brandon Crawford’s answer remains steadfast since his early days in Pleasanton. So when the MLB Network asked the newly minted All-Star starter to name his idol, Crawford fielded the question as smoothly as a one-hopper.
“Honestly, my favorite player, being a Giants fan and loving to play shortstop, was Royce Clayton,” Crawford said. “He was my guy.”
Watching in the television
audience that day was Clayton himself. Now 48 and a high school coach in Southern California, he smiled to himself. Clayton already knew Crawford was a fan (they’ve spoken several times) but this shoutout had extra meaning.
Clayton now has four young kids. And their guy is Brandon Crawford.
“It’s kind of like that whole give-back process,” Clayton, the former All-Star, said by
phone. “My kids watch Brandon. It’s pretty cool. As a father, you look to their role models and who they look up to. And Brandon is somebody I’m very happy and fortunate to have them watch and emulate, on and off the field.”
This is how baseball works, with each generation choosing a different star to mimic in backyard ballgames. But in the 60 seasons in San Francisco, a few shortstops rise above the rest. My personal Mt. Short more includes Chris Speier, Royce Clayton, Rich Aurilia and Brandon Crawford.
We tracked them all down last week as Crawford prepared to make his second All-Star appearance (and first start) on Tuesday in Washington. Spoiler alert: They were all big fans.
“My feeling right now is that he’s one of the elite shortstops in major league baseball,” Speier said. “You’re really not going to find too many guys who have the whole package that he possesses.”
Left unsaid is that Crawford, with his combination of dazzling defense and maturing bat, might be the best shortstop in San Francisco history. At age 31, and in his eighth season, he’s established himself as the franchise’s best at the position since at least Alvin Dark (1950-56) or maybe even since Hall of Famer Travis Jackson patrolled the diamond from 1922-36.
By Wins Above Replacement, the San Francis coera shortstop rankings go Crawford (23.5), Speier (20.2), Aurilia (14.8), Jose Uribe (8.9) and Clayton (8.1).
By OPS+, it goes Crawford (99), Aurilia (98), Speier (93), Uribe / Clayton (76).
(And if you’re wondering about Omar Vizquel, he arrived in San Francisco at age 38 and never managed above a 2.9 WAR during his four years with the Giants. But he’s a fan of Crawford, too. As he told me last July: “I love Crawford. Every time you see him out on the field, he’s doing something
good.”)
Here’s what the rest of our virtual panel had to say, in short order of appearance: Stat lines are from Giants years only.
Chris Speier
YEARS WITH GIANTS >> 197177; ’87-89
OLD SCHOOL >> .248, 70 HR, 409 RBIs (in 1,114 games) NEW SCHOOL >> WAR 20.2 / OPS+ 93
Before Crawford did a year ago, Speier was the last Giants player to lead all major league shortstops in RBIs. He had 71 in 1973.
“Well, yeah,” Speier said, sounding sheepish. “But you go back to my era and that year there weren’t a lot of offensiveminded shortstops. You put any of my numbers up there now and they’d be on the low part of the totem pole today.”
Speier does this several times during our conversation, playing down any kind of comparison to what Crawford is doing. Never mind that Speier made three consecutive All-Star Games (1972-74) and was one of the Giants’ best allaround players in the early 1970s. I remind Speier that
he still holds the San Francisco shortstop records for total chances (4,508) and assists (2,907).
“Brandon’s going to pass me, probably sooner rather than later,” Speier said.
So it should come as no surprise that the trait Speier admires most about Crawford is his understated approach.
“He’s not the flashy guy,” he said. “I think that what makes him stand out is that he doesn’t stand out. He’ll make all the plays. He makes the great plays, but he makes them look effortless. And that’s what I love about him. He’s just so consistent. It looks so easy for him. There’s not a lot of wasted things when you look at him at shortstop.”
Royce Clayton
YEARS WITH GIANTS >> 199195
OLD SCHOOL >> .249, 18 HR, 184 RBIs (in 507 games) NEW SCHOOL >> WAR 8.1 / OPS+ 76 Clayton is in his second season as head coach at Oaks Christian School (Westlake Village). But he coached up his protege long ago because they have the same agent,
Joel Wolfe.
Through that connection, they arranged for the kid from Pleasanton to meet his idol while Crawford was playing for UCLA.
“I got to talk to him and kind of go over what to expect, which is great, as far as passing down information,” Clayton said. “From that point, I haven’t talked to him a whole lot. He’s kind of figured stuff out.”
Crawford continues to solve the mysteries, especially at the plate. His batting average (.292), on-base percentage (.363) and slugging percentage (.462) are all at career-high levels.
“I knew it was going to come,” Clayton said. “I did a couple of interviews a few years back and talked about how, as a shortstop, the most important thing is solidifying the infield. … But as time goes on, you start to figure yourself out offensively.
“I’m sure, like most players, Brandon wanted to be the most complete player that he possibly could. I’m sure he’s put in a lot of time and work on the offensive side. And it’s starting to pay off.”
Crawford appears on his way to a fourth Gold Glove. Clayton, improbably, never won that award during his career, although sabermetrics now say he was deserving of three. Clayton’s lone
All-Star game came in 1997, his second year with the St. Louis Cardinals. But at least he stuck around San Francisco long enough to fuel the dreams of a Bay Area kid.
“Anytime you inspire young people, that’s what I’m about,” Clayton said. “Passing the torch. So many greats that came before me inspired me. Ozzie Smith, obviously, and some other great mentors. It’s an honor to be considered somebody that inspired Brandon.”
Rich Aurilia
YEARS WITH GIANTS >> 199503; ’07-09
OLD SCHOOL >> .275, 143 HR, 574 RBIs (1,292 games) NEW SCHOOL >> WAR 14.8 / OPS+ 98
Not long after he retired, Aurilia visited the Giants complex during spring training. Manager Bruce Bochy sent him on a clubhouse recon mission to find out more about the stoic young shortstop.
As Aurilia recalled: “Bochy called me over and said, ‘Hey, go hang out by Craw and find out why he never snaps or why he never gets mad at anything. I don’t know. I’ve never seen the guy get mad or get pissed off. I want to know if that’s normal for him.’”
Aurilia did as instructed and prodded Crawford a bit about why he never lost his temper. He never forgot Crawford’s answer: “What good is that going to do me in my next at-bat?”
That was all Aurilia needed to hear.
“I went back to Bochy and said, ‘No, man. He’s there. He cares. That’s just the way he plays the game,”’ Aurilia said. “I think now that the Giants have seen him for so long, they’re used to it and they’ve seen the seasons they get out of him. Everybody knows. That’s how he leads. He’s a silent leader.”
Aurilia had the greatest season ever by a Giants shortstop, in 2001, when he batted .324 with 37 home runs, 97 RBIs and a .941
OPS. Before Crawford, that marked the last season a Giants shortstop was elected as an All-Star starter.
They both happen to wear jersey No. 35, just as Speier did.
“It’s a pretty special thing and I’m honored that he’s carried that number well, with some dignity and honor on his back,” Aurilia said.
Aurilia now works as an analyst for NBC Sports Bay Area. One of the things he likes to do whenever he sees games in person is to watch the infielders’ pre-pitch routine. “I’ve never seen a pitch where he’s not in a ready position to make his first step when that ball crosses the plate from the pitcher,” he said.
That’s why Aurilia occasionally reminds viewers that it’s not easy. Crawford just makes it look that way.
“You almost take for granted that he’s going to make every play,” Aurilia said. “He might make a play where, if I’d made it, people would say, “Oh, my God! What a great play that was!” I think Crawford’s done it so well for so long that people are just, like, “Oh, yeah. That’s a nice play.”
Brandon Crawford
YEARS WITH GIANTS >> 2011-present
OLD SCHOOL >> .256, 83 HR, 462 RBI (in 1,046 games) NEW SCHOOL >> WAR 23.5 / OPS+ 99
Crawford is one of seven Giants shortstops to ever be elected to the All-Star Game, joining Travis Jackson (1934), Dick Bartell (1937), Bill Jurges (1939, 1940), Alvin Dark (1951, 1952), Speier (1972, 1974) and Aurilia (2001).
“It’s definitely humbling looking at that list,” he said after his election.
Crawford loved Clayton, of course. But growing up, he also heard his Giantsloving dad extol the virtues of Speier. And he personally watched the way Aurilia demolished team offensive records at the position during the early 2000s.
“Being added to that list,” Crawford said, “that’s awesome.”