Chicago or Colorado: Which Team Has Had The Better Players So Far?

Colorado Rockies Logo
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Chicago White Sox
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The MLB season may be barely a month in, but it is never too early to evaluate the performances of teams. While neither the Chicago White Sox or the Colorado Rockies are leading their divisions, both have been playing better then expected and have received some fantastic play from their players. Both teams have players that fill up the league's leader board in both of their leagues and in major league baseball overall. Both are ranked in the top three in hits, runs, RBIs, doubles, extra base hits, total bases, weighted runs created plus, batting average, batting average on balls in play, slugging percentage, OPS. While looking at league leaders, I asked the question: which team has had the better players so far? 

Catcher: Tyler Flowers vs. Wilin Rosario

Tyler Flowers
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Wilin Rosario
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Flowers has been on a tear to start the year. The catcher is hitting .359, has an on-base percentage of , and OPS+ of 127, and a . He is also thrown out 35% of the runner trying to steal against him. Rosario has gotten off to a decent start. He is hitting just under .250, but his on-base percentage is about .276, which is abysmal. He  needs to get that up at least 50 points. He is also throwing out runner at a 33% clip. Flowers has had a monster start to the season and has been better then Rosario without a doubt. 

First Base: Jose Abreu vs. Justin Morneau

Jose Abreu
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Justin Morneau
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Abreu has been off to a monster start so far. The rookie from Cuba has already hit ten home runs (most by a rookie in the month of April ever) 32 RBIs (also most by a rookie in April) ,and is making a name for himself in the big leagues. Morneau has been on a tear this April with a slash line of .357/.381/.643. This is one of the toughest ones to call. Both players have about the same rWAR, roWAR, and rdWAR. In the end, I say the rookie wins this matchup because of the roll he has been on and the excitement he has brought to the south side of the Windy City.

Second Base: Marcus Semien vs. DJ LeMahieu

Marcus Semien
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DJ LeMahieu
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LeMahieu is playing like an above average second baseman, while Beckham has been having a lot of trouble. LeMahieu is hitting .305 with an on-base percentage of .363. He is not hitting for much power, but he is getting the ball in play. Semien has been struggling at the plate hitting only .233 with a .294 on-base percentage and a .379 slugging percentage. Not only that, he is tied for the most outs created by any player in either league so far. The advantage is to LeMahieu for being the better player.

Shortstop: Alexei Ramirez vs. Troy Tulowitzki

Alexei Ramirez
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Troy Tulowitzki
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The Rockies have the best player in the league and a top ten player in the league. Troy Tulowitzki has been outstanding so far. Tulowitzki is the current league leader in rWAR  (3.0), on-base percentage (.486), slugging percentage (.753), OPS+ (223), runs created (33), and offensive win percentage (.916). Not only that, Tulowitzki has been impermeable at shortstop. While Ramirez is the leader in the AL in batting and has played great, he is not even in the same area code of Tulowitzki right now. 

Third Base: Conor Gilliapse vs. Nolan Arenado

Nolan Arenado
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Conor Gilliapse
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Conor Gillapse has been playing well at third. He is hitting over .300, but was just recently placed on the DL with a bruised hand. Arenado has been playing fine. He is not on a complete tear, but he is also hitting over .300, but needs to draw more walks. Both of these guys are playing well and their numbers are very similar. This position is a push. You can pick either one as the better player so far and your point can be proven. 

Left Field: Alejandro De Aza vs. Carlos Gonzalez

Carlos Gonzalez
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Alejandro De Aza
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At first glance, this matchup would seem to be easily won by Carlos Gonzalez just based on past performance. However, Gonzalez comes away with the victory due to the fact De Aza has played awful during the first month of the season. De Aza is hitting .191 and getting on base at a percentage of .255. Gonzalez is not doing much better (His slash line is .240/.288/.433), but at least he is giving the Rockies something at the plate.

Center Field: Adam Eaton vs. Charlie Blackmon

Adam Eaton
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Charlie Blackmon
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No one has been an all-around better player the Tulowitzki so far. His teammate, Charlie Blackmon, however, has been close.Blackmon first appeared with the Rockies in 2011 and was splitting time between the big league club and Colorado Springs, the Rockies Triple-A affiliate until he won the starting centerfield and leadoff spot this year. He has proved that the Rockies made the right choice with his play. He currently lead the league in batting average and is runner up or in the top five in many other categories, including OPS, rWAR, fWAR, Adjusted OPS, runs and created. He has also only struck out seven times. Eaton at this point cannot compare to Blackmon.

Right Field: Dayan Viciedo vs. Michael Cuddyer

Dayan Viciedo
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Michael Cuddyer
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Viciedo has started doing something he has never done since coming up to the majors in 2010 and that is hit for average. In his first four season, he hit .264 with a .306 on-base percentage. This year, Viciedo is hitting .341 with a .406 on-base percentage and a .506 slugging percentage. Cuddyer was on the DL for part of the season, but he is back and is also playing well. The 2013 NL Batting Champ is hitting .317, has an on-base percentage of .373 and a .533 slugging percentage. This is a really tough matchup to pick. It's a push, but I am leaning towards Viciedo.

Bench/DH: Chicago (Gordon Beckham, Jordan Danks, Adam Dunn, Leury Garcia, Paul Konerko, Adrian Nieto) vs. Colorado (Brandon Barnes, Charlie Culberson, Corey Dickerson, Jordan Pacheco, Josh Rutledge, Drew Stubbs)

Adam Dunn
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Brandon Barnes
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Adam Dunn is the White Sox's DH. Dunn has never been a guy to hit for average, but if he continues to .280, his current batting average, he would have his best batting average of all-time. This would also be the same for his on-base percentage (currently .409) and OPS+ (currently 154). Gordon Beckham was injured for most of the first month of the season, but now that he is back, he has taken over the starting second base spot. Brandon Barnes has been off to a hot start with .333 batting average and .410 on-base percentage. Dickerson has also been off to a hot start while starting on the outfield while Michael Cuddyer is on the DL. He has an OPS of .941 and an OPS+ of 145. The bench advantage goes to the Rockies, who have players on their bench who are playing better then their regular starters.

Ace Starting Pitcher: Chris Sale vs. Jorge De La Rosa

Chris Sale
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Jorge De La Rosa
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Sale has been tremendous. He's 3-0 with a 2.30 ERA, 0.841 WHIP, 2.32 FIP, and a 190 ERA+. That WHIP immediately jumps of the screen at me and says he has been impossible to hit. There is just one problem with Sale; He is currently on the DL and has been since the 18th of April. De La Rosa has been mediocre so far. He has a 2-3 record, 5.23 ERA, 4.51 FIP, and 79 ERA+. Even with the injury, the win goes to Sale due to his sheer dominance and the lack-luster start for De La Rosa.

Rest of Starting Rotation: Chicago (John Danks, Felipe Paulino, Jose Quintana, Andre Reizino) vs. Colorado (Tyler Chatwood, Jordan Lyles, Franklin Morales, Juan Nicasio)

Jordan Lyles
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Jose Quintana
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Jordan Lyles has been the best starter for Colorado so far, with a 3-0 record, 2.93 ERA, 1.109 WHIP, 3.54 FIP, and 141 ERA+. Everyone else has been decent or below average. Jose Quintana and John Danks have been good for the White Sox. Quintana is 1-2 with a 1.333 WHIP and a 8.0 strikeouts per nine innings ratio. John Danks has been 2-1 and with an ERA of 3.48 and a WHIP of 1.419. Pauilno has struggled in his starts, while Rienzo has been mediocre. While neither rotation is in the top part of the league, the White Sox is better then Colorado's through April. 

Closer: Matt Lindstrom vs. LaTory Hawkins

Matt Lindstrom
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LaTroy Hawkins
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Lindstrom has not had as many opportunities to get the save in as many games as Hawkins (Lindstorm has three saves compared to Hawkins nine), but both have been effective pitchers. Hawkins, however, has been better and by a lot. He has a better ERA (2.38 to 3.75), WHIP (1.059 to 1.583), FIP (3.91 to 4.70), and ERA+ (177 to 119), among other things. The most telling stat for me is Lindstrom's strikeouts per walk is 1.00. That needs to improve for him to keep pitching well.

Bullpen: Chicago (Ronald Belisario, Maikel Cleto, Scott Downs, Zach Putnam, Jake Petricka, Daniel Webb) vs. Colorado (Matt Belisle, Rex Brothers, Tommy Kahnle, Boone Logan, Adam Ottavino)

Jake Petricka
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Adam Ottavino
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Adam Ottavino has been excellent coming out of the pen. His numbers are unbelievable. He has a 0.73 ERA, 0.811 WHIP, 1.17 FIP, and a 576 ERA+. It is very unlikely that he keeps up those numbers for the rest of the year, but if he can keep pitching well, he should be an All-Star and possible breakout star. He may even overtake Hawkins for the closer role. Rex Brothers has also been pitching well out of the Colorado pen. Jake Petricka has been very good out of the pen for Chicago, as has Zach Putnam and Daniel Webb. The Rockies have had the best bullpen so far, mostly because they Ottavino.

Winner: 

While both teams have great players, so far Colorado has had the better players. Almost all of their position players are hitting over .300. It seems like everyone on the Rockies is on a hot streak. Even though their pitching is not great, having a guy who is as dominant as Ottavino really helps. The team from the Mile High City has a lot of players playing great baseball. 
Note: Stats are as of the morning of 4/30