The Roller Coaster Career of Jason Heyward
Jason Heyward has been an enigma, to say the least, so far in his short career. After dominating the minors, he posted one of the best rookie seasons ever, though it wasn’t good enough to win the 2010 Rookie of the Year (at least I’m not bitter…). With a lack of struggle up to that point, last year was hard to take for all Braves fans. His offense still ended up near average, but it was a few steps back from his previous year. In one season, he went from future HOF’er to injury-prone question mark.
Heyward starting this season similar to last year, having a good April and a poor May. Fortunately, he found it again in June, posting a 183 wRC+, his best month of his career. Including his constant great defense, Heyward has compiled 12.4 B-R WAR so far in his career. Here is the list of players since 1975 to accumulate at least 10 WAR by age 22:
| Rk | Player | WAR/pos | From | To | Age | G | PA | BA | OBP | SLG | Tm |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jason Heyward | 12.4 | 2010 | 2012 | 20-22 | 375 | 1509 | .260 | .358 | .441 | ATL |
| 2 | Albert Pujols | 11.5 | 2001 | 2002 | 21-22 | 318 | 1351 | .321 | .399 | .586 | STL |
| 3 | Andruw Jones | 17.2 | 1996 | 1999 | 19-22 | 505 | 1890 | .260 | .335 | .476 | ATL |
| 4 | Alex Rodriguez | 22.2 | 1994 | 1998 | 18-22 | 513 | 2271 | .313 | .364 | .543 | SEA |
| 5 | Ken Griffey | 20.3 | 1989 | 1992 | 19-22 | 578 | 2422 | .301 | .366 | .494 | SEA |
| 6 | Roberto Alomar | 11.7 | 1988 | 1990 | 20-22 | 448 | 1959 | .283 | .339 | .379 | SDP |
| 7 | Cal Ripken | 11.9 | 1981 | 1983 | 20-22 | 345 | 1421 | .288 | .340 | .486 | BAL |
| 8 | Rickey Henderson | 14.3 | 1979 | 1981 | 20-22 | 355 | 1613 | .300 | .396 | .395 | OAK |
| 9 | Robin Yount | 10.3 | 1974 | 1978 | 18-22 | 696 | 2869 | .271 | .308 | .362 | MIL |
When Andruw Jones and Roberto Alomar are the worst names on a list, you’re doing something right. He isn’t in A-Rod’s or Griffey’s class, but production at such an age is normally a precursor to a great career. Tony Conigliaro also made this list, a reminder of what can happen to a player at any time. That being said, this may be a great time for an extension. What does everyone think?