Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Biggest Postseasons of All Time

John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Photographs

On the conclusion of the ALDS, I wrote an article about Aaron Choose’s postseason. Throughout seven video games and 31 plate appearances, the Brobdingnagian slugger ran a 253 wRC+ with a slash line of .500/.581/.692. In case you set a minimal of 30 plate appearances, then that 253 wRC+ ranks 14th amongst all postseason performances. That final sentence accommodates a superb little bit of statistical misdirection; that 30-PA cutoff eliminates many of the gamers in postseason historical past, but it surely’s nonetheless low sufficient to let an outlier like Choose shine. Nonetheless, my objective was to spotlight how sensible Choose had been whereas additionally making an attempt to create a framework for placing postseason numbers in context. The tiny pattern sizes make that actually exhausting to do, and that was a part of the purpose. However Choose wasn’t the one participant who excelled this postseason. In that very same Divisional Collection, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. received 20 plate appearances and batted .529 with a 324 wRC+. Ernie Clement put up the very same 324 mark with a .643 batting common over 16 plate appearances. I didn’t point out them within the article due to these smaller pattern sizes, however I deliberate to maintain my eye on them. They didn’t disappoint.

Guerrero batted .385 with three dwelling runs within the ALCS, operating a 250 wRC+. As you will have heard, he had a reasonably good World Collection, too. He batted .333 with two homers and a 192 wRC+. Put all of it collectively, and Guerrero slashed .397/.494/.795 with eight homers, 18 runs scored, and 15 RBI within the playoffs. He received deliberately walked six occasions. Ought to we watch all eight of these homers? After all we must always. There isn’t a excuse too slight to look at all eight of these homers.

Over all the postseason, Guerrero posted a wRC+ of 241, leaving him simply 14 factors behind Choose. Going again to our minimal of 30 plate appearances, that’s the Twenty fifth-highest mark of all time. However Guerrero didn’t simply go away Choose’s 31 plate appearances within the mud, he set an all-time document with 89. His pattern was practically 3 times larger, and he was nonetheless simply 14 factors behind!

As we established, over these further 69 plate appearances within the ALCS and World Collection, Guerrero continued his glorious play, so it’s time for an replace. Let me present you the graph I made a number of weeks in the past to indicate you the way a lot of an outlier Choose was. The purple circle is Choose. The inexperienced dot is Barry Bonds’ absurd 259 wRC+ efficiency from the Giants’ 2002 World Collection run. I’ve added an orange dot to spotlight the place Guerrero was at that time.

“This definitely makes Choose look a bit much less spectacular,” I wrote on the time. “He’s up towards the highest of the heap for a participant round 30 plate appearances, however he’s not standing out from the pack the best way Bonds did. In response to this chart, probably the most spectacular efficiency in postseason historical past is undoubtedly Randy Arozarena’s magical, homer-filled 2020 run with the Rays, all the best way to the appropriate.” At that time, Guerrero was greater than Choose in uncooked wRC+, however he was at roughly the identical place on the trendline. He was proper close to the highest, however on the 20-PA mark quite than the 30-PA mark, which made it a bit much less spectacular. Properly three elegant weeks later, we will now replace this graph. Choose, Bonds, and Arozarena are now not highlighted. The one dot I’ve highlighted is Guerrero’s and it’s not exhausting to see why. He stands alone. There’s a model new dot on the town.

What we’re primarily illustrating with this graph is weighted runs created – eradicating the plus from weighted runs created plus. The upper and additional to the appropriate you’re, the extra runs you’ve created. We’re turning this again right into a counting stat with a purpose to take a look at the gamers who’ve put up probably the most offensive worth in a single postseason, and Guerrero simply set the document. Right here’s the highest 10:

Most Postseason Weighted Runs Created

Season
Identify
Group
wRC+
PA
wRC

2025
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
TOR
241.5
89
25.3

2020
Randy Arozarena
TBR
240.3
86
24.9

2002
Barry Bonds
SFG
259.3
74
23.6

2004
Carlos Beltran
NEW 284.2 56 20.6 2020
Corey Seager
LAD
203.3
80
20.5

2023
Corey Seager
TEX
204.7
82
20.0

2011
David Freese
STL
244.8
71
19.8

2004
Albert Pujols
STL
230.0
67
19.7

2004
David Ortiz
BOS
221.6
68
19.4

2009
Alex Rodriguez
NYY 223.6 68 19.2

If you wish to argue about the perfect single-season playoff hitting efficiency of all time, you’ve got loads of metrics to select from. And not using a PA minimal, the very best postseason wRC+ of all time belongs to Jim Masonwho homered in his one postseason plate look with the Yankees within the 1976 World Collection. As a result of the league had a paltry .681 OPS that 12 months, his dwelling run was weighted extra closely than the three different gamers who homered of their solely postseason plate look. He has a profession postseason wRC+ of 1,432, fairly a bit higher than his common season mark of 53.

In case you set a minimal of 15 plate appearances with a purpose to embrace gamers from the time when the World Collection constituted the whole thing of the postseason, then you definately’ve received Lou Gehrig’s 419 wRC+ when the Yankees swept the Cardinals in 1928. Gehrig went 6-for-11 with a double, 4 dwelling runs, six walks! He made simply 5 outs in 4 video games and ran a slash line of .545/.706/1.727.

In case you’re enthusiastic about win likelihood added, then the Cardinals get their revenge within the type of David Freese’s absurd 2011 run. His 1.91 WPA places him on prime. He was unimaginable to retire, and since he was batting behind the triumvirate of Albert Pujols, Matt Hollidayand Lance Berkmanwho mixed for an on-base share of .444, he was at all times coming to the plate with runners on base in high-leverage conditions.

However when you’re simply speaking about sustained excellence, then the reply is obvious. The crown as soon as belonged to Bonds, then Arozarena. It now belongs to Guerrero.

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