In order to accumulate a large negative number in Wins Above Replacement, a player cannot be merely bad. After all, most players who perform at less than replacement level for any extended period of time get, well, replaced. So to pile up a substantial negative number a guy has to be both performing poorly and getting playing time anyway.
That might be because his team believes, for good reason or not, that he will turn it around. Or his team believes that he is more valuable (for tangible or intangible reasons) than the WAR numbers suggest. Or there are sentimental or financial reasons to keep the player playing independent of performance. Or the team simply has no current better alternative, because the organization doesn’t happen to have access to a replacement level player at the position required.
The current Least Valuable Player in the majors for 2012 — the non-pitcher with the most negative b-ref WAR — is Jeff Francoeur, who continues to be Kansas City’s everyday starting rightfielder despite an OPS for the season of .643 (for a starting corner outfielder!) and a 2012 WAR of -2.9. Francoeur has long been a favorite target for statistically-oriented fans and observers. He is both a charming fellow and capable of hot streaks that lead teams to believe that he can be successful. But in the long run Jeff just can’t ever seem to overcome his poor strike zone judgment. Twenty-five more years of “Least Valuable Players” after the click-through. Continue reading
