as i continue to switch things up and do my posts a little differently this year, here is a new blog for you guys, though it will seem somewhat familiar if you've been reading my blogs all season. this one contains Michael's 2015 statistical #s, including his situational statistics, team highs, career highs, league rankings, divisional team stats, Indians History information, and more. if you have not yet read the Brantley's 2015 Game-by-Game Numbers & Notes blog or the Brantley's 2015 BOP & LF/CF/DH/PH #s blog, i highly recommend you do so.
in 2015, Michael had a total of 596 plate appearances and 529 at bats in 137 games
(1034.2 innings). in total, he had 164
hits, 60 extra base hits, 104 singles, 45 doubles, 15 home runs, 84 RBI, 5
sac flies, 68 runs, 60 walks, 8 intentional walks, 2 hit by pitches, 15 stolen bases
(14 - 2nd, 1 - 3rd), 1 caught stealing (3rd), 14 GIDP, 51 strikeouts (37
swinging, 14 looking), 34 first at bat hits, 254 total bases, 223 left on
base, 212
putouts, 8 assists, 2 errors, and 1 double play.
2015 batting average: .310 (164-529)
OBP: .379
SLG: .480
OPS: .859
Michael's .310 batting average was the
Saturday, October 10, 2015
Friday, October 9, 2015
Brantley's 2015 Batting Order Position & LF/CF/DH/PH #s
thanks largely in part to Michael's performance last season, his batting order position for 2015 was basically set right from the start of spring training. he bat 3rd in the lineup in 135 of the 137 total games that he played this year. now that Terry Francona has appointed Michael as his 3 hole hitter, this is the most stability Michael's ever had in the order. besides 3rd, he also bat 5th once and 7th once, both times coming during pinch hit appearances on days that he was originally supposed to have off to rest. otherwise, he never would have seen any time outside of 3rd this year. it appears as though he has that spot locked down, and judging by his efficiency there, i think that's a great BOP for him to have. his 163 hits, 45 doubles, 15 home runs, 84 RBI, and 60 walks were quite exceptional.
Michael's 68 runs, on the other hand, seem a bit low. let's examine that. overall, he reached base 236 times this season. he brought himself home with his own 15 home runs, and his teammates drove him in the other 53 times. that means the players batting behind him left him on base 168 times total. so while batting 3rd might be the best BOP for Michael, the guys batting after him may need some rearranging. (or upgrading.)
as far as his place in the field, Michael played both left and center field in 2015. he began as the main left fielder, then later saw time as the center fielder. once Michael Bourn began struggling against left-handed starters, Tito decided he would no longer start Bourn in most games that southpaws pitched. therefore,
Michael's 68 runs, on the other hand, seem a bit low. let's examine that. overall, he reached base 236 times this season. he brought himself home with his own 15 home runs, and his teammates drove him in the other 53 times. that means the players batting behind him left him on base 168 times total. so while batting 3rd might be the best BOP for Michael, the guys batting after him may need some rearranging. (or upgrading.)
as far as his place in the field, Michael played both left and center field in 2015. he began as the main left fielder, then later saw time as the center fielder. once Michael Bourn began struggling against left-handed starters, Tito decided he would no longer start Bourn in most games that southpaws pitched. therefore,
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Brantley's 2015 Game-by-Game Numbers & Notes
i'm splitting up some of Michael's overall season stats/numbers, as i've done in the past, so that my readers aren't overwhelmed with one giant blog full of a profuse amount of information. you're welcome lol
this first blog mainly focuses on all of Michael's game-by-game numbers and notes for 2015. he battled through a lot of challenges this season, enduring 3 main injuries: a lower back strain, left shoulder inflammation, and right shoulder inflammation. his right shoulder never fully healed and by late September, the Indians decided to shut him down before the year was over. he missed more games this year than in any of his previous full seasons, yet somehow remained a productive contributor in the lineup. Michael played better while not at full strength than some players did healthy, batting at or above .286 for all but 8 games.
truth be told, 2015 ranked as one of Michael's best seasons in the majors. a new career high, new career low, and walk-off hit marked just a few of the exciting highlights of his campaign. while his stats weren't quite as extraordinary as they were a year ago, he still boasted a few team highs. and, even after a less than stellar finish in September, Michael once again owned the highest batting average (.310) on the team, giving him this honor for the 4th year in a row now. outstanding.
Michael played in 137 of 161* games this season and had
this first blog mainly focuses on all of Michael's game-by-game numbers and notes for 2015. he battled through a lot of challenges this season, enduring 3 main injuries: a lower back strain, left shoulder inflammation, and right shoulder inflammation. his right shoulder never fully healed and by late September, the Indians decided to shut him down before the year was over. he missed more games this year than in any of his previous full seasons, yet somehow remained a productive contributor in the lineup. Michael played better while not at full strength than some players did healthy, batting at or above .286 for all but 8 games.
truth be told, 2015 ranked as one of Michael's best seasons in the majors. a new career high, new career low, and walk-off hit marked just a few of the exciting highlights of his campaign. while his stats weren't quite as extraordinary as they were a year ago, he still boasted a few team highs. and, even after a less than stellar finish in September, Michael once again owned the highest batting average (.310) on the team, giving him this honor for the 4th year in a row now. outstanding.
Michael played in 137 of 161* games this season and had
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Brantley's 2015 Second Half #s
before i get into Michael's overall 2015 numbers, i'm going to calculate his 2nd half numbers. the format for this blog will be the same as the one i used for his 1st half numbers with the split sections. once again, you can scroll through everything and just read what you find the most interesting, or you can skim each section and focus on the bold/italicized information.
post-All Star break in 2015, Michael had a total of 250 plate appearances and 224 at bats in 58 games (417.2 innings). in total, he had 75 hits, 31 extra base hits, 44 singles, 21 doubles, 10 home runs, 38 RBI, 1 sac fly, 33 runs, 23 walks, 3 intentional walks, 2 hit by pitches, 6 stolen bases (5 - 2nd, 1 - 3rd), 6 GIDP, 25 strikeouts (21 swinging, 4 looking), 14 first at bat hits, 126 total bases, 94 left on base, 86 putouts, 1 assist, and 1 error.
2nd Half 2015 batting average: .335 (75-224)
OBP: .400
SLG: .563
OPS: .963
2nd Half of July BA: .346
August BA: .406
September/October BA: .237
Michael's .335 batting average in the 2nd half was the
post-All Star break in 2015, Michael had a total of 250 plate appearances and 224 at bats in 58 games (417.2 innings). in total, he had 75 hits, 31 extra base hits, 44 singles, 21 doubles, 10 home runs, 38 RBI, 1 sac fly, 33 runs, 23 walks, 3 intentional walks, 2 hit by pitches, 6 stolen bases (5 - 2nd, 1 - 3rd), 6 GIDP, 25 strikeouts (21 swinging, 4 looking), 14 first at bat hits, 126 total bases, 94 left on base, 86 putouts, 1 assist, and 1 error.
2nd Half 2015 batting average: .335 (75-224)
OBP: .400
SLG: .563
OPS: .963
2nd Half of July BA: .346
August BA: .406
September/October BA: .237
Michael's .335 batting average in the 2nd half was the
Monday, October 5, 2015
Brantley's September/October 2015 #s
hello again, Brantley fans! thank you to everyone who read my Brantley's August 2015 #s blog and Brantley's 2015 #s Through August blog. i know that the August blog was lengthy (albeit not compared to this one), but i trust you forgave me once you discovered how exciting Michael's incredible month was to read about. i also want to welcome some viewers from Sweden who recently visited my blog for the first time. i'm happy you found my blogspot and hope you continue to come back and read all about Michael!
well here we are again, at the end of another baseball season. the Indians gave it a valiant effort, but it wasn't quite enough to land a wild card spot. don't let yourself get too upset though because i will be writing a plethora of blogs throughout this month of October. so make sure you keep checking back for those, or you can simply subscribe to my emailing list (over on the right side of this page) to always be notified whenever a new post goes live! before we get to all that however, it is time for the final monthly blog of 2015.
note: i want to make it clear that September and October are combined to be 1 month. this is what all the baseball sites do when baseball season runs into October. it wouldn't make much sense to give October its own month for stats when not that many games are actually played. so whenever you see "the/this month" written in this blog, know that i am referring to (both) September/October as one even though Michael did not play in any of the October games.
September/October Overview
i don't know what happened here, guys. after Michael's August sizzle, i never saw this September fizzle coming. he just had one of the best months in his career in August and appeared to be headed for a hot finish. but as soon as the calendar flipped over to September, his bat cooled way down and it was like all the steam had been let out. maybe that last game in August (when he went 0-for-4) was a foreshadowing of things to come and i overlooked it based on how amazing he did in all his previous August games.
Michael went hitless in more games this month than any other month this season and
well here we are again, at the end of another baseball season. the Indians gave it a valiant effort, but it wasn't quite enough to land a wild card spot. don't let yourself get too upset though because i will be writing a plethora of blogs throughout this month of October. so make sure you keep checking back for those, or you can simply subscribe to my emailing list (over on the right side of this page) to always be notified whenever a new post goes live! before we get to all that however, it is time for the final monthly blog of 2015.
note: i want to make it clear that September and October are combined to be 1 month. this is what all the baseball sites do when baseball season runs into October. it wouldn't make much sense to give October its own month for stats when not that many games are actually played. so whenever you see "the/this month" written in this blog, know that i am referring to (both) September/October as one even though Michael did not play in any of the October games.
September/October Overview
i don't know what happened here, guys. after Michael's August sizzle, i never saw this September fizzle coming. he just had one of the best months in his career in August and appeared to be headed for a hot finish. but as soon as the calendar flipped over to September, his bat cooled way down and it was like all the steam had been let out. maybe that last game in August (when he went 0-for-4) was a foreshadowing of things to come and i overlooked it based on how amazing he did in all his previous August games.
Michael went hitless in more games this month than any other month this season and
Brantley Named Indians 2015 Hank Aaron Award Nominee
today, on October 5, one day after the 2015 regular season ended, it was announced that for the second year in a row and second time in his career, Michael Brantley is the Cleveland Indians' nominee for the 17th annual Hank Aaron Award!
the Hank Aaron Award is given to the top offensive player in each league as voted on by fans and, for the 6th consecutive year, a special panel of Hall of Fame players. the panel is led by Hank Aaron himself, comprised of a group of Hall of Famers that Aaron selected to help determine the winners. those HOF players include Roberto Alomar, Johnny Bench, Craig Biggio, Eddie Murray, Frank Thomas, and Robin Yount.
this award
 |
| screenshot cropped off Indians.com |
the Hank Aaron Award is given to the top offensive player in each league as voted on by fans and, for the 6th consecutive year, a special panel of Hall of Fame players. the panel is led by Hank Aaron himself, comprised of a group of Hall of Famers that Aaron selected to help determine the winners. those HOF players include Roberto Alomar, Johnny Bench, Craig Biggio, Eddie Murray, Frank Thomas, and Robin Yount.
this award
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Brantley's Career Low 51 Strikeouts
if you haven't heard the news yet, Michael was officially shut down for the rest of the season today after receiving a cortisone shot for his right shoulder inflammation. and because his 2015 season has now ended and all his current numbers are final, that means Michael has set one last record this year. he finished with a career low 51 strikeouts. his previous career low was 56 strikeouts, his season total in both 2012 and 2014.
now, some may argue this shouldn't technically be considered a new career record because Michael only played in 137 total games. that's less than most players who play a full season play. but despite missing more games than usual due to several injuries he battled this year, Michael is still a qualifying player and therefore i am calling this an official career low. congratulations!
Michael's last strikeout of the season came in the game versus the Minnesota Twins on September 28. the Indians were down, 3-1, in the bottom of the 1st inning when Michael came to the plate with 1 out to face left-hander Tommy Milone. after a 1-2 count, Michael swung and missed to give him his 51st strikeout.
now, some may argue this shouldn't technically be considered a new career record because Michael only played in 137 total games. that's less than most players who play a full season play. but despite missing more games than usual due to several injuries he battled this year, Michael is still a qualifying player and therefore i am calling this an official career low. congratulations!
Michael's last strikeout of the season came in the game versus the Minnesota Twins on September 28. the Indians were down, 3-1, in the bottom of the 1st inning when Michael came to the plate with 1 out to face left-hander Tommy Milone. after a 1-2 count, Michael swung and missed to give him his 51st strikeout.
Right Shoulder Inflammation Ends Brantley's 2015 Season
this is certainly not how i expected Michael Brantley's season to end, although it is sadly fitting that he's going out much like the way he began the year--with an injury. today, on September 30, it was announced that Michael's season is done, as the Cleveland Indians are shutting him down because of his sore right shoulder.
it all started in the game against the Minnesota Twins on September 22. Aaron Hicks was at the plate facing Danny Salazar in the bottom of the 3rd inning with 2 outs and Eduardo Escobar at 1st base. after a 3-1 count, Hicks sent a line drive to deep center field. Michael ran over a long way to try and make the diving catch, but when he hit the grass, the ball popped out of his glove and rolled onto the warning track. the Twins took a 1-0 lead, and the Indians were about to lose Michael.
Michael came to bat against Ervin Santana in the top of the 4th inning and grounded out to short on an 0-1 count. then when the Indians took their places in the field in the bottom half of the inning, Michael had been subbed out defensively because during his at bat, he felt something in his right shoulder on his extension. that was literally the beginning of the end for Michael's season, though we didn't know it at the time.
he missed the next 4 games from September 23-26 before
it all started in the game against the Minnesota Twins on September 22. Aaron Hicks was at the plate facing Danny Salazar in the bottom of the 3rd inning with 2 outs and Eduardo Escobar at 1st base. after a 3-1 count, Hicks sent a line drive to deep center field. Michael ran over a long way to try and make the diving catch, but when he hit the grass, the ball popped out of his glove and rolled onto the warning track. the Twins took a 1-0 lead, and the Indians were about to lose Michael.
Michael came to bat against Ervin Santana in the top of the 4th inning and grounded out to short on an 0-1 count. then when the Indians took their places in the field in the bottom half of the inning, Michael had been subbed out defensively because during his at bat, he felt something in his right shoulder on his extension. that was literally the beginning of the end for Michael's season, though we didn't know it at the time.
he missed the next 4 games from September 23-26 before
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
Brantley's 2015 #s Through August
Michael just got done putting together a colossal month in August and that moved him right into the thick of things regarding team highs, league rankings, and even the American League batting race. it was incredible and i am so proud of him! he now has up to 32 games to play in before 2015 comes to an end, and if Michael can do anything close to what he did in August in these final weeks, then strap in tight folks because we are gonna be in for a really fun ride to the finish line. go Brantley!
so far in 2015, Michael has a total of 516 plate appearances and 453 at bats in 117 games (885.1 innings). in total, he has 146 hits, 51 extra base hits, 95 singles, 40 doubles, 11 home runs, 73 RBI, 5 sac flies, 60 runs, 56 walks, 8 intentional walks, 2 hit by pitches, 14 stolen bases (13 - 2nd, 1 - 3rd), 1 caught stealing (3rd), 12 GIDP, 43 strikeouts (31 swinging, 12 looking), 32 first at bat hits, 219 total bases, 187 left on base, 181 putouts, 7 assists, 2 errors, and 1 double play.
2015 batting average through August: .322 (146-453)
OBP: .395
SLG: .483
OPS: .879
Michael's .322 batting average is currently the highest on the team out of all the qualifying players. he now has a 3-point lead on Jason Kipnis, who's batting .319.
note: never before in Michael's career has he been
so far in 2015, Michael has a total of 516 plate appearances and 453 at bats in 117 games (885.1 innings). in total, he has 146 hits, 51 extra base hits, 95 singles, 40 doubles, 11 home runs, 73 RBI, 5 sac flies, 60 runs, 56 walks, 8 intentional walks, 2 hit by pitches, 14 stolen bases (13 - 2nd, 1 - 3rd), 1 caught stealing (3rd), 12 GIDP, 43 strikeouts (31 swinging, 12 looking), 32 first at bat hits, 219 total bases, 187 left on base, 181 putouts, 7 assists, 2 errors, and 1 double play.
2015 batting average through August: .322 (146-453)
OBP: .395
SLG: .483
OPS: .879
Michael's .322 batting average is currently the highest on the team out of all the qualifying players. he now has a 3-point lead on Jason Kipnis, who's batting .319.
note: never before in Michael's career has he been
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
Brantley's August 2015 #s
hey there, Brantley fans! thank you for reading my Brantley's July 2015 #s blog and Brantley's 2015 #s Through July blog last month. i hope you enjoyed them. i also want to take a minute to say a special HI! to the viewers from Hungary, Singapore,
Russia, and the United Kingdom who all visited my blog in the past
month! thanks so much for stopping by and reading about Michael!
the offseason is fast approaching now. it's hard to believe after this, i only have one more month of stats to calculate before the 2015 season is over. things are really starting to heat up not only for Michael, but the Indians as well. can they continue to rack up wins and potentially grab a wild card spot? and what will Michael do for an encore in September? i can't wait to find out! but first, let's all relish in what turned out to be an astounding August for Dr. Smooth.
August Overview
there was seemingly no stopping Michael in August--the man was scorching hot! it was quite reminiscent of his MVP-caliber performances every month last season, when he was setting career highs and achieving things he'd never achieved before on the regular. he certainly didn't look like a player fighting through injuries, going through the dog days of summer, and/or battling just to make it to the end of the year. instead, he currently looks primed and ready for a stretch run. and now i am so excited to get into his monthly statistics, some of which are historical! =D
in Michael's first 10 games, he bat .425 (17-for-40) from August 1-13. he was then shut down for a few days with a little left shoulder inflammation. when he came back from that brief 3-day rest (which probably also did some good for his back), he played in 14 more games, batting .393 (22-for-56) from August 17-31. he saw some extra time as the designated hitter this month until his throwing shoulder was ready to carry the left field load, but no matter what his role, Michael put up the best month of his 2015 campaign yet. he earned an August batting average of
the offseason is fast approaching now. it's hard to believe after this, i only have one more month of stats to calculate before the 2015 season is over. things are really starting to heat up not only for Michael, but the Indians as well. can they continue to rack up wins and potentially grab a wild card spot? and what will Michael do for an encore in September? i can't wait to find out! but first, let's all relish in what turned out to be an astounding August for Dr. Smooth.
August Overview
there was seemingly no stopping Michael in August--the man was scorching hot! it was quite reminiscent of his MVP-caliber performances every month last season, when he was setting career highs and achieving things he'd never achieved before on the regular. he certainly didn't look like a player fighting through injuries, going through the dog days of summer, and/or battling just to make it to the end of the year. instead, he currently looks primed and ready for a stretch run. and now i am so excited to get into his monthly statistics, some of which are historical! =D
in Michael's first 10 games, he bat .425 (17-for-40) from August 1-13. he was then shut down for a few days with a little left shoulder inflammation. when he came back from that brief 3-day rest (which probably also did some good for his back), he played in 14 more games, batting .393 (22-for-56) from August 17-31. he saw some extra time as the designated hitter this month until his throwing shoulder was ready to carry the left field load, but no matter what his role, Michael put up the best month of his 2015 campaign yet. he earned an August batting average of
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