Honesty is so refreshing, I don’t get that much. You just might be the blessing to make me pop my clutch. -Chaka Khan
Public Service Announcement: Ok, here we go! And Bill James says there’s no such thing as clutch. Omar Infante has never started for a team for a complete season. During Infante’s rookie year, Tigers’ manager Alan Trammell sent Omar down to the minors for failing to hustle on a consistent basis. No more white balls for batting practice. No more ballparks like cathedrals. No more hotels with room service or women with long legs and brains. He got called back up, but the Tigers kept acquiring guys like Carlos Guillén. They kept acquiring guys Fernando Viña and Plácido Polanco. Kept acquiring guys like that there. Guys who pushed our boy to the bench. Ultimately, Omar got traded; and traded again. Through it all, he has been nothing but the consummate professional.
Dan Duquette used to call guys like Omar Infante, “professional hitters.” Last night, he proved to be just that. Last night, his two-out, two-run triple off Josh Johnson gave the Braves a 2-1 lead in the seventh inning as Atlanta went on to a 5-2 win over the Marlins in South Florida. How about that?
How about this? Like my main Stevie Wonder always says, “Call up, ring once, hang up the phone to let me know you made it home. Don’t want nothing to be wrong with part-time lover.” Although a part-time player, Infante has distinguished himself with his clutch-hitting. Distinguished himself with his double-dutch hitting. His sense of touch hitting.
In 2007, his last year with the Tigers, besides filling in at 7 different positions, Infante batted .413 with runners in scoring position. The next year with the Braves, .341. His hit off Johnson last night lifted his RISP batting average to .389 this season. Yowza! Put them all together and what do you get? You get Omar hitting .370 with runners in scoring position over the last three seasons. You get the highest such average in the majors. With six you get eggroll. With Omar Infante, you get Mr. Clutch.
Public Spectacle:
Peace out homies. Six two and Even!
Need More? Atlanta Braves,MLB,Omar Infante
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