Baltimore Orioles: Celebrating Jonathan Schoop’s awesomeness

The Baltimore Orioles All-Star second baseman, Jonathan Schoop, has proven himself worthy of the celebrations that are coming to Camden Yards.

As August rolls around, the Baltimore Orioles will be giving away Schoop-related goodies to fans who walk through the gates.

On August 1, fans will get a Jonathan Schoop t-shirt courtesy of the Orioles. And just a few days later on August 5, Ocean City, Maryland will be presenting 25,000 fans with a Schoop bobblehead.

No Orioles player deserves better fan giveaways in 2017 than Schoop who is leading the team in nearly batting statistic.

Schoop leading the team in most stats

Schoop is currently batting a thoroughly impressive slash of .305/.354/.563 with an OPS of .916. He is leading the team in home runs, batting average, RBIs, double, and runs scored. Mark Trumbo has played in one more game, but that will change with him going on the DL. Schoop has yet to hit a triple, and Trey Mancini leads the team with three of them. He is also not much of a base stealer having yet to rob a bag in 2017. Manny Machado leads the team in stolen bases with six.

Along with leading the team in a variety of important stats, he has also proven himself to be a hitter who doesn’t strike out often. He has 90 of them. There are Orioles with fewer strike outs than Schoop has, like Adam Jones and Machado both have 81. But, there are plenty of O’s with more.

Second basemen comparisons

In the MLB, second base is a position that is loaded with All-Stars. From Jose Altuve with the Houston Astros to Ian Kinsler with the Detroit Tigers, there are some amazing players manning the right side of the infield. Schoop holds his own against veterans who have several more years under their belts. In fact, Schoop currently has the second highest WAR (3.4) of all second basemen – in the AL and NL. Only Altuve, who is in his very own stratosphere, has a WAR of 6.0.

Along with his outstanding WAR, Schoop leads the MLB with his 24 home runs as a second baseman. Rougned Odor is close behind with 23, but his .221 batting average pales in comparison to Schoop’s.

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Consistency is key

Schoop is just a consistently good hitter and that’s what makes him so special in the MLB. In July, he only had four games without hits, yet he still gathered more hits (36) than there were days in July. (And, the All-Star Break happened in July). His consistency makes it seem like this is not a fluke. Schoop is just this good.

What is especially amazing about Schoop is the fact that he is only 25 years old. He has been manning second base on a regular basis since 2014 and in his three full seasons, he has made 33 errors. He has been involved in 347 double plays and his career fielding percentage is .985. He is a solid defensive player, just like he is on offense.

Next: Do the Orioles have the pieces to contend in October?

Fortunately, the Orioles have plenty of time left with Schoop. He will be entering his second year of arbitration and in 2017 he is making an affordable $3.4 million. If the Orioles can keep Machado (who is also only 25) and Schoop together for the foreseeable future, Birdland will continue to get a good show.