Originally brought in to play solid defense while holding down the ninth spot in the lineup, Scutaro has been forced into leadoff duty for 47 of his 56 games played, due to Jacoby Ellsbury's rib injury. He's done a solid job in that spot, posting a .354 on-base percentage with 49 singles, nine doubles and 22 walks. Thanks in part to Scutaro, the Red Sox are tied for the league lead in runs (314), own the league lead in hits (557) and RBIs (304) while ranking second in OBP (.351).
Yet in Boston, individual success at shortstop needs to be compared to those that filled the position in years past. With the revolving door at shortstop since 2004, it's worth taking a look at how Scutaro measures up with his predecessors. Below is a look at the stats for the Sox' primary shortstops through June 6 since Pokey Reese filled in for the injured Nomar Garciaparra in '04.
2004
Pokey Reese
.253 BA, .291 OBP, .346 SLG, .636 OPS, 2 HRs, 21 RBIs, 31 SOs, 9 BBs
2005
Edgar Renteria
.272 BA, .317 OBP, .385 SLG, 4 HRs, 21 RBIs, 32 SOs, 14 BBs
2006
Alex Gonzalez
.219 BA, .283 OBP, .316 SLG, 3 HRs, 16 RBIs, 28 SOs, 13 BBs
2007
Julio Lugo
.221 BA, .282 OBP, .320 SLG, 3 HRs, 33 RBIs, 29 SOs, 20 BBs
2008
Julio Lugo
.267 BA, .355 OBP, .307, 0 HRs, 13 RBIs, 33 SOs, 21 BBs
2009
Nick Green
.278 BA, .341 OBP, .400 SLG, 1 HR, 17 RBIs, 24 SOs, 6 BBs (39 games)
Julio Lugo
.256 BA, .330 OBP, .341 SLG, 1 HR, 4 RBIs, 10 SOs, 9 BBs (26 games)
Jed Lowrie
.056 BA, .150 OBP, .056 SLG, 0 HRs, 0 RBIs, 8 SOs, 2 BBs (5 games)
2010
Marco Scutaro
.277 BA, .356 OBP, .377 SLG, 4 HRs, 16 RBIs, 23 SOs, 27 BBs
While Scutaro measures up well against shortstops of Red Sox past, he is also performing above his own standards. Following a career year in 2009 with Toronto, Scutaro projects to finish with similar numbers this year:
2009 (actual): .282 BA, .379 OBP, .409 SLG, 12 HRs, 60 RBIs (all career highs)
2010 (projected): .277 BA, .356 BA, .377 SLG, 11 HRs, 46 RBIs
