Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Rookie sensation Yasiel Puig is getting a ton of recognition from all over the Major League Baseball press and for good reason. He has had as good of a start to his career as anyone other than the great Joe DiMaggio. As great as his start has been there is one man not far away that has been even better over almost the same stretch of games. Los Angeles Dodgers teammate of Puig, Hanley Ramirez has been, yes, better.
Ramirez is certainly not a rookie but he did start the season late after an injury took the first couple of months of the season from him. He began the season around the same time as Puig started his career. The great shot in the arm that Puig has been has overshadowed the consistent thunderous output of Ramirez. He has a better batting average and more RBI over the same stretch of games.
Is there any wonder why the Dodgers are on the move up in the National League West and the rest of the division is slumping? I think the surge of the Dodgers has a lot to do with Puig but perhaps even more credit should go to Ramirez who is already carrying 24 RBI, 8 homers and 10 doubles. I think the Dodgers, incredibly so after their bad start, will be the team that wins this division and honestly I don’t think it will be that close. By the end their pitching staff and above average hitting will overcome everyone else.
David Miller is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @davidmillerrant, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google+.
