Beckham vs. Andrus
by John Sickels
on Sep 23, 2025 4:04 PM EDT
52 comments
Discussion Topic: If you could have Gordon Beckham or Elvis Andrus for the next 10 years, which one would you pick?
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I voted Beckham because I could imagine him putting up decent power numbers someday whereas I don’t have much hope for Andrus making a big stride offensively. Although it was extremely close. Andrus is a plus-fielder at this point at a premium position with good speed and basestealing instincts. In his best year I see him as just above average offensively.
This is one of was really close.
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by gorilla_baller on Sep 23, 2025 4:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
if beckham becomes a second basemen, i vote for beckham
if he stays at third, i vote for andrus….
by matthewmafa on Sep 23, 2025 4:28 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I don't get why it matters, quite frankly
other than for fantasy purposes.
by Daniel Berlyn on Sep 24, 2025 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Because beckham at 2nd with a league average 3rd baseman
is better than beckham at 3rd with a league average 2nd baseman
my better is better than your better.
by rangerjake on Sep 24, 2025 12:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It depends on who the White Sox need him to be.
I think your point is debatable anyway. If 2nd base is harder to play, Beckham should be able to make up for it with better defense at 3rd.
by Daniel Berlyn on Sep 24, 2025 8:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Andrus
Defense up the middle was the biggest factor in the Rangers turn around this year. He’s younger, accounts for 2.8 wins, according to Fangraphs, rocking an 8.2 UZR as a rookie, playing a premium defensive position (is it redundant to say “defensive position?”) , and his bat is pretty under-rated.
It wasn’t a no-brainer though. Beck’s got great pop, but I’ll take a defensive anchor in the infield with top of the lineup speed for the next decade.
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by egriffey on Sep 23, 2025 4:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
+1
I agree it’s close, but I’ll lean Andrus for similar reasons, although I do think GB could be a solid defensive shortstop if given the opportunity. I also believe that Elvis’ offense will improve.
by toonsterwu on Sep 23, 2025 6:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
the difference between solid defensive shortstop and above average
is exactly why he’s been so effective
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by Walter Sobchak on Sep 30, 2025 5:17 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Andrus
With Beckham’s positional value still up in the air, I’ll take the plus defense where it really matters.
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by Kenan and Kel on Sep 23, 2025 4:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Omar Vizquel comp...
fair for Anrdus? If so, I would take him easy.
by joegonzo on Sep 23, 2025 4:43 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
You can't say that.
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by Frederick0220 on Sep 23, 2025 9:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
More potential, perhaps
But Omar Vizquel has had a sensational career. I imagine Elvis would be thrilled to retire with Omar’s body of work.
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by Conjunction on Sep 23, 2025 10:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The glove...
I find it difficult to compare anybody with 2 of the better defensive Shortstops we’ve seen. We’re talking about HoF careers built mostly on glove work…that’s a lofty comparison for a 20 year old. Not saying he can’t, or isn’t that good…but i guess i just find it a little much to drop HoF comps on people so early.
by BobbyS on Sep 24, 2025 2:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
more than fair
just look at how things turned out for plus defense, speedy shortstops who were able to hold their own offensively at age 20-21. Ozzie Smith is another good camp and except for one being a 2b and one being a ss Roberto Alomar is another good comp for Andus. Beckham, while he certainly figures to be good, is a much less unique talent, and one for whom it is way too soon to predict stardom with any degree of certainty.
by Dalman on Sep 23, 2025 4:56 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
re Alomar
I don’t see any possible way Andrus can be compared to Alomar. Not even close. Ozzie and Omar are good comps, though, IMHO.
by rmarx on Sep 23, 2025 6:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
hmm
I don’t see any possible way Andrus can be compared to Alomar. Not even close.
A little early to be saying that, no?
Alomar at age 20: .266/.328/.382
Andrus at age 20: .271/.330/.380
Factor in Elvis’ plus defense at SS and it gets pretty interesting.
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
by Dirk Diggler on Sep 23, 2025 7:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Your user name just made my screen explode.
by JonBBT on Sep 23, 2025 7:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It happens
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
by Dirk Diggler on Sep 23, 2025 7:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Age 19 in AA....
Andrus: 25 extra-base hits in 482 AB - .367 slugging
Alomar: 57 extra-base hits in 536 AB - .478 slugging
Not to mention the era/park differences, which translate to OPS+ differences of 105 to 87 in their age-20 seasons, despite the similarities in the superficial stats.
by BobbyMac on Sep 24, 2025 2:32 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
That's true
I’m asking because I don’t know — but what was the old Jack Murphy Stadium like back in Alomar’s rookie year?
I know it’s not as cut and dry as slash stats — there’s more to it than that. But, it’s also too early to just completely ignore the possibility.
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
by Dirk Diggler on Sep 24, 2025 11:09 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
105 OPS+ vs. 86 OPS+
Alomar vs. Andrus in their rookie years. I think the big thing here is Andrus has a ton of improvements to make for there to be a real chance of him being a player similar to Robbie Alomar, at least prime Robbie Alomar which is what I assume you’re getting at. Alomar’s prime was 1992-2001, he had double digit HR’s 8 of those 10 years, more walks than K’s 7 of those 10 years(and another one that just missed, 40/43 BB/K, 83 more BB than K for that 10 years), hit .300 or better 9 times(.310 or better 7 times) and posted an ISO of .167 for that span.
I’m not saying it’s impossible, but so many things have to improve(and improve substantially) for Andrus to be close to the force Alomar was that it just seems awfully premature to consider.
RIP Nick Adenhart
by gatling on Sep 24, 2025 3:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
All valid points
I just think it’s too early to write it off completely.
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
by Dirk Diggler on Sep 24, 2025 3:25 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Other than above here
is Alomar a comp that has been thrown around regularly for Andrus? I thought that Vizquel was the more normal comp for him, but I’m not a Rangers fan so I don’t follow religiously. This is the first time I believe I’ve seen it, and after looking at the numbers it’s just not a comp I’d throw around any time soon.
RIP Nick Adenhart
by gatling on Sep 24, 2025 9:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
as a 20/21 year old rookie, Andrus has an 86 OPS+
Vizquel only beat that mark in 8 of his 21 seasons, and the first time was at age 25.
It’s difficult to find stat based comps for Andrus because the pool of 20/21 year old big leaguers isn’t that large to draw from. I think Alomar could be his ultimate offensive upside, and I also think that the Vizquel/Ozzie comps are way off the mark because his bat is significantly better than those guys.
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by tricer on Sep 25, 2025 6:47 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You're right
I ran thru quite a few MI types to see if I could find any comparables. I didn’t go strictly by age, so I looked at guys like Tony Fernandez, Tony Phillips, Alan Trammell, Lou Whitaker, Frank White, Jay Bell, Barry Larkin and a few others. All of them have various reasons why they don’t work as comps at this point. As far as age/numbers go the two closest hits I see are Edgar Renteria and Jose Reyes. Both posted better OPS+ numbers as 20 year old rookies, but both regressed some for a couple of years(more in Renteria’s case). It’s hard to say at this point because we don’t know what he will improve and how much it improves. Reyes improved his plate discipline quite a bit, Renteria’s improved at times but it’s been wildly inconsistent. Renteria settled in as a low double digit HR hitter with solid doubles power where Reyes has shown flashes of a bit more power.
Depending on how Andrus develops, I can see a wide range of possibilities for him, but it’s just too soon to know what he becomes and it makes it hard compare him to anyone at this point outside of Vizquel because he’s shown the ability to be at least that good so far.
RIP Nick Adenhart
by gatling on Sep 25, 2025 12:26 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
No, I haven't seen it anywhere
But watching Elvis play just about every day this year — I see room for massive improvement.
I wouldn’t is likely by any means — but I don’t see how anyone can just outright dismiss it when the kid is still 21.
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
by Dirk Diggler on Sep 25, 2025 8:23 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Call me a pessimist or what have you
but this isn’t any different to me than the Reese Havens-Chase Utley comp made by Dewey a month or so ago. When guys like Alomar or Utley improve so drastically, comparing them to players like Andrus and/or Havens doesn’t work because it’s not a standard path of development. I can see Alomar as the perfect world outcome or absolute ceiling for Andrus-if everything breaks rights for him and he improves his plate discipline dramatically and develops more power. I’d also say at this point it looks like Vizquel is probably the floor for Andrus, as he’s shown the ability to be at least an offensive player equal to Vizquel’s career average-while doing it as a rookie. At this point Vizquel is still the most comparable player to Andrus, but I think it gets harder as Andrus improves because shortstops with the defensive prowess that Andrus has are rare. How Andrus develops from here is the key though, because he’s so young there are so many possible outcomes it’s hard to say where he ends up.
RIP Nick Adenhart
by gatling on Sep 25, 2025 11:11 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
That's fair
and/or Havens doesn’t work because it’s not a standard path of development. I can see Alomar as the perfect world outcome or absolute ceiling for Andrus-if everything breaks rights for him and he improves his plate discipline dramatically and develops more power.
Feel free to call me a homer also. Renteria is another comp I’ve used before like you said above.
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
by Dirk Diggler on Sep 25, 2025 1:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It is much more difficult to find an above average SS when you combine both
the Offensive and Defensive sides of the game than 2B or 3B.
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by laxtonto on Sep 23, 2025 5:02 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Beckham
“thou shall not covet the light hitting middle infielder”, this may be a little exteme but beckham is loads better offensively
by jarjets89 on Sep 23, 2025 5:09 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
"thou shall not underestimate the impact of defense on the game"
And Elvis is light years ahead of Gordon defensively.
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by Tyler on Sep 23, 2025 6:53 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
i think if you prefer andrus, then you re ovverrrratinggg defense
by jarjets89 on Sep 23, 2025 9:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Andrus is a +10 defender as a 20 year old.
Assuming his glove becomes more consistent and he improves his positioning, it’s pretty easy to project him as a +15-20 defender in the next few years. If he has a league average bat, that’s a 4 win player. If his bat is slightly above-average bat in the future, we’re talking about a superstar.
Beckham is going to outhit him, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be more valuable.
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by Tyler on Sep 24, 2025 3:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Seems like your argument is based a lot on Andrus getting a lot better and Beckham staying closer to the same.
I mean, you speak a lot of Andrus’ potential improvements, while you don’t for Beckham. Assuming, easy to project, all very convenient for an argument. I’m not saying it isn’t possible but you’re going out on a limb. Defense tends to skew more than offense- it’s very difficult to project at this point.
by Daniel Berlyn on Sep 24, 2025 8:57 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
well Beckham is a college player several years older than Elvis
it seems more likely that Elvis is more likely to improve
Feliz says his greatest thrill was striking out Boston Red Sox DH David Ortiz, one of his heroes. Yet, when he called to tell his parents, his mother had a request: Strike out New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez, too.
"So when I did that," Feliz says, "I told my mom, 'There you go. There's your present. Don't ask me to strike anyone else out, OK?'
by blalock84 on Sep 26, 2025 7:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
nay, i think you are underrating it
but whatever, alot of the newer thoughts on defense would disagree with your statement to
Feliz says his greatest thrill was striking out Boston Red Sox DH David Ortiz, one of his heroes. Yet, when he called to tell his parents, his mother had a request: Strike out New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez, too.
"So when I did that," Feliz says, "I told my mom, 'There you go. There's your present. Don't ask me to strike anyone else out, OK?'
by blalock84 on Sep 26, 2025 7:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Gordo. I don't think he'll stay at 3rd if he can play SS/2B
and he looks like the next Jeff Kent [offensively] at 2B. yes plz
by daveh33 on Sep 23, 2025 6:59 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Tough
I love Beckham though. His offense is huge.
by sjkqw on Sep 23, 2025 7:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
When in doubt, go for defense
As a fan, I like Beckham more than Andrus. As a GM, I take Andrus every day of the week.
by JonBBT on Sep 23, 2025 7:33 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Alomar vs. Andrus
throw in that both guys stole 20 something bases in their first year with a very high success rate and it would be hard for them to be any more comparable . While we all rightfully remember Alomar in his prime as a great hitter and one of the best few players in the game, he didn’t break a .725 OPS until his fourth (age 23 season), and didn’t manage double digit homers or a 900 OPS until his sixth (age 25) season. Obviously there is no guarantee that Andrus will develop along these lines but my point is that it is more than a bit early to be classifying him as a “light hitter”.
by Dalman on Sep 23, 2025 10:34 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Except that
they played in vastly different eras and environments so you can’t just compare surface stats the way you’re doing. Alomar has a point advantage in OPS+ over Andrus in their respective rookie seasons, so while the slash stats look similar they really aren’t. I’m not sure anyone here is calling Andrus a light hitter, but it’s more that’s he so young there are a wide range of outcomes for him and that makes it hard to know where he’ll end up as a hitter. Guys like Alomar or Barry Larkin could be perfect world outcomes for Andrus, but he has so much work to do to improve/change his game to get to that point it doesn’t seem reasonable to call them comparable.
RIP Nick Adenhart
by gatling on Sep 25, 2025 12:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Hard to say
I LIKE Beckham more, but he is 2 years older and is mediocre (for now - I happen to think he’ll become a very good defensive player at third) defensively. I don’t think Andrus will ever be a special offensive player, but I do think he’ll be better than Vizquel with the bat. And his defense is a big reason why the Rangers don’t suck.
I think I take Andrus just because finding a real shortstop these days seems so difficult to do. I think Beckham will be the bigger star though (because I think he’ll hit 25-30 homers for a bunch of seasons).
by thejd44 on Sep 23, 2025 11:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Andrus cause defense, above average defense, is one step toward a better rangers team.
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by NYTXFAN on Sep 24, 2025 7:34 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Elvis Andrus
Anytime you can build your team up the middle with a young star in the making you should grab that player.
by wilriv21 on Sep 25, 2025 2:55 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
funny how he was thought of as the 2nd or 3rd most important component
of that trade at the time the deal was made
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by Walter Sobchak on Oct 1, 2025 11:37 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Escobar vs. Andrus....
….would have been a way better debate…..
by sheetskout on Sep 27, 2025 9:33 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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