John Henry Lloyd

Career Batting:.328 BA .376 OBP .427 SLG. 57 HR. 11,188 PA.(1906-1931)

This is an important one. Pop Lloyd should add a name to the greatest SS of all time question, and any MLE that leaves him as anything less than a no-doubt HOFer should be interrogated aggressively.

Form his debut in 1906 as a 22 year old until the tail end of his career, he was excellent offensively, hitting for a high average with some power, and a roughly average eye for the strike zone. He was shockingly consistent, hitting over .300 for 15 consecutive seasons in these projections. He should be among the league leaders in hits a half dozen times and in steals a few years as well, a testament both to his speed and his baserunning acumen.

While there are some great years, especially in the stretch from 1909 to 1916, Pops’ value is in the body of work formed by his career. We have him ending with 3400 hits and nearly 500 2Bs over roughly a quarter-century of years. Truly spectacular.

Lloyd debuts at 2B and then shifts to SS the following year, playing there until the mid 1920s, when he shifts back to 2B and, eventually, to 1B as his mobility declines, you know, in his 40s. Lloyd was an excellent, perhaps even gold-glove level, SS in his prime, especially from, say, 1913 to 1918 or so. His later move to 2B was fairly disastrous, but he was shockingly good 1B at the end of his career, well into his 40s.

There is a challenge on what to do with the very long tail of Lloyd’s career. There are a few thing sin play here: he carried a not-quite-full-time player load well into his 40s historically; he managed those teams, so he was able to write his own name down a lot; and obviously, the historical record is just not full of many players hitting fantastically at age 48. We’ve decided to fade him out fairly slowly, becoming a part time player in his early 40s and a very occasional player until 1931 (age 47). We could be convinced his playing career end after 1923 and we could be convinced he deserved another 100 PAs from 1921 on, but for now, we’re happy with this shape.

It also allows for his eye popping 1928 season, albeit in under 100 PAs, which is a fun curiosity.

One of the all time greats.

NameJohn Henry Lloyd (Pop)
ID / Statushenry 048joh / Draft
PosSS
DOB / i9s Career04/25/1884 / 1906 - 1931
BirthplacePalatka, FL (USA)
Height / Weight5'11" / 180
B / TL / R

 

Batting Projections

YearABH2B3BHRBBSOSBCSBAOBPSLGOPS
19063748911503135146.238.296.294.590
190742111018612925146.261.309.340.649
190849716618722739278.334.368.410.778
190944716619723143229.371.412.459.871
19105892083312449463710.353.403.470.873
19115852233214554497913.381.433.509.942
19125831863312553467921.319.376.443.819
19136422263311156534213.352.404.442.846
1914575178261434841317.310.363.419.782
191564422932122654710532.356.415.452.867
1916623207271314238328.332.374.422.796
1917568199351234633488.350.399.470.869
191862419229924433498.308.353.393.746
191949515726702929275.317.355.398.753
1920426142209339214019.333.389.444.833
1921333111198326162511.333.382.465.847
19224671662110637173513.355.403.482.885
19233681081963231494.293.335.402.737
192420077922175165.385.433.480.913
1925267841033216175.315.365.408.773
19262235983211651.265.299.354.653
1927184456108831.245.276.288.564
192874303135321.405.443.5951.038
192965201003321.308.338.323.661
193083211011411.253.262.301.563
19313471102400.206.250.294.544
TOTALS10,3913,40649018557797664761216.328.376.427.803

 

Pitching Projections