The Worst .300 Hitter Ever

"Wes Helms isn't that bad. He is hitting .300"

If anyone says this to you, either headbutt them or just walk away. Because they have no idea what they are talking about.

Yes, Wes Helms is hitting .301 right now. He has 22 hits, 18 of which are singles. That equates out to a stellar .356 SLG. But if he's hitting .301, he must have a great OBP, right? Oh of course not. He has only walked 5 times this year, a walk rate of 1 walk per 15.2 plate appearances (his career rate is 1 per 13.1 plate appearnces), which is an OBP of .338. Add all that up and you have an OPS of .694, good for 10th among 3rd basemen in the NL. For a comparison, David Bell had an OPS of .743 last year with the Phillies.

Only David Bell could field. Helms is an absolute butcher at third, currently sporting the second worst fielding percentage for a third baseman in the majors.

But he was the only third baseman available right? Of course not. Though Akinori Iwamura just went on the DL, he is currently hitting .339 with an OPS of .961. Wouldn't be a bad replacement for Helms, eh?

Maybe Helms will start getting some extra base hits. Maybe he will figure out how to play an adequate third base. But right now he stinks, both on offense and defense.