December Pick ups

[the 'stache]

Now, getting to your question of shortstops in the National League during Dave Concepcion's run of All Star selections.

Dave made the All Star team nine times in a ten year period between 1973 and 1982. Any statistics I post will be obtained within this time frame.

First, a look at the men who were voted to the N.L. All Star squad at shortstop during this ten year run (starters listed first). Typically, two or three shortstops were selected each year, so Concepcion, even when he did get a nod, did not go alone.

1973: Chris Speirer, Concepcion, Bill Russell
1974: Larry Bowa, Don Kessinger, Speirer
1975: Concepcion, Bowa
1976: Concepcion, Bowa, Russell
1977: Concepcion, Gary Templeton
1978: Bowa, Concepcion
1979: Bowa, Concepcion, Craig Reynolds, Templeton
1980: Russell, Concepcion
1981: Concepcion, Ozzie Smith
1982: Concepcion, Smith

If I assign 2 points for each starting nod, and 1 point for every reserve selection, the points break down this way:

Concepcion 14
Bowa 8
Russell 4
Speirer 3
Templeton 2
Smith 2
Kessinger 1
Reynolds 1

Concepcion was by far the most selected shortstop, and started in five of ten seasons. That, however, does not directly correlate to worthiness. Let's look at total WAR by shortstop, as well as offensive WAR and defensive WAR. I'll include also the years the individual shortstops played.

Concepcion, 1973-1982. 37.0 WAR, 30.7 oWAR, 14.8 dWAR
Bill Russell, 1973 to 1982. 22.5 WAR, 15.3 oWAR, 15.6 dWAR
Gary Templeton, 1976 to 1982. 21.3 WAR, 18.4 oWAR, 7.9 dWAR
Larry Bowa, 1973-1982. 16.3 WAR, 14.5 oWAR, 10.5 dWAR
Ozzie Smith 1978-1982. 15.9 WAR, 8.0 oWAR, 12.3 dWAR
Chris Speirer 1973-1982. 15.7 WAR, 14.2 oWAR, 9.8 dWAR

By WAR, Dave Concepcion is the clear front runner at the position. A 5.0 WAR is considered All Star level, and Concepcion averaged a 4.6 WAR per 650 plate appearances. So, he was, on average, playing at a near All Star level each season for a decade.

What about the others? How did they perform by WAR on a weighted basis?

Gary Templeton, 4.2 WAR per 650 PA.
Ozzie Smith, 3.8 WAR per 650 PA.
Bill Russell, 3.1 WAR per 650 PA.
Chris Speirer, 2.4 WAR per 650 PA.
Larry Bowa, 2.3 WAR per 650 PA.

Actual statistics per 162 games played:

Concepcion, .282 AVG, 75 R, 174 H, 34 2B, 4 3B, 10 HR, 76 RBI, 25 SB, 8 CS, .723 OPS
Templeton, .296 AVG, 99 R, 200 H, 29 2B, 15 3B, 6 HR, 66 RBI, 32 SB, 19 CS, .725 OPS
Smith, .234 AVG, 73 R, 143 H, 20 2B, 5 3B, 1 HR, 39 RBI, 39 SB, 12 CS, .588 OPS
Russell, .268 AVG, 64 R, 160 H, 25 2B, 4 3B, 4 HR, 54 RBI, 13 SB, 6 SB, .652 OPS
Speirer, .246 AVG, 56 R, 135 H, 24 2B, 5 3B, 8 HR, 55 RBI, 3 SB, 4 CS, .672 OPS
Bowa, .267 AVG, 77 R, 169 H, 20 2B, 8 3B, 2 HR, 42 RBI, 26 SB, 8 CS, .633 OPS

I think it's clear that Dave Concepcion was the best shortstop in the National League during this ten year period. He offered the best combination of offense and defense. Who was second best? I'd say Gary Templeton, hands down. If we omit his 1982 season at the plate, from 1976 to 1981, he was a .305 hitter, putting up 101 runs and 207 hits, along with 16 triples and 32 home runs per 162 games played. That's pretty sensational production from the position. And he was no slouch with the glove, either, averaging 1.9 dWAR per 650 PA. He didn't win a Gold Glove, but put up some pretty strong numbers. He had a 1.7 dWAR in 1978 and 1980, a 1.6 in 1981, and a 1.5 in 1982. His best season with the glove was in 1987, when he put up a 2.3 dWAR. For comparison purposes, Ozzie Smith typically put up between 2.5 and 3.5 dWAR each season.

After Templeton, it's a bit of a crap shoot. Ozzie Smith averaged a 3.1 dWAR per 650 PA's during this period, but he was terrible offensively with that .588 OPS. Interestingly, between 1978 and 1982, Ozzie Smith had as many stolen bases (177) as he did RBIs.

I would rank the shortstops in this era (pre Ozzie Smith):
Dave Concepcion
Gary Templeton
Bill Russell
Larry Bowa

And, to answer the question originally postulated, no, I don't think Dave Concepcion received his numerous All Star nominations simply because he was a member of the Big Red Machine. He was the class of his position in the National League. If I needed a guy to man the shortstop position between 1973 and 1979, Dave Concepcion was the best there was in the N.L., though I may have taken Templeton in 1977. In 1980, Templeton was the best. In 1981, Concepcion was again the best, and in 1982, Ozzie Smith came into his own with a 5.0 WAR, in large part due to his 3.4 dWAR. He still wasn't hitting, but that would soon change, as Smith would start hitting in the .270s and better. By 1989, he was putting up an MVP level WAR of 7.3, with a spectacular 4.7 dWAR.

Of course, in the American League, Robin Yount, Alan Trammell and Cal Ripken Jr were about to change what was possible with the position, as they combined the offensive capabilities of Ernie Banks with great defense.