Miguel Cabrera is the greatest right-handed hitter since Joe DiMaggio.
Cabrera, 30, is coming off his second straight American League Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. He is the first player to win back-to-back AL MVPs since Frank Thomas did it for the White Sox from 1993-1994. Despite suffering injuries late in the 2013 season, there is no doubt Cabrera can continue his historic pace.
"He can field. He can hit. He has a lot of power," said former White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen. "He can hit the opposite way. He has everything you can ask of a major-league player."
A player who fields well, hits and hits for power. Doesn't that sound a lot another legend? A legend named Joe DiMaggio for instance?
DiMaggio often had people refer to him as a greatest hitter who ever lived. The Yankee Clipper criticized announcers at events when they didn't acknowledge him as such. It's been nearly 15 years since DiMaggio's death and the torch has been passed on. Cabrera is easily the game's best hitter and one day, could be known as the best hitter alive.
"We haven't found a weakness in him yet," Frank Robinson said when he was managing his Nationals against Cabrera's Marlins. "There are ways of getting him out, but if you do it too often, he'll burn you."
That must mean something, especially coming from a Hall of Famer like Robinson. Many of you reading this article will never play in the Major Leagues. However watching Cabrera play makes you feel like your at the ballpark. He's brought back a passion for the game, something that's been lost for a while; something that hasn't been seen since DiMaggio's time.
Think back a couple of seasons ago. The Yankees and Tigers were facing off. I believe the game took place at Comerica Park. Cabrera was in the midst of a slump, but you'd never realize it by looking at him. He had this demeanor about him at the plate, as if there was a purpose for every swing. As I recall, Cabrera hit two home runs that day. His swing was swift, yet powerful, like a jet through the air.
I was watching that game with my grandfather. He saw DiMaggio play and said how Cabrera's swing mimicked that of DiMaggio. It wasn't just the swing that mimicked the former Yankees' great. It was the statistics put up by that swing and the honor of the man who swung.
Cabrera would go on to win the Triple Crown in 2012, the first player to lead MLB in batting average, home runs and runs batted in since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. It's only fitting Cabrera would be the first Triple Crown winner in forty plus seasons. His manner of play embodies the very ideals of baseball itself. Here we have a man, born in Venezula, who followed a dream. His dream, to play Major League Baseball, was fulfilled through hard work and determination. Through baseball, Cabrera has become a legend in his own right, someone even DiMaggio would tip his cap towards in respect. That is the essence of baseball and the American dream as a whole.
"He's as good as it gets and the sky is the limit," said former teammate Dan Uggla. "He leads by both example and performance."
Leading by example and performance sounds like something DiMaggio did. Actually, it's what Cabrera is doing. We should all appreciate the time we have to Cabrera because soon enough another ballplayer is going to come along, trying to be the next Miguel Cabrera. The only problem is he can't be.
There is only one Miguel Cabrera.
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