Best Of San Francisco Giants: Top 10 Utility Seasons
By Phil Watson
3. Orlando Cepeda, 1961 STARTS: 75 at 1B, 59 in LF, 17 in RF GAMES: 81 at 1B, 63 in LF, 18 in RF
| Year ▾ | Age | G | PA | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 23 | 152 | 637 | 105 | 182 | 28 | 4 | 46 | 142 | 12 | 8 | 39 | 91 | .311 | .362 | .609 | .970 | 156 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table Generated 3/4/2014.
Cepeda made his fifth and sixth All-Star Game appearances and was runner-up to Frank Robinson of the Reds in the MVP balloting while leading the National League with 46 home runs, 142 RBI and 12.7 at-bats per homer. He was fourth in the league with a 156 OPS-plus and 19.0 Power-Speed number, seventh with a 5.8 Offensive WAR and 118 Runs Created and 10th with a 5.7 WAR (eighth among position players). Cepeda was second in the NL with a .609 slugging percentage, 356 total bases and 78 extra base hits; third with nine hit by pitches; fourth with a .970 OPS; fifth with 105 runs and 182 hits; sixth with 91 strikeouts and 11 intentional walks; seventh with a .311 batting average, 28 doubles and 12 stolen bases; and 10th with a 60.00 stolen base percentage (12-for-20). He had two months in which he clouted double-digit homers, belting 11 in May and 10 in the final month, and had at least 24 RBI every month but April.
