Break It Down: Melky Cabrera Has Two Words For You

Are you ready?
You think you can tell us what to do? You think you can tell us what to wear?
You think you're better? Well you better get ready.

Bow to the Melk Man.

Edit: Disregard text. GIFs still amazing

Melky Cabrera made a triumphant return to Atlanta's Turner Field last week, the same place that he endured the worst season of his professional career. Cabrera ate the Braves' pitching alive, two hands at a time, going 6-13 with 5 runs, 3 RBI and one cherry-on-top home run.

A main piece in the 2010 Braves-Yankees trade for Javier Vazquez, Cabrera hit .255 in Atlanta with only 4 home runs over 458 at bats. Cabrera was mostly relegated to the bench during the Braves epic playoff battle with the Giants that year, and was a non-factor once on the field going hitless in 8 at bats. They said he was fat and out of shape. Melky was released by the Braves after only one season.

That was 2010, and after a rehab stint with a minor league team in Kansas City, the Melk Man has been reborn in 2012 as a serious MVP candidate with the San Francisco Giants. He's leading the Giants offense with a .356/.400/.534 slash line, in addition to leading all of baseball in hits (132 as of today).

That's right. Melky Cabrera. You were shocked he made the All Star team. You were shocked he won the All Star MVP award, and whether or not he wins the National League MVP, he wants you to know that the man once known as Masapan Con Leche should now be known as Maza Con Leche.
Also, he has two words for you:

After the game, Chipper Jones was very upset, telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "that's Melky, and that's why he's not here anymore." Jones, at 67 years of age, believes in an old school version of the game, adding that the Melk Man's actions "won't be forgotten." 

Melky's response below (56K beware):

Break It Down: MIKE TROUT IS A MAN. HE'S 20.

"If he's not the best player in the game by the end of this season, he will be by the end of next season."

ESPN's Buster Olney dropped this gem on us last Friday, quoting an anonymous veteran talent evaluator's assessment of Angels rookie Mike Trout, setting off a Twitter firestorm. 

Superlatives aside, we cannot ignore the great monster season that the Salvelinus of Swat is having in Anaheim. The numbers aren't obvious -- he doesn't have 20 home runs or 20 stolen bases (not yet) -- but his impact is undeniable. The Angels sat at a disappointing 6-14 before Trout was called up to the Bigs. With Trout atop the lineup (and this Pujols guy finally coming around), the Angels have since gone 18-11. 

Trout in the leadoff spot is a nightmare for pitchers facing an Albert Pujols led offense. Heading into tonight's game, Trout is seeing 4.26 pitches per plate appearance, placing him at 16th in the league (minimum 100 AB). He's grasped the concept of leadoff hitter early, working deep counts, not chasing pitches off the plate. Trout holds a .367 on-base percentage, and once he's on base, he's running. Trout is now 8/10 in stolen bases, numbers which might even be modest at this point, as the same veteran talent evaluator quoted by Olney echoed sentiments that Trout may very well be the "fastest player in the game."

Speed isn't the only important element in Trout's game, of course. Living up to the 5-Tool hype, Trout holds a .491 slugging percentage, good enough for third among all rookies (behind fellow wunderkind Bryce Harper and Cardinals slugger Matt Carpenter). Eleven of his 32 hits are of the extra base variety, including four home runs.  You don't want to put Trout on base, but you also can't give in over the plate. Basically, he'll punish you either way. 

When Trout puts it all together, he has a day like this:

In case you missed it, let's take a look at that infield single:

(via SB Nation)

Right now, even in the instances when Trout doesn't hit a line drive, he's making up for it with his extraordinary wheels. In the Majors and Minors combined, Trout owns a career .383 BABIP. While a high BABIP (batting average on balls in play) usually indicates a a certain amount of luck for hitters, Trout, like Ichiro before him, records high BABIP numbers thanks to his ability to put the ball in play and run like a bat out of hell. If he continues to put up BABIP numbers like this, he'll be number two all time, sitting right above none other than Ty Cobb.

Trout isn't elite at everything. According to Tater Trot Tracker, he doesn't run the bases too fast or too slow when he hits home runs. He's very average. Adam Rosales isn't impressed.

A lot of baseball remains to be played in 2012, but if Trout stays consistent, the Angels will look like a dark horse team entering the playoffs. Not only is he the future of the franchise, he might be their most important player right now, playing the indispensable Kato to Albert Pujols' very expensive Britt Reid/Green Hornet. All of this coming from a guy who was born only two months before Marky Mark and Funky Bunch took over the Billboard charts.

Ladies and gentlemen, Mike Trout is a man. He's 20.

Another PHS Break It Down analysis from Perez Neifi and Trill Buckner.

Break It Down: Yu Darvish's 10K Performance Against NYY

Later tonight, Yu Darvish will take the hill against the Toronto Blue Jays, looking for his fourth win in his first five Major League starts. The Japanese righty has handled the pressure well thus far, and it was no more evident than during his performance last Tuesday against the New York Yankees.

All 38 of the pitches in his diverse repertoire were dialed in, leading to 10 strikeouts, a bevy of poorly calculated racial puns by the Texas faithful and one extremely satisfying Alex Rodriguez roll over into an inning-ending, bases loaded double play.

Click through to check out the full PHS analysis.