Game MVP: Nick Swisher [5/10/13]

Continuing the MVP series, Friday’ game MVP is Nick Swisher.  To get your Nick Swisher virtual trading card, send me an e-mail to thejake4eternity@gmail.com, with the phrase “Bro” in the subject line.

Nick Swisher (Designated Hitter, #33)

Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

MVP Rating:  Star

Game Stats:

-3 for 4 (.750 batting average)

-6 total bases (1.500 slugging percentage)

-2 runs scored (scored in 50% of at bats)

-1 RBI (13th of the season)

Details:

Nick Swisher is set to become the highest-paid player in the history of the Indians franchise.  He and his wife (actress JoAnna Garcia Swisher) left New York this offseason to sign a four-year contract with Cleveland, with a fifth-year option which could bring the total value to $70 million.  He has since become a threat on the field and brought a great set of positive vibes to the clubhouse.  Swisher has slugged at least 20 home runs every season for the past 8 years, and is on pace to do so again this year.

Since coming back from some shoulder discomfort, Swisher had been in some sort of slump, going 5 for 22 in a small sample of games.  Now, the fact that a “slump” for Swish is hitting slightly under .250 is a true testament to just how consistent he is.  But on Friday, Nick Swisher hit like a champ, coming up a home run short of a cycle.  The Indians lost the game 10 to 4 thanks to a rough outing from youngster Corey Kluber, but Swisher was a bright spot and certainly not the reason for the loss.  He scored the first run of the game with a double in the first, then managed to reach base two more times over the course of the game.

Nick Swisher’s six bases on three hits over four at bats represent a game slash line of .750/.750/1.500, giving him an OPS of 2.250.  This spectacular performance raised his slash line for the season to .275/.375/.495, exactly the kind of numbers Terry Francona and the rest of Cleveland were hoping to see from him this season.  Hopefully Nick Swisher will continue to impress as a model of consistency, and put up strong power numbers over the course of the 2013 season.