minimal speed, limited power and questionable pitch selection

According to the New York Times, Rocky Bleier Jr. plays third base for the Pirates.

Sanchez was 13 months old, with a pin in his right foot and a cast covering most of his right leg. But when the wagon came to a halt, he stood up, stepped over the side and walked out on his own.

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” said Michelle Sanchez, Freddy’s mother. “From that moment, he has never stopped being a miracle.”

Lee Jenkins also reports that

Tracy is treating the batting title as if it were a playoff spot. He reviews Sanchez’s statistics — better against lefties than righties; better in the day than at night — to make sure he is using him in the most advantageous situations.

So if Freddy does not win the title, we can blame Tracy. This is a good development in the whole batting title race thing. The stakes are raised. I am finally prepared to jump into the fray and pay attention.

Seriously, I would not monkey with small-sample splits. The day/night stuff is probably noise and the batter vs. pitcher data, unless it fits the general overall scheme, is probably noise too. I'd start Freddy five times a week against the type of pitcher he looks more comfortable against. He's a right-handed lefty masher, so it makes sense to keep him away from the kind of right-hander that's tough on him.

This is the same thing I'd be doing with everyone on the roster, every week of the season.

If Freddy's going to win the battle title, he's not going to win it because the manager games an extra percentage point or two studying Strat-o-matic cards.

And more to the point, I question Tracy's decision to not remain neutral. He should do what he's been doing all along. By conspicuously managing Freddy with the batting average title as high priority, we can now all blame him if Freddy slumps the rest of the month.