<BELL-tray>
Adrian Beltre is a mystery wrapped inside an enigma. He signed on with the Mariners after having a tremendous season with the Dodgers in 2004, only to post a .716 OPS in 2005. After a historically awful start to his 2006 season, fans were wondering if thing would only be getting worse for Beltre. However, he managed to have a fairly good season, hitting 25 homers and winding up with an OPS near .800.
But while his bat is a question mark, Beltre can always be counted on to provide excellent defense from the third base position. He shows great range and a very strong arm. He can also be counted on to make clutch grossly illegal takeout slides at second base.
Beltre shows a few quirks when at bat:
- Doing a little-tap dance routine when taking a ball.
- Being the first to appeal to the first base ump on a check swing. This is almost always done by the opposing catcher.
- Mistaking the low and away slider for a delicious slice of chocolate cake, which he absolutely must reach out for and grab.
The following image is something of a metaphor for Beltre's inconsistencies with the bat (see Ironically batless Adrian Beltre):
At times Yaydrian! is used to refer to Beltre. Previously this required proper tribute to acblue, but since being yelled on 8/10/08 during a travesty of a Mariners game, it is considered to be in the public domain.
Some people are convinced that defenses know exactly how to play Adrian Beltre, meaning that he sucks because he doesn't adjust where he hits the ball. In reality, this is a stupid excuse used by people to dismiss his odd BABIP/LD% discrepancies during the 2008 season. This gave Lookout Landing the "ADRIAN BELTRE NEEDS TO AIM BETTER" meme. No seriously - he needs to aim better.
Also, if you think Adrian Beltre is bad and/or overrated, Jeff hates you and finds you to be stupid.
