A friend and I have been arguing about the relative worth of Jason Kendall.  Jason Kendall is a very unusual player.  A catcher who bats leadoff, a player with very little home run potential, a player who gets hit a lot, the best player in baseball batting with 2 strikes, he calls a great game...

But I argue what makes him GREAT is his OATPARP.  "Outs at the Plate Above Replacement Player".  Today Kendall made another out at the plated when Kotsay threw home to cut down a runner.  I liked Ramon Hernandez but he almost never tagged anyone out at the plate.  That play at the plate is huge, the runner has made it all the way around the bases, now it is either a run or an out.  I would count the 2 times Kendall ended the game on a batters interference play an OATPARP play too.  I would also include that play in MN where he shorthopped a foul tip and held it up as a strikeout. I don't know how many outs at the plate Kendall has made catching but I would guess it is about 1 per week.   That is pure OATPARP, it is an out he gets that not too many other catchers get.  He is crafty and tough on offense and defense, and he is constantly doing everything possible to either get on base, or get the other team to make outs.  He is 3rd on the team in runs scored too.  The A's play the most 1-run games in baseball and Kendall does a damn fine job making sure they are ones on top.