Welcome to the second part of the 2018 regional preview from what is quite possibly the most ambitious site in Swedish baseball. The series will consist of four parts; pitchers, outfielders, infielders and the opposition. When going through position players, some in the Sharks organization are versatile and will have logged innings all over the place. They will be included where they have played the most innings.

Disclaimer: This series of previews is the opinion of one person and does not necessarily reflect the organization’s views or anyone else’s for that matter.
Additional note: No Elitserien stats are included in hitters statistics.

Daniel André

The reigning Sharks Home Run Derby winner proved that he is just that, a slugger. While he did hit into a double play to end the 2017 campaign, he took the responsibility on his shoulders and has now been selected for the Swedish national (softball) team.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2014	8	6	0	0	.000	0	0	0	.000	.250	.250	2	1	0	2
2015	15	12	3	3	.250	0	0	0	.250	.400	.650	1	2	0	2
2016	28	25	3	3	.120	0	0	0	.120	.214	.334	1	5	1	1
2017	21	20	4	9	.450	1	0	0	.500	.476	.976	1	2	0	8

On the defensive side of things, André put up 16 perfect  (as perfect as the flawed fielding percentage stat is) innings in the outfield. He also logged eleven innings at second base and showed that versatility is a good thing to have.

When one see a jump in OPS like André did, you can’t really complain. But he did have his dry spells during the season where he would be too eager to swing at bad balls and give the pitcher the upper hand during an at bat. Going forward, pitch recognition and drawing more walks would make André a lock in the Sharks outfield and move him higher up in Edgren’s lineup.

Joel Earnest

The fan favorite had a career year in 2017. Not only did he improve across the board and had his best year at the plate, he also recorded his first double and infield hit for the Sharks. A good thing to have done before turning 70.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2012	8	6	1	1	.166	0	0	0	.166	.375	.541	1	1	0	1
2013	10	9	1	1	.111	0	0	0	.111	.200	.311	0	1	0	0
2014	28	26	0	1	.038	0	0	0	.038	.107	.145	2	7	1	3
2015	31	31	5	10	.322	0	0	0	.322	.322	.645	0	8	0	6
2016	23	19	2	4	.210	0	0	0	.210	.318	.528	2	9	1	5
2017	26	22	3	6	.272	1	0	0	.318	.384	.702	4	8	0	2

Earnest fought to stay off the high fastballs all season and he actually did better as the season progressed. Not only did he excel in department that has him stay a favorite among the Sharks fanbase (pitch recognition), but he was once overheard talking about OBP. Looking more closely at the numbers, Earnest drew four walks last season which is huge, not only because he put up a respectable .384 OBP but because that almost totals his previous five seasons put together (five). This can be compared to when he hit .322 but had an OBP to match. His K/BB ratio dramatically improved and as a result of that, so did his performance.

Defensively, he had a disastrous year at first base with a .714 fielding percentage. That might be because the stat itself sucks (and I have nothing else to work from) or that he was only allowed to play there for a single inning. Otherwise, Earnest was mostly seen patrolling the Shark Park right field and managed somehow to not get a ball to catch during the entire season. A feat that is impressive in itself.

Fernando Miguel Carvalho

Still looking for that first hit, still looking for more innings to play.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2016	6	5	0	0	.000	0	0	0	0	.166	.166	1	3	0	0
2017	7	4	1	0	.000	0	0	0	0	.333	.333	2	3	0	1

Carvalho score the first run of his career last season which was a step in the right direction. A larger sample size is needed to really evaluate his performances properly and hopefully, he will get that chance during the upcoming season.

Fabian Hanning

The Sharks favorite German took less at bats last season but saw his stats improve. Quite possibly because he tried to be more German than before.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2015	13	9	0	1	.111	0	0	0	.111	.384	.495	3	5	0	1
2016	33	27	8	3	.111	0	0	0	.111	.272	.383	3	10	0	2
2017	21	20	2	4	.200	0	0	0	.200	.238	.438	1	2	1	2

What really stands out about the 2017 season from Hanning was that he managed to cut down on his swings and misses. That, in turn, enabled him to make more contact and strike out less. Great analysis? Thanks. The German was most prominently a figure in the Sharks outfield but also at the hot corner, without booking any errors.

Looking into the crystal ball, Hanning needs to up his performance at the plate to keep getting reps but the 2017 season was a step in the right direction. If he continues on this path, great things are sure to come from the latest German Shark.

Lars Karlsson

A six-year layoff seems to have done Karlsson good as a he provided stats worthy of a video game player.

Year	Club	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2010	Malmö	6	6	1	1	.166	0	0	0	.166	.166	.333	0	0	0	0
2011	Malmö	12	11	5	5	.454	0	0	0	.454	.500	.954	1	2	0	2
2017	Göteborg	8	6	4	4	.666	1	0	0	.833	.750	.1583	2	0	0	2

Obviously, Karlsson has a sample size that’s not really smart to draw any conclusions from. On the other hand, those pretty numbers look intriguing. There will be ample expectations from the Sharks faithful going into the season when one puts up a .1583 OPS, even if it only is on six at bats.

Karlsson has worked hard during the winter to be an acceptable catcher. While no one believes or expects he can take down veteran catcher Toofan Khazal, it would be nice for the Sharks to have some kind of backup behind the plate.

Rickard Kronqvist

Yummy, that’s a moneyball type player if there ever was. Except for the lack of homers, but hey, you can’t have it all. Kronqvist provided a lot in the on base percentage department during a season where the Sharks were sorely lacking plate discipline.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2017	14	6	5	1	.166	0	0	0	.166	.642	.809	8	2	0	0

And when we talk about value to a team, ‘The Potato’ provided the most value of any player on the team in a very underrated category – clubhouse presence. With immense energy, positivity that never seemed to end and always a kind word, he provided a much needed energy injection for the Sharks.

As far as playing time goes, Kronqvist showed that he can pretty much play any position as he was seen at first, third, behind the plate, in the outfield and on the mound during the 2017 season.

Daniel Linnås

Another Shark who is still looking for his first Regional series hit. Linnås did get one or two in SWBL play and that shiny OBP is nothing to scoff at.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2017	14	8	1	0	.000	0	0	0	.000	.384	.384	4	6	0	0

Linnås was one of the more persistent practice attendees during last season. And it payed off! The youngster improved probably more than anyone during the year and late in the season, it started to show. More contact, more discipline and more awareness on the field.

José Martinez

While the slugger provided more value on the mound than at the plate, he was a force in the Sharks lineup all year long and held his own in the Shark outfield.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2012	5	5	1	1	.200	1	0	0	.400	.200	.600	0	3	0	2
2014	3	3	0	1	.333	0	0	0	.333	.333	.666	0	0	0	1
2017	40	36	4	8	.222	2	0	0	.277	.300	.577	4	10	0	3

You cannot talk about Martinez’s 2017 without talking about that home game against Karlskoga. In pouring rain, Martinez stepped up and saved the day for the Sharks in the bottom of the final frame.

“Weidolf hit a double down the right field line, setting the stage for Martinez being the hero once more. Martinez rose to the occasion and hit a ground rule double for the walk off victory.”

While that quote doesn’t really do that day justice, it was pure magic. Martinez could benefit from more patience at the plate as he more often than not is looking for that big hit. When he get his pitch and connects, he is better than most.

This Reporter

Although his teammates may disagree, this was a season during which this player-coach’s main contribution was the frequency of which he benched himself. Nursing a sore knee, this reporter been slated purely for bullpen duty in 2018.

via GIPHY

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2014	8	5	0	1	.200	0	0	0	.200	.375	.575	2	2	0	2
2015	30	23	7	6	.260	1	0	0	.304	.400	.704	6	4	1	4
2016	30	25	6	7	.280	1	0	0	.320	.400	.720	5	5	0	2
2017	22	20	8	6	.300	0	0	0	.300	.363	.663	2	3	0	2

So, he progressed in one category I guess, batting average. Quite possibly the most flawed stat in the game and certainly the most useless. Regressing in all other categories. Not great. Also, like we’ve said before, the ACL tear he suffered during the offseason might be a blessing in disguise.

Isak Voigt Jansson

Izzy fell off the face of the earth for a while during last season and had no-way near the amount of at bats he amassed during 2016.

Year	TAB	AB	R	H	AVE	2B	3B	HR	SLG	OBP	OPS	BB	K	GIDP	RBI
2015	10	10	0	1	.100	0	0	0	.100	.100	.200	0	7	0	0
2016	41	31	7	2	.064	0	0	0	.064	.292	.357	8	13	0	5
2017	5	3	1	0	.000	0	0	0	.000	.400	.400	2	2	0	0

Truly, the three at bats must be below the acceptable line for a so-called reporter to provide acceptable analysis. Izzy has proclaimed he once again will be a feature in the Sharks lineup.

Prediction:

The Sharks outfield has always been the weakest spot, if there is one in this beloved and respected ball club. While there is some promise in the outfield, most of the ones that are already there would probably like to be playing on the diamond rather than in the spacious (and uphill and often swamp-like) outfield of Shark Park.

On the outside looking in, there is mostly Erik Earnest. The athletic outfielder was quite possibly the best outfielder in Sweden back in 2015 but has not played since. If he would come back, that would of course be an upgrade better than most clubs in Sweden could hope for. Other than that, the outfield will mostly benefit from the fact that the infield looks so very crowded. With so much talent and only so many spots on the diamond, it might push young, fast and sure-handed players like Mokhlad al-Ghanimi or Hannes Wiström out from the diamond on occasion. There might also be a new outfield star in the acquisition Logan Grossberg, who has shown that he can contribute anywhere on the field.

It would benefit the team if a few infielders would put in the work and actually go for an outfield spot. Some blame could also be thrown at the coaching staff, which has done too little to upgrade the team’s outfield from within.