Adrian Gonzalez 2007 Batting Splits - Baseball-Reference.com

Who is the most underrated player in baseball?

To begin to look for that, look for a pitcher in a hitter's park, or a hitter in a pitcher's park. My nominee: Adrian Gonzalez of the Padres, playing in pitcher-friendly Petco Park.

Here's what his last two years would look like if you were to multiply his road numbers by two

Year BAVG - OPS 2B-3-HR RBI

2007 .295 - .928 64-2-40 128

2008 .308 - .946 40-2-44 140

This year he has hit seven homers (one every 9.7 at bats) on the road, only three (one every 17 at bats) at Petco.

Now, seriously, did you know he was that good? Of course not. Nobody does. His numbers look pretty good, but they are significantly deflated by the fact that he plays in the one single MLB park that is toughest on offensive production. Last year the Padres pitching staff allowed 332 runs at home (8th best in the majors) and 432 on the road (28th best). Gonzalez in 2007 hit 10 homers at home, 20 on the road. In 2008, 14 home, 22 road. This year, 3 home, 7 road.

The sad reality? Life isn't fair. If Adrian had by chance ended up with the Rockies or the Rangers, he would now be making five to ten times as much money! His salary the last two years was $500,000 and $875,000. Matt Holliday, a significantly weaker hitter with approximately the same amount of MLB experience, made $4.4 million and $9.5 million, and is playing for fourteen million this year, compared to three million for Adrian.