Read Online The New Ballgame: Understanding Baseball Statistics for the Casual Fan by Glenn Guzzo - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Glenn Guzzo
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.250 hitter is the difference between
an All-Star and a player on the way out. It
could make the difference in the championship hopes for his team. But for a full-time
player with 520 at-bats over the 26-week
major league season, the difference between
.250 and .300 is one hit per week-just one
more hit each 20 at-bats. This is why perhaps the best tribute to a batter, no matter the
score nor the importance of the day's game
to the standings, is simply: "He never wastes
an at-bat."
Home runs (HR)
Every 10 home runs puts a hitter into a new
generalized category as a power hitter. Fewer than 10 homers for a regular player in a
162-game season indicates little to no power. Double figures make that player a threat
to hit one out of the park, and 20 makes that
player a legitimate home-run hitter. At 30,
the player is regarded as a true power hitter and at 40 an elite one. Fifty is
something special. Only five men in the history of the game have ever hit 60
(Babe Ruth, Roger Maris, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds).
However, we are currently in an era of specialized roles. Some hitters
play only against right-handed pitching; some only against left-handers. Oth ers fill in for better players. These part-time players have to be judged by ratio
rather than raw totals. When your team needs a home run, look for the man
who hits at least one home run for every 20 at-bats. In 2006, for instance,
Cincinnati's part-time catcher, David Ross, homered 21 times in 245 at-bats,
or about one in 12.
The last .400 hitter was Ted
Williams, who hit .406 in
1941. Since then, only two
batters have even hit .390.
Best-remembered is Kansas
City's George Brett, who
settled for .390 in 1980,
the first time his Royals
made it to the World Series.
In 1994, San Diego's Tony
Gwynn was hitting .394
when a players' strike in
August wiped out the rest of
the season.
Over his first six spectacular seasons, Albert Pujols has homered once
every 13.9 at-bats. Alex Rodriguez has homered at a rate of once every 14.6
at-bats for his career.
How awesome was Barry Bonds' record-setting 73 home runs in 2001?
That was one every 6.5 at-bats.
The only man ever to eclipse 60 home runs three times didn't even lead
his league in homers any of those seasons. When Sammy Sosa hit what
would have been a record-setting 66 home runs for the Chicago Cubs in
1998, St. Louis' Mark McGwire hit 70. The next year, Sosa hit 63 home
runs, but McGwire hit 65. Then in 2001, Sosa hit 64 homers, but San
Francisco's Barry Bonds set the new record with 73.
(Sosa did lead the National League in home runs twice, however-in
2000 when he hit 50 and in 2002 when he hit 49.)
Two of the greatest sluggers ever, Lou Gehrig and Jimmie Foxx, were
American League rival first basemen who entered the big leagues in
1925. They have something else in common: They each drove in 100
runs or more for 13 consecutive seasons, sharing the record.
Runs Batted In (RBI)
Batting average gets the lip service. Home runs have the glamour. But among
players, RBI get the respect. The milestone that separates the special RBI
men from others is 100 for a season. Hack Wilson set the all-time record with
191 in 1930. No one has come within 25 of that since.
Clearly, this is a slugger's statistic, since a home run drives in all baserunners and the batter. But at least half of all homers come with nobody on
base. To find the consistent run-producers, look for a ratio of more than three
RBIs per home run.
OTHER THINGS TO NOTICE:
Hits
Another prestigious milestone: collecting 200 hits for a season. Ichiro Suzuki
did this for a sixth straight season in 2006. Only Wee Willie Keeler (eight
seasons) and Wade Boggs (seven) have longer streaks.
Extra-base hits (EBH)
It's a special season when a batter achieves 80 doubles, triples and home runs
in a season. When St. Louis' Albert Pujols became the National League's
Most Valuable Player in 2005, it was his third
an All-Star and a player on the way out. It
could make the difference in the championship hopes for his team. But for a full-time
player with 520 at-bats over the 26-week
major league season, the difference between
.250 and .300 is one hit per week-just one
more hit each 20 at-bats. This is why perhaps the best tribute to a batter, no matter the
score nor the importance of the day's game
to the standings, is simply: "He never wastes
an at-bat."
Home runs (HR)
Every 10 home runs puts a hitter into a new
generalized category as a power hitter. Fewer than 10 homers for a regular player in a
162-game season indicates little to no power. Double figures make that player a threat
to hit one out of the park, and 20 makes that
player a legitimate home-run hitter. At 30,
the player is regarded as a true power hitter and at 40 an elite one. Fifty is
something special. Only five men in the history of the game have ever hit 60
(Babe Ruth, Roger Maris, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds).
However, we are currently in an era of specialized roles. Some hitters
play only against right-handed pitching; some only against left-handers. Oth ers fill in for better players. These part-time players have to be judged by ratio
rather than raw totals. When your team needs a home run, look for the man
who hits at least one home run for every 20 at-bats. In 2006, for instance,
Cincinnati's part-time catcher, David Ross, homered 21 times in 245 at-bats,
or about one in 12.
The last .400 hitter was Ted
Williams, who hit .406 in
1941. Since then, only two
batters have even hit .390.
Best-remembered is Kansas
City's George Brett, who
settled for .390 in 1980,
the first time his Royals
made it to the World Series.
In 1994, San Diego's Tony
Gwynn was hitting .394
when a players' strike in
August wiped out the rest of
the season.
Over his first six spectacular seasons, Albert Pujols has homered once
every 13.9 at-bats. Alex Rodriguez has homered at a rate of once every 14.6
at-bats for his career.
How awesome was Barry Bonds' record-setting 73 home runs in 2001?
That was one every 6.5 at-bats.
The only man ever to eclipse 60 home runs three times didn't even lead
his league in homers any of those seasons. When Sammy Sosa hit what
would have been a record-setting 66 home runs for the Chicago Cubs in
1998, St. Louis' Mark McGwire hit 70. The next year, Sosa hit 63 home
runs, but McGwire hit 65. Then in 2001, Sosa hit 64 homers, but San
Francisco's Barry Bonds set the new record with 73.
(Sosa did lead the National League in home runs twice, however-in
2000 when he hit 50 and in 2002 when he hit 49.)
Two of the greatest sluggers ever, Lou Gehrig and Jimmie Foxx, were
American League rival first basemen who entered the big leagues in
1925. They have something else in common: They each drove in 100
runs or more for 13 consecutive seasons, sharing the record.
Runs Batted In (RBI)
Batting average gets the lip service. Home runs have the glamour. But among
players, RBI get the respect. The milestone that separates the special RBI
men from others is 100 for a season. Hack Wilson set the all-time record with
191 in 1930. No one has come within 25 of that since.
Clearly, this is a slugger's statistic, since a home run drives in all baserunners and the batter. But at least half of all homers come with nobody on
base. To find the consistent run-producers, look for a ratio of more than three
RBIs per home run.
OTHER THINGS TO NOTICE:
Hits
Another prestigious milestone: collecting 200 hits for a season. Ichiro Suzuki
did this for a sixth straight season in 2006. Only Wee Willie Keeler (eight
seasons) and Wade Boggs (seven) have longer streaks.
Extra-base hits (EBH)
It's a special season when a batter achieves 80 doubles, triples and home runs
in a season. When St. Louis' Albert Pujols became the National League's
Most Valuable Player in 2005, it was his third
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