Clearing the Bases: going through some of the most notable links from the past week...
Hey, all you bloggers out there...you can make a difference! Felix Hernandez has turned things around, partly due to the blog U.S.S. Mariner...
Breaking News: The Mark Buehrle saga is over…he re-signs with the White Sox for 4 yrs/$56 million.
TSOB has a short post on a strange Joe Torre quote regarding Derek Jeter's defense, which I mainly include because of this great excerpt: "…This is rich, by the way, the idea that anything good that Derek Jeter does could possibly go undetected. When Jeter kicks a rock, there are three stories in the New York papers about how he's cleaning up the streets."
Mr. Irrelevant gives you the worst all-stars of the 21st century (don't know how Mike Williams was left off, though).
MLB: Pissed off at ESPN?
Some information about pitchers being able to go deep into games: Striking out batters doesn't make you less likely to throw more innings…but walking batters does.
Uh…who's gonna play the outfield for the White Sox next year?
A timely article on Pat Burrell, the player I keep defending...
Keith Law breaks down the Futures Game rosters, and then describes the game's standouts and disappointments (both articles insider-only)…Here's a Futures Game blog that's open to the public…
Some great analysis on Tim Hudson, using some info I wish I had access to…
Here's a funny story about a made-up quote and a writer who forgot to check his source thoroughly...
If this describes you, you shouldn't be reading this blog…
Random Video of the Week #1: Stephon Marbury goes crazy (make sure to watch the last two minutes)...
Random Video of the Week #2: Public Service Announcement: Don't drink and dunk
Random Video of the Week #3: If you know any tennis players, please, don't let them rap. It's for the good of society.
Random Video of the Week #4: Soccer? This is cool, trust me.
Random Video of the Week #5: Combining our last two subjects...that's right, it's indoor soccer players rapping! This is the train wreck to end all train wrecks. Please, watch this.
Showing posts with label Pat Burrell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pat Burrell. Show all posts
July 5, 2007
The most underrated player in baseball...
Okay, that title is a lie; there are probably a dozen or so players more underrated than the player I'm going to talk about. But I will still contend that Pat Burrell is very underappreciated. He is Philadelphia's version of A-Rod, albeit with less talent; he is the whipping boy for the franchise, all the fans hate him for some reason, and he's actually a good player.
What? Pat Burrell is a good player? How can that be? He's hitting just .207! He has "only" 10 homers and 34 RBI? How can you defend someone like that? Well, if you use numbers that more accurately measure a player's offensive ability, you'll find that his OBP is .371, and you'll find that RBI is a dumb statistic. Burrell's been hated and the fans have wanted him traded for years, but he's been a really good offensive player pretty much his entire career; fans just can't look past the low batting average numbers. Burrell's OPS+ this year is 101; 100 is league-average, so he's basically been an average hitter this year (by that metric). This has been a down year for him, too; his career OPS+ is 116, and he was at 124 and 125 in the last two years. He strikes out a lot, but does that really matter? Most of the time, it doesn't matter at all what kind of out you make; it's still an out, and those are bad. And Burrell has been good at not making those outs, as his OBP is .371. His slugging percentage is down this year, but most of that difference can be explained by his low BA (even for his standards), which is .207 right now.
Some critics like to say that Burrell's high OBP does not matter because they can't steal bases. This doesn't make sense; as long as he gets on base, it's possible for him to score, while if he does not get on base, he can't score, and he costs his team an out. For examples of people who think OBP is a bad stat for people with no speed, I'll refer you to Fire Joe Morgan's "clogging up the bases" category. The short answer is that these people are idiots. Getting on base = not making outs = helping your team score runs.
For the more nerdy fans, Burrell's EqA is currently .273, 14th among full-time left fielders in baseball. That says pretty much the same thing that the OPS+ statistic said; Burrell has been pretty much league-average this year. And he's been even better in the past. So, are the Phillies fans' expectations so high of Burrell that they expect him to be an All-Star caliber player, or are they just not looking at the whole pitcure? (Actually, this isn't just a rhetorical question; I do really want to know this. Why does Burrell get hated on so much? Is it as simple as his low BA and high K rate?)
What? Pat Burrell is a good player? How can that be? He's hitting just .207! He has "only" 10 homers and 34 RBI? How can you defend someone like that? Well, if you use numbers that more accurately measure a player's offensive ability, you'll find that his OBP is .371, and you'll find that RBI is a dumb statistic. Burrell's been hated and the fans have wanted him traded for years, but he's been a really good offensive player pretty much his entire career; fans just can't look past the low batting average numbers. Burrell's OPS+ this year is 101; 100 is league-average, so he's basically been an average hitter this year (by that metric). This has been a down year for him, too; his career OPS+ is 116, and he was at 124 and 125 in the last two years. He strikes out a lot, but does that really matter? Most of the time, it doesn't matter at all what kind of out you make; it's still an out, and those are bad. And Burrell has been good at not making those outs, as his OBP is .371. His slugging percentage is down this year, but most of that difference can be explained by his low BA (even for his standards), which is .207 right now.
Some critics like to say that Burrell's high OBP does not matter because they can't steal bases. This doesn't make sense; as long as he gets on base, it's possible for him to score, while if he does not get on base, he can't score, and he costs his team an out. For examples of people who think OBP is a bad stat for people with no speed, I'll refer you to Fire Joe Morgan's "clogging up the bases" category. The short answer is that these people are idiots. Getting on base = not making outs = helping your team score runs.
For the more nerdy fans, Burrell's EqA is currently .273, 14th among full-time left fielders in baseball. That says pretty much the same thing that the OPS+ statistic said; Burrell has been pretty much league-average this year. And he's been even better in the past. So, are the Phillies fans' expectations so high of Burrell that they expect him to be an All-Star caliber player, or are they just not looking at the whole pitcure? (Actually, this isn't just a rhetorical question; I do really want to know this. Why does Burrell get hated on so much? Is it as simple as his low BA and high K rate?)
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