Baseball Terms/Stats that you don't know

[Dillagii]

Whats EqA?

[The Third Man]

Whats EqA?

An all-encompassing offensive rate statistic.

The formula is:

Code: Select all

	      H + TB + 1.5*(BB + HBP) + SB
EqA  =   ----------------------------
	        AB + BB + HBP + CS + SB/3

The reason why (BB + HBP) is weighted at 1.5 is because, roughly, getting on base is about that much more valuable than taking the extra base. Of course, that prompts the question of why walks are weighted more than hits...because total bases are also in the equation. A walk is about 70% as valuable as a single, and a single in this formula would produce a 2, and a walk 1.5, which is 75%...so, pretty close.

So basically, EqA is a lot like OPS, only with a more correct weight for on-base percentage, as well as the inclusion of steals (and SB are divided by three because the break-even rate is roughly 75%).

The cool thing about EqA is that, not only is it corrected for park factors, it's always compared to the league average, which is always set to .260. So you can compare players across eras without having to make adjustments.

You can find EqA for any player in any season by going to Baseball Prospectus, using the search box at the top right and going to a player's DT Card. Or you can go to their statistics section and find sorted EqAs for the current season.

EqA isn't perfect, but it's about the best offensive stat you can use before you start to get into really heavy-duty stuff like VORP (Value Over Replacement Player) or LWTS (Linear Weights).

The best EqAs of all-time are, no surprise, Babe Ruth (.367), Ted Williams (.365), and Barry Bonds (.356).

Pujols currently has a .352, and had a .361 in 2003. His career EqA is .341.

[Adrian Wapcaplet]

For example, the ol' hidden ball trick that is so misunderstood at youth levels comes to mind. You see coaches teaching little kids this trick, fielder has the ball in his glove after the ol' secret meeting at the mound and goes back to his base. Once everyone is set, the pitcher straddles the runner. Little Johnny leads off and is promptly tagged, and little Johnny heads back to the dugout crying.

I think I'd be crying, too.

I'm glad someone else caught that!

[jim]

For example, the ol' hidden ball trick that is so misunderstood at youth levels comes to mind. You see coaches teaching little kids this trick, fielder has the ball in his glove after the ol' secret meeting at the mound and goes back to his base. Once everyone is set, the pitcher straddles the runner. Little Johnny leads off and is promptly tagged, and little Johnny heads back to the dugout crying.

I think I'd be crying, too.

I'm glad someone else caught that!

[Dwtlr]

Stick it in here. I'll start.

Whats BABIP?

No offense but to me that's a stat term..like VORP not a baseball term..

Baseball terms are .."in the hole.." Uncle Charlie.. the Express.. Knuckleball... Warning track power...."He can pick it"... around the horn.. gap power..
Pullhitter.. double play... "he can go from first to third"... etc..

Those are baseball terms..

[EastonBlues22]

Stick it in here. I'll start.

Whats BABIP?

No offense but to me that's a stat term..like VORP not a baseball term..

Baseball terms are .."in the hole.." Uncle Charlie.. the Express.. Knuckleball... Warning track power...."He can pick it"... around the horn.. gap power..
Pullhitter.. double play... "he can go from first to third"... etc..

Those are baseball terms..

A valid point. Give it time though, a lot of statistical jargon has worked its way into the lexicon of the game. You can't listen to a game anymore without hearing references to on pace percentage, slugging, splits, quality starts, ERA, and even things like WHIP. If they are commonly used by broadcasters and fans, you can be sure they are used in the dugout as well.

Stats and baseball are intertwined in a way that no other sport can claim...both fom the extent of the analyses done, and from the effects that those analyses have had on the way the game is played. It's a truly unique relationship.

[Dillagii]

Bump for JJ

[Capt_Morgan]

BABIP is batting average on balls in play.

It's batting average minus homeruns and strikeouts.

i been following baseball since 1967 and have never heard that term

[UK]

My problem with BABIP has been that it values a triple and double the same as a single.

The amount of bloop or seeing eye DBs/TRs compared to line drive DBs and TRs are minimal.

It's not luck when a batter is hitting line drives all over the park.

[jim]

I think the SABR guys are doing things now with vector data, where they are looking at distance/trajectory etc.. of balls put in play.

The first time i heard it suggested that pitchers don't have the ability to control BABIP I couldn't believe it. I know it's found that it's not really true, pitchers do have some control, but it still seems to be alot smaller than what I would have believed before I saw the numbers.