This week’s question come from P. N., who asks: I’m an Oakland A’s fan and there’s been a lot of talk lately about how the A’s are leading both leagues in the number of batters hit by pitches. Tim Hudson has suggested that the pitching staff needs to be more aggressive in protecting the hitters….
This week’s question comes from Brian Canfield: While watching my beloved Rangers’ Rob Bell get shellacked by the Yankees, it occurred to me that the season that Alex Rodriguez is having is even more impressive when you realize that he doesn’t get to hit against the Rangers’ pitching staff. Conversely, the stats of the Mariners,…
Let me admit up front that this week’s article is a little short on the analysis. I’m heading off to Atlanta for a family reunion this weekend, but didn’t want to leave our readers without any kind of AFTH fix to get them through the holiday weekend. So accept my apologies if this doesn’t meet…
My previous column on reaching-base-via-error rates for batters generated the most responses yet in the short life of this column, which I think warrants a follow-up column responding to some of the reader mail on the topic. By far the most common point made by readers was that I neglected to consider handedness when I…
This week’s question comes from T.W., who asks: Does anyone track errors against for a hitter? It would seem to me that this might be a consistent skill (due to speed, an ability to consistently hit hard ground balls, and continued hustle). If it is a consistent skill shouldn’t this be tracked and shouldn’t certain…
Last week’s column about pitch counts, game lengths and run scoring got quite a lot of response, most of it taking me to task for not answering the question properly. Though MLB has backed down after the directive to “hunt for strikes” caused an uproar, it still remains an interesting topic for analysis. Here’s a…
This week’s question comes from Nate Calvin, who also happens to be an old college buddy of mine: Sandy Alderson is in hot water for trying to get the umps to drop game pitch counts from 285 to 270 by calling more strikes. I believe pitchers average a little over five pitches per out, so…
Evidently, not everyone finds articles on attendance all that compelling. In fact, one response called my June 26 column "the most boring thing I’ve EVER managed to read in its entirety." Hopefully this week’s question, from Mikael Haxby, won’t put too many of my readers to sleep…or at least put different ones to sleep than…
This week’s question comes from. uh. well, BP’s Joe Sheehan, who wrote in last Monday’s Daily Prospectus: There’s also something that reader Jim Cox mentioned to me that I have to say is very impressive to observe, if an unknown (or even a tautology) from an analytical standpoint. The Mariners score in a ridiculous percentage…
This week’s question comes from Joel Wirth: Plenty is made about players pre- and post-All-Star Break numbers, but what I’m interested in our "cool" and "hot" weather splits. Who does significantly better/worse in June, July, and August compared to April, May, and September/October? Thanks. Thanks for the question, Joel. We often hear about players who…
This week’s question was sent in by Andrea Trento: We all saw Barry Bonds’s ridiculous weekend, but lost in his home-run barrage has been the fact that he has seven singles so far this year. That’s 22 home runs, 10 doubles, and seven singles. His isolated slugging is .593, thanks to an .898 slugging percentage…
This week’s question comes from Chuck Hildebrandt, who writes: Being a lifelong Detroit Tiger fan, I was studying the 1984 season in Total Baseball when I was startled by something I saw in the National League. I noticed that the New York Mets, managed by Davey Johnson, were outscored by their competition, 652-676, yet finished…
(Ed. note: Today marks the debut of Keith Woolner as a featured columnist here at Baseball Prospectus. Each Wednesday, he’ll be answering a statistical or sabermetric question from one of our readers. Click here to submit a question to Keith.) This week’s question comes to us from Thomas Berman, who asks: Mike Hampton hit his…
Some things to ponder should Albert Belle retire: Belle was a great player at his peak whose career was on a Cooperstown trajectory until it was tragically cut short due to a medical condition basically unrelated to baseball playing. Sound familiar? Do you feel a sympathy vote coming on? Anyone think he’ll get the same…