1st Half Facts & Figures From MLB
Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 9:39 am
The Year of the Pitcher continued this year as pitchers are once again dominating hitters in Major League Baseball. But it's also the Year of the Pitcher because no position has been as decimated by injuries than the pitcher's position. It's now the Year of the Elbow.
Anyway, we asked the STATS Research Team for some first half numbers to analyze how things went through July 15th and not surprisingly offensive numbers are down. But we mean WAAAAAAAAY DOWN. Like at historically low levels. Here's some interesting factoids that we gave on our STATS Fantasy Advantage show last night:
Let’s see what trends we’re seeing in baseball through the first half of the season:
• League-wide offensive numbers are down again this year:
• 4.14 runs per game (per team) lowest at All-Star break since 1992 (4.14)
• .252 batting average lowest at All-Star break since 1972 (.244)
• .316 on-base percentage lowest at All-Star break since 1972 (.310)
• 219 shutouts most all-time at All-Star break
• 7.71 strikeouts per 9 IP highest all-time at All-Star break
• The AL East has been a bit topsy-turvy in 2014. Baltimore has taken the division lead into the All-Star break for the first time since 1997 (the last year they won the AL East). Toronto has spent 50 days atop the division, its most in any season since it last won the AL East in 1993 (96 days). The Yankees’ 47-47 record is their worst in the first half since being 43-43 at the 2007 break. And the defending World Series champion Red Sox are in last place at 43-52, 9.5 games behind Baltimore. They are just the third defending champ ever to occupy last place of their division (or league, pre-1969) at the All-Star break; the others were the 1994 Blue Jays and 1998 Marlins.
• Oakland has the majors’ best record at 59-36 (.621). That’s the club’s best first-half record since 1990 (51-31, .622), and just their second time having the best record in baseball at the break (also 1988, 54-34). The A’s are second in the majors in runs per game (4.91) while ranking tied for first in runs allowed per game (3.38); they are the first team to rank in the top two of both categories at the All-Star break since the 1995 Indians.
• Every MLB team has won at least 40 percent of its games this season, something that could be said at the All-Star break just three times previously: 1943, 1958 and 1992. The Rangers have baseball’s worst record at 38-57 (.400), the first time in the franchise’s Texas history (since 1972) that they have had the worst mark in the majors at the All-Star break.
• Teams have employed defensive shifts on average 3.2 times per team game this year, double the rate from 2013 (1.6). The Astros (10.5 per game) and Yankees (7.8) have been by far the most frequent shifters. Among this year’s All Stars, Oakland’s Brandon Moss has seen the most defensive shifts (298 PA, third most in MLB).
• The Padres’ .214 team batting average is the lowest by any team at the All-Star break since the 1968 Yankees (.211), while their .273 on-base percentage is the lowest ever at the break. June was a particularly tough month for San Diego batters – its .171 team batting average is the lowest in the last 100 years by any MLB team in a calendar month (minimum 10 games).
• White Sox rookie Jose Abreu leads the majors with 29 home runs. He is the fourth rookie all-time to have the MLB home run lead at the All-Star break (first All-Star game in 1933), joining Al Rosen (1950 Indians), Jose Canseco (1986 A’s), and Mark McGwire (1987 A’s). Abreu has hit safely in 26 of his last 27 games entering the break, with 10 homers and 22 RBI over that span.
• Clayton Kershaw missed a month early in the season on the DL but has quickly returned to the form that saw him win the 2011 and 2013 NL Cy Young Awards; he is 11-2 with a 1.78 ERA and career-best 11.8 strikeouts per nine innings. Kershaw has won his last eight starts, including a no-hitter versus the Rockies on June 18. His 41.0-inning scoreless streak that ended Thursday is MLB’s longest since Brandon Webb in 2007 (42.0), and longest by a Dodger since Orel Hershiser’s MLB-record 59.0-inning streak in 1988.
Thoughts?
Anyway, we asked the STATS Research Team for some first half numbers to analyze how things went through July 15th and not surprisingly offensive numbers are down. But we mean WAAAAAAAAY DOWN. Like at historically low levels. Here's some interesting factoids that we gave on our STATS Fantasy Advantage show last night:
Let’s see what trends we’re seeing in baseball through the first half of the season:
• League-wide offensive numbers are down again this year:
• 4.14 runs per game (per team) lowest at All-Star break since 1992 (4.14)
• .252 batting average lowest at All-Star break since 1972 (.244)
• .316 on-base percentage lowest at All-Star break since 1972 (.310)
• 219 shutouts most all-time at All-Star break
• 7.71 strikeouts per 9 IP highest all-time at All-Star break
• The AL East has been a bit topsy-turvy in 2014. Baltimore has taken the division lead into the All-Star break for the first time since 1997 (the last year they won the AL East). Toronto has spent 50 days atop the division, its most in any season since it last won the AL East in 1993 (96 days). The Yankees’ 47-47 record is their worst in the first half since being 43-43 at the 2007 break. And the defending World Series champion Red Sox are in last place at 43-52, 9.5 games behind Baltimore. They are just the third defending champ ever to occupy last place of their division (or league, pre-1969) at the All-Star break; the others were the 1994 Blue Jays and 1998 Marlins.
• Oakland has the majors’ best record at 59-36 (.621). That’s the club’s best first-half record since 1990 (51-31, .622), and just their second time having the best record in baseball at the break (also 1988, 54-34). The A’s are second in the majors in runs per game (4.91) while ranking tied for first in runs allowed per game (3.38); they are the first team to rank in the top two of both categories at the All-Star break since the 1995 Indians.
• Every MLB team has won at least 40 percent of its games this season, something that could be said at the All-Star break just three times previously: 1943, 1958 and 1992. The Rangers have baseball’s worst record at 38-57 (.400), the first time in the franchise’s Texas history (since 1972) that they have had the worst mark in the majors at the All-Star break.
• Teams have employed defensive shifts on average 3.2 times per team game this year, double the rate from 2013 (1.6). The Astros (10.5 per game) and Yankees (7.8) have been by far the most frequent shifters. Among this year’s All Stars, Oakland’s Brandon Moss has seen the most defensive shifts (298 PA, third most in MLB).
• The Padres’ .214 team batting average is the lowest by any team at the All-Star break since the 1968 Yankees (.211), while their .273 on-base percentage is the lowest ever at the break. June was a particularly tough month for San Diego batters – its .171 team batting average is the lowest in the last 100 years by any MLB team in a calendar month (minimum 10 games).
• White Sox rookie Jose Abreu leads the majors with 29 home runs. He is the fourth rookie all-time to have the MLB home run lead at the All-Star break (first All-Star game in 1933), joining Al Rosen (1950 Indians), Jose Canseco (1986 A’s), and Mark McGwire (1987 A’s). Abreu has hit safely in 26 of his last 27 games entering the break, with 10 homers and 22 RBI over that span.
• Clayton Kershaw missed a month early in the season on the DL but has quickly returned to the form that saw him win the 2011 and 2013 NL Cy Young Awards; he is 11-2 with a 1.78 ERA and career-best 11.8 strikeouts per nine innings. Kershaw has won his last eight starts, including a no-hitter versus the Rockies on June 18. His 41.0-inning scoreless streak that ended Thursday is MLB’s longest since Brandon Webb in 2007 (42.0), and longest by a Dodger since Orel Hershiser’s MLB-record 59.0-inning streak in 1988.
Thoughts?