The Southern League has the highest walk rates of any minor league. Pitcher control and defense improve significantly at AA>
AA Run Environments: The Metes and Bounds of The Southern League
Double-A leagues are more similar in their run environment than A+ or AAA. The Texas League is the most hitter-friendly. The Southern League features a significant divisional split.
High-A Run Environments: The Runaway Cal League
Run environments over time at the High-A minor league levels. A comparison of High-A with Low-A in terms of defense and pitcher control.
Sally and the Midwest: Minor League Run Environments (A-Ball)
The minor league run environment in the Midwest League and the South Atlantic League.
2014 Cubs: A Bat Away From Normal
Any baseball fan likely realizes that the game is fundamentally different in 2013 than it was in, say, 1999 (the height of the "We Care About Steroids" era). In 1999, the league wOBA was .341; in 2013, it's .313. That's a titanic difference. Walks are at a 20-year low, and strikeouts this year are only lower than last year (and …
Anatomy of an Ace Pitcher
Now that the trade deadline is almost here, baseball fans are excited to see who might be dealt, and what prospect might be had. Invariably, people are looking for the "impact bat" or the "ace pitcher." When we talk about an ace, though, people can have different definitions of the word. For some people, it might just be the best …
Cubs Games Scores #1 (April 2013)
At the beginning of the season, I made a post with a new take on Game Score. That was the DiPS Game Score, found here. Tom Tango, a consultant for the Cubs, did similar work along these lines. He showed up in the comments (I still can't believe how cool that is, by the way) and pointed me towards his …
Better Know a Statistic: (K-BB)/PA
I have a confession to make. When I first fell headlong into baseball analysis, I kind of took K/BB as my pet statistic. I loved how it was essentially "luckless": the only things the pitcher couldn't control was the discipline of the batter and the strike zone of the umpire, the two things he can only understand (but never master). …
Assume the Position: MLB Starting Pitchers
For pitching, I'm going to break it down into more easily-digestible bunches. For this version, I'm going to look at the Cubs in 2012 and then the people most likely to make the team (for Opening Day) in 2013. Last Year 2013 Career Name Age GS IP ERA FIP pwFIP ERA FIP Samardzija …
Myles’ Top 15 Positional Prospects List
Now that I've done the AtP for all of the positional players, I've got my Top 15 prospects list ready. I did it all on my own, but the list is really similar to many of the others out there, with minor variations. First, I'll explain my methodology. I first made a system from 59 (complete non-prospect) to 100 (potential …