All images are property the copyright holder and are displayed here for informational purposes only. While Escobar's RF of 4.11 is only 13th-best, he's tied for fifth place in DPR with a 0.9 rating. The numbers are regressed based on the playing time of each shortstop. Later, the shortstop was moved permanently to the infield but his number stuck at #6. Career Leaders & Records for Fielding % as SS Where what happened yesterday is being preserved today. While Escobar isn't quite outstanding enough to crack the top five, his defense is still noteworthy. The AL East is setting up as a race for the ages, Albert Pujols' push for 3,000 powered by dominant decade, 'Ich-i-ro! This simply means they are making 970 or more error free plays out of 1000 chances. Thanks to his performance in the 2008 College World Series, Mendonca may have been the most heralded defensive player available in this years draft. Statistics That Require the Tracking of Batted Balls Metrics Its important to understand the positional numbers so that a proper scorebook can be kept and players understand the lineup and dugout card. Shortstops with career .271/.340/.493 lines don't grow on trees, and we're projecting him to be better than that this year. His dWAR is 0.5, which puts him in a four-way tie for 13th place, and his DRS of one has him in a five-way tie for 12th place. 0. I don't think anyone is going to defend Dunn's defense. Get the MLB schedule, scores, standings, rumors, fantasy games and more on NBCSports.com. Is it true that the coachs daughter is normally a pitcher? Freddy Peralta thrills family with dazzling debut, Real or Not? Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. [1] Do you have a sports website? Since the Chicago White Sox have become irrelevant, it's easy to forget about Ramirez. Gomez's range factor was actually higher than the MLB average, 4.63 to 4.58, and his fielding percentage was fine, so I'm not quite sure why he rates so poorly. While most middle infielders are on the shorter side and scrawny, Tulo is listed at 6'3", 215 pounds. Heading into the top five, we start to encounter those that encompass the best of the flashy, durable and reliable. This time needs to be verified by a 3rd party for college coaches to truly believe it. Who had the worst defensive season ever? - SweetSpot- ESPN 2021 Positional Power Rankings: Shortstop | FanGraphs Baseball Right field, because young players dont hit the ball very far in the air, and because 80% of athletes are right handed, fewer hard-hit fly balls will go to the opposite field (right field for a right-handed hitter). Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Only at the next level will coaches start to consider height and weight more in hopes of a projection or skill development. Also, catchers who have many strikeout pitchers on their team will have a high range factor, because the catcher gets the putout on a strikeout if the batter does not reach base. Sis Bates from the University of Washington, shown below, is an outstanding shortstop and epitomizes what they have to be able to do. At least thats what Ive experienced. Look for a rise in the rankings in coming years. Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. He debuted when he was just 20 years old, so he likely still has room for improvement. Its the most demanding out field position with lots of ground to cover. The longest games in Major League history (both leagues) with no chances offered to a . In an interview with Eduardo Encina of the The Baltimore Sun in 2012, Baltimore manager Buck Showalter had this to say about Hardy: Hes making two or three plays every night and it was so impactful. Between that limitation and small sample sizes, we cant expect too much out of any such college fielding stat. *Many detailed statistics are based on play-by-play accounts accumulated by Retrosheet. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Andrus' has a shockingly low RF of 3.78, which puts him at 24th (26 qualify). Baseball-Reference.com (Career Leaders & Records for Range Factor/9Inn as SS), Baseball-Reference.com (Fielding Stats Glossary), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Range_factor&oldid=1133069561, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 12 January 2023, at 04:16. What is a decent fielding percentage for a shortstop? Over 21 games at shortstop (number one in the AL), his dWAR is 0.5-good for third in the AL. Left fielders typically have good speed and fielding skills and are expected to be good contributors at the plate. This was because originally, the shortstop was the fourth outfielder. In the MLB, while no one is even close to being as skilled as Dutch phenom Andrelton Simmons of the Atlanta Braves, all-around powerhouse Troy Tulowitzki and defensive specialist Pedro Florimon make a valiant effort. I used three general criteria to rank shortstops, each with its own subset(s): 1. Gary Sheffield, 3B, 1993 Padres/Marlins (minus-31). While Florimon's UZR of 5.9 slots him in fifth place among qualifying shortstops, his dWAR of 1.4 and his noteworthy DRS of nine are second-best in the league. In an interview with Tyler Mason of Fox Sports North, Minnesota general manager Terry Ryan noted Florimon's natural talent: The one thing that we've always talked about with Florimon, he's got every skill you're looking for out of a shortstop, but it's a matter of finishing the plays. OB %: .500; Slugging: .600 (Minimum 2 AB's per game), Prototypical MIFs at this level stand anywhere between 5'8" and 6'2". Sure, there are some opportunities to range either way and make throws from deep in the hole, but when guys make contact, one of two things happens: It gets by you (and it would get by anybody, because its going that fast), or its a hot shot you can reach. 10. The statistical portrait of Andrus is as follows: Andrus' UZR of 4.4 is the eighth-highest among qualifying shortstops. - HOF shortstop Dave Bancroft, Single Season Chances Records at Shortstop, Fewest ChancesIn A Season (SS)150+ Games Played at SS, Game Specific Chances Records at Shortstop. Do you have a blog? Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. One method in doing so is fielding percentage. You can see the maturity. Composite advanced metrics: Ultimate Zone Rating (UZR), defensive Wins Above Replacement (dWAR) and Defensive Runs Saved (DRS), 2. Range Factor (commonly abbreviated RF) is a baseball statistic developed by Bill James. In May, Mike Bauman of MLB.com predicted that Escobar would eventually win a Gold Glove. Height and Weight for MIFs are really not as important as the key measurables and obviously the technical offensive and defensive ability. This one may be a bit surprising as Young was regarded as a solid shortstop and even won a Gold Glove in 2008. College, HS Varsity, JV, Frosh, 14U etc Some information here: What is the DH in softball? In other words, when aluminum is involved, hard hit balls turn every infielder into a third baseman. The fact that the two names at the top are both from D II schools may give us pause. Total Zone Rating and initial framework for Wins above Replacement calculations provided by Sean Smith. The footwork required to make throws to first base is very awkward for a left-handed 2nd baseman, shortstop or third baseman it takes a lot of extra time and makes the throw significantly more difficult. Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. Double-play turns for lefty middle infielders are nearly impossible. Its fine to love one position more than the others, but in the competitive world of travel, varsity and collegiate fastpitch, it just may not be realistic that a player can start at that position as they rise. Escobar's fielding percentage and RF take away slightly from his UZR, which is why he sits at six. It's hard to top this list's No. Win Expectancy, Run Expectancy, and Leverage Index calculations provided by Tom Tango of InsideTheBook.com, and co-author of The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Ryan's fielding percentage is also of notewhile it won't make or break a player in my rankings, it's clear that Ryan isn't in the top couple of tiers when it comes to reliability. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. MLB Player Fielding Stats - As SS - 2023. The Padres were third-to-last in the majors in defensive efficiency (percentage of balls in play turned into outs), so a lot of Padres defenders ended up with poor ratings in 1997. The hope for the Tigers is that Castellanos is young enough to improve, but he needs a lot of improvement just to become league average. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. Sign up for my email list youll get my free throwing ebook and updates on new videos and articles like this one. He's going to make errors, because he's going to get to more balls that most other guys, but he's not booting one every four or five days. His DPR of 0.8 (seventh place) is also of note. 4. copyright=new Date(); Dunn recently confirmed his retirement and I'll miss a guy who had a unique career in major league history. a third baseman? Shortstops at this level will be missing a few elements of the top shortstop, but they still make plays and contribute in the line-up. At the college and professional levels, it is about .970 and above. Defensive skills are the focus for shortstops, with offensive skills being a bonus. Rickie Weeks, 2B, 2012 Brewers (minus-30). Range factor - Wikipedia The big surprise to me in this group is Robbie Shields up at the top. Hardy makes it into the top four due to the current number of weighty third-place standings he holds. Defensive metrics aren't as foolproof as some other numbers, so let's dig deeper into what may have caused these poor ratings. Fast legs are strong legs. Data Provided By Jeter, at minus-33 runs, was BIS's worst-rated shortstop over that two-season span; Ryan, at plus-45, was the best. 1. Top middle infielders will also be able to hit at a high level. The other positions require similar skills but are less demanding. In an interview with Peter Abraham of telegram.com, Stephen Drew noted that while his game doesn't contain the wow factor that others in his position boast, consistency and efficiency are paramount for him: Some guys can do a lot of fancy stuff. To get started, check out my video on the softball positions as they break down into different bins of player types. near the top. I checked Baseball-Reference.com for their list of worst individual fielding seasons and thought it would be fun to look at the bottom 10. We're sorry. Ryan Braun, 3B, 2007 Brewers (minus-32). [1] The statistic is premised on the notion that the total number of outs in which a player participates is more relevant in evaluating that player's defensive play than the percentage of cleanly handled chances as calculated by the conventional statistic fielding percentage. They dont have to be big and hit for power, so they are often smaller players. Contributor Network wrote about the "stability Kozma has injected into the Cardinals' infield," so jumping to extreme conclusions about Kozma's talent may not be warranted. Many of the best amateur glovemen are shortstops, and almost as soon as they appear on scouts radars, the debate begins as to whether they can stick at the position. 1 in anything, but Florimon does so in range with an RF of 5.59 (first). All major league baseball data including pitch type, velocity, batted ball location, This, in combination with his impressive UZR, gives Drew a leg up on Ramirez, who seems on the precipice of falling apart despite great numbers. A batting average may be sacrificed for a great leader in the field. Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database. Castellanos' range factor was 2.10 per nine innings compared to the MLB average of 2.56, but of course he played on a staff that racked up a lot of strikeouts. It's also interesting that all 10 seasons here occurred since 1990, which is a reflection of more data available to grade defense. In 2009 while playing for an awful Nationals team that lost 103 games, Dunn started 83 games in the outfield and 66 at first base. Part of the Baseball Almanac Family, Chances Records for Shortstops by Baseball Almanac. Farmer ranks. Last year, he was actually recognized by American League managers as the best defensive shortstop in the AL, and in an interview with T.R. He always has been. My son will be playing in Left Fielder for the first time, but to play I want him to be able to understand all the other positions. His DRS of four puts him in a four-way tie for seventh-best. Could Mike Trout outproduce a tanking team's entire lineup? Kozma's UZR of 6.3 is the third-best among qualifying shortstops in the majors, while his dWAR of 0.8 (three-way tie for ninth) and DRS of four (four-way tie for seventh) are just above-average. Versions for all ages with a 14-Day Free Trial. While it's true that his offensive statistics are mediocre at best, that label doesn't carry over when it comes to his fielding. A college shortstop playing high-level competition is probably more like a wood-bat-league third baseman. He's certainly not a guy that you have to worry about, "All right, what's going to happen." As seen in the accompanying video, he's got great instincts and can think well on his feet. Major League . Each position on the field is designated with a 1-9 number. Current Visitors: 165 (13 members, 152 guests). No, they're not related. All stats are per team game. He exceeded his expected errors by 10.98, resulting in a Universal Fielding Percentage Score of .304 for the seasonwell below average: (56.04 - 39) / 56.04 = .304 13 May 2022 In the field, Alcantara has six errors in 89 chances (.933 fielding percentage) at shortstop. Win Expectancy, Run Expectancy, and Leverage Index calculations provided by Tom Tango of InsideTheBook.com, and co-author of The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Ryan Jacksons +9 is solid, and is more impressive when you know that his 08 total was slightly negative. There is a possibility that Jose Iglesias takes over shortstop duties in the near future, but as of now, it's Drew who qualifies. HELP WANTED: Players / Teams / Coaches / Tourneys, http://hsbaseballweb.com/eve/f631074461/m/33410865. How do I pick which schools to send my Go Big profile to? 9 . Kemp also had just three assists in 2010 compared to 14 in 2009 and 11 in 2011. Fielding percentage: .987 (tied for fifth). It is important to consider the position when calculating a good fielding percentage. Why did Ross Tucker start Go Big Recruiting? Fielding percentage - Wikipedia That led to a career-best 13.8% walk rate and a career-low 17.5% strikeout rate. You know, I liken him to Andruw Jones. Just how great is Simmons? Originally, in the early years of baseball, the shortstop was the fourth outfielder. Nick Castellanos, 3B, 2014 Tigers (minus-30). Research is complete through completion of the previous season and includes all the fielding average variations. First baseman are the biggest power hitters on a team, and they are typically very big and relatively slow because of this. Well break each position down, but its important to understand throwing speed as it pertains to which positions a softball player can play. He has a reputation as a defensive wizard, and his 09 season would seem to support that. Note: if you proceed, you will no longer be following. Learn more. Los Angeles Dodgers. 24-year Anyway, Young had come up as a second baseman and moved to shortstop in 2004 and in 2005 he made 4.41 plays per nine innings versus the MLB average of 4.60 (his fielding percentage was about . All rights reserved. Bumped to second base for the 2009 season. This was very helpful! He was last year's Gold Glove winner as well as Wilson's Orioles' Defensive Player of the Year. While being injury-plagued has brought up questions about whether or not he's still suited for the rigors of shortstop, he remains one of the best. They moved him to third base the following season. Journeyman Yunel Escobar has great hands and thinks quickly on his feet, as seen from the accompanying video. But if a players skillset and body type just doesnt project well at that positionmeaning if a softball player isnt going to be big and strong and hit for power like a typical first basemanthen they need to come to terms with the position just not going to work in the long term. If his fielding percentage was middle as opposed to dismal, he'd likely move up several spots, but you can't have your shortstop botching every other play, which is why he sits at No. Tulo's UZR of 6.5 is good enough for second-best of shortstops in the majors, while his 0.8 dWAR has him in a three-way tie for ninth place and his DRS of five in a tie for fifth. But, it just occurred to me that it might be a function of aluminum bats. Career Fielding Percentage: .978 League Average all: .985 Career dWAR: -10.5 Career Rtot: -110 For many years with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Senators, Frank Howard was one of the. and play-by-play data provided by Sports Info Solutions. All UZR (ultimate zone rating) calculations are provided courtesy of Mitchel Lichtman. Ramirez's RF of 4.05 is the 15th-highest, showing that he's not quite as nimble as he was in his prime, but he proves to be adept at turning two, as his DPR of 1.6 is the best in the league among shortstops. His fielding percent (a metric looking at putouts, assists, and errors) at shortstop is top of the league at 1.000. Andrelton Simmons: MLB's Top Fielder | Tbones Baseball Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. You want them to play as much as they can especially if they are at least as good as the others. However, some positions (especially first baseman) may have substantially more putouts because of a superior infield around them that commits fewer errors and turns many double plays, allowing them to receive credit for more putouts. document.write(update); Not as much fielding range as the shortstop; One of the better power hitters on the team, typically; Many HS shortstops are recruited as SS, but end up playing 2B or 3B in college . First, it is somewhat subjective. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. When it comes to defenseshortstops and beyondthe caliber of Andrelton Simmons' talent is rivaled by few. Frankie Crosetti and Honus Wagner are the only two shortstops to ever play a game on Opening Day and not receive a single chance at shortstop. Teammate and fellow infielder Jose Iglesias can make some superstar plays up the middle, but his move to the hot corner is a testament to Drew's reliability. Fielding Percentage (FPCT) = (put outs + assists) (put outs + assists + errors). What is considered a good fielding percentage often varies based on the position, but a good fielding percentage in high school baseball is about .940 and above. Red Sox bullpen's tightrope act will wear thin, Real or not? Join our linker program. Pro/Con of going online for senior yr and not playing hs ball. His DRS of four is just above-average, as it puts him in a four-way tie for seventh in the majors. His ball exchange and quickness of his arm are the true separators. Most players want to play the exciting positions like pitcher, shortstop, first base and centerfield. . 40 Worst Fielders in Baseball History | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats Or write about sports? Full-year historical Major League statistics provided by Pete Palmer and Gary Gillette of Hidden Game Sports. Many thanks to him. Pingback: How Do You Size A Fastpitch Softball Glove: Beginner's Guide. It is also important to note that the . Was he really that bad? Ranking MLB's 10 Best Defensive Shortstops Since 2002, the site uses defensive runs saved; prior to that, it uses total zone. On June 27, 1939, Eddie Miller of Boston played twenty-three innings at shortstop and handled twenty-one chances setting the major league record for most chances by a shortstop in an extra inning game. Plus, don't you want to read about the worst defender ever? Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. Okay lets now discuss the body types, traits, skills and recruiting profiles of the nine positions in softball. on base hits. But I probably won't miss his defense. I would love to be on a softball team someday. Data Provided By Its a tough position to be in coaching your kid. I enjoyed reading your write up Coach Dan Blewett, youre doing a good job. College Softball Recruiting Guidelines | What Coaches Look For We present them here for purely educational purposes. Foul tips and long days squatting and blocking in the heat make for very long, draining days. It's true; his composite stats are currently laughable, so he's obviously not in the top 10. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. The prototypical elite middle infield recruit can hit for a high average as well as steal a lot of bases and occasionally hit for power. In an interview with Mark Simon of ESPN (found in the preceding link), Braves general manager Frank Wren had this to say about the phenom: To go along with great hands, arm and athleticism, he has excellent awareness on the field. 3. What shortstop has the highest career fielding percentage? The consensus is that the Minnesota Twins have finally found an everyday shortstop. Ryan's RF is 4.35, good enough for eighth among qualifying shortstops. Weeks has never had a good defensive reputation and in 2012 he started 152 games at second base and made just 4.08 plays per nine innings compared to the league-average range factor of 4.77. Sabermetric types don't like this measurement, for several reasons. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Skip ahead anywhere in this article on softball positioning this applies both to fastpitch and slowpitch, though slowpitch is NOT the focus of this article. Thanks. College, HS Varsity, JV, Frosh, 14U etc. However, its not really the case any more that they have the strongest arm on the entire teamthey mightbut the shortstop and third baseman also have tremendously strong arms. Join our linker program. Anyway, Young had come up as a second baseman and moved to shortstop in 2004 and in 2005 he made 4.41 plays per nine innings versus the MLB average of 4.60 (his fielding percentage was about league average). Full-year historical Major League statistics provided by Pete Palmer and Gary Gillette of Hidden Game Sports. If the video above isn't enough the to convince you, check out this barehanded snag. Below is a standard softball position chart with numbers for each position. Fielding Percentage M. Olson 1B ATL Matt Olson 1B ATL 24 : 24 : 195 . Softball has the same positional numbers as baseball and so they inherited the same system. In that same Abraham article, Boston Red Sox manager John Farell praised Drew for what he's brought to the team: Hes in many ways a very dependable defender. Do you have a blog? You have to be honest with yourself about the demands of the position and whether or not its a good fit. Here's the rundown: Simmons is unparalleled here. The left fielder does not need to have an . 8. While his dWAR and DRS aren't as noteworthy, they balance out the former group of stats in such a way to seat him at No. Total Zone Rating and initial framework for Wins above Replacement calculations provided by Sean Smith. While only about 1.6% of high school softball players go on to play at the Division 1 level, the other division levels, NAIA schools, and junior colleges offer many opportunities for promising prospects. Get ready to play college softball by training like a college softball player. The position numbers go in order, starting with the pitcher as #1, however the shortstop is out of order and is labeled #6 instead of #5 all other positions go naturally in order from pitcher to catcher, around the infield, then into the outfield. Fielding percentage is a very simple measurement. And Alcides is just a smidgen better. Total Zone Rating and initial framework for Wins above Replacement calculations provided by Sean Smith. If you need to improve your throwing, check out my online throwing courses and the video below. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. His dWAR is just a hair below the Escobars' while his UZR bests the two by a greater margin, but it's his fielding percentage and RF that definitively solidify his higher ranking. First, lets recap a bit of what I wrote in the Mendonca article. Here's how Drew shakes up in comparison to others at his position: Drew's UZR of 5.4 puts him in seventh place among qualifying shortstops, while his dWAR of 0.6 and DRS of two put him at 12th and 11th, respectively. Replies and comments they make will be collapsed/hidden by default. His DPR of -0.2 is below-average at 17th in the league. Beyond that, he needs to pick bad throws, be a great, large target and read throws well to get outs on every throw he can from other infielders. Thank you for writing this article. He's a bit better in his role as half of a double-play combo, as his DPR of 0.2 has him in a three-way tie for 10th. What to expect from Orioles' Joey Ortiz in the Majors His DPR of -0.5 puts him at 20th. The corner outfielders, shortstop and second baseman are typically the fastest players on a competitive fastpitch softball team. Tulo's UZR, range and fielding percentage could have him vying for runner-up on this list, but unlike Hardy, his durability is a blaring issue. Am I good enough to play softball in college? They make the plays, but don't have the best range. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Single-Season Leaders & Records for Fielding % as SS Metrics from the days of yore: Fielding percentage. In 2011, he won his second Gold Glove of his career. Before we get going, check out this video about throwing speed by age for fastpitch players. Gerrit Cole's approach bringing Cy Young results, Mookie Betts vs. Bryce Harper -- and other pressing baseball debates, Real or not? Left-handed catchers are seen occasionally in college softball but its rare. From his simpler stats alone, it appears that he's deserving of his own slide. The Designated Hitter is a player who only hits, and hits in place of the pitcher. He's finishing plays. The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Fielding percentage, essentially, measures a player's ability to make a proper catch or throw, taking into consideration the number of opportunities a defender has to make a play. He showed admirable growth in his patience last year, cutting his chase rate by 10 percentage points. His UZR of 11.3, dWAR of 3.1 and DRS of 24 are the best of all shortstops. And check out my [Shes Got a Cannon] Softball Overhand Throwing Courses. Segura is more of a case of portending. But, that doesnt mean first base is not a difficult position its easy to play an average first base, but its NOT easy to be great at it. 7. Second baseman in softball are typically great defensive players but often lack a strong throwing arm. Fielding percentage: .977 (four-way tie for 11th). Range Factor (commonly abbreviated RF) is a baseball statistic developed by Bill James.It is calculated by dividing putouts and assists by the number of innings or games played at a given defense position.
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