Friday, September 03, 2010
Visual Baseball: Yankees vs. Rays Smackdown
Posted by Kevin DameHere's a version of Rankometer I'm experimenting with, designed to compare 2 teams head to head. Let's compare the Yankee and Rays on hitting (OPS), pitching (FIP), defense (UZR), and base running (Fangraphs Speed Score).
HITTING: The Rays are disadvantaged at almost every position, and at their strongest positions (3B and LF) they only have a slight advantage.
PITCHING: The teams look very similar, with both teams' starting rotations surprisingly average, and their top relievers closing out games in dominant fashion.
DEFENSE: The Rays are better than the Yankees, but not as much as you'd think.
BASE RUNNING: Not surprisingly, the Rays are superior base runners, although they grind to a halt at the DH position. The Yankees are surprisingly good base runners, although Cano and Swisher can really clog up the base paths, and Arod seems to be slowing by the day.
"The commonality between science and art is in trying to see profoundly - to develop strategies of seeing and showing." - Edward Tufte.
Feel free to send comments, questions, and suggestions to Kevin via email.
#1 reliever, Grant Balfour? Rafael Soriano would like a word.