MLB.com – This page allows you to see the average positioning within the batter’s box for all hitters, as determined by their center of mass (defined as the midpoint of their hips).
This is defined by two parameters: Depth in Box, which measures (in inches) how far behind the front of the plate the batter stands, and Distance off Plate, which measures how far off the “inside” edge of the plate the batter stands.
Player tracking data also allows for the visualization of the foot placements within their batting stances, yielding information on how batters’ positions and stances change over time.
In addition, the visualization also shows the average Intercept Point for each hitter, indicating the “average” point at which their bat is nearest to the baseball on a swing (whether or not they make contact). This can be measured either relative to the front of home plate (closest to the pitcher) or to the batter’s center of mass.
This is a new statistic and I have to admit up front that I always hate new statistics and I’m always wrong about it. Literally every time a new baseball stat comes out, I say it’s lame and argue with my friends. And then two years later I’ll be using the exact same statistic in an argument with a stranger. It’s literally happened with every single advanced statistic we use in everyday conversation these days: WAR, OPS, OPS+, FIP, ERA+, UZR, adjusted anything and everything in-between.
The only exception to the rule is WHIP and that’s because it was just such an obvious thing to measure that we all felt really stupid when someone explained it to us for the first time.
Anyways I say that because I want to buck the trend and start embracing this statistic – whatever they hell they’re calling it.
Batting Stat Leaderboard
Objectively a terrible name but I won’t let that impede me from using the information to my benefit.
With that, get a load of the interface:
All 228 qualified hitters from last season and you can filter and sort to see who stands where in the batters box.
Originally I thought that was a lame observation but turns out it’s particularly useful.
You can see who stands closest to the pitcher
Or who crowds the plate the most:
You can see who has:
- The most open stance
- Closed stance
- Deep in the box
- Front of the box
- Distance between feet
And you can track all of these things as they move from:
- When you get in the batters box
- When the pitcher releases the ball
- When you make contact as a hitter
So you’re getting 5 different data points in 3 different phases for every single pitch, and then apparently they’re tracking all of it for every single pitch to every single hitter. So you can see how a hitter is adjusting in the batters box depending on the count and situation, which should help tremendously across the scouting reports.
And most important is that this is brand new information in a sport that’s constantly looking for new insights. In the years I’ve been following closely this never once crossed my mind and one step further – I’ve never heard a fancy pants baseball guy talk about it. Not on a podcast or in a message board or the replies. But when you interact with the data, it’s actually super intuitive and sensible.
So shoutout to Rob Manfred for developing this new statistic. Probably not too useful for casual fans or even assessing any type of quantifiable value. But extremely valuable when it comes to building a scouting report and that’s wayyyy more important than anything I’ll ever need to know.