Blue Jays beat writers’ obsession with StatCast numbers

[Sea Bass]

I don't read much MLB beat coverage these days so I have no idea if I'm out of touch here. But is it common for stuff like exit velocity, catch probability (a new one for me), etc., to be in the lead paragraph of a game story? The Blue Jays/Sportsnet guys seem to get rock hard talking about this stuff, and it drives me bonkers. Mind you I'm 48 on Monday and have no time for StatCast so there's that.

Is this kind of thing common?

No pain, no gain: Blue Jays' Hernandez leads team to win over Cubs in return

 

[SixToe]

I never have been a stats geek and honestly don't care about this stuff, or TrackTracerman or whatever it is in golf.

WTF do I, the common fan, need to know Greg Golfer's apex velocity inversion speed or Billy Baseball's exit velocity? IMO it's just bullshirt technology gobbleygook for TV or the athlete as part of his-her improvement during practice.

Terry Tennispro hits serves at 128 mph. Cool. Do I have to know how many times it spins and on what apex-angle-conething from strings to court? Nope. And anyone who says they must have all this kind of info to better enjoy the game is either a weirdo or doesn't truly enjoy the game.

(i'm going to yell at some clouds and puppies now)

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

That lead is clunky even without the Statcast numbers.

 

[playthrough]

I never have been a stats geek and honestly don't care about this stuff, or TrackTracerman or whatever it is in golf.

WTF do I, the common fan, need to know Greg Golfer's apex velocity inversion speed or Billy Baseball's exit velocity? IMO it's just bullshirt technology gobbleygook for TV or the athlete as part of his-her improvement during practice.

Terry Tennispro hits serves at 128 mph. Cool. Do I have to know how many times it spins and on what apex-angle-conething from strings to court? Nope. And anyone who says they must have all this kind of info to better enjoy the game is either a weirdo or doesn't truly enjoy the game.

(i'm going to yell at some clouds and puppies now)

The best context I've seen for this data was a NYT graphic showing what a rocket serve looks like. Simple and smart.

What It's Like to Face a 150 M.P.H. Tennis Serve (Published 2015)

 

[MTM]

Some of the stuff is cool, how hard was it hit, how far did it go, that ball would have been a home run in 18 other ballparks. But most of those numbers are good info for scouts and managers, but don't add to my enjoyment of the game.

I really dislike the woulda/coulda numbers (outside the aforementioned home runs). "That ball was hit so hard it should have been a hit." Great, but it wasn't.

BTW, I'm old, so get off my lawn.

 

[goalmouth]

The best context I've seen for this data was a NYT graphic showing what a rocket serve looks like. Simple and smart.

What It's Like to Face a 150 M.P.H. Tennis Serve (Published 2015)

FYI -- The velocity of a serve is measured at contact and drops by half when it reaches the oppposite baseline, 78 feet for a standard court.

I played singles with retired pro Colin Dibley, who in his day was known having one of the hardest serves on the tour, even with a wood racket. I can say that returning a serve 50 mph and above might not sound like much, but it's a challenge for the average rec player. But we did have beers after.

 

[HanSenSE]

Some of the stuff is cool, how hard was it hit, how far did it go, that ball would have been a home run in 18 other ballparks. But most of those numbers are good info for scouts and managers, but don't add to my enjoyment of the game.

I really dislike the woulda/coulda numbers (outside the aforementioned home runs). "That ball was hit so hard it should have been a hit." Great, but it wasn't.

BTW, I'm old, so get off my lawn.

If I may add to the list: "That ball would have been a homer in 28 other parks." But you're in this park. It's an out.

 

[MeanGreenATO]

I don't read much MLB beat coverage these days so I have no idea if I'm out of touch here. But is it common for stuff like exit velocity, catch probability (a new one for me), etc., to be in the lead paragraph of a game story?

No pain, no gain: Blue Jays' Hernandez leads team to win over Cubs in return

So, yes and no. Launch angles/exit velocity/etc. are a huge part of baseball coverage these days.

However, think this specific angle is just an overwritten lede that needed an editor.

 

[justgladtobehere]

It's just not a good story. The statcast stuff is good for understanding things, but it is not how you experience it.

 

[maumann]

I gently scolded one baseball writer on Twitter for posting, "He ran 36 feet in just under three seconds to make a sliding catch."

I told him, "I'm 63 years old and even I can run 12 yards in three seconds, and probably get there without sliding. You might want to check your math."

 

[Dog8Cats]

He did both while chasing down Franmil Reyes' 95.2-m.p.h. drive to the right-field corner, a ball with a 45-per-cent catch probability,

No context for speed off the bat ... I don't think 95.2 mph is all that impressive. Judge's HRs, Stanton's HRs ... aren't they 100+?
Same with 45 percent catch probability ... pretty much a coin flip that the reporter turns into "The Catch."

I don't often say this, but the words used to "show" the action - sliding catch - offer more than the pointy-headed data points.

And I LIKE using "smarter stats" to help tell stories, believe me.

 

[Sports Barf]

Barfing out stats without context is just telling the reader you're trying to audition for an analyst job