Baseball Stats: Rate and 'Plus' Stats (OPS, wOBA, FIP, etc.)

SLUGGING PERCENTAGE (SLG) CORRECTION:

The scale for Slugging Percentage (SLG) looks something like this:

Poor: .310
Below Average: .360
Average: .410 +/- .15
Above Average: .450
Great: .500
Elite: .600

I mistakenly kept the scale for OBP up for SLG! Sorry about that.

====

This is the second video in a five-part comprehensive guide to baseball statistics. I'll update this description as needed, but the title says it all. This is a hefty video where we talk about baseball stats like:

Batting Average (AVG)
On-Base Percentage (OBP)
Slugging Percentage (SLG)
On-Base plus Slugging (OPS)
Weighted On-Base Average (wOBA)
Reference wOBA (rOBA)
Isolated Power (ISO)
Walk-to-Strikeout Rate (BB/K)
Batting Average on Balls in Play (BABIP)
Earned Run Average (ERA)
Walks + Hits Per Inning Pitched (WHIP)
Runs Allowed per 9 (RA9)
Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP)
Expected FIP (xFIP)
Strikeout Rate (K%)
Walk Rate (BB%)
Home Run Rate (HR%)
Plus Stats, such as OPS+, wRC+, FIP+, ERA+, xFIP

If you've ever wondered What Is wOBA? What is OPS? What is wRC+? This is the video for you. This is also a video for people who want to know about more classic stats. Maybe you wonder What is Batting Average? What is ERA in Baseball?

The full series will be as follows:

#1: Counting Stats & History
#2: Rate Stats and "+" Stats (you are here)
#3: Defensive Stats (non-Statcast)
#4: Statcast
#5: WAR & Related Stats (and corrections / omissions)

I hope you'll stick around for the next video in the series.

[jasonwang]

Incredible video! Are you still hoping to release the other 3 parts? I think your episode on WAR is going to help demystify a very important yet very convoluted stat in baseball.

[bigfish]

please finish this 😢 incredible way to put all of this together

[lizsayro]

I can't believe you don't have more subs or views! I just found your channel and am thoroughly enjoying it! My partner's family is really into cricket and I found that vid very useful! I'm really into baseball so I'll definitely rec this series to them! You're so informative and thorough, thank you!! looking forward to the rest :)

[Whitsoxrule]

Yet another baseball video from you where I knew most of it but still enjoyed the video. Will definitely share this series with friends learning the game.
Also seeing a scale for each stat from poor to elite was very informative. For example I never realized that the difference between an elite pitcher and a poor one in terms of WHIP was just a single baserunner every other inning. Gives me a better idea of how to evaluate a pitcher's WHIP. Great stuff, look forward to more

[josephgavinsyverson]

Your fans are waiting for the next video in this incredible series!

[jl]

Probably the best way I’ve ever heard all of the stats explained

[TheClockingbird]

Thanks for making one of the most concise (and well-produced) videos about baseball stats yet! I've already been using these as a go-to for people who don't yet understand the stats and your way of explaining them really helps them understand. I still use them for review for myself as well! I can't wait to see the rest of this series, so keep it up!

[TheManish]

Thanks for all the hardwork! Waiting for the next part of this series!

[TheEstebandido]

Wow, I cant belive this doesnt have a million views

[numchuck]

Really hoping you finish this series. Very clearly presented !!

[frostbite]

Your videos are really good man and I’m not just saying that I’m actually for real! Like I’m so surprised you don’t much more views. Literally your videos have everything. I’m going to help ya get your name out there.

[andrewstallings]

Homerun for the algorithm. Glad I found your channel.

[SamOliver]

Other than the SIERA thing that you acknowledge at the end, I think the only other thing I would have mentioned is that the rate- and park-adjusted pitching stats that are most commonly used are technically "minus" stats, not "plus" stats, like ERA-, FIP-, etc. This isn't simply a pedantic correction because ERA+, FIP+, etc. are real stats, it's just that their reciprocals of the "minus" stats. Like, for example, ERA+ is (league ERA) / (player ERA) whereas ERA- is (player ERA) / (league ERA). This is important because it's the "minus" pitching stats that are comparable to the "plus" batting stats in their interpretation, which happens because ERA and FIP are stats you want to minimize while OPS and wOBA are stats you want to maximize.

For example, a pitcher with an ERA- of 86 has an ERA that is 14% LOWER (better!) than the league, whereas that same pitcher's ERA+ might be, I dunno, maybe 117 or something, which would mean the league has an ERA that is 17% HIGHER (worse!) than the pitcher. These percentage differentials are not the same because the denominator is changing; for example, 3 is 50% larger than 2 (3/2 * 100 = 1.5, 1.5 - 1 = 0.5), but 2 is not 50% smaller than 3, it's 33.3% smaller than 3 (2/3 * 100 = 0.66..., 0.66... - 1 = -0.33...).

Otherwise, this video was excellent, and I hope you get to finish the series soon!

[PendragonDaGreat]

I think you should have made a quick distinction when it comes to the "Innings Pitched" used in ERA/WHIP/etc. versus the counting stat of Innings Pitched.

Let's say a pitcher goes for 7.2 innings with 2 earned runs. The calculation for ERA should be (7.6666/2)x9=2.35 versus the naïve (7.2/2)x9=2.5

Granted, as the number of innings increases the discrepancy massively decreases, but it can still exist, especially for specialist elite closers that have absurdly low ERAs already.

Overall though a great explanation.

[Observeman]

Great Video! I’d love to see defensive stats such as DRS & OOA explained.

[OpinionatedPeach]

Life long baseball fan. Needed this, tired of not knowing what my mlb THE SHOW stats mean :)

[mcstripey]

So cool to see you’re still working on it!!!

[shorty]

Thank you! This video was very helpful. I'm new to the MLB betting world, and I'm always seeing cappers using these terms but didn't know what they stand for. 🙌🙌🙌

[shaqsquacks]

You’re awesome bro I can’t wait to watch this channel blow up

[etcredsox]

I’ve watched this video around 6 or 7 times now, and it’s extremely helpful, so thank you, I’m looking forward to the rest of the series

One thing I’m a little puzzled about is why people aren’t using plus stats on tv more often. It completely eliminates the need for fans to know what a good stat is vs what a bad stat is. And for a sport that needs new fans, I’d say that’s a pretty big barrier to entry.

Would love to hear your thoughts on this.