Blog Entry 1: https://www.bennettspeicher.com/post/ops-is-the-new-rage
Hello all and welcome to my baseball analytics blog. In this entry I will be comparing the following statistics that are commonly used in baseball today: Batting Average (BA), On Base Percentage (OBP), Slugging Percentage (SP), and On Base Plus Slugging (OPS).
Historically, Statisticians have created various statistics to measure and compare players. Statistics are an essential aspect of baseball as they allow scouts, managers, and owners to evaluate a player compared to others while not having to see the player in person. However, some statistics are better than others.
The most simple and commonly known statistic is Batting Average (BA). BA measures how often a player gets a hit and is calculated by (total number of hits)/(total number of at bats). This is a simple and useful statistic, but sometimes it does not give the full picture of a player. For example, imagine if one player gets 5 singles in 10 at bats and has a corresponding BA of .500 while another player hits 4 home runs in 10 at bats with a BA of .400. Just based off of batting average, the first player is better, but this is incredibly misleading. Almost anyone would rather have a player hit 4 home runs.
Slugging Percentage (SP) is a great measurement for power as it is simply (total bases)/(total at bats). SP allows one to see how many total bases per at bat a player has which can signal whether a player is a power hitter or not. A similar statistic measuring how often a player gets on base is on base percentage (OBP) and is calculated by (total times on base)/(total at bats). OBP is in a sense the opposite of SP because it gives insight into how good a player is at reaching base, but gives no insight into how that player reaches base, whether that be via a walk, single, double, triple, or home run.
Finally, the most important statistic in my opinion is on base plus slugging (OPS) which is simply (OBP) + (SP). OPS is the most important and most inclusive statistic because it captures at a glance a given player’s power, as well as how often they get on base. A player who gets on base all the time but has no power might have a similar OPS as a player who only hits home runs and does not get on base as often. OPS gives a much more complete picture, and it can show a well-rounded player vs. a one dimensional player. By only using BA, OBP, and SP, managers and coaches often find themselves at a disadvantage because they end up with a player who can only do one thing. Just like all sports, players who are versatile and can excel at all aspects of the game are more valuable than those who specialize in one particular area. I have attached a couple articles that touch on OPS and why it is such a valuable statistic and compare OPS to other baseball statistics.
Thank you for reading and next time I will be back with some defensive statistics to flip the table!
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