[bluejays]

Originally Posted by flames_fan_down_under

That's an interesting list.

To leave a lot of runners in scoring position means that you are actually getting a lot of runners in scoring position, ie. you are actually hitting the ball a lot. A team that doesn't leave a lot of runners in scoring position can either be really really good at situational hitting or just not good at even getting runners in scoring position, especially if that number is represented as an average of total runners left in scoring position. For instance it's no coincidence that the "best" teams according to that list, Oakland, Cincinnati, Detroit and Pittsburgh are also four of the 5 worst hitting teams in the majors in team OPS. In fact those teams rank at or near the bottom in every significant hitting stat. At the bottom of the list are the Jays and Dodgers, two of the best hitting teams in the majors.

However I won't refute the fact that the Jays, well Vladdy especially, grounded into a TON of double plays, and this likely had something to do with them being at the bottom of the list as well. The Nationals were first in the majors in GIDP, Jays 3rd,, and Red Sox 5th. Those teams were rated as leaving lots of runners in scoring position according to that chart. Though not all GIDP would mean a runner was in scoring position, there definitely would be situations where that was true.

Where the Jays did struggle though is with a runner on 3rd. They were tied for 2nd last in the majors in OPS with a runner on 3rd. That is likely also a contributing factor to their position on that chart.

For sure. Maybe firing their hitting coach was a wrong thing to say on my part but those runners have to cash in somehow. I really hope they can keep pitchers on their toes by running more this year. Though I still think more can be done by small ball at times I’m going for the single or double instead of the hr. KC years back did a masterful job of it as does Tampa.