Baseball Statistics Explained -

If you’re unfamiliar with baseball statistics, it can seem like there’s a never ending stream of acronyms and abbreviations in every game. Baseball uses many statistics to determine a player’s value, and most of those statistics are expressed as abbreviations. Here we will discuss a few of the most common statistics and what exactly they mean. This is not a complete list of baseball statistics.

Batting Average (AVG)

A hitter’s batting average is the number of hits they get divided by the number of officials at-bats. At-bats are different from the number of times they come to the plate, which we will discuss shortly. For example, if a batter has four at-bats in a game and gets one hit, he gets a hit .25 or 25% of the time. Baseball shows batting averages as three digits past the decimal, or in this case, .250.

At-Bats and Plate Appearances (AB and PA)

There is a small difference between ABs and PAs. Plate appearances are the total number of times a player comes to bat, regardless of the outcome. At-bats are whenever a batter goes to the plate and records either a hit or an out (other than a sacrifice out). Outcomes that do not count as at-bats include walks, hit-by-pitch, and sacrifice outs.

Earned Run Average (ERA)

The number of earned runs a pitcher gives up over nine innings is called his Earned Run Average. It’s averaged over nine innings because that’s how many innings a full game is. If a pitcher pitches all nine innings and gives up one earned run, his ERA is 1.00. However, if he gives up one run but only pitches six innings, his ERA is 1.50. Earned runs are any runs that the pitcher gives up that are charged to him. If a run scores because of an error, that run is considered unearned and does not affect a pitcher’s ERA.

Walks and Hits Per Innings Pitched (WHIP)

Pretty straightforward. Add the number of hits with the number of walks a pitcher gives up, and divide by the number of innings he pitched. If he gives up six hits and one walk over six innings, his WHIP is 1.1667 rounded to 1.17. A WHIP under 1.30 is considered very good.

Bases on Balls and Hit by Pitch (BB and HBP)

Bases on balls is also called walks. During each at-bat, if a batter takes four pitches outside of the strike zone before they make an out, they are awarded first base. Similarly, if any part of a batter’s body is hit by a pitched ball, they are awarded first base. Both BB and HBP do not count as ABs and do not increase AVG, but they both increase a batter’s OBP and OPS.

Slugging Percentage (SLG)

Slugging is a measurement of how hard a batter hits the ball. The calculation is total bases divided by official at-bats. The math equation looks like this: 1B + 2B(2) + 3B(3) + HR(4)AB. The purpose behind the statistic is to gauge how many bases a player will average each at bat. 4.000 SLG is a homerun each at bat. .500 SLG means the batter averages one base every two at bats.

On-Base Percentage (OBP)

On base percentage refers to how many times a batter safely reaches base base. It can either be from a hit (any hit), walk, or hit by pitch. Reaching base by an error does not count toward your OBP.

On-Base Plus Slugging (OPS)

OPS is a relatively new statistic. Actually, it’s always been around, but people just recently started paying more attention to it. OPS is considered by some to be a better way to judge a batter’s value to their team, as opposed to just using AVG. OPS combines the on-base and slugging percentages. MLB average for OPS is around .750. A great player will have an OPS around 1.000.