In baseball there are countless numbers and stats that we can look at. If we aren’t careful we can become consumed with some of the numbers that do not matter as much. In this post I want to talk about a TEAM stat that every coach can use, no matter what level you are at.
What is this stat I am talking about?
K:Free Base Ratio
In this stat, I consider a free base anytime you surrender a walk, HBP, error, wild pitch, passed ball, stolen base, or a balk. From there, simply divide how many batters struck out by the total amount of free bases given up.
What I love about this stat is it brings us back to the fundamentals. From a free base standpoint, it comes down to throwing the ball in the zone and taking care of the baseball. If we can do that, more times than not we are going to give ourselves a great opportunity to win the game. What I love about the strikeout part is that it brings attention to how good our stuff is. Are we developing swing and miss pitches? Are we training for velocity and movement? Are we throwing to optimal locations? If you are able to do these things, we are putting our players in a great position to succeed.
Does This actually help Teams win?
We can see below, at the MLB level there is a strong correlation between K:free base ratio and win%. Although I don’t have the stats for amateur levels, I would argue it is just as important, if not more. The bigger gap there is between strikeouts and free bases, the more likely you are to win.
How can I use this with my team?
I would encourage you to have a whiteboard in the dugout that you use to track this during games. When I coached at Arizona Christian, we would use a whiteboard for various team based stats and the players really responded well to it. We all want to win, but what does it take to actually do that? I think this is a good stat that involves the whole team and can help push towards the common goal of winning.
in conclusion
There are a lot of stats you can use to track success. This is one example of a stat that can apply to the whole team. Find something that your team can gravitate towards and use it as a part of your team culture. I hope you got some value out of this and if you have any questions, please reach out!
Enjoy the Process,
Jared Gaynor
