Comments on: Byrnes’ BABIP

By: OB

OB — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:59:33 +0000

True enough. Guess we gotta wait for that hit f/x to break down the GBs.

By: HarbingerOfMonotony

HarbingerOfMonotony — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 06:57:59 +0000

The only thing worse than his suckitude is his TV show.
But he can FLIP. That’s gotta be worth a spot on a big league club, no?

By: HarbingerOfMonotony

HarbingerOfMonotony — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 06:12:57 +0000

Flipper Byrnes is a special instance in which you cannot trust your numbers. It’s necessary for one to take their respective nose out of their spreadsheets and watch footage of Eric to truly understand what Mr. Cameron and the collective intelligence of commentators above are trying to quantify with numbers.

Eric has not been unlucky in the sense of BIP simply not falling as frequently as they should. What your BABIP split most likely is reflecting is Eric’s inability to consistently put solid contact on the ball — which could be either issues with squaring up the ball or with his time — and the result of which is weaker grounders, added hang time on fly balls, and, the topic of this conversation, increased pop-ups.

Take a quick look at Eric’s batting mechanics:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_eR_rmhy7w

Do you see the incredible amounts of head movement? Now take a water bottle — or something similar you can place on a table to be at waist level — and get a good idea of where the cap is. Now close your eyes, and while leaning your upper body forward, move your head off toward your front foot and try to grab the cap of the bottle. That’s essentially what Eric is trying to do when he swings like he does in that video.

You can imagine how difficult that would be if what you were trying to grab — or hit, in this instance — was moving at MLB pitch speeds.

Flipper’s offensive struggles go far beyond what is statistically quantifiable — or rather, when the correct statistics are viewed in the right pattern to create the correct impression of Eric’s ability, it does not tell relay the physical issue(s), only the effect.

So, sure, Eric could certainly be a pet project for some hitting coach who thinks they can correct him on a mental (approach) and physical (mechanics) level. Vicious dogs that attack any and all humans without hesitation can be fixed too, but unless you are absolutely sure of exactly what needs to be done to correct the issue(s) and had the patience to wait for results, would you even bother?

By: pounded clown

pounded clown — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 04:18:09 +0000

In Philly we call that the Jimmy Rollins Method

By: OB

OB — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 02:08:01 +0000

I think Eric Byrnes’ low BABIP is being overthought. Why may it be unlucky? Consider his GB BABIP:

2008: .109!
2009: .214

Whilst his high IFFB% undoubtedly plays into his low BABIP, it is reflected in his below average FB BABIP:

2008: .103
2009: .110

Eric Byrnes is not a good hitter, but he has been unlucky.

By: Toffer Peak

Toffer Peak — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 00:02:26 +0000

It’s too bad Craig Counsell didn’t help him out with his swing back in 06. I’m pretty sure Counsell developed that old funky swing of his to get on top of the ball. Might be the perfect cure for Byrnes.

By: levski

levski — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:25:09 +0000

Just a wild guess, but maybe Eric Byrnes plain sucks? And his suckitude seems to be contagious; check out Chris Young’s IFFB%…

By: quincy0191

quincy0191 — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 22:48:24 +0000

I think he’s a good pickup as a utility OF for a contender on a minor-league deal with an ST invite (or MAYBE league minimum, but that’s pushing it), or a starter for a team that isn’t going anywhere and wants a cheap guy who might produce some excitement. But no team that thinks it’s going to contend (as the D’backs do and should think they will) ought to have this guy on their lineup card every day. Byrnes is just bad.

By: Logan

Logan — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 22:07:47 +0000

Good article.

What would be a possible cause of this? For pitchers, don’t those who throw FB’s with “rise” induce more IFFB? What about hitters? Hmm…

By: joser

joser — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 21:28:45 +0000

I was wondering that too, but if it was possible you’d have thought somebody would’ve done it to him by now. Maybe he’ll find the right magic instructor that “fixes” this, but I wouldn’t count on it.