Comments on: No Enthusiasm Curbed for Derek Jeter

By: Sean

Sean — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:51:52 +0000

Jeter bashing is a perfect example of statheads gone awry. Stats are an imperfect way to try to take something that is imperfect and make it perfect. It NEVER works. How many of the esteemed statheads have ever gone to watch 30 games of Spring Training or Arizona Fall League? Its like that situation where that one writer (wont name him) was shut out of the Baseball Writers of America or whatever its called, with the reason being that he NEVER went to the ballpark, yet he thought he knew everything there is to know about baseball. That is why statheads are wrong, and it was cool to hear Tim McCarver call you all out on national television. Statheads like to think to themselves as being smarter than everyone when actually its the exact opposite. Stats are just a partial reflection of what takes place on the field. Baseball is not just a game of numbers. The bottom line is that it doesnt matter how good you are, and it doesnt matter how well you rate players, it will ALWAYS fail you because a player is only as good as the opportunity that is given to him. That is what most of you need to learn. Jeter was given the opportunity to Captain the Yankees from the SS position from a young age and he has handled it perfectly. Jeter is God, and if you got shit to say about that lets hear it? He will be playing another 5-10 years and he will have more hits than Pete Rose, so there you go.

By: Jesse

Jesse — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:06:33 +0000

Just a quick note to everyone who says Jeter was average defensively in 2008, his Plus/Minus was -12 (tied for fourth worst in MLB) and his TotalZone+ifDP was -5. He was average by UZR, but far below average by Plus/Minus and below average by TZ.

Since he graded out above average by UZR this season, I’m interested to see how he does in the other ratings, my guess is that he was probably closer to average or slightly below.

By: Logan

Logan — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:49:02 +0000

I don’t get this back-and-forth argument on whether or not Jeter’s offense and positional adjustment compensate for his lack of range. That’s the whole reason WAR was created. DJ has compiled 40 wins above replacement through 8 years of data (2002-2009). That’s 5 a season, and he’s probably compiled similar or greater numbers in the pre-WAR era. five-win/year x fifteen years = one of the best players of an era. There’s no real way around it.

(And I hate the Yankees, btw).

By: Alireza

Alireza — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 06:50:54 +0000

Cal Ripken, Jr. was a much better defensive SS and is 6’4″. Alex Rodriguez is 6’3″ and both was and likely is a better defensive SS. In fact, Jeter and A-Hole probably should swap positions given their relative skill sets.

Anyway, Jeter’s defense isn’t the worst ever, and he has taken steps to improve it, but he just never deserved to be anywhere near a gold glove. His offense, on the other hand, is spectacular.

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:11:05 +0000

“Plus where signs are located, the location of the fans, what color the fans are typically wearing, wall paint, ads, air temperature, air currents in the stadium, and air pressure will all each have small affects that are probably significant on a ball and how easy it is to catch.”

Intuitively, a new ballpark doesn’t seem likely to account for Jeter’s improvement. Are there home/away fielding splits that suggest a new ballpark effect contributing to this improvement?

By: Tom B

Tom B — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:45:20 +0000

i don’t see how the park matters, jeter isn’t missing balls he gets to…

By: CJ

CJ — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:42:13 +0000

Curb Your Enthusiasm is one of my favorite shows…but I DVR’d it last night because of the World Series. Now I know something to look forward to when I watch it.

By: PhD Brian

PhD Brian — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:31:29 +0000

I am a Yankee hater, but Jeter’s numbers defensively are hugely improved this season. He was far from the bad defender he has been in the past! However, I think there are two primary factors helping this: He is in a brand new park with a slightly more predictable surface. He went from a bad defensive to a great defensive first basemen. The first most likely matters more than the second, but both have got to help. Not one of the defensive statistics I know take park effects into account. I have no idea why. An old park with an old surface is going to bounce the ball differently than a turf surface or even a newer grass surface with a better engineered grass. Plus where signs are located, the location of the fans, what color the fans are typically wearing, wall paint, ads, air temperature, air currents in the stadium, and air pressure will all each have small affects that are probably significant on a ball and how easy it is to catch. So I’ll bet going from old Yankee stadium to the new Yankee stadium had an affect on all the Yankee players defensive skills and in most cases actually helped them.

By: Eric R

Eric R — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:27:52 +0000

Using an eight-year period he ranked 12th [+/- 1.6 wins, 10th-13th]; zero out his TZ only and he jumps 5th [5th-6th]. To, again, get in front of A-Rod for 2nd he would need to go from -64 runs to +113 runs; which again would be the best in the period behind, again, Pujols at +99 runs.

By: PhD Brian

PhD Brian — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:20:51 +0000

He is playing in a brand new park. That has to help his fielding numbers!