Padre Starting Lineup By Sprint Speed
Sprint speed defined: Statcast’s foot speed metric, defined as “feet per second in a player’s fastest one-second window” on individual plays. This metric does a lot in measuring max speed. BsR conversely is “Base Running (BsR) is FanGraphs’ all encompassing base running statistic that turns stolen bases, caught stealings, and other base running plays (taking extra bases, being thrown out on the bases, etc) into runs above and below average.” While speed is a valuable asset, baserunning skill is more indicative of the value a player brings. The fastest runners do not always result in the highest BsR’s. Below is the Statcast data and BsR’s from 2018.
ELITE 30 ft/sec
Fernando Tatis Jr. *** 29.7 ft/sec -0.2 BsR
Manual Margot 29.4 ft/sec -1.4 BsR
Wil Myers 28.1 ft/sec 3.7 BsR
AVERAGE 27 ft/sec
Franmil Reyes 26.8 ft/sec -0.3 BsR
Ian Kinsler 26.6 ft/sec 0.8 BsR
Eric Hosmer 26.6 ft/sec -4.2 BsR
Manny Machado 26.3 ft/sec 1.2 BsR
Austin Hedges 25.9 ft/sec -1.6 BsR
POOR 23 ft/sec
Notably in this list Manual Margot has shown poor baserunning and a very high Caught Stealing rate despite a nearly elite spring speed. Manny Machado and Ian Kinsler on the other hand while exhibiting below average speed have been more valuable on the base paths. Compared to the rest of the league in 2018, Fernando Tatis Jr would be tied for 15th league-wide. Tatis is showing nearly elite speed this season, last year Manual Margot was the fastest Padre ranking 24th. While BsR can be a pretty volatile statistic, it could be an area of improvement for the team with the likes of Fernando Tatis Jr. joining the squad and upgrades around the diamond.
***Stats from 2019.
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