January 21, 2015

Fantasy Infographic

Second Base

by Mauricio Rubio

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Graphics Primer

Second base is the first position we’ve covered that features variability in individual skill sets. There are some hitters who can hit 20-25 home runs, some players who can steal 30-plus bases, and some players who can provide a substantial amount of everything in standard 5x5 leagues. It creates for a variety of different shapes. Take these for example:

Notes

There was a recent comment about how these are harder to read now, referencing these as globs. The commenter did add that he will get used to looking at them, but let’s take a step back and think about the information being conveyed here. The charts attempt to visualize where each individual player projects to provide value. After a quick glance, the hope is that you’ll be able to pick up where a player can help and hurt you relative to the position. Radar charts tend to convey that quickly because you can see where the shape is fuller and where it is lacking. Hopefully that explanation illuminates the aim a bit better.

Now, let’s talk about Jurickson Profar who has a tiny graph. His small output is due to PECOTA not liking his playing-time projections in 2015. We still like him moderately, as you’ll see in the bid chart below.

Dee Gordon and Brian Dozier are interesting to me as polar opposites in the four-star category, and for that reason I like their charts the most.

Mauricio Rubio is an author of Baseball Prospectus. Follow @MRubio52
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