Thursday, April 28, 2011

What to do when your team can't hit...

As you may know, I have an undying love for the San Diego Padres. I bleed brown. (I should probably get that checked out.)

My boys aren't hitting so good. The Padres team batting average at home has dipped under .200. Ouch. I wanted to know if there was anything I could do to help. I am a helpful guy; I love the Padres; and I have plenty of resources. (Other than money.)

I don't think studying old baseball cards would help much. So, searching around my house for answers, I came across a couple of possible solutions in my bookshelf. I read through Tony Gwynn's The Art of Hitting again.

I don't think these guys need an artist's touch. They need to be fixed, something may be wrong at the molecular level. Thinking of molecules reminded me of Chem lab... Shudder.

Then it hit me... Science!

No. Not steroids. Real Science!

From baseball's preeminent scientist (and home-grown San Diego Legend) Ted Williams!

There is an amazing photo of Ted in this story that shows what his batting average would be based on where a ball is in the strike zone:

I decided to compile the Padres home at bats for the 2011 season and see what the comparison might be:

2011 Padres Home Averages Based on Location of Pitch

Hmmm...

This is tougher than I thought. No wonder the Padres haven't hired me yet.

2 comments:

GCA said...

Besides the fact that to measure the modern strike zone, you'll have to take three rows off the top and bottom of your rectangle...

Goose Joak said...

Travis, A+...loved this!