Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers hold respective edges entering 2018

Cubs, Cardinals lead the pack in terms of infield value

Note the representation of the numbers is in the context of average results per each infielder, however the numbers themselves were derived by assessing the individuals within each team’s position group.

This “normalization” of the data is intended to allow general comparisons that would support determining relative value of, as an example, one of Milwaukee’s outfielders versus a Cubs infielder. For the purposes of rankings, WAR is not factored into the rating but rather is presented for further context around the value of a team’s positional grouping.

Figure 2: Infield Comparison

Breaking it all down

Again, in the “I’m Not Particularly Surprised” department, the Cubs have the edge when it comes to the infield. Since this assessment is more quantitative, one can also deduce that Chicago is roughly 15 percent more productive on the infield than the next-most productive team, the Cardinals. Pittsburgh is far and away the worst of the bunch, which should shock nobody.  The other three slot in about as you would figure they would.

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One interesting observation stood out with this infield ranking. Teams with elite performers at multiple positions – such as the Reds who feature Joey Votto and Eugenio Suarez on the corners – plugging in average-to-below average players in an effort to maximize budget hurts the overall unit. This is somewhat contrary to a strategy predicated on overpaying superstars and shopping the bargain basement to fill out the roster.

Changing how rosters are built

One can hope the prospect pipeline helps fill team voids with young, cheap talent (as it has in the Cubs case). But teams may be better off to move away from the “one big spend” in favor of securing several players that grade above-average. The example I’ll use here is the St. Louis.

When they lost out on Albert Pujols, ownership decided to not replace him with another high-priced slugger. Instead, they committed to hanging on to their mid-tier players and bringing in similar utilitarian types like Jedd Gyorko. While this approach may impact marketing efforts, the reality is teams that employ such an approach avoid teardowns and rebuilds. We should pay close attention to this trend. It may well be the preferred path as teams employ an analytical approach to roster construction.