The Ottawa Lynx In April (Part Three-Fielding)

It has seemed obvious from the last two segments of the Lynx in April that the Lynx defence has been the most consistent and important part of their game in April. We looked at the pitching breakdowns yesterday and with the large amount of base runners allowed coupled with a fairly decent team ERA, and with not much offense to speak of, a simple process of elimination should lead us to the above conclusion. But traditional fielding stats really don’t tell us very much and the evolving modernization of those stats can make for more complicated reading than the various time travel theories presented by the world’s leading physicists. Therefore, I am not going to delve into such calculations because, after all, baseball is supposed to be fun isn’t it? Instead, although I will quota a few general statistics. My summation of the Lynx defence in the month of April will be much more subjective than my discussion of hitting and pitching.

Ottawa have had a very consistent lineup, something vital to the all important up the middle defence of any team. The majority of balls are usually hit to the second baseman, shortstop, centre fielder and the action begins when the pitcher throws the ball to the catcher. If a team is saddled with a good hit but poor field player, left field is generally where they try to hide him. First base is another place a team will stash this type of player, reasoning that most of the plays he will have to make will be catching throws from other infielders and how difficult can that be? But then you probably know all of that if you follow baseball regularly. Keep in mind that this theory is by no means an inditement of players who find themselves in those positions with Ottawa. It is merely a general observation and rule of thumb and we know how traditional baseball people can be. Yes, there are always exceptions especially in those leagues which use the DH as these players can be safely seated in the dugout away from the action on the field.

Ottawa had the second best fielding percentage in the IL,(.982), and tied Indianapolis with the fewest errors committed. As far as though types of stats go, a good month. Joe Thurston has yet to commit an error at second base. No Lynx first baseman has committed an error and Ron Calloway and Lou Collier were also perfect in the field, (errorless). Jason Jaramillo ranked seventh in throwing out would be base stealers.

Do these stats really tell you anything important? It is certainly a good thing not to commit fielding errors. A high fielding percentage is better than a low one. Throwing out potential base stealers is better than allowing stolen bases. How much is all of this helping the pitching staff and thus helping to prevent as many runs as possible? It obviously means something but how much something?

Here are a couple of examples of what I mean. Infielder A doesn’t get to many balls that have more than a slight degree of difficulty, (ie tests his range). Those balls hit at or very near him are being turned into outs most of the time but he is allowing a lot of balls to get by him resulting in hits. His fielding percentage is high and his error total is low. He doesn’t usually make the tough, clutch double play but will only get the force out. His traditional fielding stats look good on paper. Player B has much better range but in reaching balls hit in the holes or up the gaps, has a much greater chance of committing an error even though he may be limiting the advance of base runners by preventing balls from getting by him. His fielding percentage will likely be lower and his error total higher. His traditional stats are not as good as player A. But which player would you rather have? As long as player B is making the routine plays as well, player B would be my pick. Outfield putouts don’t give you any indication of a players range and the importance of the catch. A two out bases loaded line drive is a tougher catch to make than a two out bases empty line drive.

Catching stats indicating the percentage of base stealers thrown out can mean one of two things. The catcher with a poor percentage may have a weak arm-or the pitching staff is poor at holding runners on. If a catcher’s percentage is good, the catcher may still have a weak arm but the pitching staff are very good at holding runners close. Of course, it can also mean that the catcher has a great arm.

To break down a teams fielding it is necessary to see them in action day after day. These are my observations after 19 games in the month of April.

Catching: Jason Jaramillo has been very good. In addition to showing off a strong arm he has handled the pitching staff effectively. He caught the majority of the Lynx games in April.

Infield: The corners, Brennan King at third and three different players at first, have been very steady making all the routine plays and were not tested often in April. Our regular short stop, Danny Sandoval hasn’t shown great range but he too has been steady. However, Sandoval and second baseman Joe Thurston have been one of the most efficient double play combinations in the IL. Our pitchers had the ability to get the ground ball to either short or second when in a tight jam and the Sandoval/Thurston combination turned double play after double play, often on balls that couldn’t be called routine. Thurston was spectacular at times and made all the routine plays.

Outfield: The star of the outfield in April was centre fielder Chris Roberson. Simply put-he caught anything and everything using his tremendous speed to simply out run many balls hit into the gap which could just as easily been doubles or even triples. None of the outfielders are blessed with particularly strong arms but they seldom missed the cutoff man thereby keeping runners from advancing an extra base and keeping the double play in order. The corner outfielders have been average, a luxury a centre fielder such as Roberson allows.

Overall I would rank the defence above average and at times even spectacular, (Roberson and Thurston), in April. It’s what allowed Ottawa to finish over .500. They’ll need it to continue into the month of May.