caulfield12 Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 https://www.mlb.com/news/best-projected-mlb-team-defenses-2024 This is easily our favorite projection, because Chicago was straight up bad with the glove last year – ranked last in MLB, in fact – to the point that new GM Chris Getz said he was having difficulty convincing free-agent pitchers to sign with the team for fear of playing in front of that defense. We figured he’d improve the gloves, and he has, but we thought it might be “poor, but better.” Instead, it might actually be good? If it is, it’s because the returning Luis Robert Jr. is an excellent defender, and new middle infielders Nicky Lopez and Paul DeJong always play strong defense, even if the bats might lag. Max Stassi didn’t play in 2023 for personal reasons, but he had for years been an excellent framer. There are still weak spots here – notably Andrew Benintendi in left and Andrew Vaughn at first – but as we said above, up-the-middle fielding is more valuable than corner fielding. Less time in the field given to Oscar Colás and Gavin Sheets should help, and veterans who had seen better days than they showed in 2023 like Tim Anderson and Yasmani Grandal have departed. It's a different roster now. The White Sox don’t have to be, and won’t be, baseball’s best defensive team. They might be the most improved, though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
South Side Hit Men Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 Does not compute. FanGraphs 2024 Fielding Projections: (Cumulative Team Fielding Rating) 34.9 Cleveland 27.9 Texas 23.0 New York A. L. 22.0 Toronto 19.7 Arizona 18.7 Baltimore 17.3 San Diego 16.8 Chicago N. L. 16.0 Milwaukee 15.7 New York N. L. 14.6 Minnesota 11.6 San Francisco 10.1 Colorado 9.2 Atlanta 6.8 Seattle 4.2 Chicago A. L. 1.2 Tampa Bay -0.4 Houston -1.3 Pittsburgh -2.5 Philadelphia -3.0 Detroit -5.1 Los Angeles N. L. -6.9 Boston -7.3 Saint Louis -10.0 Miami -12.8 Kansas City -14.8 Cincinnati -18.1 Washington -19.3 Oakland -33.1 Los Angeles A. L. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmags Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 We damn well better be top 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tnetennba Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KipWellsFan Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 35 minutes ago, South Side Hit Men said: Does not compute. FanGraphs 2024 Fielding Projections: (Cumulative Team Fielding Rating) 34.9 Cleveland 27.9 Texas 23.0 New York A. L. 22.0 Toronto 19.7 Arizona 18.7 Baltimore 17.3 San Diego 16.8 Chicago N. L. 16.0 Milwaukee 15.7 New York N. L. 14.6 Minnesota 11.6 San Francisco 10.1 Colorado 9.2 Atlanta 6.8 Seattle 4.2 Chicago A. L. 1.2 Tampa Bay -0.4 Houston -1.3 Pittsburgh -2.5 Philadelphia -3.0 Detroit -5.1 Los Angeles N. L. -6.9 Boston -7.3 Saint Louis -10.0 Miami -12.8 Kansas City -14.8 Cincinnati -18.1 Washington -19.3 Oakland -33.1 Los Angeles A. L. Do we really trust defensive metrics yet? While they sometimes seem to get the larger picture right, the numbers seem so inconsistent. A player will be in like the 3rd percentile for OAA one year and then in the 99th percentile the next year... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeC Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 1 hour ago, KipWellsFan said: Do we really trust defensive metrics yet? While they sometimes seem to get the larger picture right, the numbers seem so inconsistent. A player will be in like the 3rd percentile for OAA one year and then in the 99th percentile the next year... I think it's more believable / useful as a team stat than as an individual stat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
South Side Hit Men Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 1 hour ago, KipWellsFan said: Do we really trust defensive metrics yet? While they sometimes seem to get the larger picture right, the numbers seem so inconsistent. A player will be in like the 3rd percentile for OAA one year and then in the 99th percentile the next year... I trust them more than media, FO and Manager proclamations / eyeball tests. There is a wider difference between systems for defensive metrics vs. hitting or pitching. Proprietary systems clubs use internally are ahead of what fans can access. All that said, mid level defense would be an improvement over last year, and that’s likely where they land. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chitownsportsfan Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 1 hour ago, South Side Hit Men said: I trust them more than media, FO and Manager proclamations / eyeball tests. There is a wider difference between systems for defensive metrics vs. hitting or pitching. Proprietary systems clubs use internally are ahead of what fans can access. All that said, mid level defense would be an improvement over last year, and that’s likely where they land. I'd make a reasoned guess that in aggregate it's easier to project than at the individual level. The Sox will probably have an above average defense, cool. But defense is downstream of pitching and our pitching is probably going to suck. Hard to make a lot of plays when the ball is rifling over your head out of the ballpark or rattling into the corner. It's ironic the Sox finally recognize defense now that the pitching and hitting are awful enough for it to make little difference. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeC Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Defensive efficiency will be solid, and that's probably the one and only area where this team will be better than average. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted March 1 Author Share Posted March 1 DJ read the article and just said we were going to be 7th. Well, maybe not based on Spring Training play...obviously a lot of mistakes by youngsters. But not exactly encouraging performances, either. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nrockway Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Oscar held up his swing on a called strike on the outside corner, the next pitch he swung at a ball that would've gone through the 5-hole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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