I have a very basic question about ratings. If a guy has good contact, power and eye (all around 80 or better), can he still produce if he has splits in the 40's or 50's?

absolutely.

Define "produce".

Cuz I ain't puttin' no 40-something splits in the middle of my lineup, no matter what else he has going on.

With 80+ otherwise in the hitting department, and a good glove, I could put someone like that in the 7-hole, I guess.

Keep in mind that "splits" are a term that became popular in the forums, world chats, etc.

When admin talks about splits, they use the term "effectiveness against righties/ies".

I'd rather not have anyone below the 50th percentile in "effectiveness" doing anything at the ML level.

OK. Does anything change if the guy has 80+ speed and 80+ baserunning ability? Am I looking at a Mike Cameron type guy? I could live with that in some cases.

Good speed, eye, and contact make for decent leadoff/table-setting types, in my experience.

I'd still want a young Mike Cameron's glove, tho, to go with it!

Meet Jay Black.

Only a 43 vs LH, so by the logic of some he's not ML level vs LH bats, despite having very good ratings in the other categories.

S10 vs LH - .340/.387/.681
S9 vs LH - .288/.361/.598
S8 vs LH - .276/.326/.570
S7 vs LH - .280/.331/.559

He's may not be the MVP candidate he is vs. RH, but he's still serviceable (IMO) vs LH, despite the 43 split.

It really depends on your park and what you want out of a player. If you live in a power hitters' paradise, and you have a guy whose splits look something like 80/80/40/40/80, he will probably be a very good hitter because many of his fly balls will turn into home runs. Put that same guy into an extreme pitchers' park and you're probably looking at still-good power with low batting average.

It also depends on a player's role. If a guy has fielding ratings of 90/90/90/90, I would barely think twice before making him my everyday SS with batting splits of 80/80/40/40/80. Hell, I'd put him in my lineup with splits of 40/40/40/40/40. But that's a matter of role and personal preference.

I will say that I prefer hitters with good splits, and I try to keep anything below 60 out of my lineup. I have seen guys with terrible contact and power ratings still produce quality numbers with splits in the 80's or 90's. It seems to be the same with pitchers, where even a guy with mediocre control and pitch ratings can be a stud with splits in the 90's. That's just my personal feeling, though.

Quote: Originally Posted By zbrent716 on 3/25/2010Meet Jay Black.

Only a 43 vs LH, so by the logic of some he's not ML level vs LH bats, despite having very good ratings in the other categories.

S10 vs LH - .340/.387/.681
S9 vs LH - .288/.361/.598
S8 vs LH - .276/.326/.570
S7 vs LH - .280/.331/.559

He's may not be the MVP candidate he is vs. RH, but he's still serviceable (IMO) vs LH, despite the 43 split

A single split is very different than both, but since he's got those funky "reverse" splits, you can throw most logic out the window.

Give him 43 vR, and you've got yourself a AAA star, nothing more.

Ricardo Martinez

terrible splits, pretty good production 2 out of 3 years. it can happen.

Quote: Originally posted by iain on 3/25/2010

Quote: Originally Posted By zbrent716 on 3/25/2010Meet Jay Black.

Only a 43 vs LH, so by the logic of some he's not ML level vs LH bats, despite having very good ratings in the other categories.

S10 vs LH - .340/.387/.681
S9 vs LH - .288/.361/.598
S8 vs LH - .276/.326/.570
S7 vs LH - .280/.331/.559

He's may not be the MVP candidate he is vs. RH, but he's still serviceable (IMO) vs LH, despite the 43 split.

A single split is very different than both, but since he's got those funky "reverse" splits, you can throw most logic out the window.Give him 43 vR, and you've got yourself a AAA star, nothing more.

I gave only his splits on his weakness (43). You don't think that his high vs RH splits somehow impacts his effectiveness vs LH pitching, do you? If not, he is a fine example of a lower split(43)/higher everything else player.

I would bat 80/80/40/40/80 at any position except 1B and DH.

Pedro Figureoa only has a 46 contact to go along with his 32 vR, but 85 power and 90 eye make up for it. His line against right-handers so far:

S13: .243/.303/.520 (173 ABs)
S14: .247/.328/.480 (275 ABs)
S15: .234/.286/.423 (111 ABs less than halfway through the season)

So he's OPS'ing almost .800 against righties, which I'm happy with, especially since he plays a solid SS as well.

Augie Oliver has only a 49 vR, but is OPS'ing high .700s for his career against righties.

Vic Andujar has a career OPS of .827, which is pretty impressive considering his absolutely dreadful splits. He was mostly platooned against ies, but his vL is still only 37. Not enough to pay a 1B more than his pre-arb deal, but if he could play 2B I would have kept him around.

Quote: Originally Posted By zbrent716 on 3/25/2010

Quote: Originally posted by iain on 3/25/2010

Quote: Originally Posted By zbrent716 on 3/25/2010Meet Jay Black.

Only a 43 vs LH, so by the logic of some he's not ML level vs LH bats, despite having very good ratings in the other categories.

S10 vs LH - .340/.387/.681
S9 vs LH - .288/.361/.598
S8 vs LH - .276/.326/.570
S7 vs LH - .280/.331/.559

He's may not be the MVP candidate he is vs. RH, but he's still serviceable (IMO) vs LH, despite the 43 split

A single split is very different than both, but since he's got those funky "reverse" splits, you can throw most logic out the window.

Give him 43 vR, and you've got yourself a AAA star, nothing more.

I gave only his splits on his weakness (43). You don't think that his high vs RH splits somehow impacts his effectiveness vs LH pitching, do you? If not, he is a fine example of a lower split(43)/higher everything else player

No, but I think being a RH hitter gives him an advantage against LHPs, as he'll typically be subjected to a LHP's weaker (vR) split.

Plus defense helps, but this guys splits are in the 20's and I like him. First time I have ever used a guy with splits that low. SSS and all for this season, but I can live with a .386 OBP. Overall, he's proven himself to be a useful #8 hitter.

Along the lines of iaiaiaian's comment:

Which affects hitting stats more, the vLH/vRH split ratings or the fact that you might be a righty hitting against a y (or vice versa)?

IOW, if you have a RHB with 60/60/60/60/60 ratings, will he have similar stats vs. ies and righties, or will he still get that little 5-10% SLB boost against opposite hand pitchers?