Kiermaier. Easily.

To further elaborate on that, I think Kiermaier has much better positioning. I would give Pillar a slightly better grade in terms of getting jumps and taking good routes to balls. Kiermaier just has an incredible innate ability to take excellent starting positions, beyond what everybody has from analytics these days.

I would like to see what statcast has to say about this. They have the route efficiency tracker, couple that with max run speed, and it could easily show who has the best range and/or defense

Unfortunately the data isn't available to the general public...

What is available is the Inside Edge fielding data. This actually appears to suggest that Kiermaier wins on all fronts - his proportion of easier plays is higher, which may reflect his positioning. The sample sizes are pretty small, so it may be random, but the gap is pretty significant. However, Kiermaier also appears to be better at making the plays. Pillar is measurably better at routine plays, though. So he may have a more reliable glove.

Kiermaier
Play Type	Impossible (0%)	Remote (1-10%)	Unlikely (10-40%)	Even (40-60%)	Likely (60-90%)	Routine (90-100%)
Number	116	37	17	11	45	852
% of Plays	10.8%	3.4%	1.6%	1.0%	4.2%	79.0%
% Converted	0.0%	16.2%	47.1%	81.8%	93.3%	99.4%
Pillar
Play Type	Impossible (0%)	Remote (1-10%)	Unlikely (10-40%)	Even (40-60%)	Likely (60-90%)	Routine (90-100%)
Number	163	33	27	22	32	838
% of Plays	14.6%	3.0%	2.4%	2.0%	2.9%	75.2%
% Converted	0.0%	12.1%	70.4%	68.2%	90.6%	99.8%

PIllar definitely commits fewer errors.

Toronto just finished a series at home against Cleveland, and a lot of the media attention was on the return of Edwin Encarnicion (signed by the Indians in the off-season). Especially happy to see him again was his Blue Jay teammate of eight seasons Jose Bautista, who the other day said of Encarnicion, "He’s more than a friend to me now. He’s what I consider a part of my family."

I checked Encarnacion's b-r.com page and noticed under the "Similar Batters" list that #1 is...Jose Bautista!



Believe It or Don't!

I'm just glad I finally had something to celebrate for my Rangers this season after Napoli's walk off bomb last night. Maybe this is the catalyst to inject some fun and life back into my team. It's been a brutal start for us for sure (come back Beltre!).

Here's Steve Pearce, stealing Pillar's bit!

Dang, I would not have guessed that alias... honestly not in a million years.

Miggy Cabrera just made a great play on the basepaths coming back to first ahead of the tag on a groundball. Illustrates how incredibly well he innately understands the game. Feels like a counterintuitive decision to go back on a groundball, but it was the only way he could avoid the double play.

I watched the Braves' Dansby Swanson hit the go-ahead HR against Toronto tonight. Thought to myself, "Dansby Swanson. Sounds like the name of a guy from Thurston Howell's country club, or maybe a crooked senator from Alabama or Georgia." Looked him up on b-r.com, and he is indeed from the great the state of Georgia. Dansby Swanson.

Traded to the Braves by the Diamondbacks for (RHP) Shelby Miller.................... now on the DL after surgery on his arm.................

Ouch!

Posted by crazystengel on 5/17/2017 1:58:00 AM (view original):
I watched the Braves' Dansby Swanson hit the go-ahead HR against Toronto tonight. Thought to myself, "Dansby Swanson. Sounds like the name of a guy from Thurston Howell's country club, or maybe a crooked senator from Alabama or Georgia." Looked him up on b-r.com, and he is indeed from the great the state of Georgia. Dansby Swanson.

When I hear the name "Dansby Swanson", I always draw a mental picture of Dabney Coleman, the actor who had rolse in The Twering Inferno, 9 to 5, Tootsie and others. He may be best known to TV viewers as the old-fashioned sportswriter, Slap Maxwell.