3 Ways Fans Can Use the Enhanced Game Score Leaderboard

Game score

The original game score metric was introduced by Bill James in the 80s to measure pitcher performance. It presents a figure between 0-100, but more typically, between 40-70. In its original format, a game score of 40 was replacement level, 50 was average, with game scores in the 80s and 90s being considered impressive or outstanding performances. Simply put, a game score is calculated by assessing runs, hits, walks, strikeouts, and innings pitched by a given starter. The starting point of each game score in the original iteration was 50.

Updated Game score

Tom Tango since updated the game score metric, shifting the starting point for a game score to 40, updating the value of walks vs hits, and factoring HR into the metric, which were not part of a pitchers’ line score when the original game score stat was released.

The new tool on Savant is a rolling average of enhanced game score for all pitchers over the last 1,000 days, with more recent games being weighted more heavily. There are a few interesting applications of the enhanced game score tool when examining starting pitchers.

Assessing Free Agent Signings in Context

The leaderboard gives an excellent context for all starting pitchers from 2002 onwards. Additionally, it gives an easy ‘at a glance’ of a specific pitcher’s performance over time.

The above plot of J.A. Happ’s career is a good example. It sets some clear parameters for Happ with the Twins, essentially setting a range of his performances from slightly below average to slightly above average (45-55). Additionally, it helps set context to his extremely poor 2019 as a relative outlier given the years preceding it, in addition to his uptick in a shortened 2020. Happ is a model of solidly average starting pitching, a definite need for the Twins this offseason.

Assessing the Impact of New Front Offices/Coaching Staffs

Another interesting application is assessing the impact new front offices and coaching staffs have on individual pitchers. We’ll use the chart for Kenta Maeda below as an example.

We know the Falvey/Levine front office has placed an emphasis on slider usage during their time leading the organization. Wes Johnson has also been critical in maximizing velocity, approach, and optimizing/tweaking pitch mix for Twins starters since he was hired. Comparing multiple starters across a team after the arrival of a new pitching coach or front office can help us notice organizational trends or approaches to pitching which are working, and others which are not. Maeda’s career chart shows a consistently average starter over his career taking a significant step forwards 2020 after the Twins traded for him.

Ranking Pitchers Against the Competition at a Specific Point in Time

One final application for the leaderboard is assessing starters league ranking by enhanced game score. This is helpful in assessing pitcher performance against the rest of the league and gauging pitcher performance against some of the truly elite pitchers in the league.

The final chart plots Pineda, Berrios, and Maeda against Scherzer (unfair I know). 2020 data shows Maeda had a peak league ranking of 13th, Berrios 17th, and Pineda 49th (Scherzer is 1st for large chunks of 2018-2020). This is effective in assessing the Twins starters in the context of their own rotation, which, while predicted to be the ninth-best in baseball in 2021, seems to be underrated outside the community of Twins fandom. This feature also allows an easy side by side stacking of rotations against each other, to compare across teams.

I’ll be using this leaderboard to track Twins starters throughout the season in addition to helping assess the effectiveness of any other addition to the rotation. If you have any other ideas for its use, drop a comment below.

SEE ALSO

What Does 2021 Hold for Berríos?

5 Things for Twins Fans to Know About J.A. Happ

How the Twins Might Tweak J.A. Happ

Free Agent Faceoff: Jake Odorizzi vs. James Paxton